When Caleb Lomavita gets selected early in July's MLB Draft, it will be because of his bat.
The Saint Louis alumnus and Ewa Beach native, in all likelihood, has completed his collegiate baseball career at the University of California-Berkeley, where he hit 38 career home runs, slugging .534 along with a .302 batting average as a three-year starter.
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“A lot of maturing. A lot of time being alone, a lot of time learning myself. A lot of time meeting new people," Lomavita said of his time at Cal. "There was a lot of maturing within those three years.”
Lomavita also hit 36 doubles during his time in a Cal uniform, including 13 in both his sophomore and junior seasons. Each time he does so, he forms a 'T' with his arms at second base, an ode to his Tongan heritage.
As a projected Day 1 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, which begins on July 14, Lomavita will join a dearth of past professional baseball players with Tongan descent, limited to names such as Sam Tuivailala and Daniel Devonshire. Tuivailala played in the major leagues from 2014 to 2019 with the St. Louis Cardinals and Seattle Mariners, while Devonshire had a brief stint in the minor leagues with the Toronto Blue Jays organization from 2012 to 2013.
“Tongans, they’re all built like linebackers and they play like monsters, so I was a little short and I think baseball was a great way to show it doesn’t matter about size, it doesn’t matter how big you are, how skinny you are, how muscular you are, as long as you have heart and hard work then you’re gonna make it in the sport," the 5-foot-11 Lomavita said. “I throw the ‘T’ as a double celebration. It was cool when (San Francisco 49ers All-Pro safety Talanoa) Hufanga did it.
“I met Kamo’i Latu In high school and he threw up the ‘T’ a lot when he was making a big sack or a big tackle. That looked cool and it was a good way to represent Tongan culture.”
Lomavita's diverse ethnic background also includes Hawaiian, Chinese, Portuguese and Filipino descent.
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Lomavita was at Campbell's baseball and softball field in his hometown of Ewa Beach on Sunday, giving instruction at Tyson Ross' free "Loyal To My Soil" camp, three weeks to the day until his life will change again. Lomavita, a highly touted draft prospect out of Saint Louis in 2021, bet on himself by taking the college route.
Prior to pitching Saint Louis to an ILH title as the team's ace in 2021, Lomavita also played different positions in both the infield and outfield for the Crusaders. At Cal, he honed in on his work behind the plate as a catcher, where he's projected to stick due to his hitting prowess.
“A lot of commitment, a lot of hard work there," Lomavita said of his progress as a catcher. "A lot of time away from the actual practices, where coaches don’t see it. I put in a lot of work for my team to see success for my team.”
Lomavita also took on the challenge of balancing collegiate baseball with the academic rigors of Cal-Berkeley, the state of California's flagship university.
“Saint Louis made it pretty easy. They prepared me well for college and I think I did really well managing my time," Lomavita says. "It was kind of tough my freshman year, but once I got the hang of practice and weights and how to get the right sleep in, it got a lot easier once I started managing my time.”
A freshman All-American, Lomavita also raised his profile with two strong showings in the Cape Cod League in consecutive summers in both 2022 and 2023. With another strong season in 2024, Lomavita heads into July as a consensus top 50 prospect.
“Keep that competitive spirit, make sure that I play the game the right way, make sure I play like when I was in Hawaii, try to win the games and help my teammates improve every single day and that made it easy, took the pressure away and helped me play like a normal kid on the field,” Lomavita said of his 2024 season in which the Bears went 36-19 and narrowly missed out on an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
“I’m really trying to take it a day at a time. I’m not trying to look too far to the draft because anything can happen. Just really things I can control and making sure everyone’s taken care of around me.”