Jim Strombach is one of the fortunate homegrown athletes who went to the Mainland for college, yet had a free trip home once a year while attending Sacramento State.

The 2002 Moanalua High graduate will play at Les Murakami Stadium for the last time in his collegiate career when the Hornets play Hawai'i this weekend in a crucial three-game Western Athletic Conference series. Although this is the first season the Hornets are in the WAC as an affiliate member since Strombach joined the program in 2003, the senior outfielder will be making his fourth trip in as many seasons to UH.

"It's always special to come back to play in front of family and friends," Strombach said by phone.

Strombach is one of four players from Hawai'i with the Hornets. The others are junior pitcher Chris Mols (Roosevelt '02), sophomore infielder Taylor Watanabe ('Aiea '03) and sophomore catcher Brett Tanigawa (Moanalua '03).

"When I was a kid, I used to go to the UH (baseball) camps and watch the baseball games," Strombach recalled. "Being able to play on the field I used to watch games, it's pretty special."

The Hornets (10-24 overall, 8-7 WAC) were picked to finish last in the seven-team conference in preseason, but they are in a virtual tie for third with the Rainbows (29-12, 7-6) in no small part due to Strombach. He is batting .331, and leads the team with two triples and 11 steals in as many attempts.

Sacramento State took two of three from first-place Louisiana Tech over the weekend. On Saturday, Strombach scored the winning run in the bottom of the 10th for an 11-10 victory. Strombach led off the inning with a double and took third on a sacrifice. Two intentional walks later, Strombach scored on a fielder's choice.

"It felt great," Strombach said. "We were fortunate to take two of three from them and hope we can take that and build on it."

Strombach has put together a nice career at Sacramento State. He entered the season with a .264 career batting average with 34 steals in 39 attempts. He was the only Hornet to start all 57 games last season, batting leadoff the majority of the time. He was second on the team with a .291 batting average and led the Hornets in hits (68), runs (33), doubles (14), triples (2) and steals (15). He was named to the 2005 Rainbow Tournament all-tournament team.

How he landed at Sacramento State was a matter of timing, he said. In 2002, Hornets coach John Smith was in town for a series with the Rainbows, but stopped by to watch Moanalua play 'Aiea. A week later, Smith offered Strombach a scholarship.

"I really enjoy it," Strombach said of being in the California state capital. "It's not like Southern California, where it's always busy. It seems like the more north you go, the style is more laid back. It's not as good as Hawai'i, but it's still a good atmosphere. Everybody's pretty friendly. It's like a home away from home. I've grown fond of Sacramento."

Strombach said if a pro career doesn't materialize after this season, he will complete his degree in kinesiology, probably in the spring of 2007. He hopes to return to Hawai'i and would like to get into coaching.

NOTES

Jim Strombach's parents are Brian and Pearl Barr. The Hornets have an assistant coach named Jim Barr, but he is not related, Strombach said. Jim Barr is a former pitcher with the San Francisco Giants, playing on the same teams in the early 1970s with Bobby Bonds, the late father of Giants outfielder Barry Bonds.

"He tells us a lot of good stories," Strombach said of Barr. "He tells us stories of Bobby Bonds and how he'd seen Barry in the clubhouse."

The Hornets beat UC Davis, 9-6, in a non-conference game yesterday. Strombach was 3 for 5 with a stolen base, triple and his first home run of the season.

Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at skaneshiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.