C’s Chat – 2023 Vancouver Canadians C #20 Kekai Rios – C's Plus Baseball

The latest C’s Chat is with 2023 Vancouver Canadians catcher Kekai Rios.

A native of Kaneohe, Hawaii, Rios prepped at Kamehameha Schools-Kapalama and lettered two years in baseball by hitting .324 and .355 in his junior and senior seasons of 2014 and 2015. He received 2014-15 Interscholastic League of Hawaii (ILH) baseball all-star first-team honours and was a 2015 Perfect Game All-American West honourable mention.

Rios went to the University of Hawaii and enjoyed a successful freshman season in 2016 by hitting .331 with a .391 on-base percentage. That performance resulted in a Big West honourable mention and a shout-out on the Johnny Bench Award watch list as college baseball’s top catcher. Rios got some summer exposure by heading to the Cape Cod League and putting up a .295/.403 BAVG/OBP with the Brewster Whitecaps.

With the Rainbow Warriors in 2017, Rios batted .282 with a .388 on-base mark and made the Johnny Bench watch list for a second straight year after throwing out a combined 33 potential base stealers over his freshman and sophomore campaigns. He then hooked up with the Victoria HarbourCats for another tour of summer college ball and was on base nearly half the time with a .491 mark in a dozen games in the West Coast League to go along with a .308 batting average. Rios was a teammate of Chicago White Sox first baseman Andrew Vaughn and the skipper there was former major leaguer and Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Brian McRae.

The 2018 season with Hawaii saw Rios bat .270 with a .383 OBP and was a first-team All-Big West as a utility player. after appearing in 13 games at third base along with 24 appearances behind the dish.

The Kansas City Royals were interested in Rios according to The Standard Advertiser in Honolulu but the two sides could not come to an agreement during the 2018 MLB Draft. Instead, he was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 28th round.

Rios reported to the Arizona League for his first professional assignment and batted .333 in 19 games. He was then assigned to the Midwest League in 2019 to join the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and only suited up for 29 games but he did collect his first professional home run against Peoria on August 4.

When minor league baseball resumed again after the pandemic, Rios was back in the Badger State with the Timber Rattlers for the 2021 season. In 43 games, he batted .270 with a .357 OBP and added 11 extra-base hits and 20 runs batted in. That led to a six-game trial with the Double-A Biloxi Shuckers.

Rios’ tenure with the Brew Crew came to an end after he was claimed in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers on December 8, 2021.

A return to the Midwest League awaited Rios in 2022 as he suited up for the Great Lakes Loons. He drew a walk over 10 percent of the time with four homers and 24 RBI in 68 games before earning another taste of Double-A ball where he had two hits in three games with the Tulsa Drillers.

Once again, Rios’ services were in demand at the Rule 5 minor league draft as he was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays on December 7, 2022.

In his first game in the Blue Jays system, Rios had two hits and a walk for the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats in Altoona on April 7. He also had three hits at Somerset on April 21 and a two-hit effort against Harrisburg on May 4 but playing time was sporadic as he appeared in just four games in May and four in June. As a result, Rios spent two stints on the Development List before he was assigned to Vancouver on June 27.

Rios made an immediate impact in his debut with the Canadians. His first hit was a game-tying RBI single in the bottom of the ninth and that helped the C’s walk off Spokane in 10 innings on June 28. After serving as the designated hitter that night, Rios had two more hits after his first start behind the plate in another win against Spokane June 29. His first home run on Canadian soil came in a victory against Eugene on July 15 as part of a three-hit performance and he went deep again for a three-run shot to open the scoring in a win at Spokane on July 20.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Niall O'Donohoe (@csplusbaseball)

C’s Plus Baseball caught up with the 26-year-old Rios just before the finale of the weekend series against Eugene. This interview has been edited for clarity.

C’s Plus Baseball – Your got your first home run (with the Canadians on July 15). Did you know the ball was gone as soon as it left the bat?

Kekai Rios – Oh, it felt good definitely to get the first one out of the way. When I hit it, I knew I hit it good, but I mean, the way this field plays, I never really knew if it was going to get out. So I just kept going hard and lucky enough, it got out.

CPB – When did you realize it did go out because it went off the video board?

KR – Yeah, it was kind of like when I was rounding second. I had seen the ball in the outfield and I was honestly going for a triple because I was like, ‘Damn, I don’t know the last time I hit a triple.’ And the guys (the Spokane outfielders) weren’t going for the ball (which was back on the field) so I was a little confused but yeah, I’m glad that thing got out.

CPB – You had a three-hit game, are you feeling good at the plate right now?

KR – Yeah, I feel pretty good. Working with the hitting coach (Ryan Wright) here, he’s been kind of helping me out a lot. It’s always easier when you’re seeing pitching more consistently compared to earlier in the year when I was getting like two games a week, maybe a Wednesday and a Sunday or a Thursday and a Sunday. I mean, it’s no excuse because there’s a job for that in the big leagues. You’re a backup catcher where you play random days in a week but I don’t think people realize it’s definitely harder to just play random days and you’re always trying to do a little too much. Definitely, when you know you’re going to get consistent at-bats, it kind of eases off on some pressure and you can kind of take better at-bats and be more yourself. I think just getting more consistent at-bats has really helped me get going at the plate.

CPB – Let’s go back to your very first hit with the team when you got here. It was a big game-tying hit in a game that the team went on to win in extra innings. That was a good way to introduce yourself to your new teammates.

KR – Oh, yeah, it definitely felt good, especially to get the first hit out of the way in the first game. I mean, it felt good to do that for the team and come up clutch in the ninth.

CPB – How has it been getting used to your new set of teammates?

KR – It was actually pretty easy. I mean, the team chemistry and the vibe here, the way these guys go about their business, it’s really easy to fit in. And I really like it here. The environment’s easy to kind of fit in and go with the flow.

CPB – It’s not the first time you played here in B.C. You were a member of the Victoria HarbourCats playing summer college ball there and (Chicago White Sox first baseman) Andrew Vaughn was one of your teammates. How did you like playing in Victoria?

KR – Oh, it’s beautiful. I love this part of Canada. I mean, it’s the only part of Canada I’ve ever been. But this place is beautiful, especially hot during the summer, nice and green with beautiful trees. I can’t complain. This is beautiful.

CPB – I hear they get good crowds out in Victoria. Is it pretty similar to what you’re experiencing here as well?

KR – Yeah, I think it’s probably a little more here but the stadium in Victoria is just as packed, it fills up just as it does here. The environment they got over here at this stadium is definitely different from the minor leagues and it’s a good place to play.

CPB – Your manager at Victoria was Brian McRae. What was it like playing under him?

KR – He was a former big leaguer so he had a lot of feel. Just learning from him, kind of picking his brain, hearing a lot of stories about his past experience, kind of like he went through what we were going through at the time. Just a guy to kind of lean on and go to if we ever needed anything, which was really nice going through college.

CPB – You had another summer college stint out in the Cape Cod League. What was your experience like there playing in the Cape?

KR – Oh, it was great. I went there after my freshman year, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Being from Hawaii, I had no clue about summer college baseball until the end of my college freshman season, so it was a good experience. I lived with two really good people that I still talk to, to this day and it was a good level of competition. Being around different guys from higher-level colleges, SEC, and kind of like being able to show that you can hang with them and be like, ‘Oh, okay. I can really do this at a high level.’ It was a really good vibe and a good experience out there. I love the Cape.

CPB – I want to talk to you about your time in Hawaii with the Rainbow Warriors. Was that a dream come true to be able to play for your hometown university?

KR – Oh, yeah. That experience was like nothing I could ever redo because it was just crazy playing in front of a lot of fans and always playing in front of your family. Over there, there’s no pro team so they treat the college like professional players and I think it really helped me set up connections for later in life on the island, definitely.

CPB – How did you get started in baseball?

KR – I kind of grew up playing baseball and football. I have two older brothers, kind of just watching them going to the park as a younger kid. My brothers are 10 and 11 years older than me. They were a big influence on me growing up, seeing them play sports. I played baseball, football, basketball, and baseball was the one that I was the best at so I kind of rode with it and it’s taken me here.

CPB – In football, what position did you play?

KR – I started off in junior peewees, I was a running back and linebacker. And then as I got to high school, I just became strictly a linebacker.

CPB – When did you begin catching?

KR – I was a shortstop my whole life pretty much until I was going to the varsity in 10th grade. The only spot open was catching. So the coach asked me if I would feel comfortable trying to make the transition to get a starting opportunity. And I mean, any kid just wants to play, you know what I mean? Any way to get on the field, I don’t care. In 10th grade, I caught and then I didn’t catch for the next two years. Then I kind of went back to catching in my freshman year of college. And ever since then, it’s kind of been my main position.

CPB – What is it that you like about catching?

KR – You’re in the play every game. You got a lot more control of the game than just your offence. You’re almost like a quarterback out there. You’re looking at the field, you’re controlling the tempo. You got to be the leader out there and have energy, you know what I mean? That’s what the team feeds off of. So I think the biggest thing I like about catching is just being able to go out there and have a different kind of control of the game from a different aspect.

CPB – How do you feel about your defense behind the plate right now?

KR – It’s definitely a work in progress. When you’re in the minor leagues, there’s always stuff to work on, you know what I mean? Just kind of keep working on the little things that my coaches are preaching over here and hopefully find confidence and hopefully everything clicks.

CPB – You were a draft pick of the Milwaukee Brewers. Where were you when you got drafted by the Brewers?

KR – I was actually at home in Waikiki. I was at the beach with my Dad’s brother. My uncles were visiting. It was my birthday so we were just out kind of having a barbecue on the beach, and then all of a sudden I got a call that I got drafted. Yeah, and then we started celebrating.

CPB – Happy birthday. That’s a heck of a gift. You were then picked up by the Los Angeles Dodgers. What was that like being with the Dodgers organization last season?

KR – I really liked it there. It was definitely a good place to be. They treated me good. I feel like they know what they’re doing. It opened my eyes a little bit on how to be a pro and some more steps on what I’ve got to do to get to the next level. I really liked it there.

CPB – The minor league draft rolls around again, and once again you’re on the move, but with the Blue Jays. How did you find out about being picked up by Toronto?

KR – I was taking a nap and I had a bunch of missed calls, three missed calls from the Dodgers farm director. And then I got a text message saying that the Blue Jays have selected me in the Rule 5 and to give the farm director a call back when I get a chance. I basically called him and he thanked me for everything. Then the Blue Jays called me, welcomed me and it kind of all happened pretty quick. It kind of caught me off guard.

CPB – Who had talked to you from the Blue Jays?

KR – I’m sure it was (director of player development) Joe Sclafani, I want to say, but the first real coach that I was talking to in the offseason was (Canadians manager) Brent Lavallee. Going into spring training, he was really the only guy I knew going to the Blue Jays so if I had any questions, I would always ask him, or if I was wondering anything, I would ask him. I’m just glad it was him because there’s no better guy, such a great guy.

CPB – You were with New Hampshire to begin the year, and now you’re starting with a new set of pitchers. But what’s the learning process like in getting familiar with the different pitchers that you have to catch?

KR – That’s been probably the biggest challenge for me is getting used to catching different guys, seeing how their pitches move, where they miss. That’s been pretty much the biggest challenge, but so far the coaches and staff have been helping me out a lot on speeding up that process for me so it hasn’t been too bad.

CPB – You started off the year in New Hampshire and you had a couple of stints on the development list. Take us through what happens when you’re assigned to the development list? What do you work on?

KR – You’re just basically a practice player, so you can really only practice but they kind of had a plan for me, things they didn’t like that I was doing catching-wise, things that they thought I could do better. Same with my swing. They’d seen some things that they felt like I could clean up and get a little better, so I was on it for about four weeks, trying to clean up some things, and basically just a lot of different catching drills, a lot of different early work hitting, early work catching. Just going about it almost like a spring training type of day because at the end of the day, that’s my time of work. I don’t have to be ready for the game. So, yeah, that’s basically it.

CPB – When (the Jays) said, ‘Look, we’re going to send you to Vancouver’. I guess you had to look at it as an opportunity to at least get some at-bats and some playing time?

KR – Well, my opportunity is either go back on the development list or come to Vancouver. I figure no one can see you if you’re on the development list so I figure come over here to Vancouver and see what I can do.

CPB – If you had to give a scouting report on yourself, how would you describe yourself as a player?

KR – Just hard-working with some grit, willing to do what it takes. You know what I mean? Nothing that stands out but I’m just able to go out there and get the job done and compete at a high level.

CPB – Did you have a favourite major league team or player growing up?

KR – My Dad’s from San Diego so I grew up a San Diego Padres fan but my favourite player growing up was definitely Pudge Rodriguez and Yadier Molina. I really looked up to those guys, and as I got older, Yadier Molina. I always told myself I want to be like that guy so that’s my guy.

CPB – Final question, a bit off the wall. The Canadians have five different uniforms, red, black, white, gray, and the retro blues. Do you have a favourite?

KR – Right now, it’s the black. I got three hits in the black (Saturday, July 15) so I’m riding with the black for now.

Kekai Rios File

Born – January 6, 1997 in Kaneohe, Hawaii
Height/Weight – 5-foot-10, 205 pounds
Bats/Throws – Right/Right
Uniform Numbers – Wore number 5 with Hawaii from 2016-2018, Wore number 21 with the Victoria HarbourCats in 2017. Wore number 19 in 2019 and number 10 in 2021 with High-A Wisconsin. Wore number 37 with Double-A Biloxi in 2021. Wore number 33 with High-A Great Lakes and number 53 with Double-A Tulsa in 2022. Wore number 20 with Double-A New Hampshire in 2023.
Instagram – @kekairioss
Twitter – @kekai_rios
Walkup Music – “Boombastic” by Shaggy.
Fun Fact – Rios was teammates with 2017 Vancouver Canadians shortstop Logan Warmoth with Brewster in the Cape Cod League in 2016.