Mineola generated eight base hits – from seven hitters – last Friday morning against the Van Vandals at the Rains Tourney. It was, however, a cannon shot by Caleb Redding who smashed a solo home run over the Emory Dental sign in left field which made the game memorable. 

Redding hit a ball which sounded like someone had just fired a shotgun in a confined space. It appeared to accelerate as it shot out of the ballpark.  The lead-off home run gave the Jackets the only run of the game as they opened up the sixth inning. 

The Jackets left one baserunner stranded, and the Vandals rallied to answer in the bottom half.  The lead-off hitter reached on an infield hit and stole second base with a great jump on the pitch. 

The next Van hitter managed a decent bunt just to the third base side of the diamond. Pitcher Cason Davis came off the mound in a hurry and cleanly fielded the bunt on one hop. He never hesitated, but fired a strike to Seth Joyner – who was covering third – to nail the baserunner advancing from second.   

Davis secured the second out of the inning with a very well-placed pitch on the outside corner. 

With a win now only four outs away, the next Vandal hitter powered a ball deep into the left-centerfield gap. The runner easily scored from first, while the Jackets nabbed the hitter trying to score after an errant throw returned the ball to the infield.

Each team managed a single baserunner in the seventh, but neither side could push across a winning run. Due to the time constraints of tourney play, the game was called complete as a 1-1 tie. 

If a game had to end at a tie, this was one which warranted it. Each side played quality baseball – and this with an 8 a.m. first pitch. The game had everything which makes baseball great: very good pitching, quality defense, timely hitting and just great headwork by both teams. 

The 1-6-3 double play executed by Van in the fifth was a thing of beauty, as was Redding’s stolen base in the fourth after he drew a throw to first on four consecutive pitches. Braydon Alley had a nice game in left field, making a couple of tough catches on hard-hit trailing balls. Kaden Bell likewise made a couple tough scoops at first base. 

The Jackets are going to be a fun team to watch, as their fundamental baseball skills are going to keep them in every game.