When Cavalry catcher Mark Thomas stepped up to the plate his only thought was to hit the ball low and hard into a gap.
Instead, Thomas smashed Perth Heat starter Warwick Saupold over the left-field fence for a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Canberra a much-needed 3-2 win at Narrabundah Ballpark yesterday.
Thomas's big shot broke a four-game losing streak and gave the Cavs some confidence going into a do-or-die away series against Melbourne Aces.
Cavalry is fourth on the Australian Baseball League ladder but has the same number of wins as third-placed Adelaide Bite and the Aces, in fifth.
''I told myself I'm going to try to hit the ball on the ground as hard as I can but I ended up hitting a high home run but I guess that kind of goes with the territory,'' Thomas said. ''You say don't hit a home run and you hit a home run.
''It was a good win today, it was an important win and hopefully we can take this momentum into Melbourne next weekend.''
His first ABL home run was the most important hit of Thomas's short Cavalry career.
The Tampa Bay Rays catcher arrived just before Christmas and has struggled to find his feet but his batting average has climbed to .271 and he's showing why he's regarded as the Rays' best catching prospect.
Canberra seemed to lose the upper hand when starting pitcher Tim Atherton was taken from the mound, having reached his pitch limit. He lasted five innings, only gave up two hits and struck out five Heat hitters.
Catcher-turned-pitcher Kyle Perkins then settled things down and was credited with his first win, after reliever Chris Morgan had struggled to find his range.
Perth starter Warwick Saupold put in a gutsy spell on the mound, lasting all eight innings, despite being hit by a Thomas line drive in the first inning. He had only thrown four pitches when the ball struck him on his non-throwing arm.
Before the game, infielder Brian Burgamy was named Cavalry MVP for the season. He was averaging .376, had hit eight home runs and driven in 26 teammates to score.
Heat rested Major League star Luke Hughes for yesterday's game, after he tweaked a quadriceps muscle on Saturday but should be fine for the Sydney series. Every Perth win over second-placed Sydney helps the Cavs' hopes of making the play-offs.
Game five at Narrabundah Ballpark yesterday: CANBERRA CAVALRY 3 (1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 x) bt PERTH HEAT 2 (0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0).
Runs - Cavalry: Thomas (home run), Wilson, Kmiecik. Heat: Givens, Webb.
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