SUMRALL – It was a unique and somewhat comedic moment for Cade Dedeaux as he took the mound with two outs in the top of the seventh inning.
The senior hadn’t pitched in a game in five years, but after making some elite throws from right field that caught coaches’ attention, they developed the idea for Dedeaux to pitch. In his first bullpen last week, Dedeaux’s arm topped out at a natural and consistent 85 mph, and so in the tail end of Sumrall’s 9-0 Monday night win over Mize, he got his chance to take the mound.
“I had seen that he has a great arm in right field,” Sumrall coach Andy Davis said. “We had him in the pen last week. He was running the gun up there. I thought it was just a nice chance to get him some game experience.”
His first warmup pitch unpoetically sailed over catcher Matthew Mauldin's head.
“I was kind of nervous, but I got used to it,” Dedeaux said. “I was just trying to throw it hard (on the first warmup). I wanted to see how hard I could throw it before I started focusing on throwing strikes.”
Dedeaux seemed to settle in as his first batter battled to avoid Mize’s inevitable losing fate. The hitter faced a full count and fouled off three straight pitches before laying down a bunt. Dedeaux and Mauldin hesitated over the well-placed bunt, but a bad throw by Mauldin allowed the runner to reach base.
“I haven’t done a PFP (pitcher’s fielding practice) in five years,” Dedeaux said. “I had no clue what to do.”
Nonetheless, an error on the catcher was how it was officially scored, so Dedeaux’s stat line remained pure.
“I knew he’d come through,” said teammate Marshall Phillips, who had two RBIs in the win. “We thought we’d give him a chance tonight. He came through and looked good.”
Dedeaux settled in, and after throwing a ball on the first pitch, he delivered three straight strikes to cap off the win. What ensued after the strikeout was Dedeaux’s team quickly surrounding him as if he had just thrown a perfect game.
It was an enjoyable moment between Dedeaux, his teammates, and Sumrall fans because, as sports often do, they have an ability to be an escape from reality and the struggles of day-to-day life. Baseball was all that mattered in the brief moment.
Just 20 days earlier, Deadeaux and his family received the tragic news that his twin sister, Camden, had died in a fatal car crash. Dedeaux had just returned home from baseball practice when he got the news and drove himself and his mother to the scene of the accident.
“He is a tough-nosed kid,” Davis said. “These seniors have loved on him. I have loved on him, and the community has loved on him. He’s just an awesome guy with everything that has happened. He has just taken it all in. I think this field has let it be his outlet. It lets him come here and be with his friends. We love on him, and it’s just having fun.”
Instead of opting to step away from the game, Dedeaux knew that baseball at the very least could be an escape for both himself and his family.
“My whole family loves watching us play,” Dedeaux said. “I figured, even for Camden’s friends, to just come out and watch baseball and let everybody get their minds on something else and just enjoy it. When I’m here (at the baseball field), I try not to think about it, and I just try to enjoy it. But it does get worse when you get alone. That’s kind of when it hits me.
“It’s not just been my (escape), but my whole family’s. They had been looking forward to (the season). My grandparents, cousins and aunts have been coming to every game since then. It just helps them get through it. She meant a lot to everybody, and everybody is playing for her.”
It’s helped put things in perspective for a high school program that always has high expectations, especially after coming off a state-runner-up appearance last season.
“It’s tough for sure; anytime you lose someone that close, it’s going to be tough for sure,” Phillips said. “To see him come out here and play on the field gives him and his family a lot of peace and really think about the bigger picture.
“It has brought us together more. We are already a family, but we have built a bigger bond.”
As the team’s starting right fielder and leadoff hitter, Dedeaux is an essential part of Sumrall’s team as he came up with an RBI triple on Monday. For now, Dedeaux’s focus is to help his Bobcats, who are now 12-0 after defeating Poplarville on Tuesday, get back to the state championship – that, and remembering his sister every step of the way.
