Although she's been a power hitter for much of her pro career and while starring at Texas A&M, Tori Vidales didn't showcase a ton of pop in her 71 at-bats with the Talons in the first season of the groundbreaking Athletes Unlimited Softball League. She hit just one home run -- in her very first at-bat.
Her second in her AUSL career? She saved that for a moment with a bit more importance.
ATHLETES UNLIMITED SOFTBALL LEAGUE
A solo shot on the very first pitch of the bottom of the fourth inning to get her team into a 1-1 tie with the Bandits on Saturday. A huge swing to take back some momentum in the first-ever AUSL Championship game.
And sure, Vidales is primarily a softball player, who's played in this league, the AUSL All-Star Cup and even for Team Mexico in the 2020 Olympics. But she's also been a softball analyst for the SEC Network for years. She studied the craft in college and even says her commentary and prep for shows helps her be a better hitter in the box.
Sure seems like it.
The Talons, seemingly revitalized by the blast, would tack on two more runs in the fifth before the game was cut short in the beginning of the bottom of the sixth due to rain. Game 1 will continue at 11 a.m. ET with the Talons still up, 3-1. Game 2 will follow at 2 E.T.
Like teammate Sierra Sacco, like Jimmy Sebring, like Roscoe Barnes' horse carriage-scattering shot, we may look back on Vidales' historic first AUSL Championship homer someday in the pantheon of baseball/softball dinger firsts.