Psomas bests SAL HR Derby field

Augusta's Lake Olmstead Stadium cemented its status as a challenging place for home run hitters. In three rounds of the South Atlantic League All-Star Game's Home Run Derby, none of the 12 participants could manage more than three bombs.

The ballpark has conventional dimensions -- 400 feet to dead center and 330 in the power alleys. But a game into the second half of the season, Augusta Green Jackets have hit barely more than 20 homers at home, and the locals grumble that the heavy, humid air may have something to do with it.

"I didn't hit any out in batting practice," said Hagerstown's Grant Psomas, who hit enough out during the competition to win the Derby. "After that, I knew it would be tough."

In the first round, players were given 10 outs, any hits -- fair or foul -- that weren't home runs. Four participants couldn't muster even one dinger, another four only one, three hit two and just one player, Kannapolis' David Cook, had three.

"This was my first Home Run Derby, and I really enjoyed it," said Cook. "I waited on pitches I could drive and tried not to overdo it with my swing."

What worked once, however, didn't work again, as Cook was blanked in the second round. He and the three players who each had two first-round home runs -- Hagerstown's Psomas and Mike Carp and Lexington's Francisco Caraballo -- were given only five outs to work with.

Caraballo looked like a lock for the title. He followed Cook and yanked three no-doubters down the left-field line. But that was all he could do, and Psomas drove the third pitch he saw out of the park. It was all he needed to face Caraballo in the final round.

"You pretty much have to pull it in this ballpark," said Psomas. "You want to get started early and drive the ball down the line."

Caraballo took another tack in the third round, spraying balls to all fields. He hit the biggest blast of the night, a towering shot to right center that left the ballpark in a hurry. But he ran out of energy and finished with that one homer.

Psomas proceeded to launch two drives down the line, and, with two outs to spare, became the 2005 Home Run Derby champ. He received a new golf club and a $100 bill for his trouble.

"I was in a Home Run Derby when I was 12 years old, and I won that one, too," Psomas said. "So I guess I'm 2-for-2 now." When asked which prize he valued more, Psomas showed the ingenuity of a young ballplayer living on a Minor League salary.

"I don't know," he joked. "I could probably get $100 for this golf club, right?"