Not surprisingly, Kaneland’s Brady Alstott likes the dichotomy between baseball and football.
He enjoys lining up at safety and getting physical on the football field. The thing that helped him fall in love with baseball, though, is how the game challenges you not only physically but mentally.
“It’s just mental toughness,” Alstott said. “It just gets you better for life. Football is more physical. This is all skill work and hard work, and it’s nice to see good outcomes.”
In his first varsity season, the junior left fielder has experienced plenty of positive outcomes. Count Friday’s 8-3 nonconference win over Sandwich in six innings among those on the good side.
Following a 75-minute delay due to lightning and dust, the game was called in the bottom of the sixth because of darkness.
Alstott was hit by a pitch in the first inning and stole second for Kaneland (20-11), setting up an RBI single by Nate Campbell for a quick 1-0 lead. Alstott also walked in the third inning and then singled and scored in the fourth.
Carter Grabowski stole three bases and scored twice for the Knights. Preston Popovich scored twice and drove in a pair of runs. Tom Thill had two hits, including a triple, and scored twice.
Cash White came through with a single and scored a run for Sandwich (18-15).
The mental toughness that Alstott mentioned also contributes to his success on the bases. He’s up to a team-high 21 steals in a program with a reputation for putting pressure on teams.
“That’s what we’ve been taught, the mental part of stealing bases,” Alstott said. “It makes it really easy for anybody to steal bases. You don’t have to be the quickest.
“If you have good timing, you’ll be on second base.”
Alstott has spent a lot of time on second base this season, which is exactly what Kaneland coach Brian Aversa wanted. Having to replace last year’s entire outfield, Aversa was counting on Alstott.
“He’s been doing a really nice job,” Aversa said. “He’s a really good athlete. He’s somebody that gets us going. He was really hot at the beginning of the year with his bat.
“He’s getting back into that groove a little bit more, seeing the ball better. When he gets on base, he can do really good things.”
Sandwich led briefly 2-1 and forced a 3-3 tie after three innings. Kaneland took advantage of extra baserunners to pull away, but Indians coach Jason VanPelt still walked away happy.
“We were right there in a competitive game with these guys,” VanPelt said. “We were doing well. Couple walks, they got some runs off that. We weren’t able to get anything going offensively.
“I’m proud of our guys. We want to compete against teams like that. That’s why we play them.”
After the fourth inning, the weather turned bizarre. Lightning in the distance, followed by a sudden dust storm, caused a 75-minute delay.
“That was my first dust storm — 1-0 in dust storms,” Aversa said.
Alstott, meanwhile, spends a lot of time on his mental game, but the on-field traits he brings from the football field aren’t lost on him, either.
“That’s the toughness you get some football,” Alstott said. “You’re not getting hit every play in baseball. Being able to get dirty, dive around, some of the stuff from football comes out.”
Compared to his teammates, Alstott got a relatively late start in sports. But he’s loving it.
“I’m a big baseball guy,” Alstott said. “It actually didn’t start until middle school when I started liking sports. I really put in the work after COVID. That helped me a lot.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
