Hinds was playing national powerhouse Middle Georgia in the Delgado Community College Invitational Tournament in February of 1999 at Kirsch-Rooney Stadium, an old city park with a pulse in New Orleans.
This was before the field was named in honor of long-time coaching legend Louis “Rags” Scheuermann. It is now “Rags” Scheuermann Field at Kirsch-Rooney Stadium.
In my honor, I have the Rick Clarke Urinal in the men’s restroom at Joe G. Moss Field at Hinds in Raymond. 😁
John David Massey (J.D), our right-handed hitting first baseman/designated hitter from Brandon High School, a big boy whose game plan consisted of tape measure home runs and some whiffs, hit a 92 mph fastball to right field that was high and deep.
It cleared the 335 sign before he left the batter’s box and continued to travel until it hit the Middle Georgia bus in the far, back corner of the parking lot. The driver had intentionally parked it way back there so it would not be hit by baseballs.
Well, he should have parked it in Metairie. We stepped it off the next day and measured the shot at 535 feet! That’s 535 feet to the opposite field.
I’ve seen a lot of home runs in the games I’ve coached. We’ve hit a lot and we’ve given up a lot.
This includes Terry Gray‘s three-run moon shot in the first inning of our opening game of the 1989 JUCO World Series in Grand Junction, Colorado, with it’s high altitude advantage, but I’ve never seen anything, in person, like JD’s blast in the Big Easy.
Lessons learned: Kids, keep swinging for the fences, but protect the plate with 2 strikes and bus drivers… keep the engines running.
John David Massey (J.D.)
Rick Clarke's Diary of a Mad Baseball Coach 