Auburn sophomore opens season with emotional homer after mother's passing
Cade Belyeu is no stranger to home runs. He ended his freshman season with Auburn last May by homering in each of his final four conference games, becoming the first player to homer in four straight SEC games since 2008. He then belted five more roundtrippers in 10 games with the Charlottesville Tom Sox of the Valley League over the summer.
Belyeu opened his sophomore campaign on Friday night by belting Auburn's first home run of the 2025 season, a solo shot in the sixth inning of a 4-1 Tigers victory over Holy Cross.
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But this was unlike any other home run he had hit in his life. It meant so much more than another run on the scoreboard or a statistic in the box score.
As his towering drive landed over the fence in right-center field, Belyeu had just paid tribute to his mother, Staci, who passed away after a battle with cancer just hours earlier.
With a heavy heart, Belyeu rounded the bases. As he approached home plate, he nonetheless smiled as his teammates greeted him, each of them surely taking in just how special this moment was on an otherwise terribly difficult day.
"He said Staci wanted him to play," Auburn coach Butch Thompson told the Montgomery Advertiser after the game. "I think it was the most inspiring thing we've ever seen. Our crowd is just amazing. They absolutely sensed and knew what was going on with him. ... An inspiration by Cade Belyeu."
There are home runs. And then there is what Belyeu crushed into the Alabama night sky on Friday.
They all count the same on the scoreboard. But this one carried the emotions of a grieving son, who himself carried the memory of his beloved mother with him on that unforgettable trip around the bases.