As Pete Ruiz rounded the bases, he couldn't help but smile.

Born and raised in Junction City, growing up coming to Rathert to watch the Generals, then playing high school ball with the Blue Jays all four years, nothing could quite match this.

A member of the Junction City Brigade since their inception, Ruiz had never hit a home run in the orange uniform.

Until Saturday night.

It was a two-run blast that easily cleared the wall, scoring him and longtime teammate Brett Nickle to blow the Cowdin Cup Championship game wide open, giving the Brigade a 5-0 lead in the fifth inning over the Midwest A's. The Brigade would go on to win 8-1 to capture their second championship in three years.

"What's funny is, I called it," Ruiz said of the home run. "Because everyone on our team except like three people have hit a home run, and I was like 'hey, I'm just gonna wait for my last game, go out with a bang.' I guess the baseball gods answered.

Read the article here: http://www.yourdu.net/sports/brigade/ruiz-homers-brigade-capture-cowdin-cup/article_70f8be14-513a-11e6-83e2-7b56b78e2e9d.html