Geelong Baycats pitcher Hayden Peoples had to cancel his 21st birthday party to play for the Melbourne Aces

A young Geelong pitching star admits there were a few tears post his ABL debut, just three years after being cut by the same team.

Hayden Peoples pitches for the Geelong Baycats. Picture: Wes Cusworth.

On the drive home after a memorable Australian Baseball League debut, all Geelong Baycats pitcher Hayden Peoples could do was shed a tear of joy as a deep feeling of satisfaction washed over him.

It had been three years since Peoples had been handed, perhaps prematurely, a development contract with the Melbourne Aces at just 18 years of age for the Challenge series against Adelaide after the 2021-22 season was abandoned due to Covid.

However, he would be eventually cut from the ABL system and Peoples can see now he wasted the opportunity.

With the beauty of hindsight, the now 21-year-old – his birthday party was meant to be last Saturday night – realised he lacked the fitness, maturity and application to make the most of the chance.

Geelong Baycats pitcher Hayden Peoples made his debut for the Melbourne Aces. Picture: Brendon Beacom.

“I think I wasn’t mature enough to be in an environment like that,” Peoples said.

“You’ve got some pretty big name baseball players in teams like that, and if you’ve not kinda got your head screwed on and acting properly, you don’t stick around for too long.”

And Peoples didn’t.

Just one of a few rejections in his baseballing life, he eventually went away, regrouped, got fit and “learned how to be an adult a bit more”.

He estimated he shed about 15kg while adding muscle to the chassis, but also returned to the Aces fold last weekend far more mentally strong.

And so his re-entry into the ABL last Friday night was the backend of a hectic few days.

Preparing for his 21st birthday on Saturday night, a phone call from the Aces on the Wednesday threw a spanner in the works, and before he knew it, he’d signed another development contract.

Geelong Baycats pitcher Hayden Peoples made his debut for the Melbourne Aces. Picture: Brendon Beacom.

“I kind of left it last minute, I didn’t know if I was going to throw on the Friday (against Sydney),” he said.

“If I did, I’d be able to have the party.

“But then they said: ‘no, we need you on Saturday’ so I canned it Friday night.”

Asked if there were mixed emotions about having to cancel his birthday plans, Peoples batted away the idea.

“Not really ... I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity for the life of me,” he said.

“I’ve been working pretty hard to get back there.”

On Saturday night against Sydney in Altona, Peoples entered the game with the task of shutting down the Sox.

“I came out in a pretty tough spot, I think there was a runner at first and second and none out, they’d given up a couple of runs in that innings and I had to come out and close it out,” he said.

Hayden Peoples pitches for the Geelong Baycats. Picture: Wes Cusworth.

“But I did my job and did what they wanted from me and they were happy with it.”

Pitching for one innings, Peoples give up just one hit while recording a strikeout.

And combined with the joy of a walk off 5-4 win the evening before, that drive home on Saturday night quickly became “very emotional” as reality sunk in.

“I really pushed myself more than anything I ever have,” Peoples said.

“To look back on it, to know I went out in a pretty good league and actually perform, I had a bit of a cry, I won’t lie, it was pretty monumental.

“On the drive home it was definitely emotional.

“I couldn’t really explain how I felt in the moment but looking back it was euphoria if anything.

Hayden with his younger brother Riley. Picture: Guild Baseball Club.

“It was a reflection, the last couple of years have been pretty tough.

“Actually proving it to not only myself but everyone else who doubted (me) was probably the biggest driving factor to the emotional side of things.”

While Peoples has had to deal with a lot in his young life, from the rejection that top level sport can bring to mental health challenges, he was driven to “become the person I could be”.

“And I thought within that was becoming the best baseballer I could be, I had a lot of stuff when I was younger, mental health stuff I kind of just brushed to the side,” he said.

“When I figured out becoming the best person you can be involves all aspects of life ... (I thought) I might as well give my best crack at what I love and that was baseball as well.

“It’s at the same at every level (of sport).

Hayden Peoples pitches for the Geelong Baycats. Picture: Wes Cusworth.

“If you’ve got the sport you love and it’s effecting you mentally, it’s hard to pull yourself out of that rut.

“There was a lot of rejection.”

He said one of his biggest knock-backs was being cut from the under-18 World Cup squad after qualifying for the initial 35-member team.

“That was a bit of a kick in the guts, I felt like back then I had worked my absolute bum off, in hindsight I hadn’t, nothing compared to right now,” he said.

“I’d been through rejection, I didn’t know how to deal with that.

“I learned how to deal with the anxiety, that’s got me where I am more than anything I think.

“It rocks you pretty hard when you go through it and you don’t really expect it to hit you until it does.”

Originally published as Geelong Baycats pitcher Hayden Peoples had to cancel his 21st birthday party to play for the Melbourne Aces