Pistol Shrimp win first half division title for first time

There will be playoff baseball in Peru this summer.

The Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp went 17-9 in the first half of the season, which ended Sunday, to win the Northwest Division first half title.

It’s the first time in team history the Shrimp have claimed the first-half title.

The Shrimp will host the Northwest Division title game Aug. 1 at Schweickert Stadium against the second half division winner.

“It means a lot,” Pistol Shrimp manager John Jakiemiec said. “This is the first time we’ve been able to win the first half where we have the luxury of setting the lineup and the pitching rotation for the second half the way we want it. The difference for us this year is we got off to a much better start than we have in years past and it really set the table for what should be a very good second half of the season for us.”

The Shrimp won seven of their first 10 games of the season.

“We had a lot of good players in from the beginning and literally only had to use one temporary contract player,” Jakiemiec said. “So we had the bulk of our guys in camp when the season opened and that really helped us set the tone. We had some guys who got off to really good starts and had really good first halves.

“I thought the offense was going to be there. The questions was whether we were going to pitch well enough because we had a lot of guys who had not thrown a lot for their colleges, but I’m happy with the way the pitching came together and has continued to develop. Even guys who were not necessarily throwing strikes at the beginning of the year are starting to come around and make some significant contributions the last couple weeks.”

The Shrimp went 11-2 at home in the first half and were 7-2 in one-run games and won four games via walk-off hits.

“Last year we lost a lot of close ballgames at the beginning of the season,” Jakiemiec said. “We got walked off probably three, four or five times in the first two or three weeks. The guys who went through that last year were the first ones to notice what a difference a year makes. Now we’re winning those games. That’s not always going to happen, but our record in one-run ballgames is pretty significant. We’re 11-2 at home, so the guys really feel comfortable playing at Schweickert Stadium. The crowds have been fantastic. We’re much more comfortable in tight ballgames and our record reflects that.”

Jakiemiec said winning the first half gives him more leeway with the lineup for the second half.

“The biggest thing from my perspective as manager is I’m able to balance out playing time for guys who may not have gotten as many reps as some of the top performers,” Jakiemiec said. “It allows me to rest some guys who have been playing a lot. It also allows me to get the pitching rotation set up the way we want it going into the playoffs.”

While the Shrimp already have secured a postseason spot, Jakiemiec said they’ll still be looking to win.

“The reality is we could go 0 for July and still have a playoff game on Aug. 1, but our mindset is let’s go win the second half,” Jakiemiec said. “Winning still matters and playing good baseball still matters. We’re not going to play just to play. We’re going to focus on continuing to push each other and play good baseball the right way.

“The overall record still matters. If we do win our playoff game, having the best overall record means we get to host another game, so we are in fact playing for something in the second half. But we do have the freedom of knowing we can lose a game and don’t have the pressure of we’ve got to win the next game or we’re not going to make the playoffs.”

But Jakiemiec doesn’t want the Shrimp to get complacent knowing a playoff berth is secured.

“One of our biggest challenges is that we don’t coast and get into the mindset of whatever, we’re going to make the playoffs, today doesn’t matter,” Jakiemiec said. “We’re going to work very hard against falling into that trap. If you look at the league the last couple years, teams that have won the first half do not necessarily win that first playoff game because if you’re not playing good baseball at the end of the year, it’s really difficult to flip the switch.”

The Shrimp will add a couple new players to the roster for the second half in outfielder Louis Perona and pitcher Zach Kempe.

Perona played for the Shrimp last summer, hitting .331 with eight doubles, two triples, one home run, 40 runs and 25 RBIs in 49 games. He graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in May and will play at the University of Cincinnati as a graduate transfer next year.

Kempe pitches for the University of Notre Dame.

“Louis had a fantastic senior year at Illinois Wesleyan and he is on his way to the University of Cincinnati to continue his career, so we’re excited to have him back on board,” Jakiemiec said. “Kempe is coming off a surgery. He wasn’t able to this spring because he was injured, but he’s healthy now. I’m looking forward to seeing him throw in a game. He’s thrown live to some of our hitters the last couple weeks on the side. This will be his first taste of real baseball in almost two years. I think he’ll give us some depth.

“As we get toward the end of July, the normal expectation is we’ll have some pitchers who their schools will shut them down. We’ve got some lines in the water and a couple other arms who we think we can replace guys we anticipate we’ll lose in a few weeks.”

The Shrimp’s Aug. 1 playoff game will be the second home playoff game at Schweickert Stadium since the team moved to Peru before the 2021 season.

Illinois Valley won the Wabash River Division title game at Danville in 2022 before losing the Eastern Conference championship game in Peru to the eventual league champion Chillicothe Paints.

“We’re really excited for the Illinois Valley and the City of Peru to be able to know well ahead of time that we’re going to host a playoff game,” Jakiemiec said.

The other Western Conference division winner for the first half was the Thrillville Thrillbillies (21-6) in the South Division.

The first half Eastern Conference division winners were the two-time Prospect League champion Paints (19-10) in then Northeast Division and the Danville Dans (17-13) in the Central Division.