Cape Catfish

Cape Central's Zai’Aire Thomas and a staunch defense led the Tigers to a 35-0 shutout over St. Charles West, marking their first 2-0 season start since 2019.

Every experience in life is an opportunity to learn and guiding a baseball team through the Prospect League for the first time in his career proved that to be the case for Phil Butler.

Lane Crowden's Cape Catfish career has come to an end after the team fell to the Thrillville Thrillbillies 13-6 in the South Division Championship on Thursday, Aug. 1, in Marion, Illinois. Looking back, his impact on the local summer baseball team has been indelible. “Everybody sees (Lane’s) baserunning,” Catfish manager Phil Butler said recently of Crowden. “Lane does so many little things for this team defensively and offensively for this club. You just can’t replace a guy like him.”

In the end, betting against the Cape Catfish didn’t prove to be a wise move for the skeptics this summer.

There is no pitcher in Cape Catfish history who has the lore of right-hander Korey Bunselmeyer. So, it is a pretty positive thing that the former University of Illinois pitcher is finding his groove with the Prospect League playoffs nearing.

Every athlete knows that regardless of their circumstances, it pays to be ready for an opportunity when it presents itself. For former Cooter High School standout, Hayden Nazerenus, he took full advantage of that in Saturday’s 4-3 Cape Catfish victory over Dubois County at Capaha Field in front of 676 fans.

At the start of this month, the Cape Catfish were floundering at the plate regarding the number of times Cape hitters whiffed.

This summer has been a rollercoaster for the Cape Catfish, which is a tad unusual for its fan base to follow after watching the franchise methodically achieve success year after year after year since its inception.

As the Cape Catfish summer has turned decidedly in the right direction over the past few weeks, there have been several factors that the Catfish coaching staff can point to as to why that has occurred.

On the hunt for a last-ditch bid into the 2024 Prospect League playoffs, the Cape Catfish inched closer to a second-half South Division title with a merciless 16-1 trouncing of Springfield on Wednesday. The first of a two-game set in light of a July 9 postponement, the Catfish made quick work of the Lucky Horseshoes with five, four and seven-run innings in the second, fourth and fifth respectively...

Lane Crowden stole eight bases this past college baseball season at Southern Indiana. However, with the Catfish this summer, he leads the Prospect League with 37 stolen bases and is 15 bags away from the league record set by Slater Schield of Rex Baseball (52)...

At the beginning of this month, the Cape Catfish signed several new players and gave a couple of existing regulars a few days off during the July 4th holiday. First-year manager Phil Butler felt when he had his full complement of players returning, his squad had a chance to compete among the best teams in the Prospect League.

The up-and-down Cape Catfish season was epitomized on Thursday in a doubleheader with its rival Thrillville at Capaha Field. The series has been dubbed the “Battle for the Border,” with the Catfish holding the trophy from last summer.

When Moises Rosario ventured to Lake Land College in Mattoon, Illinois two years ago, the native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic had to make a shocking climate adjustment.

The Cape Catfish season – of late – has been difficult to follow. The team recently endured a six-game losing streak in which its pitching staff gave up 60 runs, but Cape has bounced back by winning three of its last four games.

There hasn’t been much to cheer for throughout the recent five-game losing streak by the Cape Catfish, but if you’re looking for something to hang your hopes on, the return of Brooks Kettering to the squad after a week off is something.

Owen Henne has been with the Cape Catfish for just a brief period, but the Pennsylvania native has wasted no time in making a positive impact with his new club this summer.

Throughout the recent four-game losing skid by the Cape Catfish, there have been some overriding themes.

At 15-17 overall heading into Friday’s Prospect League baseball game at Jackson (Tenn.), the Cape Catfish need to say their blessings that their pitching staff has kept the team competitive this season. Cape ranks 15th in the 18-team league in batting average and dead last in strikeouts at the plate...

In Thursday’s loss to the Jackson Rockabillys, the offense looked to be the hero early, but the pitching undid everything that the front end had worked to build. In a 16-6 loss in seven innings to Jackson, in an all-important South Division clash, the Rockabillys again took full advantage of the wishy-washy pitching staff of the Catfish...

Going on the road and into one of the hardest places to play in the Prospect League, Cape couldn’t hold off a rallying Jackson offense in a 16-6 mercy-rule loss in seven innings on Thursday night in a July 4 fireworks show. Jackson, 15-2 at home this season, kept its undefeated record against the Catfish on its own turf alive, now 4-0 against Cape when at home...

Led by a phenomenal day on the mound for Jorge Romero, the Catfish kicked off the second half of the 2024 Prospect League season with a resounding 7-2 victory over the Dubois County Bombers on the road. For Romero, his seven innings without surrendering a run worked to give the Catfish the winning edge early, and two solid innings from Korey Bunselmeyer closed it off down the stretch to keep Cape undefeated in the new stretch...

Hayden Nazerenus has done nothing but challenge himself over the past 12 months since graduating from a stellar athletic career at Cooter High School. He left the tiny school (enrollment 128) a year ago and immediately spent a couple of weeks testing his skills with the Cape Catfish but signed on for the entire season this summer.

The Cape Catfish have not struggled through this Prospect League season to score runs – at times. In four of their past six games, Cape has scored a combined 38 runs, with shutout losses coming in the other two outings, which leads to some maddening consistency in production.

There is no shortage of statistical areas in which the Cape Catfish have thrived during the 2024 Prospect League season.

Before recent Jackson High School graduate John-Paul Sauer leaves home to begin his new challenge as a college pitcher at a top-tier conference, he had to experience a taste of what is to come. Fortunately for him, he didn’t have to go far for that experience...

A local star saved his best for last. Jackson graduate John-Paul Sauer allowed one run on two hits with two strikeouts in 6.2 innings to lead the Cape Catfish to an 11-4 victory over the Burlington Bees at Capaha Field on Tuesday, June 25.  It was Sauer's third and final start with the Catfish this summer, as he will make an early entrance to Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana...

Earlier in this summer baseball season, the Cape Catfish struggled mightily in closing out games in which they held early leads.

The margin for error within the Prospect League is smaller than it ever has been, as the league has continued to develop into one of the premiere summer collegiate baseball leagues in the country.

First-year Cape Catfish catcher Ben Barrow spent his freshman season competing with one of the best junior college baseball programs in the country, so when he came to Cape Girardeau and struggled offensively, it was a tad surprising to the Catfish coaching staff.

On the heels of its longest winning streak of the season, Cape suffered a hefty loss at Springfield on Thursday night with a 7-2 final to bring its three-game run to a close. Against one of the less successful teams in the Prospect League’s early goings, an early tie game came crashing down as Springfield put six past in the fifth to easily cruise into the win...

With the temperatures rising throughout the Midwest of late, there is no more important position on the baseball field to have depth than the one behind the plate.

In a thrilling finish to the road-trip opener, Cape clawed its way back from a big early deficit to knock off the O’Fallon Hoots on the road, winning 6-4 to keep its win streak alive. Scoring six unanswered runs over the game’s final six innings, O’Fallon’s 4-0 lead after three innings was nullified through the double-edged sword that the Catfish brought late...

It’s been a spell of success late for the Cape Catfish, and it continued Tuesday night as a commanding start helped them to an 8-6 victory over the Alton River Dragons at home. Putting both ends together from the start, leading a commanding offensive effort while getting a phenomenal start on the bump, fans at Capaha Field were treated to one of the team’s best performances of the year...

A pair of Southeast Missouri State baseball players found themselves in familiar territory on Sunday but with a very, very different perspective. Redhawk players Cole Warehime and Chance Resetich came back to Cape Girardeau and Capaha Field, this time as visitors, as they are playing for the Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp of the Prospect League, and they tried in vain to knock off the home team at Capaha – for a change.

The transition to the next level of baseball for former Jackson High School standout pitcher John-Paul Sauer continued on Saturday with another seamless step in the (very) right direction.

On Friday in a game against REX Baseball in Terre Haute, Ind., Cape Catfish hitter Alex Kowalski endured his fourth 0-for game of the past five outings. “Baseball is a game of ups and downs,” Kowalski said recently. “You can’t let the down games get to you. Even the big guys go through slumps. They happen.” Maintaining that even keel has been critical to Kowalski’s approach in his first summer season in Cape Girardeau, because he has been sweltering hot (literally and at the plate), with a rare stretch of coolness offensively.

The final piece of the puzzle arrived for the Cape Catfish on Thursday, and he didn’t waste any time making his presence known. Following a brilliant showing at the Fayetteville Regional for Southeast Missouri State earlier this month, Brooks Kettering made his way back to Cape Girardeau, and he put his stamp on his debut...

Behind some late hitting and even better situational pitching, the Cape Catfish ended a losing skid at home with a 7-5 win over the Danville Dans on Thursday night. The final game in a three-game set at Capaha Field, Cape’s two losses were put in the rear-view mirror as the Catfish took a late two-run deficit and turned it on its head...

Part of a deep Jackson heart of the Cape Catfish roster, Quinton Borders has been a big part of the order through the past couple weeks. Fresh off an appearance in the NJCAA Division I World Series in May, the Crowder College rising sophomore made big strides in his first year out of high school...

Lane Crowden is off to one of the greatest starts in Prospect League history on the basepaths. The Jackson High School alum has 22 stolen bases in 23 attempts, a success rate of nearly 96 percent, in just 13 games for the Cape Catfish this year. It should go without saying that by averaging nearly two stolen bags a game, it puts him on record watch for the season...

With the second of three consecutive home games, the Cape Catfish welcomed the Thrillville Thrillbillies to town but once again squandered an early lead to lose 7-6. Extending the season-opening slump, which coach Phil Butler claims to be uncharacteristic of this team, the offense lit a fire tonight in a shootout but couldn’t get past the streaking Thrillville...

Looking for a revenge win following a Friday home loss to the REX, the Catfish couldn’t stop Terre Haute’s late momentum in a double-down 6-3 defeat at home. In a tight affair early, Cape drew first blood with a three-run lead in a big second but couldn’t keep the iron hot down the stretch...

This summer season in the Prospect League, though less than two weeks old, has proven to be a learning experience for the Cape Catfish players, but that evolution hasn’t been limited to just the guys that take the field and get at-bats.

If something happens a couple of times, it is unusual. But if it occurs five times, then you can safely call it a trend.

Eight Jackson High School baseball alums were on the field when the O'Fallon Hoots and Cape Catfish clashed for the first of a seven-game rivalry series on Saturday, June 8, at Capaha Field. Only one of them was with the away team. Braden Hackworth went 2-for-5 with an RBI and led off the Hoots' three-run rally in the ninth inning to beat the Catfish 6-5...

First-year Cape Catfish pitcher John-Paul Sauer learned quickly that the Prospect League ain’t high school baseball.

One of the Cape Catfish's biggest stars last summer was a slugging outfielder from Purdue. And while Brody Chrisman is not with the Catfish this summer, his roommate is. Corbin Malott has made a quick impact since joining the Catfish, including a hit and run during Cape's 3-2 win over the Dubois County Bombers on Thursday, June 6, at Capaha Field...

Going into Alton, Illinois, for a duel with the top team in the Prospect League Western Conference’s South Division, Cape had a shot late to erase a huge early deficit but came up short, losing 7-6 in a thriller. What looked to be an early pitchers’ duel went south in the midgame as Catfish starter Kameron Dohogne had an early exit, Alton staked a huge lead heading into the final few frames...

After a lightning delay of more than an hour on Tuesday night, the Cape Catfish saw their eighth-inning rally to tie get crossed out in a 5-4 loss by technicality. Entering the bottom of the eighth, with Jackson approaching the dish looking to potentially retake its lead, the game entered a delay and was eventually called by its score after seven innings – 5-4 Jackson...