Rockabillys Wrap Up 2024 With Best Overall Southern Division Record, 4th Best in Prospect League
The Rockabillys ended the first half of play for the 2024 season with a 17-10 mark and were looking to keep that momentum going to attempt to hit the Prospect League postseason in their second season of existence. Their first half win total was more than their entire 2023 season wins. The Goats completed the season with a record of 33-22 (fourth best in the Prospect League) and the best season overall record in the Southern Division despite finishing a close second place in each half.
In many ways, it was a rollercoaster of a second half for the Goats, as they were up-and-down for the majority of the month of July and ended up narrowly missing out on a postseason berth. The Rockabillys started the second half off with a 6-0 start, with wins over the Full Count Rhythm, Cape Catfish, and Thrillville Thrillbillies. The Goats then proceeded to lose five consecutive games with losses to Full Count, the O'Fallon Hoots, and the Springfield Lucky Horseshoes.
The second half of the season for the Rockabillys was categorized by streaks, as after the 6-0 start and the subsequent five-game skid, the Goats won two in a row before losing their next four afterwards. The team largely alternated wins and losses before ending the season on a five-game winning streak, but they found themselves too far behind the division-leading Cape Catfish and ended the season in second place in the South Division on the last night of the year. Despite the topsy-turvy results of the month, many players continued their outstanding individual play from the first half. SS Merik Carter batted a spectacular .358 on the season , which landedhim sixth in the entire Prospect League. Second-half signee, Dalton Rudd ,hit .271 and added three home runs and 32 RBIs. Ethan Rossow, who was often the leadoff hitter in the Rockabillys' lineup, batted .264 and added 25 RBIs. Usually the second-place hitter in the offensive lineup, Jackson Blemler, whose second half was not up to par with the first half, still made his presence felt as he hit .266 and tacked on 32 RBIs. Two major second-half roster additions, IF Kaleb Hall showed off his power at the plate, as he hit six home runs and added 29 RBIs and OF Jackson McCoy, a second-year Prospect league player after spending 2023 with the Thrillbillies, recorded a .250 batting average, hit four home runs, and knocked in 22 RBIs all in the second half.
As a team, the Rockabillys' offense continued to shine, albeit not quite at the level that they did in the first half of the season. A never-give-up squad, they had eleven late inning come-from-behind wins. They ranked sixth in the Prospect League in slugging percentage at .386, second in the league in runs with 414, second in walks with 331, and seventh in stolen bases with 131. Similarly, the pitching was largely solid as it was in the first half of the season. Starter Trey Watson led the Prospect League with a 3.21 ERA on the year, was the top WHIP leader at 1.14 in 56 innings pitched and tied for the league -lead in wins with six. Reliever Jaxson Lucas solidified his status as the top closer in the Prospect League, leading the league with 13 saves.
The Rockabillys kept pace with the O'Fallon Hoots and the Cape Catfish throughout the second half of play for the lead in the South division, but ultimately finished with a .571 winning percentage in the second half, approximately six points behind the division-winning Catfish, who finished with a .630 winning percentage. Thus, the Rockabillys narrowly missed out on a postseason berth, but the dramatic improvement they showed from 2023 to 2024 gives the Goats a ton to build on for 2025!