WEST POINT — Jacob Shempert knows the importance of patience.
As a member of The Clarion-Ledger’s Dandy Dozen, which recognizes the state’s top baseball players in the state of Mississippi, Shempert knows his reputation precedes him. The senior pitcher/catcher/infielder also understands pitchers and coaches read newspapers and the Internet to keep up with who is hot.
Opponents of the Oak Hill Academy baseball team are proving to be well read this season because on nearly every occasion they are opting not to pitch to Shempert.
The lack of pitches to hit hasn’t fazed Shempert. He has remained locked in at the plate to the tune of a .737 batting average, which leads the Raiders (7-5).
Shempert, a transfer from Houston High School, also leads the team — and likely all area teams — with 25 walks. In 12 games, he has 14 hits in 19 at-bats (six singles, six doubles, two home runs). He has scored 21 runs, which leads the team. He also has 11 RBIs.
“I knew I would get walked a lot because last year I got walked a good bit,” Shempert said. “But I didn’t know by this time I would have 25 walks. I wasn’t really expecting it, but you just have to take your walks, and what is best for the team is me taking a walk as a leadoff hitter and getting on base.”
Shempert said remaining disciplined at the plate is the key. He said there are pitches that may not look to be ones that he can drive that he knows he can hit hard, so he has to stay calm and not be overanxious and give in to pitchers who will do their best to keep the ball away from him.
“You have to know what your limits are,” Shempert said. “I know what my limits are and I stay inside my limits because I know if I don’t it is going to hurt my team more than it is going to hurt me. I can always get out of a slump, but you can’t get losses back.”
Shempert also has been a stopper on the mound. He is 5-1 with a 0.9 ERA. He has allowed only four earned runs and has 57 strikeouts in 31 innings, including three games with 12 or more strikeouts.
“He is keeping his head up,” Oak Hill Academy coach Marion Bratton said. “He is a lot more mature than ballplayers I have had the past five or six years.”
Bratton said Jeb Stevens (15 RBIs) and Connor Baird (10 RBIs) have done a solid job in making teams that opt to walk Shempert pay. Recently, Bratton has moved Shempert from the middle of the lineup to the leadoff spot to increase the number of pitches he will see. He knows there aren’t any guarantees, but he said Shempert knows that, too.
Shempert hit .467 as a freshman and. .364 as a sophomore. He was intentionally walked 32 times last season.
At 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, Shempert’s position in college likely will be catcher. Bratton said he has played Shempert out of position in an attempt to get more players into the lineup. He said there will be times this season when Shempert goes behind the plate to combat teams that will run more.
Bratton said playing out of position or hitting in different spots in the lineup doesn’t faze Shempert. He feels his poise and knowledge of the game will serve him well at the next level.
“He has mean a lot to the team just being solid, steady, and dependable,” Bratton said. “When it is time to go to work, he knows what to do. He is going to get his cuts in. The bottom line is the kid can play. It is neat to have somebody with the reputation he has.”
Shempert said his teammates have done pretty well capitalizing on opportunities at the plate when teams pitch around him. He said he doesn’t think very much about how his reputation precedes him or how it affects an opponent’s game plan. He prefers to focus — in a patient, old-school manner — and to do whatever he needs to do to help his team win.
“I don’t let anything go to my head,” Shempert said. “I try to just keep my composure, and if they are going to pitch to me, they’re going to pitch to me. If not, it is fine. It is not really a pride thing. It is just baseball. I just enjoy playing, and if I get walked, I walked. However I am going to help the team, that’s how I am going to help the team.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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