Former Notre Dame athlete to get a quick taste of top talent with Catfish

There was no rest for recent Notre Dame High School graduate Cole Lemons, in terms of his baseball career.

He finished his Bulldog career less than two weeks ago by throwing four innings against Kennett in the MSHSAA Class 4 District 1 championship game, and almost immediately reported to practices for his summer league team, the Charleston Fighting Squirrels.

However, as if he weren’t busy enough on the diamond, Lemons has also inked a temporary contract to play for the Cape Catfish over the next few weeks.

“It’s exciting,” Lemons said of his near future. “I have always watched them over the last four years since it has been a thing, and I am glad that I get to join them.”

Lemons had his first team meeting with the Catfish on Monday evening, while the team’s initial practice was Tuesday.

Cape will open the 2023 season on the road at O’Fallon today (7:35 p.m.), followed by a trip to the Jackson (Tenn.) Rockabillys on Friday (8 p.m.).

Lemons and the Catfish will make their Capaha Field debut on Saturday against Jackson at 7:35 p.m.

“Cole has always been a gamer,” recently retired Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett said. “I’ve coached him since he was six years old. In the summertime, I have a son in the same class, and we played a lot of ball together.”

Lemons will take his talent to Jefferson College in the fall, where he will primarily work as a catcher. However, at times, he has also played third base, and also pitched in many critical situations for the Bulldogs.

“He has been that type of kid throughout his whole life,” Graviett said. “He’s a gamer.”

With the District championship on the line, as well as wanting to extend his career after earlier announcing his retirement, Graviett had no problem turning to Lemons to try and keep the 2023 season alive against Kennett, which had made consecutive trips to the MSHSAA Final Four.

“Cole has been one of our top guys,” Graviett said at the time.

For every young player, the transition from high school ball to the Cape Catfish can be startling.

The Prospect League is filled with high-major NCAA Division I athletes, some of whom will be chosen in the 2023 Major League Baseball Draft in July.

“It’s going to be harder mentally,” Lemons said of the adjustment, “than I think physically. Knowing where those guys are. This is a stage where you get to prove yourself.”

Lemons’ primary focus this summer is to gain 10 pounds of strength prior to the start of his college career in August. He is currently “lifting four or five times a week,” in hopes of getting up to 200 pounds.

“I just want to get bigger, stronger, and quicker,” Lemons said, “and help (the Fighting Squirrels) win a (Babe Ruth) World Series.”