Pistol Shrimp and Prospect League Set Attendance Records
PERU, Ill. - Pistol Shrimp Baseball joins the Prospect League in celebrating recording-breaking attendance during the 2024 season.
The Prospect League announced today record-breaking attendance numbers from the 2024 season including a new league-wide total attendance record of over 649,000 fans. The Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp are proud to celebrate the 25,018 fans who attended regular season games at Schweickert Stadium in Peru, Illinois during the 2024 season, a new Pistol Shrimp single-season record.
The 2024 total attendance of over 25,000 fans is the highest season mark in Pistol Shrimp regular season history. The 2024 mark is over 3,000 fans higher than in 2023 and over 8,000 fans higher than the Pistol Shrimp's inaugural season in Peru in 2021.
The Pistol Shrimp also continued to reach new heights in average attendance per game with an average attendance of 1,001 fans during the 2024 regular season, surpassing the record set last season by just under 200 more fans per game.
Additionally, the 2024 Prospect League Champion Pistol Shrimp recorded a record-setting total attendance of 30,649. The Pistol Shrimp welcomed 5,631 fans to Schweickert Stadium during the playoffs including a single-game record of 2,675 fans at game two of the Prospect League Championship Series.
Full Release from the Prospect League
MAHOMET, Ill. – The Prospect League continued its substantial attendance growth in 2024 by setting new total and average attendance records for the second-straight summer. More than 649K fans attended Prospect League games during the 2024 regular season, surpassing the previous mark, set in 2023, by over 74,000. The League also averaged more than 1,300 fans per game, surpassing the record figure set in 2023 by over 100 more fans per game.
“Setting new attendance marks in consecutive seasons is a remarkable feat,” said Commissioner David Brauer. “The historic growth seen in year-over-year totals during the past two seasons is a tremendous accomplishment.”
The Prospect League saw growth in several categories while recording its new attendance benchmarks this season:
Overall Attendance Record: The Prospect League’s 18 teams drew a record 649,743 fans during the 2024 season, eclipsing the half-million attendance mark for the second-straight season. The Thrillville Thrillbillies led the league in total attendance for the first time with 90,927 fans, the highest single-season figure in Prospect League history.
Highest Total Attendance Percentage Growth in Summer Collegiate Baseball: The Prospect League saw a total attendance increase of more than 12% this season compared to 2023. For the second consecutive year, the League made the largest gains in all of summer collegiate baseball, besting the Coastal Plains (7.7%), West Coast (4.3%), and Northwoods (3.2%) Leagues. Overall, the Prospect League had the third-highest attendance in summer collegiate baseball, finishing ahead of the MLB Draft, Coastal Plains, and Appalachian Leagues.
Second Largest Year-to-Year Growth in League History: 74,449 more fans attended Prospect League games in 2024 than during the 2023 campaign. That increase was the second-largest jump in league history, behind only the 100,000 fans gained from 2022 to 2023. The league boosted its average attendance by more than 100 fans per game from 1,234 (in 2023) to 1,357 (in 2024). The Thrillville Thrillbillies enjoyed the League’s largest team increase with over 25,000 more fans this season.
Fans Continue to Turn Out in New Markets: Three of the Prospect League’s newest members from 2023 and 2024 - the Thrillville Thrillbillies, Jackson Rockabillys, and Dubois County Bombers - all played significant roles in attendance growth. The Thrillbillies, based in Marion, Ill., drew a League-best 90,927 fans during their second season. The Rockabillys, in Jackson, Tenn., drew 51,564 fans, fifth most in the League while the Bombers, in Huntingburg, Ind., drew 41,282 fans to rank eighth.
14 Teams Increased Total Attendance: 14 of the Prospect League’s 18 teams produced total attendance increases over last season. The Cape (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) Catfish, Champion City (Springfield, Ohio) Kings, Danville (Ill.) Dans, Dubois County (Huntingburg, Ind.) Bombers, Full Count (Hendersonville, Tenn.) Rhythm, Illinois Valley (Peru, Ill.) Pistol Shrimp, Jackson (Tenn.) Rockabillys, Johnstown (Pa.) Mill Rats, Normal (Ill.), O’Fallon (Mo.) Hoots, CornBelters, Lafayette (Ind.) Aviators, REX (Terre Haute, Ind.), Springfield (Ill.) Lucky Horseshoes, and Thrillville (Marion, Ill.) Thrillbillies all saw higher totals in 2024 than 2023.
13 Teams Increased Average Attendance: 13 of the Prospect League’s 18 teams recorded average attendance increases this season. The Cape (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) Catfish, Champion City (Springfield, Ohio) Kings, Danville (Ill.) Dans, Dubois County (Huntingburg, Ind.) Bombers, Full Count (Hendersonville, Tenn.) Rhythm, Illinois Valley (Peru, Ill.) Pistol Shrimp, Jackson (Tenn.) Rockabillys, Johnstown (Pa.) Mill Rats, Normal (Ill.), CornBelters, Lafayette (Ind.) Aviators, REX (Terre Haute, Ind.), Springfield (Ill.) Lucky Horseshoes, and Thrillville (Marion, Ill.) Thrillbillies all averaged more fans per game this summer than in 2023.
The Prospect League is proud to be an integral part of the growth of summer collegiate baseball nationally and looks forward to continuing its success thanks to the dedicated fans responsible for setting new attendance milestones each of the past two campaigns.
“Prospect League players experience many of the top stadiums and atmospheres in all of summer collegiate baseball. With more than one million fans passing through our gates the past two seasons, we are proud of the fan support shown around the League. The array of entertaining promotions and the quality baseball played on the field keeps fans flocking to our ballparks each summer,” said Brauer.
About Pistol Shrimp Baseball: The 2024 Prospect League Champion Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp are an amateur wood-bat summer league baseball team, made up of top college players from around the country who aspire to a career in professional baseball! Established in 2019, the Pistol Shrimp are part of the Prospect League, an 18-team league that spans across the midwest from Iowa to Tennessee to Pennsylvania. The Pistol Shrimp play their home games at Schweickert Stadium in Peru, Illinois from late May to early August each year, and pride themselves on providing fun, affordable, family-friendly entertainment to the communities of Peru and the towns throughout the entire Illinois Valley region!
About The Prospect League: The Prospect League is a premier Midwestern wood-bat collegiate summer baseball league with 18 teams across Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania. The League provides college players with a professional setting with excellent competition and high-quality facilities while delivering exciting baseball action and affordable all-ages entertainment to its communities. In 2023, the League achieved a new attendance record and led all collegiate summer baseball in growth. Known as the Central Illinois Collegiate League from 1963-2008, the Prospect League has more than 60 years of proud tradition as one of the original and most recognizable summer leagues. The League's rich history includes Hall of Famers, NCAA and World Series Champions, nearly 200 alumni in Major League Baseball, and more than 800 professional players. For more information visit www.prospectleague.com and follow on social media @prospectleague.