Shawn Semple Returns, and Blue Crabs Acquire Outfielder Pearce Howard in Trade for 2025 Season

From the Bayou to the Blue Crabs: Shawn Semple Returns, and Blue Crabs Acquire Outfielder Pearce Howard in Trade for 2025 Season

The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs have added two alumni of the University of New Orleans baseball team, re-signing Right-handed starting pitcher Shawn Semple, and acquiring 27-year-old outfielder Pearce Howard from the Ogden Raptors in a trade.

Semple pitched for the Privateers from 2015-2017, and Howard played from 2018-2022 for them. Howard was born in nearby Silver Spring, Maryland. While Semple is from Voorhees New Jersey.

Semple returns to Southern Maryland for a second season with the Crabs. He was one of the key figures in the starting rotation but was sidelined due to injury for part of the year, which forced him into a relief role later in the season.

After college, Semple was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 11th round of the 2017 draft. The former Yankees prospect, where he reached Triple-A, threw 93 innings in 2024, and had an ERA of 5.23, and a walk per nine innings of just 2.4. He had four quality starts as a starter, with his best performance coming against the future ALPB champions York on May 7th, where he gave up just one run over seven innings and struck out eight Revs in a winning effort.

The 29-year-old then transitioned to the bullpen on August 10th, where he put together four scoreless appearances out of the pen. His final appearance of the year came as a starter against Gastonia, where he had another quality start of six innings of two run ball.

This will be Semple’s eighth professional season.

Pearce Howard, who bats left and throws right, is coming off a career year for the Ogden Raptors in the Pioneer league. Previously he put together several impressive seasons with the University of New Orleans.

In his first year as a professional, he shined bating .360, with four home runs and 62 RBIs last year for Ogden. He collected 140 hits, which led the Pioneer League. He also had 25 doubles, playing in 95 games. The 6’3 outfielder carried a .973 fielding percentage in the outfield for the Raptors.

Previously in 2022, his final year at college, he hit .356, hit eight bombs and had 69 RBIs for the Privateers. In 2021, he had similar numbers, batting .333, seven homers, and 56 RBIs. He played summer ball that year in the Northwoods league, which is a highly touted summer league.

The Blue Crabs continue to build their roster with the season being just over a month away. The Blue Crabs look forward to welcoming fans back to Regency Furniture Stadium on April 25th for Wild Wild West Opening Day! Be one of the first 500 fans to receive a Blue Crabs Cowboy hat presented by Summer Breeze Farms as the Crabs meet the High Point Rockers, with postgame fireworks to follow! Gates open at 5:30 with first pitch at 6:35pm at Regency Furniture Stadium.