Down the stretch in the first half, and C.R. Kernels are a half-game up in first place

CEDAR RAPIDS - The first tiebreaker is moot. Believe it or not.

The Cedar Rapids Kernels and Quad Cities River Bandits have not played each other this Midwest League baseball season and won’t the entire first half. Kind of bafflling that teams about 90 miles apart and in the same division haven’t been on each other’s schedules, yet.

So if they somehow finish in a first-place tie in the Western Division a week and a half from now, you’ve got to go to the second tiebreaker to determine the true first-half champ and end-of-the-season playoff qualifier.

That WILL be the Kernels, guaranteed, because if there is a tie, they will have a better overall record in the final 20 games of the half. Cedar Rapids went into Tuesday night with 10 games remaining, going 6-4 in the previous 10.

Quad Cities has nine first-halfers left and was 4-7 in its last 11 games. The River Bandits held a half-game lead on C.R. going into Tuesday’s action, which included the Kernels hosting Peoria and QC playing at home against Beloit.

Were you able to digest all that above information? Cedar Rapids ended up beating Peoria, 7-6, in 10 innings Tuesday night and QC lost at home to Beloit.

So the Kernels are up a half-game now.

“This season has been fun. A great, great, great group of guys,” said Kernels catcher Jaimie Ferrer. “I’m excited for these next few games and this playoff race that we’re in. We’re a half a game behind, so we’ve got to keep winning and get the job done, clinch this first half.”

The Kernels held a 33-24 record, gaining ground of Quad Cities last week despite winning just twice in a six-game series at Wisconsin. QC lost the last five games of a six-gamer at Peoria.

The game in hand C.R. holds on Quad Cities will be taken care of Thursday with a double-header against Peoria that starts at noon. The Kernels and Chiefs also play Wednesday at noon.

“It’s a lot of fun right now,” said Kernels Manager Brian Meyer. “You start the season off with the imagination to go out and compete, and put yourself in a position to win the division in the first half. Up to this point, we’ve done that. I think we’ve seen glimpses of our best baseball, but I don’t know if we’ve seen it consistently. Regardless, we have put ourselves into a position to compete and make the last 10 games of the first half meaningful.”

The Kernels have been the MWL’s best offensive team so far this season, tied for first in batting average (.261) and first in runs. The lineup lost one of its main contributors Tuesday when catcher-first baseman Nate Baez was promoted by the parent Minnesota Twins to Double-A Wichita.

Baez is/was second in the Midwest League in batting average (.331) and first in on-base percentage (.457). Cedar Rapids received catcher Luke Napleton from low-A Fort Myers to replace him on the active roster.

That’s a tough blow personnel wise, though you get a distinct vibe in the home clubhouse that the remaining players really want to win this first half, and in minor league baseball, that’s not always the case.

“They really care,” Meyer said. “If you look at the roster and how many guys we had in Fort Myers last year, and how we came so close. They’re hungry, and they’ve been hungry since spring training for that. And that’s what you want to see every day, day in and day out. We’re going to go out, and we’re going to compete, play the game, and see where the chips fall.

“We can’t guarantee anything, we can’t look too far ahead. We have to take care of today and take care of ourselves.”

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