Mississippi Roots: Local Players Highlight 2026 Mud Monsters
“We are Mississippi’s team; we are the South’s team.” – Jay Pecci  

PEARL, Miss. (April 24, 2026) — The Mississippi Mud Monsters continue constructing their 2026 roster with talent from across the map, featuring a strong group of players with Mississippi and regional roots. 

“It's a blessing” said Mud Monsters Outfielder, Kyle Booker, when asked about the opportunity to play close to home and represent The Magnolia State. “It means a lot to rep where you’re from. Part of the reason why I came back is because I was finally able to let my mom and grandparents come watch me”  

The Southaven, Mississippi native is one of eight Mississippi ballplayers, and one of four returners set to take the field at Trustmark Park in 2026. A Desoto Central High School alum, Booker helped lead the program to a pair of 6A State titles won at Trustmark Park in 2018 and 2019. His success led him to The University of Tennessee from 2021-2023 and then to Oral Roberts University in 2024. He signed with the Billings Mustangs of the Pioneer League, out of college and found his path back to Mississippi as part of Manager Jay Pecci’s first squad in Pearl, playing in 95 games, missing 1 all while batting .297.  

Sharing the outfield with Booker is fellow returner Brayland Skinner. Another Southaven product, Skinner made waves as the first Mud Monsters signee to join the team. The outfielder lapped competition, leading the Frontier League Midwest Conference in stolen bases with 49. Primarily a leadoff hitter, Skinner hit .294 and his tone setting presence at the top of Pecci’s order should continue in Pearl for year two. 

Joining the outfield duo as returning players, is a pair of right-handed bullpen arms in Jackson Smith and Braden Forsyth. 

 “Opening Night last year was full of fans, July 4th was full of fans and hopefully it will be more of the same this year” Smith said reflecting on the local support. A Raymond native and Central Hinds Academy alum attended Northwest Mississippi Community College for two years where he was teammates with another Mud Monsters returner in Brayland Skinner before spending three seasons playing for Mississippi College for three seasons. Smith spent most of his first year in Pearl as an elite weapon in the Mud Monsters ‘pen. Compiling 25 strikeouts to 3 walks, Smith posted a team leading K/BB ratio of 8.33.  

Forsyth, a Coldwater native, made 11 appearances in 2025, joining the Mud Monsters after college stops as a closer at Ole Miss, the University of Tampa and the University of Houston. The right-hander notched one save while notching 18 strikeouts in 18 innings pitched.  

New faces welcomed to the 2026 team include right-handed pitchers Seth McCartney and Preston Johnson, infielder Vantrel Reed and Catcher Gray Bane.  

A 2021 graduate of Brandon High School, McCartney may have the closest path to Trustmark Park. Growing up roughly 8 miles from the ballpark, the right-hander now returns to pitch in a place that helped shape his love for the game.  

“I found out I had a spot and I was so relieved, I almost had tears McCartney said”. What a blessing, to be able to play this close to home.” McCartney works at The Box Sports Academy in Pearl alongside his newest teammates Johnson and Smith and has seen firsthand the impact baseball has on the Rankin County community.  

“It's everything,” McCartney says. “Between having the Ole Miss and State games here, Southern Miss as well. The high school state championship, it's awesome.” After graduating from Brandon High ranked as the 13th best pitcher in the state for 2021, the reliever completed a two-year stint with Meridian Community College before attending the University of Missouri. Though he planned to use a fifth year with Northwestern State University in Louisiana, McCartney decided to medically retire. Now he returns to the bump in the ballpark of his childhood.  

Joining McCartney is Preston Johnson. From Crystal Springs, Johnson is a Copiah Academy alum where he was named MAIS Pitcher of the Year as a senior. He committed and played for Mississippi State University where he was an integral part of the Bulldogs’ 2021 College World Series championship team. He earned the win in Game 2 against Vanderbilt, striking out 7 batters across 5 innings.  The Baltimore Orioles selected him in the 7th round of the 2022 MLB Draft, and he progressed to Triple-A Norfolk during his time with the organization.  

On the offensive side of the ball, Reed and Bane will be taking their first swings as Mud Monsters. Reed, from Vicksburg, played at Warren Central High School. After graduating in 2021, the infielder spent two seasons at Hinds Community College before making the move to Louisiana State University – Shreveport in 2023. Spending the next two seasons with the Pilots, Reed helped lead the team to their first NAIA National Championship in 2025. After graduating, he spent the remainder of the year in the MLB Draft League with the Williamsport Crosscutters. 

Bane, from Olive Branch, played at Lewisburg High School before bginning his college career at Mississippi State. He later moved to Itawamba Community College, earning All-MACCC honorable mention honors, before transferring to Southern Miss and finishing at the University of the Incarnate Word in 2025. While in San Antonio, Bane appeared in a career-high nameber of games and hit five home runs in 34 contests.  

"It's great to see local players strengthening the foundation of our team,” Pecci said. “We are Mississippi’s team; we are the South’s team. Yet are the same time, we are incredibly diverse.”  

In baseball, the goal is simple: touch home. For the Mud Monsters, that has more than one meaning.  

About the Mississippi Mud Monsters 
Baseball Lives Here. It Just Got a Little Weirder.
The Mississippi Mud Monsters are a professional baseball team based in Pearl, Mississippi, competing in the Frontier League. Built in the mud and rooted in Mississippi, the Mud Monsters believe baseball should be unapologetically fun, a little weird, wildly welcoming, and deeply tied to the place it calls home. Real baseball. Real people. This is swamp-built, Mississippi-made baseball, where the vibes matter just as much as the final score.