EVANSVILLE, Ind. (June 21, 2026) — After dropping five straight games for the first time in franchise history, the Mississippi Mud Monsters (15-24) got their offense back on track Sunday evening as three home runs powered them past the Evansville Otters (25-13) and prevented a sweep with an 8-6 victory.Fresh off a record tying performance earlier this week against the Wild Things, Brian Williams took the ball looking to carry that momentum into Sunday’s finale. The right-hander had the backing of the bats early after Brayland Skinner singled and moved to second on a throwing error by Marcos Gonzalez at third base. Kyle Booker followed with a sacrifice bunt down the third baseline to move Skinner to third. One batter later with two outs, AJ Fritz lifted a fly ball down the right field line that Sam Linscott dropped to allow the run to score to open the scoring 1-0 in favor of Mississippi. Evansville answered instantly in the bottom of the first after Jon Ponder drew a leadoff walk, moved to third on a single by Amani Jones and with one out came in on a successful squeeze play on a bunt by Logan Brown to tie the game 1-1.Mississippi retook the lead in the top of the second. Samil De La Rosa singled at the start, Tevis Payne II walked, and Andrew Semo picked up an RBI single to make it 2-1 Mud Monsters. The Otters continued the tug of war on the scoreboard after the first two men in the bottom of the second reached on singles and LG Castillo followed with a three-run home run to make it 4-2 Evansville. Mississippi catapulted to their third lead of the day in the top of the third inning and did not look back. A walk to Booker and two singles back-to-back by Travis Holt and AJ Fritz loaded the bases for Kasten Furr who grounded out to cut it to a one-run game at 4-3 Evansville. With two men on and one out, De La Rosa blasted a two-run shot to left field to give Mississippi the lead 5-4. Mississippi continued to run into the longball with a two-homer inning in the top of the fourth. With two outs and the bases empty, Booker launched his fourth homer of the season opposite field over the left field fence to make it 6-4 Mud Monsters. Two batters later, the two-out homer party continued. Following a single by Travis Holt, Fritz went into liftoff mode, crushing an offering from Evansville reliever Dylan Zentko over the left field wall to break things open with an 8-4 score. Things held as is until the fifth inning when Williams allowed a one-out solo home run to T.J. Salvaggio that cut into the lead 8-5.The right-hander out of Texas earned his first victory of the year after allowing five runs on seven hits across five innings while walking one and striking out one. Evansville picked up one more run off Chris Barraza after the right-hander emerged to replace Williams.In the seventh, Barraza’s second inning of work, a one-out walk to Ponder put a runner on. Ponder then stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and crossed home plate on a single by Amani Jones.Tristan House followed with scoreless eighth and ninth innings to secure the save and help bring momentum into the Mud Monsters’ longest homestand of the year. After an off day Monday, the Mud Monsters return to Trustmark Park to open a twelve-game homestand with a six-game series against the Lake Erie Crushers beginning Tuesday, June 23. The game will feature in-game Bingo Madness with the chance to play along all game long for prizes. At the time of writing, neither team has announced their probable starting pitchers. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT and gates open at 5:30 p.m. CT.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.