Mud Monsters Split Independence Day Doubleheader to Win Series vs. Y'alls
PEARL, Miss. (July 4, 2026) - The Mississippi Mud Monsters (22-29) rang in the 250th Independence Day Celebration with two games against the Florence Y'alls (26-23), winning the first game by a score of 5-4 before dropping the nightcap 7-6.
Monster Notes
Mississippi split the Fourth of July doubleheader, won the series and finished the 12-game homestand 7-5.
- The Mud Monsters won the series against Florence after taking the opener Friday and game one Saturday.
- Chris Barraza locked down back-to-back saves with a scoreless seventh inning in game one.
- Kasten Furr drove in four runs across the doubleheader, including a two-run single in game one and a solo home run in game two.
- Sergio Sanchez struck out six in five-plus innings during his first start since 2023.
- Mississippi went 7-5 during the 12-game homestand.
Game 1
Mississippi 5, Florence 4
Art Joven took the mound in the opener of the doubleheader, making his second start in a twin bout this season.
The first go-around was a nightcap start against the Tri-City ValleyCats on May 30, in which he helped lead the Mud Monsters to a victory.
The southpaw out of Bakersfield, California set out to replicate that and immediately picked up his first strikeout of the game for the second out of the inning.
Florence Strikes First
The Y'alls opened the scoring in the third.
In the top of the third inning, Florence punched first after a one-out single by Zach Beadle was met with a two-out double by Zade Richardson to tag Joven for the first run of the ball game, making it 1-0 Y'alls.
As the top of the fourth came around, the Florence bats continued their success as a one-out hit-by-pitch put a man on before Brett Blomquist singled to put two Y'alls aboard.
The Mud Monsters then turned a clutch 5-4-3 double play going around the horn from Travis Holt to Kasten Furr to Jack Holman to quell the threat and get the game to the home half of the frame.
Four-Run Fourth
Furr and Schield flipped the game for Mississippi.
With it a one-run game, the offense shifted into gear with one out. Holt singled for the third Mud Monsters hit, Holman was drilled and Samil De La Rosa singled to load the bases.
This set the stage for Furr, who continued his success against Florence by dunking a two-run single into left-center field.
Payne II extended the inning by drawing a walk to reload the bases.
One batter later with two outs, Slater Schield stepped up to the plate and on a full count sent a ball down the right-field line for a bases-clearing double to score De La Rosa, Furr and Payne II to make it a four-run advantage at 5-1.
Y'alls Push Back
Florence made it a one-run game in the fifth.
Florence answered with one out in the next inning when Beadle reached on an error on a bobbled grounder at second by Furr.
Later with two outs, Richardson drew a walk before three consecutive batters Hank Zeisler, Garrett Broussard and Marcus Brodil each picked up RBI singles to make it a one-run ball game at 5-4 while also knocking Joven out of the game.
All runs coming across in the inning were deemed unearned to Joven's line, and the southpaw finished his day going 4.2 innings while allowing four runs, one earned, on nine hits while walking one and picking up two strikeouts.
Barraza Saves It
The bullpen protected the one-run lead.
Dallas Woolfolk entered out of the Mud Monsters bullpen and picked up the final out of the frame. He maintained the one-run advantage after continuing his outing into the sixth inning and posting a scoreless frame.
After Mississippi's bats went scoreless in the bottom of the fifth and sixth frames, Chris Barraza entered in the seventh to try and lock down the series victory and second straight one-run win.
Barraza sat down the first two men on swinging punchouts before a two-out single delayed the inevitable.
The Mud Monsters closer got a flyout to center field, locking down back-to-back saves and securing the opener of the Independence Day doubleheader 5-4.
Game 2
Florence 7, Mississippi 6
Sergio Sanchez came out blazing, striking out the side in the top of the first inning and only needing to fire 12 pitches to get the Mississippi bats their first chance in the nightcap.
The start marked the first start for Sanchez since 2023 when he was a member of the Single-A Fresno Grizzlies in the Colorado Rockies organization.
Mud Monsters Jump Ahead
Skinner's speed helped create the first run of the nightcap.
The Mud Monsters continued the offensive momentum into the second matchup, scoring a run in the first inning.
Skinner singled for his second leadoff base hit to reach. He then swiped his 26th bag of the year to move into scoring position.
Holt followed with a one-out bloop single to put Mud Monsters on the corners and then wisely got caught in a two-out rundown, extending it long enough to allow Skinner to cross home before he was tagged out for the final out of the frame.
Sanchez Settles In
The right-hander retired the first 11 Florence batters.
Back on the hill, Sanchez continued to mow down the Y'alls, retiring the first 11 batters until Florence picked up its first walk and hit with back-to-back batters with two outs in the top of the fourth.
Sanchez quickly rebounded and got Brodil swinging for his sixth strikeout and final out of the inning.
Insurance in the Fourth
Rose and Skinner helped Mississippi stretch the lead.
Insurance runs crossed in the home half of the fourth frame after Payne II singled with one out and Furr followed with a double to set up runners in scoring position for Nathan Rose.
Rose followed with a groundout that allowed Payne II to score to double the Mud Monsters advantage to 2-0 while also pushing Furr to third.
Skinner followed with his third knock of the evening to score Furr, making it 3-0 in favor of the teal and black.
Florence Breaks Through
The Y'alls got on the board in the sixth.
Sanchez was lifted after walking Milo Rushford to begin the top of the sixth inning, and the game was turned over to Connor Langrell.
Rushford immediately attempted to steal second, and Victor Diaz's throw from behind the plate bounced into center field to allow the runner to advance to third base.
A second error occurred as Brendan Bobo grounded a ball to Furr, and the Mud Monsters second baseman threw low to first baseman Joshua Shelly, allowing the lone Florence run to score.
Furr Goes Deep
The second baseman gave Mississippi another insurance run.
After being shut out for an inning, Furr got back to work with his bat and drilled a two-out solo home run over the left-field wall to increase Mississippi's advantage to 4-1.
It stood as an important insurance run as Florence would knot things up in its last offensive chance.
Florence Forces Extras
The Y'alls tied the game in the seventh.
Consecutive singles by Blomquist and Jackson Tucker put two men on for Dillon Baker, who sent a ball deep into right field.
Payne II tracked the ball to the warning track but was unable to make the catch, resulting in an error and allowing Baker to reach third while bringing in Blomquist and Tucker to make it a one-run game at 4-3.
One batter later with one out, Rushford grounded out to bring in the tying run and knot the game at 4-4, sending the game into the bottom of the seventh.
Despite a two-out walk, Mississippi was retired to give way to extra innings as the game turned over to the eighth.
Extra-Inning Push
Florence scored three in the eighth, and Mississippi answered with two.
With the ghost runner at second, Brayden Sanders took over for Langrell.
Zeisler singled to give Florence the one-run lead at 5-4. Broussard followed with a single to put runners on the corners.
With Blomquist batting, Diaz allowed an off-speed pitch up in the zone to hit off his catcher's mitt and get away from him to put the Y'alls up 6-4.
The final run came in with two outs. Tucker went after the first offering from Sanders, and miscommunication by the entire infield allowed the run to come in to make it a 7-4 game.
Mississippi entered the bottom of the inning and refused to go quietly.
Facing Aiden McEvoy, the Florence and league leader in saves, Payne II drilled an RBI double into center field to score Shelly, who was the Mud Monsters ghost runner.
Furr followed by knocking his fourth hit of the second game to drive in his second RBI of the contest and fourth on the entire day to help Mississippi come within one at 7-6, but the game would wrap with that score.
Road Trip Ahead
Mississippi finished the Independence Day doubleheader with a split and went 7-5 during the twelve-game homestand.
Following two off days, the Mud Monsters continue their 2026 campaign with a six-game road trip, first stopping in Schaumburg, Illinois for a three-game set with the Boomers starting Tuesday before taking on the Windy City ThunderBolts for another three-game series.
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.