Otters Rally Back, Down Mud Monsters 10-8
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (June 2, 2026) - The Mississippi Mud Monsters (9-13) opened a three-game series against the Evansville Otters (14-7) on Tuesday night, but a late Evansville comeback turned a five-run Mississippi lead into a 10-8 defeat at Bosse Field.
Monster Notes
Mississippi built an early lead, but Evansville answered with a late push.
- Brayland Skinner reached three times, doubled, walked twice, scored a run, and drove in a run.
- Kyle Booker drove in two runs and was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
- Tevis Payne II reached base four times with a hit, two walks, and a hit-by-pitch while scoring three runs.
- Marcos Gonzalez homered twice and drove in three runs for Evansville.
Early Support
Mississippi struck first behind Hunter Belton.
Coming off a quality start in his last appearance, Hunter Belton took the mound for Mississippi looking to open the road trip on the right foot. The Arkansas native entered the night having allowed no more than one earned run in each of his first three starts with the Mud Monsters.
Belton received early run support as Mississippi’s offense stayed hot following Saturday’s 15-run outburst.
In the third inning, Tevis Payne II worked a leadoff walk and Brayland Skinner followed with a double to put runners at second and third. Kyle Booker then grounded out to first base, allowing Payne II to score the game’s first run and give Mississippi a 1-0 lead.
Evansville answered immediately in the bottom half of the inning to tie the game at 1-1.
Fourth-Inning Push
The Mud Monsters broke through with a five-run frame.
Mississippi builds the lead
The Mud Monsters broke things open with a five-run fourth inning as Samil De La Rosa led off the frame with a double and was lifted for pinch-runner Vantrel Reed.
Kasten Furr laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Reed to third, and Reed later scored when Slater Schield reached on a dropped third strike.
Jackson Nicklaus followed with a walk and Peter Bocchino drove in a run to make it 3-1. Payne II then singled to load the bases before Skinner drew a bases-loaded walk to force home another run.
Booker was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to bring in Mississippi’s fourth run of the inning, and Travis Holt capped the rally with a sacrifice fly to push the Mud Monsters lead to 6-1.
The Otters began chipping away in the bottom of the fourth. After a leadoff walk, Marcos Gonzalez launched a two-run home run to cut the deficit to 6-3. Later in the inning, TJ Salvaggio added a sacrifice fly to make it 6-4.
Mississippi regained a three-run cushion in the fifth when Payne II brought home a run on a fielder’s choice, making it 7-4.
Evansville picked up another run in the bottom of the fifth to trim the Mississippi lead to 7-5.
Otters Rally
Evansville used a five-run sixth to take control.
Evansville jumps in front
Evansville’s comeback continued in the bottom of the sixth.
Gonzalez opened the inning with his second home run of the night before Connor Langrell entered in relief of Belton. After a single, a hit batter, and another single loaded the bases, Jon Ponder delivered an RBI single to bring Evansville within one.
Amani Jones tied the game with an RBI fielder’s choice before Logan Brown lined a two-run single into right field to give the Otters their first lead of the night at 9-7.
Evansville added another run in the seventh and carried a 10-7 lead into the eighth.
The Mud Monsters picked up one final run in the eighth when Holt drove in a run on a groundout after a walk and an error put runners on the corners, trimming the deficit to 10-8.
Dusty Baird tossed a scoreless eighth inning, but Evansville reliever Junior Cerda retired Mississippi in order in the ninth to secure the comeback victory for the Otters.
Belton finished with five innings of work, allowing five runs, four earned, on six hits while walking four and striking out one. Langrell took the loss after allowing four runs in the sixth inning.
Full Box Score
Evansville 10, Mississippi 8 - June 2, 2026 at Bosse Field
Line Score
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | LOB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 8 |
| Evansville | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | X | 10 | 13 | 2 | 8 |
Mississippi Batting
| Player | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brayland Skinner, CF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Kyle Booker, RF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Travis Holt, 3B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Samil De La Rosa, DH | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Vantrel Reed, DH | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kasten Furr, LF | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Slater Schield, SS | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Jackson Nicklaus, 2B | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Peter Bocchino, 1B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Tevis Payne II, C | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Totals | 32 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 8 | 11 |
Evansville Batting
| Player | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jon Ponder, CF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Amani Jones, 2B | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Logan Brown, C | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Riley Pierce, 1B | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Dakota Robertson, DH | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Marcos Gonzalez, 3B | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Jomar Castillo, LF | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaxon Linscott, RF | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TJ Salvaggio, SS | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 35 | 10 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 3 |
Mississippi Pitching
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunter Belton | 5.0 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| Connor Langrell L | 1.0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Dusty Baird | 2.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 8.0 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
Evansville Pitching
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parker Willeman | 4.0 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Gabe Garcia | 0.1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Jack Theiby W | 2.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Andres Valdez | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Junior Cerda SV | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Totals | 9.0 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 11 | 0 |
Game Notes
2B: Mississippi - Slater Schield, Brayland Skinner, Samil De La Rosa. Evansville - Riley Pierce, Jaxon Linscott.
HR: Evansville - Marcos Gonzalez 2.
RBI: Mississippi - Brayland Skinner, Kyle Booker 2, Travis Holt 2, Peter Bocchino, Tevis Payne II. Evansville - Jon Ponder, Amani Jones 2, Logan Brown 2, Marcos Gonzalez 3, TJ Salvaggio.
Fielding: Mississippi turned one double play. Errors: Evansville - Amani Jones, Parker Willeman. Mississippi - Peter Bocchino.
Base Running: Jaxon Linscott stole two bases for Evansville. Jon Ponder stole one base. Jackson Nicklaus was caught stealing for Mississippi.
Pitching: Belton 87 pitches, 47 strikes. Langrell 17 pitches, 7 strikes. Baird 32 pitches, 23 strikes. Willeman 91 pitches, 53 strikes.
Game Information: Bosse Field. First pitch: 6:35 p.m. Final out: 9:32 p.m. Time of game: 2:57. Attendance: 1,946. Weather: 80 degrees, wind NE at 11 mph.
Up Next
The Mud Monsters continue their three-game set against Evansville on Wednesday morning. First pitch is scheduled for 11:55 a.m. CT.
Jackson Smith (1-0, 6.00) will make his third start of the season for Mississippi while Evansville counters with fellow right-hander Ryan Wiltse (0-1, 3.94).
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.