Fritz Homers, Wild Things Rally Late to Claim Series
WASHINGTON, Pa. (June 18, 2026) - AJ Fritz smashed a homer to put the Mississippi Mud Monsters (14-22) up by three runs, but once again the Washington Wild Things (25-9) used late-inning power to take the game and series with a 7-4 victory.
Monster Notes
Fritz went deep, Bocchino stacked up three hits, and Schield made one of the defensive plays of the night.
- AJ Fritz went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, two RBIs and two runs scored.
- Peter Bocchino finished 3-for-4 out of the designated hitter spot.
- Kasten Furr collected two hits and drove in Mississippi's go-ahead run in the third inning.
- Slater Schield reached base, stole his 16th bag of the season and made a bare-handed defensive gem at shortstop.
- Andrew Semo went 2-for-4 and scored on Fritz's fourth-inning homer.
Washington Strikes First
The Wild Things grabbed the early lead in the opening inning.
Coming off wins in back-to-back starts, Jackson Smith took the hill looking to help the Mud Monsters salvage the finale and leave EQT Park with a victory.
Washington grabbed an early 1-0 lead in the first inning.
Antonio Monroy led off the game with a double and later came in to score on an Andrew Czech sacrifice fly.
After allowing the first-inning run, Smith settled in and tossed three consecutive scoreless frames to keep Mississippi within striking distance.
Mississippi Breaks Through
The Mud Monsters answered with a two-run third inning.
The one-run deficit held until Mississippi broke through against Wild Things starter Zander Sechrist in the top of the third.
Fritz led off the inning with a double and Bocchino followed with a single to put runners at second and third.
Vantrel Reed grounded into a double play that erased both he and Bocchino but allowed Fritz to score the tying run.
A walk and stolen base by Schield put him in scoring position for Furr, who lined an RBI single to give Mississippi a 2-1 lead.
Fritter Bomb
Fritz gave Mississippi its biggest lead of the night with one swing.
After Smith worked around Washington and gave the offense a chance to add on, the Mud Monsters did exactly that in the fourth.
A one-out single by Semo paved the way for Fritz, who blasted his fourth home run of the season.
The homer tied Semo and Jack Holman for the team lead and extended Mississippi's advantage to 4-1.
Washington Turns It Late
The Wild Things used another late-inning swing to take control.
The Mud Monsters held the lead until the bottom of the fifth when Washington's magic struck for the second consecutive night.
Smith walked the leadoff man before striking out Kyle Edwards for the first out of the inning.
The next batter was hit by a pitch to put two aboard, and a fielder's choice left runners on the corners.
Connor Peek singled home a run before Czech stepped in one batter later and launched a three-run homer to right field, giving Washington a 5-4 lead.
Wild Things Add Insurance
Washington scored once in the sixth and once in the eighth.
The Wild Things added insurance in both the sixth and eighth innings.
With Connor Langrell on the mound in the sixth, Caleb Ketchup singled with one out, stole second and later scored on a base hit by Collin Helms to make it 6-4.
Washington's final run came in the eighth when Cole Fowler connected on a solo homer off Chris Barraza.
Washington completed a second consecutive home sweep of Mississippi after also taking all three games during the Mud Monsters' inaugural visit in 2025. With the Frontier League scheduling rotation, Mississippi will have to wait until 2027 for another opportunity at EQT Park.
Road Trip Rolls On
The Mud Monsters continue their six-game road trip with a three-game series against the Evansville Otters.
Southpaw Eric Elliott (0-0, 3.00) makes his second professional start for Mississippi and is opposed by right-hander Garret Simpson (3-1, 5.04). First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. CT.
Full Box Score
Washington 7, Mississippi 4 - June 18, 2026 at EQT Park
Line Score
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | LOB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 9 |
| Washington | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | X | 7 | 7 | 0 | 4 |
Mississippi Batting
| Player | AVG | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schield, SS | .291 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Furr, RF | .314 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Skinner, CF | .320 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Booker, LF | .282 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Holt, 3B | .277 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Semo, C | .253 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Fritz, 1B | .303 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Bocchino, DH | .222 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reed, 2B | .175 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 37 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
Washington Batting
| Player | AVG | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monroy, DH | .269 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peek, 2B | .267 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Czech, 1B | .259 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Brocato, LF | .267 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Fowler, 3B | .281 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Ketchup, CF | .278 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Ford, RF | .220 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Liquori, RF | .298 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Edwards, SS | .193 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Helms, C | .167 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Quiroz, C | .164 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 30 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 7 |
Mississippi Pitching
| Pitcher | ERA | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | BF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smith L | 5.52 | 5.0 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 22 |
| Langrell | 3.80 | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| House | 10.00 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Barraza | 3.20 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Totals | 8.0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
Washington Pitching
| Pitcher | ERA | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sechrist W | 5.76 | 6.0 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Perez HLD | 5.27 | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ginn SV | 3.68 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Totals | 9.0 | 12 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 1 |
Box Score Notes
Mississippi extra-base hits: Fritz doubled in the third and homered in the fourth.
Washington extra-base hits: Monroy doubled in the first, Czech homered in the fifth and Fowler homered in the eighth.
RBIs: Furr (21), Fritz 2 (11), Peek (8), Czech 4 (42), Fowler (25), Helms (1).
Stolen bases: Schield (16), Furr (12), Czech (2), Ketchup (14).
Pitching decisions: Win - Zander Sechrist. Loss - Jackson Smith. Hold - Edwar Perez. Save - Landon Ginn.
Game information: Attendance 1,558. Time of game 2:32. Weather 77 degrees. Wind 20 mph. Venue: EQT Park.
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.