Sixth Lead Change Proves Final as Six-Run Eighth Sinks Mud Monsters
FL Mississippi Mud Monsters

Sixth Lead Change Proves Final as Six-Run Eighth Sinks Mud Monsters

Published on May 15, 2026 under Frontier League (FL)
Mississippi Mud Monsters News Release


Mississippi Mud Monsters' Brayland Skinner
Mississippi Mud Monsters' Brayland Skinner
(Mississippi Mud Monsters)

AVON, Ohio - In a game featuring six lead changes, the Mississippi Mud Monsters (3-4) came up short 11-8 in the opening game of a three-game series against the Lake Erie Crushers (3-4). The wild contest also marked the first time Mississippi has fallen below .500 during the 2026 season.

Art Joven made his second start in the teal and black, striking out six Crushers. Late walks proved costly for the left-hander as multiple inherited runners eventually came around to score. Joven finished allowing five runs, four earned, two hits and four walks.

Finding themselves trailing for the first time this season, it was a first-inning sacrifice fly that brought home the opening run for Lake Erie.

Mississippi answered quickly in the top of the third after a Travis Holt single was followed by a towering two-run home run by Jack Holman. The Mud Monsters first baseman has now homered in consecutive games.

The Mud Monsters' 2-1 advantage held for two half-innings until the bottom of the fifth when two Crushers reached base and a Pavin Parks RBI groundout brought home the tying run.

Great two-out hitting on a 1-2 count then put Kasten Furr aboard with a single. Furr swiped second before Andrew Semo delivered his first clutch hit of the night, driving in Furr with a single to give Mississippi a 3-2 lead.

Unfortunately for Mississippi, Lake Erie answered every run the Mud Monsters scored. The Crushers loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the sixth after Joven hit the leadoff batter and walked the next two aboard.

Mud Monsters manager Jay Pecci turned to the bullpen and brought in Connor Langrell. Facing Lake Erie first baseman Alfredo Gonzalez, Langrell surrendered a base hit back up the middle on his third offering, scoring two runs and giving the Crushers a 4-3 lead.

Langrell recorded the inning's first out on a sacrifice fly that extended the lead to 5-3. A single followed, but Langrell responded by striking out Samuel Benjamin for out number two before inducing a pop out to Holt to strand runners at first and second and limit the damage.

Both teams were held scoreless in the seventh inning as Braden Forsyth took over for Langrell and struck out the first two batters he faced before recording the final out on a pop out.

Protecting a two-run lead in the eighth, the Crushers turned to Jean Calderon for his first appearance of the season. Mississippi immediately caught a break as a soft ground ball by Furr rolled back fair along the third-base line for a single.

Calderon then walked Semo, representing the tying run, before a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position.

The Dominican right-hander picked up the first out by striking out Slater Schield on a full count before hitting Brayland Skinner to load the bases.

With Kyle Booker due up and the bases loaded, Lake Erie manager Jared Lemieux turned to veteran reliever Brandyn Sittinger in hopes of escaping the inning. Sittinger struck out Booker swinging for out number two, but with Holt at the plate, the veteran reliever handed Mississippi two runs.

Sittinger uncorked a wild pitch on his third offering to Holt that catcher Derek Vegas could not handle, allowing Furr to score and cut the deficit to one.

One pitch later, another ball skipped past Vegas, allowing Semo to score and knot the game at 5-5.

With the game tied entering the bottom of the eighth, Forsyth remained on the mound and recorded the first out after getting James Jett to ground out 6-3. Back-to-back two-out singles followed for the Crushers, putting two aboard.

On the next batter, Samuel Benjamin, a pitch clock violation against Forsyth opened the count at 1-0. Benjamin then took the first actual offering from the Mississippi reliever and split Booker and Skinner in right-center field for a two-run double to give Lake Erie a 7-5 lead.

Forsyth then spiked a pitch to Garrett Pike that got past Semo, allowing Benjamin to move to third. Pitching coach Kurt Takahashi visited the mound to settle down the right-hander, but the next batter, Pavin Parks, singled home another run to extend the lead to 8-5.

A hit by pitch followed, loading the bases with nowhere to put anyone. Forsyth then issued back-to-back run-scoring walks before being relieved by position player AJ Fritz.

With Lake Erie now leading 10-5, Fritz made his second pitching appearance of the week after also taking the mound during Mississippi's 13-5 loss in Florence. The infielder allowed Gonzalez to collect his second RBI single of the inning before finally recording the final out.

Down six runs entering the ninth, the Mud Monsters refused to go quietly.

Randy Berigüete entered looking to close out the victory for Lake Erie. After Samil De La Rosa struck out, a single by Jackson Nicklaus and a walk to Furr put two aboard for Andrew Semo, who launched a three-run homer over the left-center field wall for his second four-RBI performance of the season, cutting the deficit to 11-8.

Berigüete, visibly frustrated after surrendering the homer, briefly raised tensions between the two squads when his next pitch sailed behind Slater Schield's head. Schield eventually worked a walk before Skinner followed with a single.

Booker, 1-for-5 on the night after extending his hitting streak to 15 games, stepped to the plate representing the tying run but grounded into a game-ending double play as Lake Erie escaped with the 11-8 victory.

The Mud Monsters will once again search for their first-ever road win against Lake Erie in game two tomorrow evening as right-hander Hunter Belton (0-0, 0.00) makes his debut for Mississippi while the Crushers turn to left-hander Corbin Foy (0-0, 2.25).

Check out the Mississippi Mud Monsters Statistics

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Mississippi Mud Monsters' Brayland Skinner
Mississippi Mud Monsters' Brayland Skinner
   



Frontier League Stories from May 15, 2026


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