EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Evansville Otters played in their third doubleheader of the year on Thursday against the Joliet Slammers at Bosse Field. The Otters (17-25) dropped the opener 4-0, but salvaged the series with a win in the nightcap, taking down the Slammers (19-23) 6-1.
Game 1 – Joliet 4, Evansville 0
The Otters were shut out for the first time this season in the early contest. Geno Encina (1-1) earned the win on the hill, pitching in all seven frames as the starter. Taking the loss was Parker Brahms (2-5). All three runs he allowed came on a walk, an error and a hit-by-pitch.
Joliet opened the scoring in the third inning with two runs. They added another in the fourth frame and finalized the scoring in the seventh.
Offensively, the Otters strung together three hits from David Mendham, Jake Green and Logan Brown. They were held to their least amount of knocks in a single game this season.
Game 2 – Evansville 6, Joliet 1
Evansville rebounded in the nightcap, jumping ahead early and never looking back.
Braden Scott (1-6) was tabbed with his first win of the 2024 season after pitching a gem. He went the distance, striking out 11 in his seven innings as the starter. Zach Grace (0-1) took the loss.
Alec Olund homered to left field for two runs in the first inning to put the Otters on the board. It was his fifth jack of the year, but his first in an Evansville uniform. Also in the frame, Randy Bednar came into score on the second error of the inning from the Joliet defense, making it a 3-0 game.
The Otters added another trio to finalize their scoring in the fourth frame. Justin Felix launched his second home run of the season to right field, plating two runs. Then, Delvin Zinn singled and later scored on a sacrifice RBI from Olund for his third run driven in of the night.
Joliet scored their lone run in the sixth inning.
Closing out their nine-game home stand tonight, the Otters finished 4-5 in three series. Now, they will hit the road for six contests, beginning Friday against the Windy City ThunderBolts. The first pitch tomorrow is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. CT in Crestwood,IL. Coverage is available on the Otters Digital Network and FloBaseball.
