Second baseman Logan Myers smashed a ball into right field, scoring designated hitter Jack Newman and securing an 8-7 victory for the Johnstown Mill Rats over the Champion City Kings at Sargent’s Stadium on Wednesday night.
Myers, who was 2-for-4 on the evening along with a walk, fought out of an 0-2 count against Champion City pitcher Evan Ables, who threw two innings while allowing the game-winning run.
Things were back-and-forth once again between the Mill Rats and Kings, who saw multiple lead changes on Tuesday evening and even more on Wednesday. Johnstown took a three-run advantage in the seventh thanks to RBI-singles from Newman and Joey Perry, who added another hit earlier in the ballgame.
Johnstown used six different pitchers on Wednesday, including Seth Stover, who finished with an impressive line of 2.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB and 2 Ks. Brock DePute and William Oczkowski would pitch scoreless frames as well, with Will Juday and Tyler Elliott finishing the final two frames.
Elliott did allow two runs in the top of the ninth, even getting down to the potential final pitch of the game before Kings designated hitter Nicholas Weyrich and shortstop Johnny Costella would come across to force a ninth inning.
Champion City, who has a much different pitching philosophy than Johnstown, threw three pitchers on the evening, including Joe Tootle, who was impressive over four innings of work, allowing three earned while striking out four Mill Rats.
Every Champion City batter found a hit on the evening, including right fielder Evan Houseman, who went 1-for-3 with 2 RBIs in the second matchup between the teams to kickoff the season.
Johnstown will hit the road for the first time in their 2024 Prospect League season, facing off with the Chillicothe Paints for a two-game set before returning home to welcome the Lafayette Aviators.