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New season, new faces: 4 things to know about the Evansville Otters in 2024

treasure washington, evansville courier & press
·4 min read

EVANSVILLE — Opening Day for the Evansville Otters is almost here.

The Otters open regular season play on the road on Thursday at the Windy City Thunderbolts for one game before a three-game weekend series at the Joliet Slammers. They'll return to Bosse Field on Tuesday for a six-game homestand starting with the Gateway Grizzlies.

Last season was special as the Otters appeared in their first Frontier League Championship since winning it all in 2016. Although they fell in five games to the Québec Capitales, their run was memorable after losing in the first round in four of the previous five seasons.

This year's squad hopes to establish an identity of its own.

"We've kind of stressed and strived that you've got to take it one day at a time, one pitch at a time," Otters manager Andy McCauley said. "Last year was last year. This year is this year."

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Evansville's Jomar Reyes takes a cut as the Otters take on the Black Sox in an exhibition game for Education Day at Bosse Field Tuesday morning, May 9, 2023.
Evansville's Jomar Reyes takes a cut as the Otters take on the Black Sox in an exhibition game for Education Day at Bosse Field Tuesday morning, May 9, 2023.

How will the Otters build off their success from last season?

This is mostly a new-look Otters squad. They lost much of their offensive power and some arms on the mound. Yet, McCauley remains confident about his returners. One is Jomar Reyes, who had the second-highest batting on the team at .301.

The rotation is also one of the Otters' strongest pieces with Parker Brahms and Zach Smith returning. The pitchers combined for 10 wins last season and Smith, the Opening Day starter, led the staff with 98 strikeouts. McCauley is also excited to see what Braden Scott, a 6-foot-3 lefty who played at Indiana, can do as a starter.

"I like the three starters," McCauley said. "The addition of Tyler Ras, he's going to be a quality starter for us as well. Losing the back end arms in Kevin Davis and Jake Polancic hurts, but we're looking to fill those roles with some new faces."

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More new faces look to break out

McCauley likes what switch hitter Mason House is doing as the Otters' most recent top draft pick. He's knocking off rust at a quick pace and had some good hits at spring training. McCauley also has high praise for left-handed hitter Mike Peabody and added he and House will be in the middle of the lineup.

Dane Tofteland, who played at Indiana State, is another name to the lookout for. The right-handed hitter had nine home runs last season for the defending Pioneer League champion Odgen Raptors.

McCauley on leadoff competition: 'It was wide open'

Noah Myers had a memorable first season with the Otters, winning Frontier League Rookie of the Year honors and setting a single-season record with 86 runs scored. He also tallied 41 stolen bases, the third-most in Otters' single-season history.

A sign of Myers, now in Single-A with the Charleston RiverDogs, still hangs inside Bosse Field. New faces also look to make their mark as the leadoff.

McCauley said the competition was wide open with Chris Davis and Patrick Lee in contention. Davis was last season's co-MVP of the United States Professional Baseball League. Lee did lead off in the Otters' final exhibition game.

"The competition is great," Lee said. "That's what I live for, especially as a baseball player. I look forward to it each and every day to get back on the field, compete and prove to myself and to others that's watching that I can that leadoff spot."

"It's hard to replace a Noah Myers, just what he did for us last year," McCauley added. "But one of those guys will be in the leadoff spot come Thursday."

Evansville Otters players encourage a teammate after getting a base hit against the Windy City Thunderbolts at Bosse Field in Evansville, Ind., Tuesday night, Aug. 16, 2022. The Otters lost the game 5-2.
Evansville Otters players encourage a teammate after getting a base hit against the Windy City Thunderbolts at Bosse Field in Evansville, Ind., Tuesday night, Aug. 16, 2022. The Otters lost the game 5-2.

The Otters look forward to their season opener and beyond

McCauley wants to see how his team stacks up on Opening Day and doesn't mind starting on the road. He expects some kinks for the Otters to work out that their home crowd won't see.

"What I look forward to the most is just having fun with the team and competing," Lee said. "That's what the game of baseball is here for us to do, and this is our job. We practice hard. Coach Andy has done a very good job at that and putting us through each and every trial and tribulation."

Soon, Bosse Field will be roaring for another summer. Last year, the Otters had one of their best-attended years in history with 114,970 total spectators. That includes a Frontier League record for the championship series.

The Otters look forward to playing in front of their home fans all season, starting with the opener on Tuesday, which they hope will be the start of another deep playoff run.

"If (the home opener is) anything like the final series of the year, it will be amazing," McCauley said. "We had really good fan support in that playoff run, especially in the championship. Hopefully, we get good fan support Tuesday and Wednesday. And I'm sure Thursday, Friday and Saturday will be amazing."

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Here are 4 things to know about the Evansville Otters in 2024