Baseball Game Preview: Johnson Central Golden Eagles vs. Pikeville Panthers

Johnson Central is on a four-game streak of home wins, while Pikeville is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Golden Eagles will welcome the Panthers at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Johnson Central will be strutting in after a victory while Pikeville will be coming in after a defeat.

On Tuesday, Johnson Central got the win against Betsy Layne by a conclusive 16-6. The result was nothing new for the Golden Eagles, who have now won 13 matches by six runs or more so far this season.

Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Pikeville challenged Paintsville on Monday. The Panthers lost 14-5 to the Tigers. That's two games in a row now that the Panthers have lost by exactly nine runs.

Pikeville saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Bradyn Hall, who went 1-for-4 with one stolen base and one run. Hall is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last three games he's played.

Johnson Central has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won nine of their last ten contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 20-7 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Pikeville, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost three of their last four games. That's put a noticeable dent in their 15-13 record this season.

Johnson Central skirted past Pikeville 6-5 when the teams last played back in March. Do the Golden Eagles have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Panthers turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.