Baseball Game Preview: Harlan County Black Bears vs. Middlesboro Yellowjackets

For the second straight game, Harlan County will face off against Middlesboro. The Black Bears will host the Yellowjackets at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday.

Harlan County is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by an 18-1 margin over Middlesboro on Monday. The win was some much needed relief for the Black Bears as it spelled an end to their seven-game losing streak.

Zayden Casolari

Batters Struck Out (Career)

04/27/26 @ Middlesboro	9
04/20/26 vs Harlan	6
05/22/25 @ Bell County	6
04/15/25 @ Middlesboro	5
03/24/25 @ Shelby Valley	5

Zayden Casolari made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out nine batters over four innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits (and not a single walk). Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with two doubles and one RBI.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jesse Gilbert, who went 2-for-4 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. K Adams was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.

Harlan County was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .381. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in three consecutive matchups.

Middlesboro has been struggling recently as they've lost seven of their last eight games. That's put a noticeable dent in their 4-10 record this season. As for Harlan County, their victory was their first in the district, bumping their district record up to 1-4 and their overall record up to 7-11.