First baseman/outfielder Joseph Carpenter and right-handed reliever Kyle Johnson have both inked contracts with the Lancaster Stormers for the 2025 season, it was announced today by manager Ross Peeples.
In addition, the Stormers have dealt the rights to second baseman Damon Dues to the Staten Island FerryHawks for a player to be named later.
Lancaster now has 15 players under contract for the 2025 season, which will begin at Long Island on Friday, April 25.
Carpenter, 25, will be beginning his fourth season with the Stormers. The former Cedar Crest and University of Delaware star has been a steady contributor since his first Atlantic League hit, a two-run pinch-hit single that defeated the Long Island Ducks in August, 2022.
Over the past three years, Carpenter has appeared in 222 games, hitting a composite .291 while clubbing 31 homers and driving home 136 runs. The right-handed slugger also has 56 doubles as a Stormer. He led the 2023 club with 16 long balls.
He has won two championship rings with the Stormers and has played an integral role in the second half titles over the last three years.
“’Carp’ has had a couple solid seasons for us,” said Peeples. “He works his tail off, and we are excited to see him grow even more from last season. He’ll play first and the outfield, and possibly even some third base.”
Johnson, 31, has spent a portion of two previous seasons with the Stormers. The San Diego native appeared in seven games, including one start, in 2021. Following one year in the Chicago Cubs’ system, that saw him enter two games for Class AAA Iowa, and one season in the American Association, Johnson made his return to Lancaster last year.
The former Purdue Boilermaker was 0-1 with three saves and a 6.10 ERA. During the Stormers’ league record-tying 15-game winning streak, Johnson pitched in eight games, yielding runs in only one while recording his three saves on the season. He appeared in the Stormers’ one win during the post-season, throwing a scoreless inning.
“Johnson will once again be a bullpen guy for us,” said Peeples. “He had spurts last year where he looked really good, and we are hoping that he can get back to that form after a full off-season of work.”
Dues hit .322 with six homers for the Stormers after signing in June. Five of the homers were hit against Staten Island.