EXPLORERS’ STRONG START TOO MUCH FOR CLEBURNE

Sioux City 6, Cleburne 3 – Box Score

A five-run first inning boosted the Sioux City Explorers to improve their league-leading record to 16-4 with a 6-3 win against the Cleburne Railroaders.

DH Jay Austin (2-for-5) pushed the first run of the game across with a double that scored CF Luis Durango. Austin and RF Michael Lang (3-for-5) scored when 1B Dexture McCall doubled and after 3B Jay Baum drew a walk, both McCall and Baum touched home as C Dylan Kelly (2-for-3) doubled. Cleburne found the scoreboard in the bottom of the third inning when a 3B Patrick Palmeiro single plated C Blake Grant-Parks (2-for-3) and again in the fourth with an RBI double from DH Axel Johnson.

Despite another run in the fifth – an RBI double from 1B Levi Scott – the Railroaders never caught up to Sioux City’s hot start. Kelly added another RBI in the sixth to score Baum and finalize the final tally.

 

Chicago 8, Sioux Falls 0 – Box Score

A gem on the mound from starting pitcher Connor Root paved the way for the Chicago Dogs’ 8-0 win against the Sioux Falls Canaries.

Root tossed eight innings and gave up just four hits. He walked just two batters and struck out seven as he earned his first win of the season. Reliever Tommy Thorpe worked a perfect ninth to seal up the win. Offensively, 2B Trey Vavra went 2-for-3 with four RBIs including a three-RBI double and a solo home run.

SS Edwin Arroyo added two RBIs with a 2-for-4 night and both 1B Dalton Blaser and LF Zach Racusin also added a pair of hits each.

For the Canaries, four different batters each had one each.

 

Gary SouthShore 6, Winnipeg 2 – Box Score

A six-run spurt in the sixth and seventh inning propelled the Gary SouthShore RailCats to a 6-2 win against the Winnipeg Goldeyes.

A CF Reggie Abercrombie leadoff home run in the top of the fourth game the Goldeyes an early lead. But a single from SS Andy DeJesus (2-for-4) in the bottom of the sixth took the lead back for the RailCats as both LF John Price Jr. and 2B Cole Fabio (2-for-2) scored. DeJesus scored in the next at-bat in as 3B Mitch Glasser singled.

RF Victor Cruzado scored for the Goldeyes in the top of the seventh as 2B Matt McCann singled but the RailCats kept pounding in the bottom of the frame. With one out, Fabio lifted a sac fly, 1B Alex Crosby singled home DH Reggie Wilson and then DeJesus added another RBI with a double to plate Crosby.

 

Lincoln 7, Fargo-Moorhead 4 – Box Score

The Lincoln Saltdogs dug themselves out of and early hole and walked away with a 7-5 win at home on Wednesday night.

Fargo-Moorhead took the early lead in the top of the third inning. RF Randolph Oduber (3-for-4) singled with the bases loaded to plate both 2B Maikol Gonzalez and CF Devan Ahart (2-for-5) and then scored in the next at-bat when 3B Tommy Mendonca singled. C Dashenko Ricardo tied things up in the bottom of the fourth with a three-run home run and LF Brandon Jacobs (2-for-5) pushed the Saltdogs in front in the sixth with his lead-leading seventh home run of the year. Three more runs the rest of the way, including two RBIs from DH Curt Smith (2-for-5) in the eighth, helped the Saltdogs hold on for the win.

Oduber added a solo home run for the RedHawks in the top of the eighth.

 

Kansas City 8, Texas 0 – Box Score

The Kansas City T-Bones pitching staff shutout the Texas AirHogs on the way to an 8-0 win on Wednesday night.

Starting pitcher Barrett Austin earned the win for working six innings and giving up five hits while striking out six batters. Reliever James Buckelew finished off the last three innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four hitters in the process.

Offensively, 1B Nick Torres went 2-for-4 with four RBIs and CF Keith Curcio went 2-for-4 with three RBIs and a run scored. Both RF Todd Cunningham and C Adrian Nieto each added a pair of hits. For the AirHogs, SS Chen Chen went 3-for-4.

 

St. Paul 10, Wichita 1 – Box Score

The St. Paul Saints put up six runs in the top of the first inning and rolled to a 10-1 win against the Wichita Wingnuts.

In the first, 1B Noah Perio Jr. (2-for-5) doubled home the first run and scored later in the frame when LF Richard Prigatano (3-for-4) singled. DH Brady Shoemaker (2-for-3) added a sac fly and C Justin O’Conner capped the rally with a three-run home run his fourth of the year. He added his fifth roundtripper of the season later in the night as he finished 2-for-5 with four RBIs. Defensively, the Saints gave up just one run, a solo home run from LF Tony Thomas in the fourth.

Six Saints finished the night with more than one hit, led by Prigatano with three. For the Wingnuts, CF Logan Watkins had a team-high two hits.