In the final game at The Steel Yard in July, the Gary SouthShore RailCats (26-36) fell in Sunday’s series finale to the Chicago Dogs (31-31) 7-1.
For the first time in 19 days, Chris Erwin toed the rubber for Gary SouthShore, making his first start in a month. Even with the layoff, the southpaw picked up right where he left off, firing two shutout innings while striking out three Dogs in the process.
Following his exit, the Dogs found their way onto the scoreboard, striking four two runs in the fourth inning to take the game’s first lead.
Oddy Nuñez entered in the fifth and fired a 1-2-3 frame to deliver his seventh consecutive scoreless appearance.
A couple of innings later, Chicago’s offense reignited. They pushed across four runs in the seventh to garner a 6-0 cushion.
DJ Wilkinson entered in the top of the ninth, making his first appearance since the All-Star break. He flashed the form that delivered him to the Midsummer Classic, firing two strikeouts in a scoreless inning.
Down to their final three outs, the ‘Cats rallied to avoid a shutout. Jesus Marriaga earned a leadoff walk before Francisco Del Valle connected on a one-out double, placing two runners in scoring position. The next batter, Victor Nova, connected on a deep fly ball to right0center field that came mere feet from leaving the yard for a three-run home run, but Dogs center fielder Nick Heath made the catch as he slammed into the wall, resulting in a sacrifice fly to score their first run.
Thomas Greely then earned a walk RailCats down to their final out to push the threat even further. But Chicago then induced a fly out to right field to end the game and give Chicago the 7-1 victory.
The RailCats hit the road and begin a six-game series against the Cleburne Railroaders (31-31) at La Moderna Field. All the action will be streamed on www.aabaseball.tv and broadcast over the radio on 95.9 WEFM and the Gary SouthShore RailCats Broadcast Network via the Mixlr app.
