The Gary SouthShore RailCats (14-19) could not figure out the Lake Country DockHounds (13-18) pitching staff in a 5-0 loss in Friday’s series opener at The Steel Yard.
The DockHounds jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but that turned out to be starter Chris Erwin‘s only blemish on the night. The RailCats southpaw set the team’s new season high with 11 strikeouts, beating his own previous record of eight from his start against the Kane County Cougars last month. Erwin twirled two innings in which he struck out the side, and the lefty reached the end of the sixth with Gary SouthShore trailing by just one run.
The RailCats had some opportunities to bring runs home while Erwin was still in the game. In the second inning, LG Castillo connected on a leadoff single before back-to-back walks from Victor Nova and Will Decker loaded the bases. However, the DockHounds retired the next three batters to exit unscathed.
Upon Erwin’s exit, Lake Country found its offense. The DockHounds utilized four hits to break the game open, scoring four runs in the seventh inning.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, the RailCats mounted another threat. With only one out, Nova and Decker notched consecutive base hits before Thomas Greely brought the bases loaded with a walk. Nevertheless, once again, Lake Country found a way out of trouble and escaped without incurring any damage.
Gary SouthShore’s bullpen kept the game within reach down the stretch. Jack Eisenbarger, Ben Miller, and Jesus Rosario did not allow a hit over the final 2.2 innings, striking out three DockHounds along the way.
Unfortunately, their efforts could not spark a comeback, as Lake Country finished the job and secured the victory.
The RailCats return to The Steel Yard tomorrow afternoon at 4 p.m. aiming to even the series versus the DockHounds. 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.
