The Gary SouthShore RailCats found themselves three outs away from a victory, the Cleburne Railroaders found their groove late at the plate to secure a 15-6 win.
Though the Railroaders jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, it did not take long for the RailCats to find their way into the game. Jesus Marriaga blasted his third home run of the season, a solo shot off the scoreboard in left field, to put Gary SouthShore on the board in the bottom of the second inning.
One frame later, a Thomas Greely single and Tom Walraven walk set Daniel Lingua up for success, as his base hit tied the score at two. The very next batter, Jonathan Engelmann, ripped a two-run double to place the ‘Cats ahead 4-2.
However, their time on top was short-lived. The Railroaders struck back for two runs in the top of the fourth, leveling the contest at four.
Both teams traded zeros in the fifth before the RailCats pulled back in front in the bottom of the sixth. Marriaga led off by doubling down the left field line and scored soon after through Victor Nova‘s single. He immediately stole second base, and Chris Burgess drove him in with a base hit of his own, giving Gary SouthShore a two-run edge.
The Railroaders responded by scoring a run in the top of the seventh, but the RailCats held firm to preserve their edge. As runners the tying run stood on first base with two outs, reliever Aaron Phillips coaxed a flyout to center field to escape the threat.
Cleburne got their offense going once again in the top of the eighth, but Gary SouthShore clutched up, using their stellar defense to prevent the tying run from scoring. Greely threw out a potential base stealer at third base, and Walraven made a spinning throw from shallow right field to take a single away, helping the RailCats take their 6-5 advantage into the top of the ninth.
Needing a run to equalize with three outs to go, the Railroaders lineup exploded for 10 runs, turning around a 6-5 deficit to seize control at 15-6, propelling them to the win.
The RailCats are back at The Steel Yard tomorrow at 6:45 p.m. as the Winnipeg Goldeyes head to town to kickstart a three-game series. All the action will be streamed on www.aabaseball.tv, 95.9 WEFM, and the Gary SouthShore RailCats Broadcast Network via the Mixlr app.
