The Gary SouthShore RailCats made sure to make their series opener against the Milwaukee Milkmen one to remember as they stormed to a 24-7 victory.
The 24 runs set a new single-game franchise record, and the win increases their streak to five, tying their previous high this season.
In the early stages, though, the Milkmen grabbed the upper hand. They struck for five runs on six hits, including three doubles, in the first inning, putting the RailCats in an early hole.
Slowly but surely, however, the RailCats chipped away at the deficit through the first four innings. Tom Walraven launched a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first, and Sam Abbott followed up with one of his own in the second to bring the ‘Cats within three. A Daniel Lingua run-scoring triple and a wild pitch accounted for two tallies in the bottom of the third, and in the blink of an eye, the ‘Cats climbed back to within one run at 5-4.
After both teams exchanged zeros in the fourth, Milwaukee restored their lead to two in the top of the fifth. An error and three walks accounted for a run, placing the Milkmen in front 6-4.
Once the RailCats came up to bat in the bottom of the sixth, the offense opened the floodgates. A seven-run outburst on six hits, including RBI knocks from Abbott, Walraven, Lingua, and Michael Woodworth helped turn a 6-4 deficit into a 9-6 lead in an instant.
Gary SouthShore kept up the momentum in the bottom of the seventh. Thomas Greely plated a run with a double before a Woodworth hit-by-pitch and Lingua single accounted for three more runs, increasing the RailCats advantage to 15-6.
Milwaukee cut the Gary SouthShore lead to eight with a run in the top of the eighth, but the RailCats countered by stringing together a nine-run rally in their half of the inning. Nate Scantlin drew a bases-loaded walk while Walraven and Woodworth followed up with run-scoring knocks. An error led to another tally ahead of a Jesus Marriaga RBI single, and Victor Nova capped off the scoring by launching a three-run home run.
Augie Voight had more than enough run support as he took the mound in the top of the ninth, and he quickly registered the final three outs to put the finishing touches on a dominant night.
The RailCats look to follow up that performance when they take on the Milkmen tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. with a chance to secure a series win. All the action will be streamed on www.aabaseball.tv, 95.9 WEFM, and the Gary SouthShore RailCats Broadcast Network through the Mixlr app.