GARY SOUTHSHORE RAILCATS MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 28, 2023
Contact: Ryan Zimmerman
Phone: 219-882-2255
Email: [email protected]    

RailCats Offense Explodes, Blows Out Railroaders 

Cleburne, TX – The Gary SouthShore RailCats (29-37) offense could do no wrong at La Moderna Field, supplying 18 runs on 16 hits and 10 walks as they dominated the Cleburne Railroaders (33-34) 18-9. 

Right away, though, the Railroaders scratched across the game’s first run in their first turn at bat.  Following a pair of singles, a fielder’s choice and an error allowed them to grab an early 1-0 lead. 

However, Gary SouthShore fought back in a big way.  Jesus Marriaga walked and stole a base to open the top of the second, promptly scoring on an LG Castillo base hit.  Victor Nova drew a walk and Thomas Greely legged out an infield single to load the bases, and three straight singles cashed in the opportunity.  Will Decker, Daniel Lingua, and Gio Díaz came through in consecutive fashion, firing the RailCats ahead 4-1. 

Gary SouthShore was far from done in the inning.  Jackson Valera immediately stepped up and delivered a three-run double, and after Marriaga got hit by a pitch, Castillo and Del Valle connected on extra-base hits, a triple and double respectively, finishing off a nine-run rally. 

Cleburne inched back in the game on the back of a one-run second and two-run third, but the RailCats returned the favor in the top of the fourth.  A Díaz walk, error, and Marriaga hit by pitch loaded the bases once again, setting up Castillo to push Gary SouthShore into double digits.  He singled to do just that, and a Del Valle knock and Nova hit by pitch kept the runs coming.  Two batters later, Decker capped off the frame with a run-scoring groundout, sending the ‘Cats to a commanding 13-4 edge. 

Still, the Railroaders refused to give in.  They countered by plating five in the fifth inning, but Oddy Nuñez kept it from escalating any further.  He clutched up to fan Bret Boswell to conclude the frame, keeping Gary SouthShore’s advantage at 13-8. 

The RailCats responded thanks to another Greely infield single to extend their cushion to six runs, and from then on, the bullpen took over.  Aaron Phillips entered and tossed two scoreless frames, and Joan Valdez followed suit, fanning two Railroaders in a row to punctuate a scoreless eighth. 

Gary SouthShore still did have one more big inning left in them.  Ahead of Valdez’s entrance, the RailCats surged for another four runs in the top of the eighth.  A hard-hit Lingua ground ball resulted in a Cleburne error, and as the bases filled once more, Marriaga administered the final blow.  He blasted a three-run triple to complete the Gary SouthShore scoring, nudging them to a double-digit lead at 18-8.  

Cleburne managed one last tally themselves in the bottom of the ninth, but their deficit proved too great to overcome as the RailCats locked down the commanding win. 

The RailCats can secure a series win against the Railroaders tomorrow night as they head back to La Moderna Field for a 7:06 p.m. first pitch. All the action will be streamed on aabaseball.tv as well as broadcast over the radio on 95.9 WEFM and the Gary SouthShore RailCats Broadcast Network via the Mixlr app. 

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