Peterson Homers Again, But Cleburne Falls in Game Two
CLEBURNE, Texas (Sep. 4, 2021) – D.J. Peterson homered for the 11th time in his last 40 at-bats, but the Cleburne Railroaders failed to generate much else as the Kansas City Monarchs claimed a 6-3 win on Saturday night at The Depot at Cleburne Station.
Peterson’s two-run blast in the bottom of the sixth pulled Cleburne (54-44) within 4-3, his 14th home run since joining the Railroaders on August 3. Kansas City (67-31) had a quick answer in the top of the seventh, however, getting a two-out, two-run single from Gabby Guerrero to restore the three-run cushion at 6-3.
The Monarchs bullpen took it the rest of the way, as Carlos Diaz, Jeremy Rhoades and Jameson McGrane each tossed a scoreless inning in relief to nail down the win. McGrane recorded his seventh save of the season, striking out Colton Pogue with runners at the corners to end it.
Garrett Alexander (8-7) was tagged with the loss for Cleburne, allowing four runs over 5.1 innings. He struck out four Monarchs on the night, setting a new Cleburne single-season strikeout record in the process with 103 punchouts on the year.
Carson LaRue (1-0) picked up the win for Kansas City, working three innings in relief after an abbreviated start from Justin Shafer.
Charcer Burks got the scoring started in the top of the second with a sacrifice fly, though Alay Lago answered with a two-out RBI single in the third that knotted the game at 1-1. Ibandel Isabel crushed a two-run homer in the fourth to put the Monarchs back in front, and Colin Willis made it 4-1 with an infield single in the sixth.
The Railroaders and Monarchs continue the series on Sunday night at 6:00 PM. Right-hander Jalen Evans (2-2, 4.19) gets the ball for Cleburne, while Kansas City counters with fellow righty Justin Donatella (5-1, 2.95).
For information on partnerships, season tickets, group outings, and party packages, call the Railroaders main office at (817) 945-8705, or visit the Railroaders official website at www.railroaderbaseball.com.