Railroaders Down Milkmen in Series Opener
CLEBURNE, Texas (Aug. 17, 2021) – Cleburne scored five times in the first three innings and hung on the rest of the way, slipping past the Milwaukee Milkmen 5-4 on Tuesday night at The Depot at Cleburne Station.
D.J. Peterson got the scoring started with a bang in the bottom of the first, roping a three-run home run to left field to give the Railroaders (43-37) a 3-0 advantage. After Milwaukee (50-31) grabbed a run back in the top of the third, the Railroaders hung another crooked number on the board in the bottom of the inning. Zach Nehrir drove in a run with a ground out to shortstop, and Hunter Clanin followed with an RBI single to give Cleburne a 5-1 lead.
In his first appearance since being activated from the Inactive List, Cleburne starter Jesus Sanchez battled through 4.2 innings, allowing just one run with six strikeouts. He left with two on and two out in the fifth, and Austin Fairchild (6-4) managed to strike out David Washington to escape the jam and put himself in line for the win.
Christian Correa trimmed the lead to 5-3 in the sixth with a towering two-run homer, but Michael Krauza righted the ship with two excellent innings in relief to get the Railroaders through the seventh and eighth. In the ninth, Nick Gardewine retired the first two hitters he faced before encountering trouble. Aaron Hill and Brett Vertigan singled, then a wild pitch scored Hill and moved Vertigan into scoring position as the tying run. Gardewine struck out former Railroader Logan Trowbridge swinging to end the game and record his first save.
David Holmberg (7-4) took the loss for Milwaukee, allowing all five runs over six innings of work.
The Railroaders and Milkmen continue the series on Wednesday night at 7:06 PM. Left-hander Michael Gunn (4-4, 4.96) is projected to start for Cleburne, while Milwaukee counters with righty Ryan Zimmerman (8-5, 3.77).
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.