Railroaders Furious Comeback Falls Short

CLEBURNE, Texas (May 23, 2021) – The Cleburne Railroaders fell 90 feet short of completing a record comeback, dropping an 11-10 decision to the Lincoln Saltdogs on Sunday night at The Depot at Cleburne Station.

Cleburne (3-3) trailed 8-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning after Lincoln scored four in the first and two apiece in the third and fourth. But the Railroaders chipped away with three crooked numbers of their own, beginning with three runs in the bottom of the fourth on a sacrifice fly from Alay Lago and a two-run single from Chase Simpson that pulled Cleburne to within 8-5.

Lincoln (3-2) added single runs in the fifth and sixth innings to restore the lead to five, but the Railroaders refused to go quietly. John Nester doubled home two more runs in the seventh, then Simpson ripped an RBI triple and scored on a groundout in the eighth to inch within 11-9.

In the bottom of the ninth, Hunter Clanin led off with a single and scored on an RBI double from Nester that trimmed the deficit to 11-10. After an out and a single put runners at the corners with one out, Lago hit into a game-ending 4-6-3 double play on a close play at first to preserve the win for the Saltdogs.

Jake Hohensee (1-0) earned the win for Lincoln with two scoreless innings of relief, while Taylor Wright (0-1) suffered the loss for Cleburne. James Pugliese picked up his second save for the Saltdogs, allowing the run in the ninth before inducing the Lago double play.

The Railroaders and Saltdogs will both have an off day as they travel to Lincoln for a three-game series beginning Tuesday night at 7:05. Lincoln starts left-hander Kyle Kinman (1-0, 0.00), while the Railroaders will counter with righty Michael Mariot (0-0, 1.80).

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.