SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 30, 2023
By: Austin Thomas
CLEBURNE OVERPOWERS X’S
SIOUX CITY DROPS THIRD STRAIGHT
CLEBURNE, Texas – The Sioux City Explorers (10-7) continued their struggles Tuesday night, losing 15-3 to the Cleburne Railroaders (10-8). It was their sixth loss in eight games after starting the season 8-1. They still sit atop the West Division with the loss from second-place Fargo-Moorhead.
The game started with the X’s going down one-two-three in the top of the first inning. In the bottom of the first, two walks didn’t hurt X’s starter Stephen Greenlees, the newcomer who made his first appearance of the season. The X’s were once again held scoreless in the second by Cleburne starter Kevin Hilton before the Railroaders scored two in the bottom of the inning with the bases loaded. Hilton put the X’s down in order in the third prior to Greenlees’ walking Guillermo Quintana with the bases loaded.
The X’s got back-to-back singles in the fourth from Matt Llyod and Vincent Fernandez, but they would fail to score in the inning. Heitor Tokar relieved Greenlees in the fourth but Cleburne would add a run, on a Brian Klein RBI double, scoring Jose Curpa to give them a 4-0 lead. Hilton threw another perfect frame in the fifth, and Tokar had his first scoreless inning. The X’s finally scored in the sixth, with Matt Lloyd hitting a solo home run to cut the lead to 4-1. Fernandez followed with a single and would score on a single by Daniel Perez and a throwing error on left fielder Hill Alexander to make it 4-2. On the play, Perez was thrown out at third as pitcher Hilton covered the bag to get the final out.
Sioux City put runners on the corners in the top of the seventh, but once again, no one crossed home plate. Cleburne broke the game open in the bottom of the inning, scoring five runs, including a three-run homer from Elmer Reyes off Tokar, before Michael Esposito took over for the last out. He allowed one run, making it 10-2. Delvin Zinn led off the eighth with a triple, and Matt Lloyd sent him home with a sac fly, but that was the only run the X’s scored that inning. Cleburne added five more runs in the eighth inning off Esposito before Sioux City turned to Delvin Zinn who came in from shortstop and threw three pitches to get the final out.
The Explorers and Railroaders play game three of the four-game series Wednesday night at La Moderna Field. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:06 p.m. with the pregame starting at 6:35 p.m. on KSCJ and aabaseball.tv. The X’s return home to begin a three-game series against the Kane County Cougars Friday, June 2, at Mercy Field at Lewis and Clark Park.
Tickets for the season can be purchased online at XSBaseball.com, in person at the Lewis and Clark Park Box Office or by calling 712-277-WINS. You can catch all the X’s action on aabaseball.tv and on radio at KSCJ 94.9 FM and 1360 AM.