SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 7, 2026
EXPLORERS CLOSE 2026 WITH 20‑RUN, SEVEN‑HOMER SHOWCASE
OSUNA GOES YARD THREE TIMES IN THE WIN
By: Andrew Della Piana
OCONOMOWOC, WI – Sioux City (49–51) closed the 2026 season with its most explosive offensive performance of the year, launching a season‑best seven home runs and scoring a season‑high 20 runs in a 20–9 victory over Lake Country (56–44) on Monday afternoon.
Lake Country struck first in the opening inning when Anthony Garcia doubled to right to score Dom Johnson for a 1–0 lead.
Sioux City answered emphatically in the third. D’Shawn Knowles singled home Jackson Van De Brake to tie the game, and Osuna followed with a three‑run homer to center to give the Explorers a 4–1 lead. Rodriguez then went back‑to‑back with a solo shot, making it 5–1.
In the fourth, Henry George tripled to right to stretch the lead to 7–1. Knowles grounded out to bring home George, and Rodriguez added his second homer of the day for his fifth in four games to make it 9–1.
Lake Country added a run in the bottom half on Brett Roberts’ sacrifice fly, but Sioux City continued to pour it on in the fifth. George drove in Austin Davis, Knowles singled home Denton, and Osuna crushed his second three-run homer of the game, becoming the fifth player in Explorers history to reach 20 or more home runs in a season and making it 14–2.
The DockHounds responded with a pair of runs in the bottom half on Dylan LaRue’s single, but Sioux City’s power barrage continued. In the sixth, Zane Denton launched a two‑run homer, his first since June 28, pushing the lead to 16–4.
Lake Country scored four in the bottom half, highlighted by Garcia’s two‑run homer, trimming the deficit to 16–8.
Sioux City answered again in the seventh when J.D. Rogers delivered his first professional home run to make it 18–8. Lake Country added one in the bottom half on Jake Allgeyer’s RBI single.
Osuna capped the season in the ninth with his third home run of the game, a towering drive to left that pushed the score to 20–9 and completed an eight‑RBI afternoon.
We’ll see you in 2027, Explorers fans. Follow the team all offseason long on our social media channels and on our website at xsbaseball.com. Ticket information for the 2027 season is available now by calling the Explorers front office at 712-277-WINS or online at xsbaseball.com.
Notes from the Booth with DV:
-The X’s stole two bases to run their season total to 286.
-The X’s have scored 47 runs in the four-game series
-Sioux City has 21 home runs over their last seven games on the road trip.
-Alberto Osuna hit his 20st, 21st and 22nd home runs on Sunday. He became the first Explorer to hit 20 or more home runs since Jose Sermo hit 29 in 2021 and his 22 home runs tie him for third all-time single season for Sioux City.
-Hunter Poe went 4-0 in four starts for the X’s.
-Jarod Wright worked two scoreless innings of relief.
-Yorman Rodriguz hit five home runs in the four game series.
-Seven home runs sets a season high.
–ABOUT THE SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS: The Sioux City Explorers are a proud member of the American Association of Professional Baseball in Sioux City, IA. The Explorers play their home games at Security National Bank Field at Lewis & Clark Park. For more information, please visit xsbaseball.com and follow the team on Twitter at @SiouxCityXs and on Facebook at facebook.com/SiouxCityExplorers.
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