SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 14, 2026
EXPLORERS HOLD OFF WINNIPEG 4–3
MERTENS FANS A SEASON HIGH 11 IN THE WIN
By: Andrew Della Piana
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA – Sioux City (37–41) opened its series in Winnipeg (43–34) with a 4–3 victory on Friday night after a dominant outing from Nathan Mertens.
Manager Steve Montgomery praised his starter, “Mertens threw a great game, hit his spots. Stretched him out a little bit and ramped up the pitch count from his last time out.”
The Explorers wasted no time. In the first inning, Sioux City strung together three runs on four hits, with RBI knocks from Braulio Vásquez, Alberto Osuna, and Yorman Rodriguez to jump ahead 3–0.
They added another in the fourth when Austin Davis lifted a sacrifice fly to score Zane Denton, extending the lead to 4–0.
Winnipeg answered in the bottom half.
Adam Hall snapped a streak of 11 straight batters retired by Mertens with a single, then scored on Noah Marcelo’s line‑drive RBI to center. That made it 4–1.
The Goldeyes tightened things further in the fifth.
Ray‑Patrick Didder doubled home Jiandido Tromp, and Ramon Bramasco followed with a sacrifice fly to score Kevin García, cutting the lead to 4–3. With the tying run at third, Mertens delivered a strikeout of Hall, his ninth of the game.
Sioux City threatened again in the seventh but stranded runners at second and third.
Mertens finished with one of the best starts of the Explorers’ season, working 7 innings with 3 earned runs, 11 strikeouts to tie the team’s season high and no walks.
The bullpen handled the rest as Kelvin Caceres struck out the side in the eighth, including a huge punch out with runners on second and third, and Trey Morrill secured his ninth save thanks in part to a crucial double play after the leadoff man reached in the ninth.
Sioux City continues the weekend series at Winnipeg on Saturday at 6:00 p.m., with pregame coverage beginning at 5:30 p.m. on KSCJ 94.9 FM and 1360 AM. Fans can also watch every American Association game this season on the league’s streaming platform at aabaseball.tv. Tickets for all remaining games are available now by calling the Explorers front office at 712-277-WINS or online at xsbaseball.com.
Notes from the Booth with DV:
-Henry George reached base for the 18th straight game.
-The Explorers leads the season series 5-2
-Braulio Vasguez extended hit hitting streak to 11 games.
-Kelvin Caceres and Trey Morrill work scoreless eighth and ninth innings for the third time on the road trip, all three wins.
-Sioux City is 7-6 in August and four games below .500 for the first time since July 12.
-Nathan Mertens struck out a team high 11 batters. He is the first to strike out more than 10 since Zach Willeman struck out 12 Gary SouthShore RailCats on 5/22/25.
–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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