SIOUX CITY EXPLORERS PRESS RELEASE
Phone: 817.739.3693
Website: xsbaseball.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 18, 2026
EXPLORERS’ LATE LEAD SLIPS AWAY IN EXTRA INNING LOSS
CLEBURNE WALKS IT OFF LATE
By: Andrew Della Piana
CLEBURNE, TX – The Railroaders (29-26) came back from three runs down in the tenth and stole one away from the Explorers (24-30) by a final score of 5-4 on Saturday night.
Sioux City mounted a comeback of its own in the ninth and tenth, but couldn’t finish it off.
Manager Steve Montgomery said, “It is just so frustrating. We’re trying to do too much. We need to relax and be who we are.”
It was a pitchers’ duel from the start between Scott Ellis for Cleburne and Josh Landry for Sioux City. The two allowed just three combined hits through the first three innings, trading zeros and working efficiently.
Cleburne finally broke through in the fourth when Cody Thomas homered for the second consecutive game, a solo shot that made it 1–0 and came on just the Railroaders’ second hit of the night.
Ellis locked in from there, rolling through five straight 1‑2‑3 innings from the third through the seventh.
Sioux City didn’t record a baserunner until Jackson Van De Brake walked in the eighth, ending a streak of seventeen straight Explorers retired. Elliot Good followed with a walk, Ellis exited, and a double steal put runners at second and third, but Austin Davis’ deep fly ball to left was caught at the wall and the inning ended with both runners stranded.
Ellis finished a brilliant outing, going seven and a third scoreless innings with just two hits and six strikeouts.
Landry nearly matched him, throwing seven and two‑thirds innings with one earned run and six strikeouts. He has now gone at least six innings in seven straight starts and in nine of his ten starts this season.
The X’s finally broke through in the ninth against All‑Star closer Ryder Yakel.
Henry George beat out an infield single, then stole second and third. Down to the final strike, Zane Denton lined a clutch RBI single to tie the game 1–1, the Explorers’ first run of the series in 17.2 innings and their first run of the second half. Trey Morrill put up a zero in the bottom half to send the game to extras.
Sioux City surged ahead in the top of the tenth when Dillon Tatum crushed a three‑run homer to give the Explorers a 4–1 lead.
But Cleburne answered to steal the game. Frankie Tostado singled home a run to make it 4–2, Delino DeShields Jr. doubled to cut it to 4–3, and Cole Foster delivered a walk‑off two‑run single to win it 5–4.
Sioux City finishes the series Sunday at Cleburne. First pitch is scheduled for 6:06 p.m., with pregame coverage beginning at 5:36 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:
-Josh Landry has allowed just two earned runs in his last three road starts over 24.2 innings.
-Sioux City won the stolen base battle 4-0.
-The Explorers are 2-1 in extra innings this season.
-Sioux City is 5-8 in July.
-It was the Explorers 12th one run loss. They are 4-12 and were 13-6 at this point last season.
-Sioux City is 4-6 when Josh Landry pitches.
-The X’s have dropped three straight road games and are 3-8 in their last 11 road games.
-The Explorers suffered their 30th loss. They did not suffer their 30th last season until August 15th at game 84.
–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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