EXPLORERS OFFENSE POWERS THEM TO SERIES WIN

EXPLORERS OFFENSE POWERS THEM TO SERIES WIN

Season High in Hits and Runs Solidifies Series Victory

Sioux City, IA (May 26, 2021) – Timely hitting and smart at bats fueled the Explorers to their second straight win against the newly branded Kansas City Monarchs. In a game that saw a total of 10 pitchers, there wasn’t any shortage of offense. On this night the X’s got back to their style of baseball spraying the ball around the park and playing smart baseball. Sioux City out hit the Monarchs and took home the win 11-4.  

The scoring started early with the Monarchs jumping out to an early lead in the second inning. Ramsey Ramano drove in Ryan Grotjohn with a single to get things started. The next inning, in the top of the third, the Monarchs added one more in similar fashion. Jan Hernandez singled into left scoring Darnell Sweeney making the score 2-0 after two and a half innings.

Sioux City answered back in a big way in the bottom of the third. The X’s put their first run on the board thanks to Lane Milligan who put together another solid game hitting out of the number two spot in the lineup. He singled to center scoring Michael Lang. With two outs the X’s put together a big run. With three walks, a hit batter, and four singles in the inning, the X’s walked away with five runs. After three innings, Sioux City lead 5-2.

Sioux City took advantage of Kansas City starter Brian Glowicki early. Lane Milligan and Jared Walker got on and ended Glowicki’s night after a walk and single respectively. They both scored thanks to a two out double off the bat of Jose Sermo that made its way to the left-center wall. After four, Sioux City led 7-2.

Brian Glowicki (1-1) was handed the loss as he lasted only 3.2 innings in his second professional start. Allowing seven runs to score, all of them earned on five hits and five walks with just one strikeout. 

One of only two home runs on the night came with a man on base in the fifth from Kansas City’s center fielder, Johnny Field, who put one over the left field fence. Sioux City responded in the bottom half of the inning with a couple runs of their own. Thanks to another flurry of walks and singles the X’s held their five-run lead going into the sixth inning, 9-4.

Pacing Sioux City’s offense was Lane Milligan and Mitch Ghelfi. Milligan reached base five times in the game, going 2-3, with two RBI, two runs scored, two walks and a stolen base. Ghelfi helped set up Sioux City rallies with a pair of walks and went 2-3, with a double an RBI and a run scored. 

Patrick Ledet’s (1-0) start ended after five and he took home the win partially thanks to some strong run support. Ledet struck out six and gave up four runs on six hits.

Sioux City struck again in the seventh. Continuing their trend of small ball, the X’s put another two runs on the board thanks to three singles and a Monarch’s error. At the end of the eighth, the Explorers led 11-4.

Sioux City’s bullpen for the most part was dominant yet again. Between three straight innings from Matt Quintana, Danny Hrbek and Brandon Brosher the X’s no hit the Monarchs, allowing just three walks while punching out seven. 

In the ninth Samson Abernathy came in to finish the game and ran into trouble after loading the bases and giving up a grand slam to Jan Hernandez with one out in the top of the ninth cutting Sioux City’s comfortable lead to three, 11-8. Gabriel Guerrero followed that with a ball down the third base line that was marked as an error. 

The X’s then turned to Matt Pobereyko (3) who pitched in his fourth straight game. The closer took care of business and retired the next two batters via strikeout picking up his third save of the year. 

The win marked Sioux City’s sixth of the season and third straight. The Explorers will look to finish the sweep on Thursday night with first pitch set for 7:05 p.m. Kansas City has Dylan Baker (0-0, 0.00) on the bump as the X’s are still TBA for the series finale starter. The game wraps up a season opening nine game homestead, before the X’s hit the road for the first time in 2021, with a six game trip to Chicago and Milwaukee.