712.277.WINS (9467)

Duo of Karch and Kelly Deliver Win For Explorers

Sioux City, IA- In the final home game of the regular season the Sioux City Explorers were able to send the faithful home happy with a victory over the Kansas City T-Bones, 8-2, and are able to take a one game lead for the wild card with seven games left to play. 

After Kansas City took a 1-0 lead in the top half of the third on a Ramsey Romano double. Dylan Kelly began his big night at the dish with his third home run of the season. It was Kelly’s first homer at home of the year and tied the game 1-1. The X’s would then get a base hit and a pair of walks to load the bases and Jose Sermo came to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the inning for the third time in the series. This time Sermo drew the walk to give Sioux City a 2-1 lead. Dexture McCall extended that lead with a fly ball to centerfield that tipped off the glove and dropped in for a two run double putting the X’s up 4-1. 

Kansas City got a run back in the fourth as a lead off double from Stewart Ijames was cashed in when Casey Gillaspie hit a fly ball to left that was lost in the lights bringing home the run, making it 4-2. 

Sioux City got back to work in the fifth. With runners at second and third and one out, Adam Sasser grounded one to first that was too hot to handle scoring a run. With two outs and runners at the corners, Kelly began a trend. He picked up his third hit of the ball game with a single to right to make it 6-2. Kyle Wren and Drew Stankiewicz also chimed in with RBI singles to finish off the second four run rally of the night and put the X’s up 8-2. 

Kelly on the game paced the offense by going 3-4 with a homer, two RBI’s and two runs scored. 

Eric Karch (6-6) didn’t need eight runs to secure the win as he was fantastic on the mound. He went seven innings allowing just two runs on six hits. He did not strike any one out but did not surrender a walk either. It was his first quality start since one month prior against Gary SouthShore on July 26th. 

Karch retired the first seven batters he faced and at another point during the game set down nine in a row. 

Akeem Bostick (2-2) would take the loss for Kansas City, as he came into the game with a 0.82 ERA in his first two starts. But he lasted just four innings, allowing five runs on seven hits, striking out five but walking four.

Jose Mesa Jr. did not fare much better out of the ‘pen for the T-Bones as he surrendered three runs in two innings of work. 

Jose Velez and Joe Riley tossed a scoreless eighth and ninth to preserve the lead for the Explorers. 

The Explorers now a game ahead of Kansas City for the wild card, stay a game and a half behind Cleburne for the division lead. The X’s now hit the road for the final seven games of the 2019 season with three in Sioux Falls and four in Kansas City. 

All three games against the Canaries are at 7:05 pm with the series beginning on Tuesday night at the Bird Cage and the Explorers sending Taylor Jordan (5-10, 4.58) to the mound as the starting pitcher for game one.