WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA — Three hits and four RBIs from Randy Santiesteban weren’t enough in the opening contest of a three-game series on a chilly Tuesday night in Canada as the Gary SouthShore RailCats fell to the Winnipeg Goldeyes, 13-7, in a game that started an hour, 45 minutes late due to rain. Following Tuesday’s defeat, Gary has now dropped four straight series openers, are a season-high-tying 20 games below .500 and are tied with the Milwaukee Milkmen for fifth place in the North Division.
Winnipeg (52-42) took the opening lead of the series with a run in the second. Dominic Ficociello and Adrian Marin drew consecutive walks to start the frame before Kevin Garcia brought Ficociello around to score from second with the game’s first run.
Gary (37-57) quickly countered with two runs in the top of the third to take their first lead of the series. Marcus Mooney homered down the left field line for the first run of the inning before Hayden Schilling and Colin Willis singled consecutively. With Schilling on third and the Goldeyes infield playing in, Santiesteban pulled an RBI single through the left side of the infield, bringing home Schilling from third.
The Goldeyes regained the lead with two runs in the bottom of the third. Reggie Abercrombie reached on the first of three errors by committed by the ‘Cats to begin the inning before Willy Garcia launched his first of two home runs.
Winnipeg increased its lead to six with six more runs in the fourth. K. Garcia doubled down the right field line with one out before Tyler Marincov brought him into score with an RBI single to center. Wes Darvill followed Marincov with a walk before Abercrombie hit a three-run home run to left-center. Two batters later, W. Garcia hit the last of his two home runs with a two-out blast off the video board in right-center.
The RailCats trimmed the Goldeyes lead to 8-5 with three runs in the fifth. Schilling doubled into the right field corner to begin the inning before moving up to third on Willis’ third single. Santiesteban and Alex Crosby followed Willis with consecutive RBI singles to make it a four-run game. Two batters later, Danny De La Calle delivered the final run of the inning with an RBI single to left-center.
The Goldeyes went in front 9-5 with another run in the sixth. Abercrombie reached on catcher’s interference with one out before Kyle Martin drew a walk. W. Garcia followed Martin with his fourth and final RBI with an RBI single to left.
Winnipeg jumped back in front by six with two more runs in the seventh. Alex Perez, K. Garcia and Marincow drew three straight walks off RailCats reliever Jack Alkire to begin the inning. Two batters later, Darvill floated an RBI single down the third line for the first run of the frame before Martin drove in the final run with an RBI fielder’s choice.
The Goldeyes took their biggest lead of the night at 13-5 with two more runs in the eighth. Ficociello and Marin singled consecutively to begin the frame before Perez drew his second walk of the night to load the bases. Two hitters later, Marincov scored both Marin and Perez with a two-run single to left-center.
Gary added its final two runs in the ninth. Willis was hit with one out before Santiesteban blasted his second home run of the season to left-center for the final runs of the evening.
Trevor Lubking (5-11) was tagged with his second straight loss. The southpaw went five innings, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits and a career-high-tying five walks while striking out five.
Mitchell Lambson (13-3) recorded his league-high 13th win despite allowing a season-high 13 hits over five innings. The southpaw walked none and struck out five in his 20th start of the season.
Gary resumes its three-game series against Winnipeg at Shaw Park in Canada on Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. RailCats’ right-hander Justin Sinibaldi (5-6, 3.11) opposes Goldeyes’ right-hander Parker French (5-6, 5.66) in the middle game of the series.
Gary returns home to U.S. Steel Yard on Saturday, Aug. 31st to conclude the season vs. Lincoln. Saturday’s game is at 4:10 p.m. and is Oktoberfest, presented by Berey Bros., and features a team card set giveaway to the first 1,000 fans. Sunday’s game is also another AccessAbilities Signature Saturday and Kids Run the Bases.
Ticket packages for the 2019 Gary SouthShore RailCats season are available online at railcatsbaseball.com and can also be purchased by calling the RailCats ticket line at (219) 882-BALL. The RailCats box office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.