Category: T-Bones

The Kansas City T-Bones and the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks were rained out owing to unplayable field conditions Tuesday night at T-Bones Stadium.

The two teams will play two seven inning games Wednesday night, Aug. 15, with game one beginning at 5:30 p.m.

The T-Bones are expected to start right-handed pitcher Hunter Adkins (6-3, 3.12) while Fargo will turn to right-handed pitcher D.J. Brown (8-2, 3.91). In game two the T-Bones have yet to name a starter in a matchup with left-handed pitcher Will Solomon (8-6, 4.35) for the RedHawks.

The games will play on Warrior Wednesday—free Ticket with military ID, presented by Warhorses for Veterans. There will be pre-game autographs with select players, and a Sizzle selfie.

The T-Bones are second in the American Association with a .633 winning percentage and a 50-29 record; they hold a half game lead in the wild card standings for a wild card spot in the post-season race.

Season, group tickets, mini-plans and nightly party suites are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting the box office at T-Bones Stadium. Call the box office at 913-328-5618 or purchase and print at www.tbonesbaseball.com. Box office hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday – Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
– Story from T-Bones

The Kansas City T-Bones have traded left-handed pitcher Francisco Gracesqui to the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks for a player to be named later and that right-handed pitcher Wirkin Estevez has signed with AAA Puebla in the Mexican League.

Francisco Gracesqui appeared in 24 games for Kansas City and posted a 1-2 record in 31.1 innings with a 5.74 ERA. The left-hander out of the Bronx, New York, struck out 36, walked 28, and picked up two saves for the T-Bones this season.

Prior to this season, Gracesqui last pitched in 2015 with the New Jersey Jackals of the CAN-AM League for current T-Bones manager Joe Calfapietra.

With the Jackals, the New York City native appeared in 24 games, working 38.1 innings of relief with a 2.58 ERA with 46 strike outs. The left-hander was part of a league-leading pitching staff that earned the lowest team ERA in the CAN-AM League and a part of a playoff club as well that season. Gracesqui began his professional career with the Toronto Blue Jays organization in 2012.

Wirkin Estevez made one start for KC last Thursday, Aug. 9, at Sioux City. He worked six innings, allowing nine hits with a walk and one strike out, getting a no-decision in a 7-5 loss for Kansas City.

Before coming to the T-Bones, Estevez, a native of the Dominican Republic, spent 2018 with the Harrisburg Senators, going 1-4 in 11 games with a 4.33 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 52 innings.

The 26-year-old Estevez was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He signed with the Washington Nationals on June 2, 2010.

In 2010, at 18 years old, he began his professional career with the Dominican Summer League Nationals, going 6-7 in 14 starts, with a 2.61 ERA. In parts of eight seasons with the Nationals organization, Estevez would go 28-26 in 108 games with 481 career innings and a 4.15 ERA.

The T-Bones return to action Tuesday night, Aug. 14, opening a three-game series with the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks at 7:05 p.m. at T-Bones Stadium. The club is in the thick of the playoff race with a one game lead in the South Division Wild Card race of the American Association.

Season, group tickets, mini-plans and nightly party suites are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting the box office at T-Bones Stadium. Call the box office at 913-328-5618 or purchase and print at www.tbonesbaseball.com. Box office hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday – Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
– Story from T-Bones

The T-Bones (50-29) succeeded in making their bats connect with the ball Sunday evening, but not at the right time, as the Sioux City Explorers (59-21) defeated Kansas City 11-3.

The T-Bones left eight men stranded in the first five innings, including two in the first, bases loaded in the second, and one in each of the third, fourth and fifth innings.

Sioux City, however, took advantage of early-game opportunities to put runs on the board, bringing home two in the second, four in the fourth and two in the fifth.

In the bottom of the second, Sioux City’s Jose Sermo sent the ball to right center for a triple off T-Bones starting pitcher Lucas Irvine.

Jay Baum followed that with a ground ball to the left side to score Sermo and make it 1-0 Sioux City. Irvine was able to knock down a ground ball to retire Blake Schmidt, but the out allowed Baum to move to second. A Dylan Kelly RBI single to right field sent Baum home and put the Explorers up 2-0.

Despite a pair of lead-off doubles in the third and fourth innings, the T-Bones just couldn’t convert the hits to runs. Todd Cunningham led off the third with a double down the left field line and Alay Lago led off the fourth with a stand-up double off the wall in left center. But the Explorers held KC scoreless.

The Explorers tripled their lead in the fourth inning as they kept the line moving with five singles and a triple.

Jose Sermo led off with an infield single over the head of Kansas City’s Colin Walsh. Jake Baum then singled with a bunt to the left side and an error by Walsh allowed Sermo to move up to third. Blake Schmit hit into a fielder’s choice that pushed Sermo in for Sioux City’s third run of the game. A ground ball to center by Dexture McCall put runners at the corners with only one out. Dylan Kelly hit a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Schmitt. Daniel Jackson then came to the plate and lined to left field allowing him to reach second. Luis Durango then sealed the painful inning for Kansas City by hitting a triple to left center field that scored two more runs and made the score 6-0 Sioux City.

The fifth inning saw a two-out walk to Colin Walsh, but was followed by a strikeout from Noah Perio Jr.

Nate Samson led off the Explorers half of the fifth inning with a single to center field. A base hit by Blake Schmitt and an error by the right fielder allowed Samson to reach third.

Kevin Hill came in for relief of Lucas Irvine, but the first batter he faced in the fifth, Dexture McCall, bounced the ball toward second, it slipped through and allowed both Samson and Schmitt to score. The T-Bones went into the sixth trailing 8-0.

Jackson Lowery came in for Kevin Hill in the bottom of the sixth against the Explorers. After walking three to load the bases, Lowery worked his way out of a jam by striking out the next two batters to end the inning.

Ryan Brett led off the seventh with a double to the center field warning track. He advanced to third on a wild pitch to Todd Cunningham. Cunningham then singled to left field to score Brett and make it 8-1 Sioux City.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Explorers added three more runs off reliever Pasquale Mazzoccoli to make it 11-1 Sioux City. An RBI double to center by Daniel Jackson scored Blake Schmit and a sac fly to left by Luis Durango scored Dylan Kelly. Nate Samson then hit an RBI single to right to bring home Jackson.

Joe Filomeno came in the eighth striking out all three batters of the inning. A late rally by the T-Bones in the top of the ninth scored two more for Kansas City. Ryan Brett singled to third base, advanced on a Todd Cunningham single to left field. Colin Walsh pushed the runners up with a single, then Brett and Cunningham scored on a two-RBI single to right by Noah Perio Jr.

Sioux City, which sealed the game early, went on to win by a final score of 11-3. Lucas Irvine (5-4) got the loss for Kansas City and Luis Mateo (10-4) recorded the win.

Kansas City had an off-day Monday and will return to T-Bones Stadium Tuesday to start a six-game homestand. Fargo-Moorhead will come to town for three games, followed by Cleburne for three.

Season, group tickets, mini-plans and nightly party suites are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting the box office at T-Bones Stadium. Call the box office at 913-328-5618 or purchase and print at www.tbonesbaseball.com. Box office hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday – Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
– Story from T-Bones