The Kansas City T-Bones fell 11-6 in the series finale to the Salina Stockade on Sunday afternoon at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas City, Kansas.
The Stockade notched 15 hits in the victory. In the final matchup between in-state rivals, Salina and Kansas City, the Stockade attempted to take an early lead in the first inning.
First baseman Kewby Meyer’s putout brought in the first run to give Salina a 1-0 lead. The T-Bones responded, however, with three runs in the second inning.
Left fielder Dexter Kjerstad launched a triple to deep center field to score center fielder Cedric Hunter and right fielder Kyle Petty to take a 2-0 lead. Kjerstad made it home to end the inning at 3-1 thanks to a putout by shortstop Jerome Pena.
An error by newly signed left-handed pitcher, Billy Waltrip (1-5, 3.86) in the third, allowed the Stockade to tie the game up at three runs apiece.
Center fielder Roche Woodard scored off the error and third baseman Jordan Caillouet stole second and then advanced to third off a wild pitch. Caillouet then scored off left fielder Jonathan Moroney’s RBI single to left field for the tie.
The Stockade took over the lead with a second RBI single to left field, scoring Moroney for a 4-3 lead in the top of the third.
Kansas City tied it in the bottom of the third, after second baseman Marcus Lemon tripled to right field. First baseman Kevin Keyes advanced Lemon home with a putout to end the third inning.
A big fifth inning from the Stockade put the T-Bones down five runs. Baker’s double to left field took back Salina’s lead, scoring the first two runs of a five-run inning. Once the bats got hot for the Stockade, they couldn’t stop. Shortstop, Logan Trowbridge, singled to first base to advance the runners and put the Stockade up 7-4. An RBI double by second baseman Fernando Garza put the lead to five in the fifth.
Salina all but secured the victory in the top of the ninth with two more runs, extending their lead to 11-4. Garza singled to right field to score the first run followed by a Woodard putout to score Baker.
The T-Bones narrowed the deficit to four in the ninth with a two-run home run from Pena, and an RBI single from Lemon, but ultimately the Stockade’s hot-hitting afternoon would be too much for Kansas City to overcome, as they fell 11-7 on Sunday afternoon.
Billy Waltrip (1-5) picked up the loss for the T-Bones while Brian Smith (3-10) notched the win for Salina.
On Saturday night, the T-Bones won 5-4 to take the series over the Salina Stockade at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in front of a crowd of 6,853.
The Stockade struck first in the third matchup between Salina and Kansas City. First baseman Kewby Meyer scored catcher Cody Coffman in the second inning to give the Stockade the early lead. An error by third baseman Jordan Edgerton allowed Salina to extend their lead to 2-0, before the T-Bones responded scoring three runs in the bottom of the second.
Catcher Zane Chavez singled to bring in Edgerton and narrow their lead to 2-1. Right-handed pitcher Jordan Cummings (1-4, 7.52) walked right fielder Chantz Mack, advancing all runners around the diamond to even the score at 2-2. Kansas City took over the lead with second baseman Marcus Lemon’s putout to bring in the final run of the inning.
Coffman took back the Stockade’s lead in the fifth inning with an RBI double, putting Salina up 4-3.
The T-Bones went scoreless in the sixth, but a solo home run from Mack in the seventh tied the game at four going into the final two innings.
Even after Salina pitcher Tyler Herr (1-1, 3.00) walked three players, the T-Bones couldn’t produce a base hit to win the game in nine innings. The game remained tied at four going into the 11th.
A double down the right field line from Mack and incredible speed from shortstop Jerome Pena gave the T-Bones the 5-4 walk-off victory.
Right-handed pitcher Cody Winiarski (4-1, 1.96) picked up the win for the T-Bones with left-handed pitcher Connor Bach (1-6, 7.25) taking the loss.
The T-Bones will begin a four game road trip in Wichita against the Wingnuts at 7:05 p.m. Monday at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium in Wichita. Kansas City returns home for a six-game homestand against the Gary SouthShore RailCats and the Cleburne Railroaders at 7:05 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18, at CommunityAmerica Ballpark.
Tickets are available online, by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting in person the Providence Medical Center Box Office.