The Kansas City T-Bones rallied back from a 4-0 hole in the first inning, scoring seven unanswered runs to stun Rafael Palmeiro and the Cleburne Railroaders with a final score of 7-4 in Kansas City Friday night at T-Bones Stadium.
After a rough first inning, the T-Bones pitching staff tossed eight scoreless innings to secure the win for Kansas City.
In the top of the first, the Railroaders offense was scorching hot, taking an early 4-0 lead. Two back-to-back singles by K.C. Huth and Trevor Sealey put runners at first and second for Cleburne.
Rafael Palmeiro walked in his first at-bat, loading the bases for Levi Scott. Scott hit the third single of the inning, driving in Huth from second. Cameron Monger hit a double that scored Palmeiro and Scott, putting the Railroaders up 3-0. Michael Pair added another run by hitting a two-out single to right field that scored Monger.
The T-Bones were resilient, scoring four runs of their own in the bottom half of the first. After a quick first out by Dylan Tice, Todd Cunningham and Nick Torres each hit singles to start the Kansas City scoring threat.
Dexter Kjerstad sliced a well-hit ball to left field that scored Cunningham from second. Keith Curcio drilled a base-clearing three-run home run to even the score.
After an offensive frenzy in the first, the T-Bones and Railroaders were tied at four heading into the second inning.
In the third, the T-Bones tacked on another run, taking their first lead of the game. Curcio walked, then stole second, before scoring on a single to left field by Adrian Nieto putting the T-Bones ahead 5-4.
Two insurance runs by Cunningham in the eighth and another dominate bullpen performance by the T-Bones secured a 7-4 win in Kansas City.
Starting pitching was an issue for both teams tonight. Barrett Astin pitched six innings, giving up eight hits and four earned runs.
After a shaky first inning, Astin (4-1) settled down throwing five scoreless innings, and he was credited as the winning pitcher. After being given a four-run cushion in the first inning, Patrick Mincey allowed 10 hits and five earned runs in six innings pitched. Mincey (0-3) is credited as the losing pitcher.
The T-Bones have won four straight games, improving to 19-13 and now a season-high six games over .500 on the season.
Kansas City moves to a half-game back of the second place Wichita Wingnuts in the South Division. Cleburne falls to 12-20 after losing their third straight game. They are currently in fifth place in the South Division standings.
Kansas City continues a three-game series with Cleburne at 7:05 p.m. Saturday, June 23, at T-Bones Stadium. The game will be on the T-Bones Broadcast Network, http://mixlr.com/t-bones-baseball/.
Individual tickets, season, group, mini-plans and nightly party suites are on sale and can be purchased by visiting the box office at T-Bones Stadium or www.tbonesbaseball.com . Call the box office at 913-328-5618. 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