06/18/2006 5:59 PM - GARY, Ind. – The Kansas City T-Bones (12-17) used the longball and a solid eight-inning effort from starting pitcher Greg Bicknell to claim a 4-2 victory over the Gary Southshore RailCats (12-17) Sunday afternoon at U.S. Steel Yard.

After a 25-minute rain delay prior to the first pitch and another 27-minute delay in the first inning, the T-Bones struck first in the second, getting all the offense they would need to take the rubber match of the three-game set. After Eddie Pearson reached base via a walk and Doug Dreher was struck by a pitch, Brandon Jones blasted a Josh Habel offering over the left-field wall to put the T-Bones on top, 3-0.

Gary Southshore responded in the fifth, as Nathan Haynes singled and stole second base, then scored on Andy Rohleder’s two-run homer that sliced the Kansas City advantage to 3-2. The RailCats threatened to inflict greater damage, putting two men on with one-out before Bicknell coaxed Eric McNamee to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

The T-Bones added an insurance run in the eighth on Pearson’s fifth home run of the season to extend the lead to 4-2.

Bicknell (2-4) worked eight strong innings and gave up just two runs on four hits to earn the victory for the T-Bones. Byron Embry struck out two RailCats in the ninth to close out the win and record his sixth save of the season.

The T-Bones return to CommunityAmerica Ballpark Monday evening at 7:05 p.m. for the first of a three-game series with the Joliet JackHammers. LHP Buddy Blair (1-4, 5.28) will take the mound for Kansas City, while Joliet will send LHP Luis Villarreal (2-3, 3.89) to the hill.

Game Notes: Eddie Pearson’s eighth-inning solo shot was his 58th home run as a T-Bone and he is now just two homers shy of the franchise’s career home run record, held by Anthony Lewis…Greg Bicknell added to his club record for career wins, picking up victory #31 as a T-Bone…Byron Embry earned his third save on the six-game road trip…The T-Bones finished the road trip with a 3-3 record.