Press Releases

Willis’ walk-off double leads RailCats to fourth straight win

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: (July 18, 2017)
Contact: Jared Shlensky
[email protected]
Article written by Austin Anderson, Broadcast/Media Relations Asst.

Box Score

GARY, Ind. — Tied 4-4 in the bottom of the 11th, Colin Willis came through in the clutch for the second time on the night with a walk-off double to right-center field to give the RailCats their fourth straight win and a 5-4 victory over the Cleburne Railroaders. The walk-off win was Gary’s fourth of the season and put the RailCats in sole possession of first place in the Wild Card Standings.

Reggie Wilson drew his second of two walks with one out in the 11th before advancing to second on a balk from former RailCat Carlos Misell. Behind 0-1 in the count, Willis sent all 2,383 fans at U.S. Steel Yard home with his final of three hits on the night.

Down 4-1 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Willis stepped up to the plate with Cole Fabio on second and Wilson on first. Behind 0-2 in the count to former MLB pitcher Winston Abreu, Willis belted a game-tying, three-run home run beyond the right field fence.

Johnson (3-3) tossed two scoreless innings of relief in the win while Willis led the offense with three hits and reached base a team-high four times. Misell (0-2) allowed one run on one hit, two walks and a balk in his first appearance this season against his former team.

Cleburne (25-33) took advantage of the leadoff man reaching for the fourth straight inning after Geraldo Valentin began the top of the fourth with a double to left. Oscar Mesa moved Valentin up to third with a groundout to second before Hunter Courson flied out to shallow center, preventing Valentin from tagging up. KC Huth, however, came through for the Railroaders with a two-out RBI triple to right-center, bringing in Valentin for the first run of the series.

Gary (33-24) quickly tied the game at one with their first run of the series in the bottom of the fourth. Wilson reached second on a one-out infield single followed by a throwing error by Railroaders shortstop Maikol Gonzalez. Willis advanced Wilson to third with a groundout to the right side before Ryan Fitzgerald came through with a two-out RBI single into right field. 

The Railroaders took their biggest lead of the evening with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth. Mitch Glasser drew a leadoff walk before Gonzalez gave Cleburne runners on the corners with a single to right-center. Axel Johnson followed with a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Glasser from third. Gonzalez moved into scoring positon after stealing second, however, a throwing error from Wilfredo Gimenez allowed Gonzalez to take third on the play. Valentin made it 3-1 with the second sacrifice fly of the inning.

In the seventh, Cleburne took their biggest lead of the game on Pichi Balet’s RBI single. Gonzalez reached base with a one out single, and advanced to second on a stolen base before being driven home by Balet.

Gary continues their three-game series on Wednesday at 7:10 p.m. vs. Cleburne. Southpaw Alex Gunn (5-4, 3.94) counters against Railroaders right-hander Dylan Mouzakes (3-5, 4.88) in the middle game of the series. 

Wednesday’s game is another Wiener Wednesday and NorthShore Health Centers Wednesday. Hot dogs are just $2.00 and remember to visit your nearest NW Indiana NorthShore Health Center for complimentary reserved seat tickets to every NorthShore Health Centers Wednesday.

Jared Shlensky and Austin Anderson bring you all 100 RailCats games this season on WEFM (95.9FM) and online at railcatsbaseball.com. Fans can purchase tickets for RailCats home games by calling (219) 882-BALL or online at railcatsbaseball.com. The RailCats box office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Back to index...

About the Railcats

A day at Steel Yard is non-stop fun, and that's even without the baseball! The RailCats promise a wide array of laugh-out-loud between inning entertainment, great giveaways, jaw-dropping fireworks and a family-first, kid-friendly atmosphere! RailCats fans come in all ages, shapes, and sizes, and the RailCats promise every fan will have fun. 

Find Us

Steel Yard
One Stadium Plaza
Gary, IN 46402
219.882.2255