SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The Sioux City Explorers (29-33) headed into the American Association All-Star Break happy after completing a sweep of the Sioux Falls Canaries (36-27) Sunday evening, winning the game 9-6. Sioux City activated Jared Wetherbee (5-3) from the injured list prior to his start, and he went five innings, allowing three runs and throwing 104 pitches. Sioux City’s offense also did well with five players recording multiple hits to aid the pitching staff.
The Canaries started their offense in the top of the first with an RBI double from Mike Hart off Sioux City’s Wetherbee, sending home Liam Spence and giving the Birds a 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the first, the X’s tied it up when Cameron Cannon reached on an error from Sioux Falls third baseman Derek Maiben, allowing Daniel Montano to score and knotting it 1-1.
In the top of the second, the Canaries offense continued as Sioux Falls’ Spence hit an RBI single before Scott Combs picked up a sac fly, giving the Canaries a 3-1 advantage.
The X’s battled back in the bottom of the second, scoring first when Sioux City’s Jake Ortega plated Martinez with a grounder off Sioux Falls starter Ryan Zimmerman (5-5), making it a 3-2 game. The Explorers evened the score again when Sioux City’s Nick Shumpert crossed home on a Daniel Lingua sacrifice fly, tying it 3-3.
Sioux City’s Jared Wetherbee settled in with a scoreless third before the X’s took the lead 5-3 in the bottom of the frame on Daniel Perez’s two-RBI triple off Sioux Falls’ Zimmerman. That lead grew to 6-3 later in the frame when Sioux City’s Shumpert drove in Daniel Perez with an RBI single to left field.
The teams traded scoreless frames before the Explorers added again in the bottom of the fifth with Sioux City’s Lingua collecting another sacrifice fly, sending home Perez and making it 7-3. A few batters later, Sioux City’s John Nogowski drew a bases-loaded walk, extending the lead to 8-3.
Sioux City’s Nate Gercken relieved Wetherbee at the start of the sixth, finishing his first game back with four strikeouts and just the three runs allowed. Gercken then pitched three scoreless frames of his own, finishing the night with one hit allowed and two strikeouts.
In the bottom of the eighth, the X’s added another run with Cannon launching a solo shot to left field, just over the glove of Sioux Falls left fielder Liam Spence, making it 9-3.
Sioux City’s Brandon Brosher relieved Gercken to start the ninth, and after retiring the first two batters, Sioux Falls’ Spence sent a solo home run over the wall and cut the lead to 9-4. The two-out rally continued for the Canaries, with them adding another run on Mike Hart’s RBI single and Trevor Achenbach’s RBI double before the X’s turned to Kyle Marman in a 9-6 game.
Marman entered the ninth with runners on second and third, and on the sixth pitch of the plate appearance, he forced a ground out from Sioux Falls’ Spencer Sarringar, ending the game and earning the save (11).
The Explorers will be off Monday July 22 through Wednesday July 24 for the American Association All-Star break. The team will begin a four-game series on Thursday July 25 against the Cleburne Railroaders in Cleburne, Texas.
