Extra Disappointment: RailRiders fall 8-7 in 11 innings

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA (August 17, 2019) - The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders grabbed a lead in the top of the 10^th and top of the 11^th innings, but rallies by the Gwinnett Stripers in both innings proved to be too much for the RailRiders to hang on for a win Saturday night.

SWB got a scoreless first inning on 10 pitches from RHP Ben Heller, who was making his first appearance in a game in over a month. He retired the side in order before handing the ball off to Deivi Garcia, who turned in 5.0 hitless innings. While the RailRiders were getting strong pitching from those arms, the bats- led by veteran catcher Erik Kratz- were busy putting runs on the board.

He cracked a solo homer in the top of the 4^th inning to get the scoring started, then capped a three-run frame in the 6^th inning by belting a two-run homer 402 feet to left-centerfield to put the RailRiders ahead, 4-1.

Gwinnett tied the game with three runs in the bottom of the 7^th inning and the game ultimately moved into extra innings tied 4-4. The top of the 10^th inning featured the pace-of-play runner, Billy Burns, stealing third base and popping up and scoring as the throw by Alex Jackson was errant and got away from Johan Camargo. This gave the RailRiders a 5-4 lead, but the Stripers tied it and sent the game to the 11^th inning with a bases-loaded walk.

Ryan McBroom turned on an A.J. Minter offering and deposited his 21^st homer of the season over the wall in left field to give the RailRiders a two-run cushion in the top of the inning, but Gwinnett mounted its comeback trailing 7-5 entering the bottom of the inning. Five of the six men who came to the plate reached base, culminating in a walk-off walk to Andrés Blanco as the 9,001 fans at Coolray Field celebrated a victory by the Stripers.

With a win by the Buffalo Bisons and a doubleheader sweep by the Syracuse Mets, the update International League North Division standings is Scranton/Wilkes-Barre holding a 1.0-game lead on the Bisons, with Syracuse 2.0 games back and the Rochester Red Wings 3.0 games back of first place with 16 games remaining in the regular season.

The RailRiders conclude their six-game roadtrip Sunday afternoon at Coolray Field. RHP Adonis Rosa (4-0, 3.45) takes the ball for the RailRiders against Gwinnett's RHP Patrick Weigel (6-1, 2.91) as the RailRiders look to avoid being swept in a fourth consecutive road series. Pregame coverage with Adam Giardino begins at 12:35 p.m. on the RailRiders Radio Network before a scheduled 1:05 p.m. first pitch.