CLEBURNE, Texas (May 21, 2021) – The Cleburne Railroaders matched a franchise record with seven hits in the fifth inning, scoring six runs in the frame on their way to a 9-1 victory over the Lincoln Saltdogs on Friday night at The Depot at Cleburne Station.

After a leadoff error in the fifth, the Railroaders (2-2) recorded seven consecutive hits to grab a 6-0 lead. A wild pitch plated the first run, then Noah Vaughan sliced a two-run triple to the gap in left-center to increase the lead to 3-0. Osvaldo Martinez followed with a bloop single to extend the lead to 4-0, then Chase Simpson drove home another with a run-scoring single of his own. Ramon Hernandez capped the scoring in the inning with an RBI double.

That proved to be more than enough run support for Maverik Buffo (1-0) who delivered six shutout innings with eight strikeouts, allowing just three hits. After a rough start in which he needed 70 pitches to get through three innings, Buffo retired 10 in a row to end his night. The right-hander walked five, but stranded seven Saltdogs to keep the shutout intact.

Lincoln (2-1) scratched across a run in the top of the seventh on a sacrifice fly from Forrestt Allday to cut the lead to 6-1, but the Railroaders answered with three more runs in the bottom of the frame. Simpson doubled home Alay Lago, then Hernandez followed with a two-run homer to left that produced the game’s final margin.

Newcomer Austin Fairchild was dominant in his Cleburne debut, striking out five over 2.1 scoreless innings to close out the victory.

John Richy (0-1) took the loss for Lincoln, allowing six runs, five earned, over 4.1 innings of work.

The Railroaders and Saltdogs continue the series Saturday night at 7:06 PM. Left-hander Tristan Roberts (0-0, 0.00) starts for Cleburne, while Lincoln will counter with righty Walter Borkovich (0-0, 0.00).

For information on partnerships, season tickets, group outings, and party packages, call the Railroaders main office at (817) 945-8705, or visit the Railroaders official website at www.railroaderbaseball.com.

Boxscore

By Denning Gerig, Cleburne Railroaders