Goldeyes Railroaded by visiting Cleburne

The Cleburne Railroaders came to Winnipeg for the first time in franchise history this week, and it’s safe to say they enjoyed their first trip north of the border.

The Railroaders, an expansion team, won two out of three over the Goldeyes this week, capped off by a 12-7 victory on Wednesday night at Shaw Park.

Cleburne led 7-0 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning, but let their lead slip away after surrendering a three-run homer to Josh Mazzola, and later in the seventh inning, a two-run home run courtesy of Reggie Abercrombie to tie the game.

But the Fish couldn’t complete the comeback, as Cleburne tagged Goldeyes closer Victor Capellan for five runs in the final frame, with only one of them being earned due to some brutal defence by the Fish.

It was an overall rough outing for the Fish’s fielding, as only three of Cleburne’s 12 runs were earned, due to four errors committed by the Goldeyes. The Goldeyes now have 87 errors on the season, the second most in the league behind the Sioux Falls Canaries, who have 89.

In what was a battle of the second-worst team in the South Division, Cleburne with a record of 25-51, and the fourth-place team in the North Division, the Goldeyes at 34-43, the story of the week wasn’t so much the series, but more so the fact that 53-year-old former MLB all-star Rafael Palmeiro was suiting up for the Railroaders.

Rafael, and his 28-year old son, Patrick, signed with Cleburne in the off-season. The father and son played together in two games in the series, with the duo giving the Fish the most trouble in Wednesday’s finale.

Rafael and Patrick were a combined 5-for-10 at the dish, driving in four runs, with the elder Palmeiro also reaching base on a walk and Patrick getting hit by a pitch in their team’s 12-7 victory.

Rafael also gave the Fish troubles in Monday’s opener, a game Cleburne won 6-3, as he finished 1-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk.

In 31 games this season, Rafael, who played 20 years in the big leagues, is hitting .301, with six home runs and 21 RBIs.

The Fish continue to fade out of the playoff picture, as they’re now 10.5 games behind the North Division leading Gary SouthShore RailCats with 23 games remaining in the regular season.

The Goldeyes have a day off today before heading out on a six-game road trip that begins on Friday. The Fish play three games against the Chicago Dogs, before their road trip wraps up with another three against the RailCats.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @TaylorAllen31