GARY, Indiana – Greg Minier allowed just two runs over six innings, but the Saltdogs fell 4-3 at the U.S. Steel Yard on Saturday evening.
Minier has now allowed just eight earned runs over his last seven starts, but Lincoln (38-34) had just six hits and RailCats’ starter Jack Alkire allowed only three runs over 7.1 innings.
The Saltdogs took the lead on a Yanio Perez solo homer in the 5th inning, but Gary (30-44) tied the game with Alec Olund’s leadoff homer in the bottom-half of the inning.
The RailCats took their first lead of the series on Olund’s sacrifice fly in the 6th, and three consecutive two-out doubles from Jesus Marriaga, Billy Cookie and Daniel Lingua added two more runs in the 7th.
The Saltdogs got within a run in the 8th – Ryan Long worked a bases-loaded walk and Curt Smith drove in his 40th run with a fielder’s choice.
Tyler Anderson allowed two runs over 0.2 innings, while Walter Borkovich recorded the final four outs for Lincoln.
Justin Byrd extended his hitting streak to nine games with two hits, while Long went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI.
Josh Altmann’s 33-game on-base streak and 11-game hitting streak came to an end, while Lincoln’s 3-4-5 hitters in Altmann, Smith and David Vidal went 0-for-12 with five strikeouts.
The loss was only Lincoln’s third in the last 12 road games, and the Saltdogs are still 21-15 since July 1.
The series concludes Sunday afternoon at 2:10 p.m., and pregame coverage will begin at 1:40 p.m. on ESPN Lincoln 101.5 FM/1480 AM.
The Saltdogs are celebrating their 20th season at Haymarket Park this season! All ticket and promotional information can be viewed at saltdogs.com.