GARY — That line about a team, having an exceptionally productive game, saving some of that production for the next game?
Forget about it when it comes to the RailCats for at least the last two weeks.
“We’ll take them all in one night if we have to, because that’s what the club needs,” said manager Greg Tagert, cracking a smile. “The biggest thing we need is just an offensive breakout.”
Entering Tuesday night at the Steel Yard against Sioux City, the RailCats scored 24 runs in their previous 11 games. They were 3-8 in those games, including five straight losses.
“It’s just a slump — we just happen to be doing it as a team,” second baseman Zac Mitchell said.
“A good coach once told me that you have to sweat your way out of a slump. Just put in extra work and do whatever you can to keep grinding.”
This stretch dropped the RailCats’ batting average to .250, second to last in the 13-team American Association. They also are second to last in runs with 164.
They are 11th in on-base percentage (.321), last in slugging (.322) and 12th in OPS.
Typically adept at working the count, the RailCats are 10th in walks (119). Uncharacteristic baserunning gaffes also have short-circuited innings.
The RailCats have never been known as a home-run hitting team. But they have just four this season, with Grand Prairie next at 16.
With a spacious home stadium, they are second in the league with 14 triples, but rank last with 56 doubles.
“The lack of home runs doesn’t concern me,” Tagert said. “But the lack of extra-base hits, that concerns me. You have to string together three singles and hopefully get a walk in there just to score a run.”
Players with proven track records have not hit up to their standards. Players who demonstrated potential have yet to fulfill it.
But the team’s confidence hasn’t waned.
“Maybe we’re stressing too much, maybe we’re pressing,” right fielder Drew Martinez said. “But we know we’re better than we’ve shown. We just have to trust our approach.
“In some cases, we have to be more patient at the plate, in other cases we have to be more aggressive. We just have to find a way as a team to scratch out some runs.”
To a point, Tagert, too, has remained confident in this group. But he has been willing to make significant trades, including the acquisition of Henry Wrigley late last season.
“A guy like that came at a great cost to us, and that’s a way down the road type of thing,” Tagert said. “I doubt there are a lot of clubs willing to part with those guys right now, and those kinds of offensive players aren’t just sitting out there.
“It’s funny, because I look at our lineup and I like our balance. For some reason, we just haven’t put things together throughout the lineup.”
North Newton graduate Michael Schroeder returned to the RailCats’ lineup Tuesday night. After beginning the season as the team’s starting first baseman, he was put on the disabled list June 28 with the intention of transitioning to pitcher.
But still two to three weeks away from being ready to challenge for a spot in the rotation, Schroeder returned to first base, with pitching on the “back burner,” Tagert indicated.
Before Tuesday, Schroeder last faced live pitching June 27 in the second game of a doubleheader against Lincoln.
“We’re definitely having some tough times now, and we need something,” Tagert said. “Like I said before, we haven’t given up on him (at first base).
“This is an area where he can contribute more immediately. That’s what it comes down to.”
Notes: Relief pitcher Paul Mittura is expected to miss four to six weeks with a stress fracture in his left leg. He is wearing a walking boot. … Andy Roberts is questionable for his start Wednesday because of a blister he developed on his left middle finger his last two outings.
Twitter: @MichaelOsipoff
RailCats 1, Sioux City 0
Summary: Charle Rosario outdueled Jeff Marquez as the RailCats (21-22) snapped their five-game losing streak Tuesday night. Sioux City (32-13) had its four-game win streak come to an end.
Key moment: Alex Crosby doubled with two outs in the second inning to drive in the game’s only run, after Drew Martinez was hit by a pitch with one out.
By the numbers: Rosario (7-3) was superb in turning in the RailCats’ longest start of the season, yielding four hits in eight innings with one walk and four strikeouts. Marquez (4-5) allowed one run on eight hits in eight innings with one walk and five strikeouts. Andy Loomis notched his 11th save with a perfect ninth. Jon Jones went 3-for-4 with a double for the RailCats.
Up next: Sioux City (Patrick Johnson 5-0) at RailCats (Andy Roberts 0-4), 7:10 p.m. Wednesday, WEFM-FM 95.9.
