Railroaders finish season opening homestand with third straight win

Clinton Herald, IowaThu, May 21, 2026·3 min read

CLEBURNE, Texas — After dropping the first four games of the season-opening homestand against the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks, the Cleburne Railroaders offense found its footing behind the biggest offensive output of the year. Delino DeShields Jr. finished 3-for-4, 2 extra-base hits (HR, 2B) with 4 RBIs, while Cody Thomas found his first two RBIs as a Railroader.

Cleburne (3-4) has won three straight. Carter Aldrete continued a strong start to the season at the plate, finishing 12-for-30 with 6 RBIs, one double, one home run and a .400 batting average in the opening series of 2026. Frankie Tostado finished the homestand batting .409.

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Tuesday, May 19 – Cleburne Railroaders 5-1 Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks

Tostado followed up a three-hit day on Monday with three more hits Tuesday in a 5-1 Railroaders win. Two doubles, two runs and an RBI for the California native has him pegged as one of the catalysts for the Cleburne offense through the first week of the season. Caleb McNeely provided a 1-for-3 day with two RBIs.

Catcher Oscar Hernandez rounded out a three-run fourth inning with an RBI single, his second run driven in of the season. Aldrete continues to pace the offense, adding two more hits on Tuesday.

Opening day starter Andrew Bellatti had another strong outing across four innings of work. Bellatti struck out five, allowing just one hit and issuing his first walk of the season. Bellatti currently sits tied for the league lead in strikeouts with 12. He has yet to allow a run in either start.

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Conner Richardson relieved Bellatti, allowing Fargo’s (4-3) only run of the game, a solo home run by Jose Sermo, his league-leading 5th of the season.

But Richardson bounced back to strike out two hitters and gave three strong innings. Richardson handed the ball to Jace Miner, who in two innings of work, shut down the RedHawks offense, allowing no hits and striking out three to secure the win.

Wednesday, May 20 – Cleburne Railroaders 14-12 Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks

An offensive explosion on Wednesday night saw the Railroaders pick up a third straight win at home. Every Railroader batter except for Caleb McNeely registered a hit, but McNeely drove in an important run.

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Cleburne jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first before Fargo rallied for a combined seven runs in the third and fourth innings. The Railroaders answered with six runs in the fourth and five runs in the seventh. DeShields Jr. launched his second home run of the season in the fourth, a 3-run shot to give Cleburne a 9-7 lead.

Christian Almanza set a new season high for himself with three RBIs. Brantley Bell had a 3-for-5 night at the plate, featuring a double and an RBI.

Scott Ellis (1-1) picked up the win for Cleburne with 2.1 innings, while Davis Smith picked up the save, his first of the season.

Cleburne will have a travel day on Thursday, embarking on a 9-game road trip starting against the Gary SouthShore RailCats Friday, May 22, in the first of a 3-game set. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m.

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The Roaders will then hop over to the Windy City to face the Chicago Dogs for three games before heading back to Gary for three games to wrap up the road trip.

The Railroaders return home June 2 to host the Kane County Cougars in a 6-game series.

Story byClinton Herald, Iowa