Rematch: Railroaders to face Chicago in division series again

After finishing the regular season with the best record in the league, Cleburne faces the team that eliminated them in 2023

CLEBURNE – The 2024 Wolff Cup Playoffs schedule is set with the Cleburne Railroaders set to face the Chicago Dogs in the best-of-three East Division Series.

This series is a rematch of the 2023 East Division Series in which Chicago (55-45 in 2024) beat Cleburne two games to one. This year’s Railroader’s are much improved, going from a team that finished under .500 in 2023 to the best record in the American Association in 2024.

Cleburne (60-40) clinched the league's best record along with an East Division Championship after winning four of seven games in the final week of the regular season. Cleburne went 2-1 last week in the three game series against the Lincoln Saltdogs (38-62) in Lincoln and wrapped up the season splitting a four-game series against the Sioux City Explorers (49-51) in Sioux City.

Keys to Cleburne’s success in 2024 include having full seasons from players like infielder Bret Boswell, outfielder Blaze Brothers and starting pitcher Johnathon Tripp (7-2), all of which only played for Cleburne partially in 2023.

Boswell finished the regular season batting .251, playing in 60 more games in 2024 with 343 at bats compared to just 151 in 2023.

Brothers played in 29 more games this season for Cleburne improving in hits, runs, RBIs and walks. He finished the season with 39 hits and 15 doubles in 73 games played.

Tripp played the majority of his games in 2023 with the Chicago Dogs. Playing for Cleburne in 2024, he had a 2.97 ERA and 84 strikeouts in 112 innings pitched.

The unofficial team captain, outfielder Hill Alexander improved in 2024 as well, increasing his batting average 20 points to .306. His 121 hits and 28 doubles were both more than he hit in 2024 as well.

Reliever Dylan Bice (3-1) was a great addition to this bullpen, joining the club in April. Bice pitched in 21 games for Cleburne, striking out 36 batters with a 2.54 ERA.

Infielder Shed Long could have been this team’s MVP this season, batting .310 with 74 RBIs. Cleburne signed Long in the offseason and was the primary leadoff hitter for the club in 2024. He played for the Seattle Mariners for three seasons.

Reliever Kristian Scott (6-3) has been a solid bullpen arm for Cleburne this season. Scott pitched in 34 games, going 40 2/3 innings with a 2.65 ERA. He has been splitting closer opportunities with Chris Muller (0-0) who has a 3.42 ERA in 42 innings pitched this season.

Chicago power-hitting infielder Jacob Teter is a player Cleburne will have to deal with in the division series after he collected 19 hits and reached base safely in all 12 games against the Railroaders in 2024. Playing in all 100 games for Chicago, Teter led the league with a .349 batting average and 95 RBIs and was second in the league with 28 home runs.

The series begins with game-one Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Impact Field in Chicago. Games two and three (if necessary) will be Friday and Saturday, respectively, at 7:06 p.m. at La Moderna Field, first pitch at 7:06 CST.