Final Comments for the 2016 Season

The Railroaders’ season has finally ended. The players are now returning back to their homes and schools.  Thanks to the players and coaches for some exciting moments this year. Of course we all wish the season could have continued further into the Playoffs, but all things must come to an end. We wish and hope the best to all the players along with continued success in their future endeavors both on and off the field. God bless you and safe travels.

This blog entry is the place for both fans and players to make your farewell comments.

Fan Appreciation Night at the Yard

We have finally arrived at the last regular 2016 ballgame in the Yard tonight. The always tough and 1st place Hoptown Hoppers will be playing our Railroaders for the 7th time this year. The Railroaders have only beat the Hoppers once out of six tries and a win tonight would make our final home even sweeter.

Although our season record is less than we’d hope for, there are still the post-season playoffs to look forward to. The Railroaders will play the Round One single game elimination on Monday and on the road. Where that will be is still to be determined, mostly likely in Owensboro or Dubois County. We’ll just have to wait and see how the final standings fall out.

A victory in Round One will send us on into a best-of- three game series Round Two. The first game in that round would be on the road as well with the second game at home. That would be next Wednesday if the Railroaders can put us in the position.

For now though it’s the Hoppers and Railroaders tonight. Fan Appreciation night with “specials” for everyone. Come on out and enjoy a final regular season game of baseball and support the Railroaders as they play to press forward in the season. The final regular season game will be on the road to Muhlenberg tomorrow, so you don’t want to miss tonight at the Yard!

Battle for 5th place at the UTM (not the Yard)

UPDATE: The game has been moved to UTM in Martin TN due to a rained out Yard just before game time at 5 pm. The game can be heard online at West Kentucky Star at  http://player.liquidcompass.net/WKSFIR


TeamLine will not be online tonight


With 4 games remaining in the season, the Railroaders will be playing to help secure 5th place in the standings. Either Fulton or Paducah will take this spot when the dusk clears, the loser will drop to the 6th seed for the post-season playoffs beginning next Monday. Who’s it going to be?

The doubleheader with the Chiefs at the Yard today will help determine who might get the higher seed. The Railroaders and Chiefs have met 5 times already with the Railroaders winning 3 and the Chiefs taking the other 2 games. The Railroaders will need to win at least one of the games for a tie breaker should both teams end up with the same record in the standings.

Besides the 2 games today with the Chiefs, the Railroaders have a game with the Hoppers on Friday here in Fulton and one in Muhlenberg with the Stallions on Saturday.

After today, the Chiefs will have 4 games remaining. They will play the Bombers on Thursday in Paducah, the Oilers on Friday in Owensboro, Hoppers on Saturday in Paducah and finish off the season on Sunday in Muhlenberg against the Stallions.

It has been a tough season for both teams, so anything can happen. I’m putting my money on the Railroaders though. I believe we can take 3 or the 4 remaining games, maybe even all 4 if the Hoppers (who have now secured #1 seed) decide to rest their starters. The Chiefs have a harder road to travel playing both the Oilers and Bombers who are still trying to improve their standings.

One thing is sure; it’s going to be a hot one on the field today, but the grandstand will be cooler with the fans going. Hope to see you at Yard, 5 pm first game start.

Oilers and Railroaders meet for 7th time

The Oilers return to the Yard tonight for the final meeting between the two teams in the regular season. The Oilers, currently 4th in the standings, have a 19-14 record and are 7 ½ games ahead of our 5th place Railroaders who have with their 13-23 record. The teams have met six times so far with both teams tied with 3-3 records against each other.

Although highly unlikely, mathematically the Railroaders could end up in a tie with the Oilers for 4th place. The Railroaders would have to win out on the rest of the season and the Oilers would have to lose all their remaining games. With that being said, the tiebreaker for 4th place would be the head-to-head season record between the teams. The game tonight will determine that fate.

Even under the improbable scenario explained above, we should be playing for pride at this point in the season. Let’s beat the Oilers one more time and keep the hope alive for a Round One Home game next Monday!

There are 3 more days worth of regular season home games to play; tonight with the Oilers, Wednesday a doubleheader with the Chiefs, and finally on Friday with the 1st place Hoppers. Our current homestanding record is 10-8 compared to our 3-15 road record.  Let’s keep our home record on the positive side and finish off the season on an upbeat note!

Stallions return to the Yard one more time

Let's ride 'em hard again

The Railroaders will face off with the Stallions again tonight for their last meeting in Fulton during the regular season. They will play together again a last time in Muhlenberg one week from today. Five times the two teams have fought each other with the Railroaders winning four of the contests. Hopefully the tread will continue in our favor.

With only 8 regular season games left for Fulton, winning now becomes critical for the 5th place Railroaders. We are only a half game ahead of the 6th place Chiefs and 7 ½ behind the 4th place Oilers. The Oilers have 13 games remaining to play. If we are to catch them we must win and hope the Oilers stumble and fall further.

It seems unlikely we can get into the 4th spot, but the Railroaders have added two new pitchers to help the cause. We can and should at least build some momentum heading into the post-season playoffs. It would still be nice to host a first round home game. So for now all we can do is our best. Let’s finish the regular season on a high note.

Doubleheader with the Oilers

Can we please find some steam to push ahead for a final run?

After another stinging loss on the road last night to the Miners, the Railroaders return to the Yard today for two games against the Owensboro Oilers. The first game will start a 5:00 pm and each game of course will be for 7 innings. The Oilers were rained out last night in Dubois County after only 3 ½ innings with the Bombers.

The question remains, can the Railroaders build some momentum before the post-season playoffs begin on July 25? With just 12 games remaining to play, every win counts towards improving Fulton’s position in the standings which determines playoff seeding. The Railroaders, currently in 5th place, are just a half game ahead of the Paducah Chiefs. If the season ended right now, we would be heading to Dubois County to face off with the Bombers in Round 1 for a single game elimination bout.

To get a home game in Round 1, the Railroaders must sit at least 4th in the standings. A tall order seeing we are 7 1/5 games behind the current 4th place Bombers.

Can it be done? Sure, but the Railroaders must start winning and put a nice string of victories together to do it. Only once this year have the Railroaders won 2 games in row. Not very encouraging to look back at. But that doesn’t mean things can’t turn around. I suppose we’ll see beginning today. A double win against a good team like the Oilers would go a long way to helping our cause.

Dry land at the Yard tonight

After being cooped up for nearly a week, the rain appears to have stop and play has resumed. The affect of not stretching our legs surely tainted the Railroaders ability to produce last night in Hoptown, but it’s a new day now and Stallions are heading to town.

While we may be struggling, so are the Stallions. MC dropped their doubleheader with the Miners last night by one run in both games. The Railroaders never really got out of the gate against the Hoppers in a loss I know must have made for a long ride home. Let's remember that negative thoughts won't help our cause.

It is time to pick ourselves back up and go after the Stallions again. Both teams may be at the bottom of the stack, but not out. There are 12 regular season games left to play and a higher standing is still possible. Let’s never give up and finish off the season on a high note. The playoffs are another chance we can look forward too, and anything is possible.

Let’s go Railroaders!