SIOUX CITY — Matt Pobereyko just feels comfortable in Sioux City.
Pobereyko, a longtime fan-favorite of the Explorers, returned to the American Association team over the weekend while the X’s were on the road.
“I’m just happy to be back with the guys,” Pobereyko said. “These guys, the coaching staff, the players, they’re all my friends. We stay in contact, whether I’m here or not. It’s just a smooth transition. There’s a lot of common faces in the clubhouse. Everyone meshes here.”
He was in Mexico for a good portion of this season, but after getting hit with a line drive, he took some time off.
“I’m a pretty emotional guy and there have been a lot of people here over the years who I have seen in the stands almost every night,” Montgomery said.
After needing said time off, manager Steve Montgomery invited Pobereyko back to his familiar stomping grounds. The two started coming up with a plan about a couple weeks ago, according to the franchise’s all-time winningest manager.
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“My kids probably talk to Matt more than they talk to me,” said Montgomery after Monday’s 8-4 win over Kansas City with a smile. “I knew exactly what was going on. He called me and he got medically cleared. He did 70 pitches and four up-downs, and I said, ‘OK, let’s do this thing.’”
Once Pobereyko re-joined his Sioux City friends, he got right to work.
He got the ball for his first professional start Sunday, and for the first time since 2019, Pobereyko earned a win as an Explorer pitcher.
He went five innings in Sunday’s 5-0 win over Chicago, and allowed just two baserunners. They were both hits. He didn’t walk anyone, while also notching eight strikeouts.
Pobereyko started a game for the first time since 2015 when he was in college with Kentucky Wesleyan.
“You have to build up that pitch count and build that stamina, but at the same time, I think we’re off to a good start,” Pobereyko said. “I’m just going out there and competing the same way I did as a reliever. By the playoffs, hopefully I can go deep into games.”
Montgomery said Pobereyko is in the rotation for the rest of the season, and there might come a time where Pobereyko gets asked to go six or seven innings.
“I want to stretch him out,” Montgomery said. “He’s got the stuff to be dominant.”
In the past, Pobereyko was always asked to come out of the bullpen.
Pobereyko was here for 21 games last year, and every appearance was out of the pen. He had a 2.22 earned run average in 24 1/3 innings. He had a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 37-4.
Pobereyko pitched in 47 games in 2019. He went 1-4 with a 3.18 ERA. He logged 51 innings, and he had 74 strikeouts.
He was also in the American Association during the 2020 season, pitching for the St. Paul Saints. The X’s didn’t play that season due to COVID-19.
“He’s great to have around,” Montgomery said. “He just keeps the clubhouse loose. He’s definitely a bulldog-type guy when he’s on the mound.”
Kuhns extends his shift
Relief pitcher Max Kuhns remembered pitching in a long outing last season as the X’s were going on a playoff run.
He used that experience to help him get through his workload on Monday.
Kuhns pitched three relief innings after Blaine Hardy’s five-inning start, and it was his longest appearance of the season.
“Once Mongo called down to the bullpen, I knew I was going to have to be extended, especially with the road trip we just had using bullpen arms,” Kuhns said. “It’s been a while since three innings. I’m a little tired, but I’m going to try to play catch (Tuesday). When I go out there, I’m going to go out there and give everything I got on every pitch. I go out there with the same competitive edge.”
He faced 10 Monarch batters, and he struck out eight of them. He walked one, but no Kansas City hitter reached base with a hit.
Mongo credits Jones with the win
Even though Montgomery was in the dugout Monday for the win, he credited the help he had with him.
East High School rising senior Alexys Jones got a rare opportunity to shadow Montgomery for a night to see what it’s like during a game.
The Explorers earlier this summer provided at a charity auction a chance to shadow Mongo for a game, and Jones’ family won that experience.
Alexys’ parents chose her to hang out in the dugout.
She brought out the lineup card in the pregame, on-field meeting.
“We didn’t take batting practice on Monday, so she’s going to come back and see us and she wants to take BP on the field,” Montgomery said.
Jones had a solid season for the Black Raiders, hitting .328. She knocked in 31 RBIs and had 41 hits. She was one of four East hitters to have 10 or more doubles.
“Alexys Jones, 1-0,” Montgomery said.
More on Monday's win
It’s the fourth straight win for the Explorers, who passed the Lincoln Saltdogs in the West Division standings.
The Explorers enter Tuesday’s full slate of game a half game up on the Saltdogs with the win.
The Explorers set the tone right away, scoring twice in the first inning. Danry Vasquez scored Danny Amaral with an RBI single, then Sebastian Zawada got a sacrifice fly that scored Blake Tiberi.
Chase Harris homered in the second inning.
The Explorers scored twice more in the third inning. Zawada had an RBI single, while Gabe Snyder had an RBI single.
Zawada had another RBI hit — a double — followed by a Snyder RBI single in the fifth inning.
Sioux City tacked on one more run in the sixth inning.