While the Sioux City played the Milwaukee Milkmen Friday night, state Rep. J.D. Scholten stumped for votes in the Mardi Gras parade in downtown Sioux City.
One night later, Scholten made a surprise start for the Explorers.
Taking the mound for the independent minor league team for the first time in nearly two decades, Scholten recorded a quality start to pick up the win in the X's 11-2 victory over the Milkmen at Mercyone Field at Lewis & Clark Park.
The 44-year-old threw 100 pitches over 6⅔ innings, scattering six hits while allowing two earned runs. After a career at Morningside, Scholten pitched one season for the 2002 Nebraska team that made the College World Series. He appeared in 10 games and had a 2.08 ERA.
Twenty-two years later, he took the bump for the Explorers.
“This one belongs to all the middle-aged men who still think they can do it,” Scholten said after the game. “Never would have ever thought that when I was playing with the X’s. ... that I would ever get a chance to put on the uniform again.”
Scholten, a Sioux City East graduate, pitched for the Explorers between 2003-2007. He then took several years off from baseball to focus on his political career. After coming up short in two runs for Iowa's 4th Congressional District, the Democrat won election to Iowa House District 1 in Sioux City in 2022.
In between legislative sessions, Scholten returned to pro ball last year, joining the Oosterhout Twins of the Dutch Major League, where he struck out 31 in 26 innings through six games.
After a late scratch by Jared Wetherbee, the projected starter for Saturday night's game, Explorers manager Steve Montgomery reached out to Scholten, who had previously talked about pitching again for the X's.
“I’ll give you all I’ve got," Scholten told the X's skipper.
Scholten needed a few batters to get settled as Milwaukee’s Jose Sermo's sacrifice fly in the top of the first to give the Milkmen a 1-0 lead, but the X's starter worked out of a bases-loaded jam to avoid any further damage.
In the bottom of the first, the Sioux City tied it as Daniel Montano picked up an RBI off Milwaukee starter Shane Barringer (1-4) with a grounder that scored Scott Ota.
In the the second, Scholten retired Milwaukee in order in the top. The X's grabbed grab the lead in the bottom of the inning after Barringer came out of the game with an apparent injury after just four pitches. Juan Echevarria, who came on in relief, was greeted by Cam Cannon's two-run home run to give Sioux City a 3-1 lead.
Scholten again retired the side in order in the third as he recorded his first strikeout of the game. The Explorers added three more runs in the bottom when Cannon picked up a two-RBI triple and on the next at-bat, Cannon scored on a Zac Vooletich RBI single to extend the X's lead to 6-1.
The Milkmen got a run back in the the fourth when Chase Estep launched a solo homer off Scholten, but Sioux City responded in the bottom by adding four runs thanks to back-to-back homers off the bats of Chase Harris and Cannon to put the X's in front 10-2.
Sioux City manager Steve Montgomery went to the bullpen in the seventh, as Scholten walked off the mound to a chorus of cheers from X's fans. Zach Willeman came on in relief and threw the seventh and eighth for the X's, and Kyle Marman finished with a scoreless ninth.
Scholten's comeback did force him to cancel a previously planned volunteer gig at the Saturday in the Park festival at Grandview Park.
“There’s a line in a movie I like to use a lot that says, ‘How do you make God laugh? It’s to have a plan,’” Scholten said.
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One night later, Scholten made a surprise start for the Explorers.
Taking the mound for the independent minor league team for the first time in nearly two decades, Scholten recorded a quality start to pick up the win in the X's 11-2 victory over the Milkmen at Mercyone Field at Lewis & Clark Park.
The 44-year-old threw 100 pitches over 6⅔ innings, scattering six hits while allowing two earned runs. After a career at Morningside, Scholten pitched one season for the 2002 Nebraska team that made the College World Series. He appeared in 10 games and had a 2.08 ERA.
Twenty-two years later, he took the bump for the Explorers.
“This one belongs to all the middle-aged men who still think they can do it,” Scholten said after the game. “Never would have ever thought that when I was playing with the X’s. ... that I would ever get a chance to put on the uniform again.”
Scholten, a Sioux City East graduate, pitched for the Explorers between 2003-2007. He then took several years off from baseball to focus on his political career. After coming up short in two runs for Iowa's 4th Congressional District, the Democrat won election to Iowa House District 1 in Sioux City in 2022.
In between legislative sessions, Scholten returned to pro ball last year, joining the Oosterhout Twins of the Dutch Major League, where he struck out 31 in 26 innings through six games.
After a late scratch by Jared Wetherbee, the projected starter for Saturday night's game, Explorers manager Steve Montgomery reached out to Scholten, who had previously talked about pitching again for the X's.
“I’ll give you all I’ve got," Scholten told the X's skipper.
Scholten needed a few batters to get settled as Milwaukee’s Jose Sermo's sacrifice fly in the top of the first to give the Milkmen a 1-0 lead, but the X's starter worked out of a bases-loaded jam to avoid any further damage.
In the bottom of the first, the Sioux City tied it as Daniel Montano picked up an RBI off Milwaukee starter Shane Barringer (1-4) with a grounder that scored Scott Ota.
In the the second, Scholten retired Milwaukee in order in the top. The X's grabbed grab the lead in the bottom of the inning after Barringer came out of the game with an apparent injury after just four pitches. Juan Echevarria, who came on in relief, was greeted by Cam Cannon's two-run home run to give Sioux City a 3-1 lead.
Scholten again retired the side in order in the third as he recorded his first strikeout of the game. The Explorers added three more runs in the bottom when Cannon picked up a two-RBI triple and on the next at-bat, Cannon scored on a Zac Vooletich RBI single to extend the X's lead to 6-1.
The Milkmen got a run back in the the fourth when Chase Estep launched a solo homer off Scholten, but Sioux City responded in the bottom by adding four runs thanks to back-to-back homers off the bats of Chase Harris and Cannon to put the X's in front 10-2.
Sioux City manager Steve Montgomery went to the bullpen in the seventh, as Scholten walked off the mound to a chorus of cheers from X's fans. Zach Willeman came on in relief and threw the seventh and eighth for the X's, and Kyle Marman finished with a scoreless ninth.
Scholten's comeback did force him to cancel a previously planned volunteer gig at the Saturday in the Park festival at Grandview Park.
“There’s a line in a movie I like to use a lot that says, ‘How do you make God laugh? It’s to have a plan,’” Scholten said.
State Rep. Scholten earns win for X's in surprise start
Taking the mound for the independent minor-league baseball team for the first time in nearly two decades, Scholten recorded a quality start to pick up the win in the X's 11-2 victory over the Milwaukee Milkmen.
