Lookouts looking up Nivar's doubles key in win over Carolina

Ramon Nivar keeps looking up, and so do things for the Chattanooga Lookouts.

Nivar, who joined the Lookouts last Friday, belted three doubles Wednesday afternoon at AT&T Field to lead Chattanooga to a 9-3 victory over the Carolina Mudcats. The 28-year-old from the Dominican Republic has a custom of pointing skyward after getting a base hit.

"I do that every time to say, 'Thank You, God,'" Nivar said. "I've done that ever since I've been in professional ball."

Chattanooga improved to 5-5 and has reached .500 for the first time all season. The Lookouts had an eight-game losing streak in the first half to start out 3-14, battled back to 18-20, but then lost eight in a row again.

The Mudcats, meanwhile, dropped to 2-8 this half.

"Starting off the second half obviously was something we were looking forward to, and we were looking to start off on a good foot," Lookouts manager John Valentin said. "It's nice to be at .500, but we'd like to be above .500. Hopefully we can continue to play well."

Said outfielder Russ Mitchell: "Our goal is to win the second half. We just need to keep pushing and grind it out every day."

The Lookouts have won four of their last five games with Nivar, who has a .476 batting average. He isn't taking credit for the team's recent spark but has been an obvious boost.

In the bottom of the first inning Wednesday, Nivar hit the ball to center field and made an aggressive rounding of first base. Mudcats center fielder Mike Griffin tried to pick Nivar off at first, but Nivar anticipated his throw and easily broke for second with a double.

"I saw that their outfielder was a little lazy, so I took another base," Nivar said.

Originally signed by the Texas Rangers in 1998 as a free agent, Nivar made it to the majors with the Rangers in 2003 and with the Baltimore Orioles in '05. He has played in 42 career big-league games, hitting .223 with 12 RBIs, but spent the past two seasons in Independent ball.

"He's playing well," Valentin said. "Obviously he's pretty experienced, and it was a great addition at a good time."

Nivar's double to center marked the first of four consecutive one-out hits in the first. Josh Bell reached on an infield hit, Eduardo Perez singled to left to score Nivar, and Mitchell singled to left to score Bell.

The Lookouts took a 4-0 lead in the first when Gabriel Gutierrez's two-out double down the left-field line scored Perez and Mitchell. They were up 6-2 in the eighth when Perez launched a bases-clearing double into the right-field corner.

Travis Chick (6-3, 3.82) is scheduled to start tonight's 7:15 game for the Lookouts, while Jordan Smith (4-3, 3.29) is scheduled for the Mudcats.

Bell batting cleanup

The North Division's starting lineup for the Southern League All-Star Game was announced Wednesday, and Bell was the only Lookouts player included. Bell will play third base and bat cleanup, a spot in the order he has experienced sparingly this season.

"I've usually hit in the 3 or the 5, but it's all the same." he said. "You see it and hit it."