The Birmingham Barons couldn't win their baseball series at Chattanooga, but they left town Friday night with the good taste of decisive victory.
Scoring three runs in each of the first and seventh innings, the Barons beat the host Lookouts 10-5 for their second win in the five games at AT&T Field. Birmingham opens another set of five tonight at home against Jacksonville with a 7-8 second-half record in the Southern League, while the Lookouts (9-6) begin a series against the Tennessee Smokies in Kodak.
Birmingham's Adam Engel began Friday's game with a double to left field, took third on Eddy Alvarez's bunt and scored on Niko Goodrum's throwing error on a fielder's choice. Courtney Hawkins went to second on Trey Michalczewski's single before a walk loaded the bases.
Hawkins scored on a groundout and Michalczewski made it 3-0 on Eudy Pina's single to left, but left fielder Travis Harrison cut down Brady Shoemaker trying to score from second.
The Lookouts got two runs back in the bottom of the first, Engelb Vielma leading off with a walk and Ryan Walker and D.J. Hicks sandwiching doubles around Harrison's RBI groundout. But the Barons scored two in each of the third and fourth innings and followed Chattanooga's two-run sixth with the three-run seventh that began with three walks and a two-run Pina single.
Pina was 3-for-4 with four RBIs and cleanup batter Michalczewski homered and singled and scored three runs for the Barons, who totaled 16 hits. Engel went 3-for-5 with two doubles and two runs scored.
Walker and Hicks each was 2-for-3 with a walk for Chattanooga, and Walker scored three runs.
The starting pitchers both struggled, the Lookouts' Kohl Stewart allowing 11 hits and seven runs (four earned) in 3 2/3 innings. James Dystra (3-4) got the win despite allowing four hits, three walks and four runs (two earned) in five innings.