Back-to-back rainouts gave the Chattanooga Lookouts two unexpected days off to end their five-game series against the Tennessee Smokies in Kodak.
A well-rested bunch of Lookouts returned to competition Thursday night at home, and they’d apparently been saving up runs during their brief bonus break.
Luis Arraez and Zander Wiel each went 3-for-5 for the Lookouts, and a five-run sixth inning highlighted Chattanooga’s 12-3 victory over the Mississippi Braves to start a 10-game homestand.
The Lookouts were up 4-0 after two innings, and their biggest inning came after the Braves’ Tyler Marlette hit a three-run homer in the top of the sixth to cut Chattanooga’s lead to one.
In the bottom half, the Lookouts took advantage of control problems for Mississippi reliever Kelvin Vasquez, who replaced starter Elian Leyva (2-1). Brian Navarreto and Arraez had consecutive singles, and Jordan Gore and Tanner English drew back-to-back walks to make it 5-3 before Vasquez got a pair of flyouts, with the second a sacrifice by Brent Rooker that brought Arraez home.
Luke Raley’s two-out walk reloaded the bases, and Chris Paul’s line-drive single to right field cleared them. Paul was caught at second for the third out, but not before it was 9-3.
Chattanooga finished the scoring in the seventh. Navarreto had a one-out double and went home on Gore’s two-out single to left field. English reached on a throwing error, and he and Gore scored on Wiel’s double to center.
Rooker also had an RBI double – scoring Wiel, who had a leadoff double – in the first, when Mitchell Kranson’s single scored Brent Rooker to make it 2-0. Wiel’s two-run single in the second brought home Arraez and English.
The five-game series at AT&T continues tonight at 7:15. The scheduled starting pitchers are Mississippi’s Michael Mader (3-2, 3.38) and Chattanooga’s Dietrich Enns (0-5, 6.00).
Saturday’s 7:15 p.m. game will feature the club’s 26th annual Used Car Night promotion.