Blake Smith hit a three-run homer in the 10th.
photo by Tim Evearitt
The Chattanooga Lookouts escaped massive trouble in the ninth and went on to blow out the Pensacola Blue Wahoos in 10 innings, 8-2, on Thursday night at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.
In the third straight extra-inning affair between the two squads, the Lookouts erupted for six runs in the top of the 10th inning. With two on and two out, Blake Smith laced a three-run homer just over the left field wall off of Drew Hayes to give the Lookouts a 5-2 advantage. Two batters later, Griff Erickson tripled home C.J. Retherford to end Hayes' outing. Shaun Ellis then gave up a first-pitch, two-run homer to Chris Jacobs to cap the six-run onslaught.
Hayes picked up the loss to fall to 1-1 by giving up five runs on three hits in .2 innings. Greg Infante picked up his first win of the season for Chattanooga by holding the Wahoos scoreless in the last two innings.
Pensacola loaded the bases with one out in the ninth for Brodie Greene who sent a fly ball out to medium-depth right field where Yasiel Puig made the catch for the second out. Tucker Barnhart tagged from third and tried to score the winning run, but Puig fired a bullet to home that nabbed Barnhart and forced extra innings.
Pensacola jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a first-inning homer from Ryan LaMarre. It was LaMarre's third homer of the series and fourth of the season.
The game then seesawed in the middle innings with Chattanooga tying the game on a Puig RBI double in the sixth inning. The Wahoos countered in the last of the six when Barnhart tripled to right-center, scoring Travis Mattair to regain the lead at 2-1. Not to be denied, the Lookouts came right back in the top of the 7th and knotted the game at two on a two-out RBI triple from Rafael Ynoa.