Lewis Thorpe collected his seventh win of the season in Thursday's one-sided win.
photo by Tim Evearitt
The Chattanooga Lookouts offense erupted for 12 runs in a 12-3 win over the Mississippi Braves in game one of a 5-game series.
Zander Wiel got things started quickly for the Lookouts offense in the bottom of the first inning with a lead-off double. Brent Rooker belted a double of his own to give the team their first run of the day.
For Rooker that was his 29th double of the season.
The second run of the inning scored on a Mitchell Kranson RBI single. Kranson now has 11 multi-hit games in just 32 contests for the Lookouts.
In the second inning, Wiel racked up two RBIs on a single to right field to give the team the four run lead.
Mississippi knocked the lead down to one in the third on a Tyler Marlette three run homer off starting pitcher Lewis Thorpe. Thorpe finished the day yielding three runs in .2/3 innings while striking out seven batters. In eight second-half starts, Thorpe is 4-0 with a 2.01 ERA and 41 strikeouts.
Chattanooga's offense really took off in the bottom of the sixth inning. The decisive blow came on a Chris Paul bases clearing single. Paul now has a team-high 21 RBIs with runners in scoring position and two outs.
The Lookouts added three more in the seventh inning to make it 12 runs in the contest.
The Atlanta Braves sent Cristian Pache to the Double-A M-Braves. Ranked as the No. 58 overall prospect in the game by MLB.com, Pache put up one of the best offensive months of his young career.
The 19-year-old center fielder, who had not homered in his first two Minor League seasons in 2016 and 2017, hit .318/.355/.511 with three long balls in 23 games with the Fire Frogs in July. He finished up his time with Florida with a .285/.311/.431 line, eight homers, five triples, 20 doubles and seven steals during his 93-game stay in the Florida State League.
The Dominican Republic native is a plus-plus runner, who is considered arguably the best defensive center fielder in the Minors. His bat has become even more of a weapon as he's matured, though that'll be tested with his move to Double-A.
Thanks to recent trades, Chattanooga added outfielder Luke Raley from the Dodgers. Raley went 0-for-4 in his first game with the Lookouts.
Box
Friday night, Dietrich Enns takes the mounds for Chattanooga against Michael Mader. First pitch for Fireworks Friday is set for 7:15 p.m.
Second baseman Luis Arraez went 3-for-5 and scored twice for Chattanooga.
photo by Tim Evearitt