The 2022 AA Minor League season ended the same way it began for the Chattanooga Lookouts – with a loss to the Tennessee Smokies.
The Lookouts lost their season opener on the road by an 8-0 count as they compiled a 34-35 record in the first half of the Double A Standings.
The second half wasn’t nearly as fun or productive as the Lookouts started out with a miserable 4-17 record and never really recovered.
There were some bright spots for sure and the Lookouts had some individuals who were really impressive, but they never really recovered from that horrible start.
Sunday’s 11-4 loss to these same Smokies at AT&T Field left Chattanooga with a record of 27-40 for the second half and 61-75 for the season.
This last week of the season had been a good one as the Lookouts won four of the first five games of the series with the Smokies, the AA affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.
But that three-game winning streak was snapped on Sunday before an appreciative crowd of 3,067 fans as the Smokies jumped in front early and never slowed down.
Four runs in the first inning gave Tennessee a 4-0 lead and they just kept adding with two in the third, three in the sixth and two more in the eighth.
Meanwhile, the Lookouts answered with single runs in the first three innings, all on solo home runs, but one final run in the bottom of the ninth was far from enough as the outcome had long been determined before that final at-bat.
D.J Artis, Nelson Maldonado and Jake Washer all had two hits apiece as the Smokies totaled nine for the game.
Cole Roederer had a two-run double in Tennessee’s four-run first while Maldonado had a two-run homer in the third.
Washer had an RBI-single to drive in Tennessee’s first run in the sixth before Artis drove in the last two with a triple.
Then in the eighth with his team comfortably ahead, Washer smashed a two-run homer off the scoreboard in left for Tennessee’s final runs.
The Lookouts only had four hits for the game, including those three solo homers at the start.
Jacob Hurtubise led off the first inning with a shot into the pavilion in right while Daniel Vellojin hit a solo shot to right with two outs in the second.
Matt McLain hit his 17th of the season in the third, but the only other hit for Chattanooga came from Rece Hinds with a single in the sixth.
Vellojin had a leadoff walk in the ninth and went to third after teammates Hurtubise and McLain both walked. The Chattanooga catcher then scored on a sacrifice fly to right by Christian Encarnacion-Strand in the ninth.
Samuel Reyes, who pitched two scoreless innings in relief of starter Richard Gallardo, was credited with the win and improved to 5-1 after allowing one hit while striking out four and walking two.
Chattanooga starter Sam Benschoter was the losing pitcher after allowing six runs on just three hits in four innings. He also had four strikeouts and four walks.
TENNESSEE 402 003 020 – 11 9 1
CHATTANOOGA 111 000 001 – 4 4 0
Gallardo, Reyes (5), Wright (7), Nunez (9) and Washer; Benschoter, Gayman (5), Cachutt (7), Curlis (8) Byrne (9) and Vellojin.
(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)