Stars overpower Lookouts

By Aaron Morse

Steffan Wilson delivered a two-out three-run home run in the sixth as the Huntsville Stars (8-8, 41-45) took the lead for good in an 8-2 victory over the Chattanooga Lookouts (9-7, 42-23) Wednesday morning.

The victory made a winner out of Michael Fiers (1-0) in his Double A debut. The right-hander went six innings, scattering six hits as he gave up two runs. Fiers walked two and struck-out five in the victory.

The Stars put a run across against Chattanooga starter Bobby Blevins in the third. With one away, Brett Lawrie drew a walk. Caleb Gindl singled to right and the aggressive Lawrie advanced to third on the play. That set up Drew Anderson nicely and he came through with a sacrifice fly to center.

The Lookouts took the lead back in the bottom of the frame. With two out and a man on first, Jerry Sands singled to left. After Corey Smith was hit by a pitch, loading the bases, Andrew Lambo singled to right, driving in two runs and giving Chattanooga the 2-1 edge.

Their lead lasted until the fateful sixth inning. Gindl got things going with a single to right. One out later Zelous Wheeler was hit by a pitch. That would be it for Blevins (1-1), who went 5.1 innings, giving up three runs on four hits. He walked one and struck-out seven.

New pitcher David Pfeiffer got Taylor Green to pop out, but Wilson stepped to the plate and on a 1-1 pitch crushed a ball up in the zone way out of the yard in deep left field to give the Stars a 4-2 lead. It was Wilson’s sixth homer of the 2010 campaign.

They’d do more damage in the eighth and ninth.

With one on and one away in the eighth, Taylor Green took Pfeiffer deep to dead center field for his fourth bomb of the year. Then in the ninth, they got two runs off reliever Justin Miller thanks to a RBI double by Drew Anderson and a RBI single off the bat of Green.

Meanwhile the Stars’ bullpen was as strong as ever. Robert Hinton worked two scoreless innings and Donovan Hand finished things off with a solid ninth inning to preserve the win.

The Lookouts left 11 runners on base as the Stars were able to get the outs when they needed to. Green, Zelous Wheeler, and Gindl tallied multi-hit games while Lawrie and Wheeler each scored two runs. Green and Wilson had three RBI apiece, and Anderson knocked in two.

The victory moves the Stars to within one game of first place in the SL standings. They’ll look to win their fourth straight Thursday evening as they send Michael Bowman (7-7, 5.82) to the mound to face Brent Leach (3-1, 5.75). You can catch all the action on the Stars Radio Network beginning at 6:00 pm central time with the Window World Pre-Game Report.