Twice in one day against Chattanooga…Stars walk-off as winners

By Aaron Morse

Steffan Wilson went 5-6, Amaury Rivas tossed a gem in game one, and Chuckie Caufield and Andy Machado provided the late heroics as the Huntsville Stars (4-5) swept the Chattanooga Lookouts (6-3) in Wednesday’s double header.

In the first game of the twin bill, Rivas (7-5) took center stage as he threw a complete game shutout. The Lookouts managed only four hits in the seven-inning contest and Rivas walked a lone batter while striking out four.

In the bottom of the seventh, Huntsville’s to that point dormant offense came alive as Drew Anderson drew a lead-off walk. They played some small ball as Machado lay down a nice bunt that caused a throwing error from catcher Mike Rivera, putting runners at first and second with nobody out. Wilson bunted as well and managed to beat it out for an infield single, loading the bases.

After Dayton Buller struck-out, Caufield stepped to the plate, pinch hitting for Rivas. The red-hot outfielder singled in the hole between short and third, driving home Anderson to win the game.

Timothy Sexton (3-7) pitched a complete game for the Lookouts but took the loss. Meanwhile Rivas’ second complete game of the year ties him with Tom Layne of Mobile for the most in the Southern League.

Game two was not nearly as neat. Lookouts’ pitchers combined to walk 12 Stars hitters and three of the Lookouts’ four runs against the Stars were unearned.

The Stars got off to a great start, scoring two runs in the first on RBI singles from Machado and Wilson. These came after Lookouts’ starter Jordan Pratt walked the first three batters of the game.

Two of three batters Pratt walked in the first inning were Brett Lawrie and Lorenzo Cain. With two away in the second, he walked both of them again. The Stars proceeded to pull off a gutsy double steal and the throw to third base sailed into left field, allowing Lawrie to score and Cain to advance to third. Pratt walked Caleb Gindl again as well to put runners at the corners and chase him from the game. Chattanooga’s starter walked seven batters in only 1.2 innings of work.

New pitcher Justin Miller uncorked a wild pitch right away, allowing Cain to score and the Stars to extend their lead to 4-0.

But Huntsville’s sloppiness allowed the Lookouts to come back to tie the game. In the top of the fourth, Stars’ starter Lucas Luetge ran into trouble after having faced the minimum through the first three frames.
With one away, Trayvon Robinson singled to left. After a second out was recorded, Luetge uncorked a wild pitch, advancing Robinson to second base. Corey Smith, the Southern League’s RBI leader, hit a slow roller that Luetge fielded, but his throw was low and skipped past Wilson at first base. They ruled the play an infield single, with the error allowing Robinson to score and Smith to advance to second base.

He’d get out of the inning without any more damage, but wasn’t as fortunate in the fifth.

With one down, Luetge walked his first batter of the game when Jaime Pedroza drew a free pass. Jessie Mier followed with a sharp single up the middle. It appeared Luetge would get out of the inning unscathed when pinch hitter Eddie Perez hit a tailor-made double play ball to Machado at short, but the veteran infielder bobbled the ball and everyone was safe. A wild pitch made it 4-2 and with two away Trayvon Robinson delivered the big blow with a two RBI single to left, evening the score at four.

That was the end of the day for Luetge, who went 4.2 innings, giving up four runs, only one of which was earned, on five hits. He walked one and struck-out three in the no-decision.

Eddie Morlan came on and got Jerry Sands to fly-out to Gindl in right to end the inning.

Lookouts’ reliever Eric Krebs gave up a lead-off double to Wilson in the fifth and walked Andy Machado with one away, but he worked out of the jam thanks to a well-timed double play ball hit by Sean McCraw.

Krebs really got rolling in the sixth when he struck-out Anderson, Lawrie, and Cain in succession.

Meanwhile for the Stars, Jim Henderson replaced Morlan to pitch the top of the seventh and walked the lead-off man. But after striking-out the next batter, he was the beneficiary of an awful bunt attempt by Krebs that went straight up in the air. The runner was going on the pitch so Henderson calmly got the ball and jogged to the first base bag to turn the unassisted double play.

Huntsville finally got to Krebs in the bottom of the seventh as with one out he hit Zelous Wheeler. Wilson followed that with the 11th Stars’ walk of the contest to put runners at first and second. Haydel loaded the bases by slapping a single to left.

That’s when Andy Machado redeemed himself. He’d made the crucial error back in the fifth, but against Krebs he drew the 12th walk of the game, driving in Wheeler and the Stars quite literally walked off with the win.

Huntsville looks take game four of the six game set Thursday night as they’ll send Josh Butler (1-4, 4.70) to the mound. You can hear all the action starting at 6:45 pm central time with the Window World Pre-Game Report on the Stars Radio Network.