By Greg Young
PENSACOLA – Blue Wahoos starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen struck out seven over seven scoreless innings as Pensacola edged the Smokies 3-2 in the finale of a five game series Bayfront Stadium on Monday night. Lorenzen’s performance helped give the Blue Wahoos their third straight win against the Smokies.
Lorenzen (1-0) was lights out through the first four frames. He retired 12 straight Smokies (1-4) to start the game and had a perfect game through four. Dustin Geiger broke up the no-hit bid with a single to start the fifth. Geiger also hit a home run in the ninth. He was 2-for-4 in the Tennessee loss.
While Lorenzen dealt on the mound, the Pensacola (4-1) offense held up their end against Tennessee starter Matt Loosen. Loosen (0-1) allowed three runs on six hits over five innings. He gave up a home run, walked three and struck out two.
Pensacola struck first and early by scoring a run in the first. They did so with a combination of hits from Rey Navarro, Juan Silverio and Travis Mattair. Mattair’s single through the middle that plated Navarro for the first run of the game.
Donald Lutz moved the Blue Wahoos lead to 2-0 with a solo home run in the third. Mattair followed with his second hit of the game, but Loosen left him on the bags and held the Blue Wahoos to just one run in the inning. Mattair was 2-for-2 with a walk in the game. Lutz was 1-for-3 with his third inning home run.
Lorenzen helped his own cause with a lead off double in the fourth and later scored on a Navarro sacrifice fly in the fourth. Lorenzen’s run put Pensacola up 3-0. Those three runs were more than enough as Lorenzen kept his dominant performance rolling into the seventh. He finished the game with six strikeouts and just four hits allowed over seven shutout innings.
Tennessee showed signs of life in their half of sixth with leadoff hits from Jeudy Valdez and pinch hitter Anthony Giansanti. The rally was short-lived though as they could not keep the inning going long enough to score a run. Zeke DeVoss followed Giansanti by grounding into a double play and Lorenzen retired Stephen Bruno on a comeback grounder.
Valdez did have two hits in the game. His second was a run scoring double in the eighth that trimmed the Pensacola lead to 3-1. Valdez was 2-for-3 with a run batted in for the Smokies.
Geiger brought the Smokies within one with a two-out, solo home run off Pensacola closer Sean Hayes in the ninth. It was his second home run of the season, his second in as many nights and his second straight off Hayes (S, 3). The homer to left cut the Pensacola lead to 3-2, but Hayes closed the inning by getting Jonathan Mota to fly out to center.
The Smokies took just one game in the series and have started the season 1-4. Tennessee batters struck out a league high 57 times in their season opening series in Pensacola. They have lost two straight one run games. Three of their four losses have been decided by just one run this season.
The Smokies start their home schedule, and a 10 game home stand, at Smokies Ballpark on Wednesday, April 9against the Chattanooga Lookouts. Tickets are available by visiting smokiesbaseball.com and by calling .
Andrew Green
smokiesradio
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