Relive the Best Moments from the 2018 Season
September 5, 2018 - Southern League (SL1)
Chattanooga Lookouts News Release
Chattanooga Lookouts pitcher Devin Smeltzer
(Chattanooga Lookouts)
The Chattanooga Lookouts season has come to an end, finishing 2018 with a 65-72 overall record. Despite the struggles, the team enjoyed plenty of highs throughout the year including a number of walk-off victories and a run of 16 wins in 18 games from late April through the middle of May.
Off the field, nearly 215,000 fans passed through the gates at AT&T Field at an average of more than 3,200 per game. That was the highest average attendance since 2015 as people from across the tri-state area enjoyed Lookouts baseball all summer long.
The long ball was a constant source of offense throughout the year as Chattanooga finished third in the league with 107 home runs, tied for the most in a Lookouts season since 2014. Brent Rooker led the way with 22 homers while Andy Wilkins was the only other Lookouts hitter to finish in double-digits with 12. Nine players hit at least five home runs while 17 had at least two. Chattanooga also concluded their 2018 campaign with the second-fewest strikeouts at the plate during a season in which Southern League hitters struck out more than they have at any point this century.
The Lookouts pitching staff was also a big part of the team's success during the season, setting a new franchise record with 1,272 strikeouts at an average of more than nine per game. That surpassed their previous modern-day season high of 1,177 which came back in 2012. Southpaw Lewis Thorpe (131) finished fifth in the league in punchouts while Omar Bencomo (102) was the only other Lookouts pitcher with more than 100 strikeouts as a further 10 had over 50.
It would be of little surprise to most that Brent Rooker was the team's best hitter. The former 2017 first round draft pick did not get off to a strong start, hitting just one home run with six RBIs and two walks during the first month of the season. That was where the disappointment ended though, as he was among one of the most productive players in the league from May through the remainder of 2018.
In that stretch, the 23-year-old had 27 doubles (1st in the Southern League), 73 runs batted in (1st), 51 extra-base hits (2nd), 21 home runs (2nd), 202 total bases (2nd), a .487 slugging percentage (3rd) and 54 walks (5th). He would also finish the year as one of three Lookouts Southern League Postseason All-Stars, joined by outfielder Zander Wiel and Thorpe.
One player who made an impact on the mound was southpaw Andrew Vasquez, who had one appearance with Chattanooga in the middle of April before being called up to Double-A for good on June 22nd. Between then and his promotion to Triple-A on August 23rd, he had a 1.20 ERA across 30 innings while allowing a .188 batting average against and striking out 57 batters or more than 56% of the hitters he faced.
Vasquez was one of four Lookouts pitchers to make their Major League Debuts in 2018, joining Zack Littell, Stephen Gonsalves and Kohl Stewart. In all, the Lookouts had 18 players promoted to Triple-A Rochester including 13 members of the opening day roster. While a number of those players struggled to make an impact with the Red Wings, right-hander Ryan Eades thrived upon his promotion. He finished the season with a 0.59 ERA in 15 1/3 innings at Triple-A while not allowing an earned run in his final 14 1/3 frames with the team.
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 Chattanooga Lookouts pitcher Devin Smeltzer |
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