Smokies Survive Late Stars Charge to Win

Published on July 1, 2008 under Southern League (SL1)
Huntsville Stars News Release


Mitch Atkins worked seven solid innings and Mark Reed drove in three runs to push Tennessee past Huntsville 6-4 Tuesday night in the second of a four-game set at Smokies Park. The Smokies improved to 10-4 in the second half with their first win in seven tries against the Stars, who dipped to 7-7 in the half and 48-36 overall. The Stars had won the first six games by outscoring the Smokies 44-17.

Alcides Escobar began the eighth inning with a single leading the Smokies' to remove starter Mitch Atkins from the game and replace him with left-hander Casey Lambert, who gave up a double to Mat Gamel that chased home Escobar to make it 5-4. The southpaw got Angel Salome to ground out, advancing Gamel to third before LaPorta popped out to second against a drawn-in infield for the second out. Lambert was then taken out in favor of right-hander Jose Ceda, who struck out Cole Gillespie to end the frame. Tennessee added an insurance run in the bottom of the inning on an infield single by Reed that plated Doug Deeds. The Smokies catcher came to the plate with runners at first and second and bounced a ground ball through the middle that a diving shortstop Escobar tried to glove and shovel to second base all in one motion. The ball got past second baseman Mike Bell, allowing Matt Matulia to get to third and Reed to advance to second. Omar Aguilar avoided further trouble by retiring Tyler Colvin and Sam Fuld to end the inning. Ceda then set down the Stars in turn in the ninth to record his fourth save.

Stars' starter Brae Wright, a winner in each of his last four turns on the road, blanked the Smokies through two before running into trouble in the third. Matulia and Reed singled to start the inning before Wright fielded Atkins' sacrifice bunt attempt and threw late to third base in an attempt to cut down Matulia. With the bases loaded, Fuld singled in the home team's first run and Nate Spears' scoring fly ball brought home Reed to give the Smokies a 2-1 lead.

Deeds reached with one out in the home fourth on a fielding error by Bell, moved to second base on an infield single by Josh Lansford and to third when Matulia was hit by a pitch. Reed followed with a two-run single to push the lead to 4-1 and a one-out, run-scoring hit by Fuld capped a three-run rally. Wright was lifted after six innings, giving up five runs, three earned, on eight hits, while striking out five and not issuing a walk for a second straight turn. He fell to 6-7 and suffered his first loss on the road since May 3.

Salome's two-out run-scoring hit pulled the Stars to within 5-2 in the sixth and Bell's two-out home run, his sixth of the season, in the seventh got the visitors to within 5-3.

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Southern League Stories from July 1, 2008


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