Barons Combine Both Phases in Thursday's 5-3 Victory Over Lookouts

The Birmingham Barons get back in the win column after a one-game hiatus in a 5-3 victory over the Chattanooga Lookouts. In Game 3 it was the eight and nine hitters for the Barons, Chris Shaw and Xavier Fernandez, respectively, that got the job done with four combined RBI. Along with the performances from the plate, three combined pitchers tonight aided in the victory by keeping the opposition’s offense to a minimum.

The Lookouts were the first to jump on the scoreboard as the two-out-of-three batters hit home runs. The home runs in the first inning would have scared off any other team, however, the Barons knew they had a lot left to play.

Birmingham captured a run back in the top of the second as Fernandez was able to score a run on a sacrifice fly. Fernandez was not done there as he knocked in a run in the forth on a line drive single that tied the ball game. The catcher finished the night 2-3 with two RBIs and a double.

The Barons were able to knot the ballgame because of efficiency at the plate, however, starter Cristian Mena gifted the team with his performance from the bump. Mena dealt from the mound tonight in his 6.0 IP, despite giving up the two homers. The 20 year-old finished with a new record for strikeouts in 11 while only giving up three hits.

Mena gave the Barons five scoreless innings to finish off his appearance, and in return the Barons gave him the three more runs to solidify the win.

In the top of the fifth Jose Rodriguez, his second game back from the IL, sent a ball to dead center-field on the first pitch of the at-bat. Rodriguez would give Birmingham the lead with one swing of the bat, yet contributed the whole game going 2-5 from the dish.

The two final runs of the night for the Barons came from another blast, this time from Chris Shaw. Shaw sent his two-run shot to right-center-field to cap the scoring off for the away team. The 29 year-old would finish his night 2-4 from the plate accounting for one run and two RBI.

The pair of eight and nine hitters came through for the Barons from the plate accounting for four of the five runs scored in the game. Birmingham had another pair contribute to the victory in Nash Walters and Caleb Freeman, who closed out the game from the mound.

Walters was tasked with two innings of relief, where he allowed his first earned run of the year and sat down four of seven batters in strikeout fashion. The right-hander after his solid outing handed the ninth and the save to Freeman.

Freeman capped off the game in four batters, allowing only one hit on 13 pitches.

Birmingham was able to get right back on track with a victory comprising all phases working in unison. The Barons rise to 11-13 on the season and advance to 2-1 on the series.