Barons Drop Extra Inning Battle Against Chattanooga in Game 2

Anytime you face a top prospect in an organization's farm system, you know that the game is going to be challenging. In the Game 2 3-2 loss against the Chattanooga Lookouts, the Birmingham Barons faced the Cincinnati Reds No. 11 prospect in RHP Connor Phillips. Phillips held the Barons lineup in check, but what the Lookouts learned was that you don’t need to be a top prospect to impact a ballgame. A collective of Barons impacted that game, yet only one has his name on the Chicago White Sox top 30 prospects list.

The Barons bats were powered by Alsander Womack, Chris Shaw and Chicago White Sox No. 20 prospect Luis Mieses, who collected all of the hits for the home team. Womack finished the game 1-4 from the plate with one RBI, his 20th of the season. Shaw was 1-4 from the plate, however his lone hit was a solo shot that tied the ball game up in the ninth. Mieses corralled the two other hits on the night as he finished 2-4 and a run.

From the mound the Barons starting LHP Garrett Schoenle may have given up two earned runs, but the left-hander finished with eight strikeouts. The southpaw finished with three hits allowed with one being a home run. Birmingham’s bullpen also aided in the close affair as LHP Jonah Scolaro and RHP Hunter Dollander pitched a total of 3.2 innings, while only allowing three hits and zero runs.

The Barons did drop the contest, but the two teams battled for 10 innings with the first four not having any runs scored in them. The two starters battled early but the Lookouts were able to overcome Schoenle before the Barons could get to Phillips.

In the fifth and sixth inning the Lookouts secured a run in each to go ahead by two. The first run was a solo home run and the second was a wild pitch by Scolaro that scored a run from Schoenle’s time on the bump.

The Barons ultimately even things up when the Lookouts made a pitching change in the eighth inning. Birmingham’s first run came on a single from Womack to score Luis Mieses in the top of the eighth. The tying run came in the ninth inning from a towering solo homer from Shaw.

The Barons after knotting the game at two apiece continued with Dollander in the bottom of the ninth. Dollander sealed extra innings for the Barons, sitting down two on his only strikeouts of the game.

Birmingham entered the 10th inning with an 1-0 record in extra innings with a 3-2 defeat over Rocket City on April 12. The Barons threatened with two on no outs, but the Lookouts escaped the inning on a double play and a ground out.

The Lookouts, ultimately, walked-off the Barons as a double with zero outs sent the winning run across the plate.

Birmingham’s extra innings record is now even at 1-1 with a heartbreaking defeat in Game 2. The Barons lost the contest but to be in a game with a team that is sitting second in the Southern League North is no easy accomplishment.

Birmingham will look to overcome the Lookouts as they send RHP Cristian Mena to the bump for Game 3 in Chattanooga.