Six-Run Fourth Sinks Wahoos in Loss to Smokies

August 22, 2024

written by Erik Bremer

The Pensacola Blue Wahoos continued their struggles against the Tennessee Smokies on Wednesday night, falling in a 10-6 final after two early leads slipped away.

The Blue Wahoos have now dropped 7 of 8 games this season to the defending league champions, and two in a row to begin their six-game road series.

With the loss, the Blue Wahoos again failed to put pressure on the first-place Biloxi Shuckers. The Blue Wahoos now trail the Shuckers by 1.5 games with 22 to play, pending the results of Biloxi’s game in Birmingham.

The Blue Wahoos briefly held a pair of early leads, taking a 2-1 edge on solo homers from Nathan Martorella and Johnny Olmstead in the second and a 3-2 lead on a Joe Mack RBI single in the third.

Olmstead’s homer was his first at the Double-A level, and began a 3-for-4 night. Mack’s RBI was his Southern League-leading 60th of the season.

Pensacola starter Luis Palacios (L, 8-6) was uncharacteristically shaky, tying a career high with 10 hits allowed and setting a new career high with four walks. The Smokies turned the game around with a six-run fourth, turning a 3-2 deficit into an 8-3 Tennessee lead. The Blue Wahoos left allowed eight runs, seven earned, over 3.1 innings.

The Smokies got their starter, Antonio Santos (W, 7-3), through 5.0 innings despite a high pitch count. The Blue Wahoos added on three runs against the Tennessee bullpen, getting RBI doubles from Jakob Marsee and Jared Serna in the sixth and a solo homer from Graham Pauley in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough to come back.

The Blue Wahoos continue their series against the Smokies on Thursday. First pitch from Smokies Stadium is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. CT, with a live audio broadcast beginning at 6:55 p.m. ET/5:55 p.m. CT.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News, Sports, TOP sports