Shuckers win rain-shortened game over Lookouts

The Biloxi Shuckers won their fifth straight game in a rain-shortened contest Saturday night with a 2-0, five-inning victory over the Chattanooga Lookouts. The win, combined with a Pensacola loss to the Mobile BayBears, would give the Shuckers a share of first place in the Southern League's South Division. The Blue Wahoos trailed the BayBears 2-0 in the ninth inning and were in a rain delay.

First pitch was delayed eight minutes, then after a scoreless top of the first inning the game was delayed an additional 38 minutes. Both starters were able to remain in the game after the delay.

For the Shuckers, Jorge Lopez (3-2) displayed a return to form after struggling in his last start. The righty tossed five shutout innings, allowing only three hits and striking out six in place of Junior Guerra, who saw his scheduled Brewers rehab start moved to Colorado Springs due to the weather.

The Lookouts sent 2016 Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year Stephen Gonsalves (0-1) to the mound in his first start of the season after suffering an elbow injury in spring training.​ The lefty allowed just two hits in four innings of work, but with two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning Angel Ortega hit a two-run home run to left-center to give the Shuckers a 2-0 lead.

With the rain bearing down on him in the top of the fifth, Lopez coaxed an inning-ending double play to make the game official. Lookouts reliever Randy LeBlanc got through part of one at-bat in the bottom of the fifth before another delay brought the players off the field. After another 32 minutes, the game was officially called.

The Shuckers and Lookouts return to play Sunday afternoon as Luis Ortiz and Matt Tracy face off at 1:05 p.m.

This story was originally published May 20, 2017 at 10:03 PM with the headline "Shuckers win rain-shortened game over Lookouts."