M-Braves beat Lookouts to stop seven-game slide

Published 11:37 am Tuesday, June 14, 2011

At long last, the Mississippi Braves’ Trustmark Park swoon is over.

Ernesto Mejia cleared the bases with a three-run double in the third inning, and the M-Braves went on to beat Chattanooga 3-2 on Monday night.

The M-Braves snapped a 12-game losing streak at Trustmark in the finale of a five-game series with the Lookouts. It’s their first win at home since May 15, and they had also lost seven in a row overall.

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The M-Braves (24-41) will have today off before beginning a series at Jacksonville on Wednesday night.

Mejia finished Monday’s game 2-for-3 with three RBIs, Willie Cabrera had two hits, and the pitching staff turned in its second strong performance in as many games.

Starter Paul Clemens (5-3) allowed two runs on five hits over six innings, then relievers Richard Sullivan and Benino Pruneda combined for three shutout innings to close the door. Pruneda earned his fifth save of the season.

On Sunday night, four pitchers combined to allow two runs in a 13-inning loss.

All of the game’s scoring came in the first three innings. Chattanooga (32-33) took an early lead on RBI singles by Jamie Pedroza in the second inning and Brian Cavazos-Galvez in the third.

Those were two of only seven hits for the Lookouts in the game. Alfredo Silverio had two more, finishing 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored.

In the bottom of the third, the M-Braves loaded the bases with two singles and a hit batsman. With one out, Mejia doubled to left center and all three runners scored to give the Braves a 3-2 lead.