Five late runs by the Rocket City Trash Pandas vaulted them to a 7-3 win Thursday night over the Tennessee Smokies at Smokies Stadium.

While all knotted up at 2-2 in the the top of the eighth, Rocket City’s offense took control. Mitch Nay led off the inning with a single. Ray-Patrick Didder intended to lay down a sacrifice bunt but reached base on an error. Michael Cruz followed that up with a RBI single to right to take a 3-2 lead. The Trash Pandas added three more runs on a two-run single by Luis Aviles Jr. and a sacrifice fly to give the Trash Pandas a lead of 6-2.

Rocket City reliever Connor Higgins allowed a run in the bottom of the eighth to make it 6-3, but Nay got the run right back for the Trash Pandas in the ninth on a solo home run off of Smokies reliever Samuel Reyes.

Higgins came back in the ninth and retired the first two Tennessee Smokies batters before Keith Rogalla captured the final out for the Trash Pandas’ victory.

After threatening in the first inning with the bases loaded, nobody out and failing to score, Trash Panda Torii Hunter Jr. came through for a RBI single in the second to make it 1-0.

Trash Pandas starting pitcher Ryan Smith gave up the lead in the sixth, as Tennessee’s Nelson Velazquez launched a two-run home run to put the Smokies up 2-1.

Despite giving up the lead, Smith pitched six innings, giving up two earned runs on six hits with three walks and seven strikeouts.

The Trash Pandas tied things up at 2-2 in the seventh as Brendan Davis reached on a walk, stole second and scored on a RBI double by David MacKinnon.

Eight of the nine Trash Pandas starters in the lineup got at least one hit.

Wednesday’s game

Smokies 10. Trash Pandas 5

Ten early runs given up by the Rocket City Trash Pandas was too much to overcome in their 10-5 loss Wednesday night against the Tennessee Smokies at Smokies Stadium.

Rocket City starting pitcher Jhonathan Diaz struggled on the mound in the second inning. Eight of the first nine Smokies batters reached base, with the only out coming on a sacrifice fly to give Tennessee a 5-0 lead. Diaz didn’t make it out of the second inning, as he was pulled for reliever Kieran Lovegrove with one out and the bases loaded.

But changing pitchers didn’t make much of a difference for the Trash Pandas. Tennessee’s Nelson Valazquez hit a two-run single, and Cam Belego hit a three-run home run to make it 10-0 after two innings.

Diaz allowed eight earned runs on five hits in just 1 1/3 innings pitched. Lovegrove walked four and gave up two earned runs with two strikeouts.

The Trash Pandas offense began to clock in the fourth on a solo home run over the left field wall by Brendan Davis. Tori Hunter Jr. hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth to score Ray-Patrick Didder.

Rocket City scored three more runs to make the game 10-5 in the eighth on a RBI single by Izzy Wilson, an error by the Smokies defense and a sacrifice fly by Didder.

Davis’ home run was the Trash Pandas league-leading 127th of the season. The 10 runs given up by the Trash Pandas was the most they have given up in one inning all season.