Tennessee Smokies pitcher Jeff Samardzija sure has a lot of friends when he takes the mound at AT&T Field.

The leading receiver in University of Notre Dame football history made his second start in Chattanooga on Monday night and picked up his second win, benefiting from a five-run fourth inning in Tennessee’s 6-1 victory. Samardzija made his first appearance at AT&T last August and led the Smokies to a 10-4 win.

“It makes it a lot easier when you can calm down and make some pitches, throw some strikes and get the game going,” Samardzija said. “It was nice to get to pitch against these guys a few times when they were in (high Single-A) Sarasota and then here last year, so I know them pretty well. They’ve got good hitters, and I think the thing tonight was just jumping out early with some strikes.”

Staff Photo by Angela Lewis-- The Chattanooga Lookouts' Mike Griffin is out at second as the Tennessee Smokies' Nate Spears snags the ball at AT&T Field on Monday.

Monday’s loss for the Lookouts (17-14) was their fourth in five games and dropped them into fourth place in the Southern League’s North Division, four games back of Huntsville and West Tenn. A team meeting followed the latest setback.

The 23-year-old Samardzija, who signed with the Chicago Cubs in 2006 for $10 million over five years, went 3-3 with a 3.41 ERA in six Double-A starts last season. He has similar numbers through seven starts this season, improving to 3-2 and lowering his ERA to 3.44.

“Everybody knows he’s a high-profile guy, but he’s basically a high-schooler as far as pitching goes,” Smokies pitching coach Dennis Lewallen said. “He was a football player, and he’s just got a lot to learn, but he’s learning quickly. He’s throwing a split-finger fastball to go along with his slider and changeup. He’s maturing as a pitcher, but he’s still in the infant stages as far as pitching goes.”

Asked if he still felt like a pitching infant, the 6-foot-5, 218-pound Samardzija said, “At times I do, and then there are times like today when I go out and throw pretty strong, get some ground balls and let the defense work for me. I’m still trying to work through it, which comes with more innings and more pitches.”

Samardzija threw 103 pitches Monday, allowing four hits and recording five strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.

Tennessee rattled Lookouts starter Sam LeCure in the fourth, beginning with a Kyle Reynolds leadoff single to center field and Chris Robinson’s one-out home run to the bleachers in right. Samardzija followed with a double into the right-field corner, Matt Camp had an infield hit, and Nate Spears drove in Samardzija with a double to right that made it 3-0.

Tyler Colvin capped the five-run eruption with a single to right that scored Camp and Spears.

The Lookouts pulled within 5-1 in the sixth on a two-out single to right by Tonys Gutierrez that scored Shaun Cumberland. Jerry Gil followed with a double down the left-field line to put runners on second and third, but they were left stranded when Sean Henry flied to short.

In the eighth inning, Gil ripped a liner that bounced off the head of Smokies reliever Jesse Estrada and went up in the air before being caught by Spears at second base. After resting on the mound for a couple of minutes, the 6-8, 280-pound Estrada gingerly walked off the field and was taken to Erlanger Hospital for testing.

Ramon Ramirez (1-1, 3.71 ERA) is scheduled to start tonight’s 7:15 game for the Lookouts, with Donnie Veal (2-0, 1.82) scheduled for the Smokies.

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