Stolen Mascot Returns to Historic Minor League Baseball Team
It’s a story of mystery, sports trivia, and a $3,000 huge mascot head that resembles a baseball cap with massive eyes name Looie the Lookout!
If you’re a fan of baseball and the history of the minor leagues then you may be familiar with the historic Chattanooga Lookouts. The Tennessee Double-A team dates back to the early 1900s and is sometimes known for baseball trivia relating to Babe Ruth and Lou Gerhig.
Back in 1931, the New York Yankees played the Lookouts at Chattanooga’s Historic Engel Stadium. The Lookouts roster included a 17-year-old girl named Jackie Mitchell who struck out both Gehrig and Ruth. The Lookouts have since moved to a new stadium but Engel Stadium is still in use and has become a filming location.
In the movie 42, the True Story of an American Legend Engel Stadium was used as the setting for much of the live baseball scenes filmed for the movie. It doubled for historic ballparks such as Ebbetts Field in Brooklyn which was torn down in 1960.
Lookout for Looie!
At the end of March 2021, the Lookouts front office reported to police that the offices at the new home of the lookouts since 2000, AT&T Field, were broken into. Among the items listed as stolen was the head for the mascot costume for Looie the Lookout. It is valued at $3,000 by the team.
Rich Mozingo, President for the Lookouts, stated that Looie was not just sitting around for somebody to pick up.
“He was behind locked doors,” Mozingo said during an interview. “And, they beat those doors in.”
BREAKING: Looie Found Safe and Sound! 🚨
— Chattanooga Lookouts (@ChattLookouts) March 31, 2021
After being mascot-napped, Looie the Lookout has been returned home safe. The Lovable Lookout would like to thank the Chattanooga community and his friends @ChattanoogaPD for their support and assistance.
➡️https://t.co/yfHvboaCKd pic.twitter.com/QRRDHJMjaw
Other items stolen included team sports memorabilia and equipment. But Looie is what captured the attention of area residents and sports fans from across the nation. Social media posts from the Chattanooga Police department and the Lookouts started a small “Lookout for Looie” neighborhood watch campaign.
It didn’t take long for the effort to knock one out of the park! Pun intended.
Looie Returns
Enter Brian Hunter who is an electrician for the nearby Tennessee Aquarium. Both AT&T Field and the Aquarium are located in downtown Chattanooga.
“I saw something red on the side of the road back there on Powerhouse Alley,” Hunter said about his drive on the road that home run and foul balls often land on. “I heard the story yesterday and I knew to stop,” said the electrician for the Aquarium. “I looked at it and I kind of knew what it was… it was Looie.”
Mozingo said that he and others in the office were worried about the outcome.. but at the same time hoping for the best. Here’s the reason – there’s not much a thief can do with a stolen professional sports team mascot! Post one selfie on social media with a big stolen mascot head and the police will soon be paying a visit.
“Once you’ve stolen Looie’s head… what do you do with him?” Mozingo stated in an interview with local NBC news affiliate WRCB Channel 3. “There’s not a real great market for it.”
As with any good crime story, pictures of the soggy Looie head laying on the side of the road were taken. But, the Lookouts front office didn’t want to release them out of respect for Looie’s many young fans.
Looie is back in the hands of Mozingo and his staff and getting ready for home games. The question now is who took him? According to police the dollar amount of the theft could lead to felony charges. Hopefully, that mystery will be solved. And, hopefully, Lookout fans will get to see Mr. Hunter throw out the first pitch during a game this upcoming season!
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