Black hits three dingers on career night

Baseball has a way of surprising you when you least expect it. Pitchers who walk the house can suddenly throw a no-hitter. Hitters can be mired in a slump and then crush the ball as if it's the size of a beach ball.

Or if you're Dan Black, you can hit three homers on a career night and then leave the game with a mild muscle strain, giving an infielder who leapfrogged a level the chance to make his Triple-A debut.

Black tied a franchise record with three homers and plated a career-high seven runs in the Triple-A Charlotte Knights' 18-9 rout of the host Columbus Clippers.

"It was a fantastic night," the 26-year-old Indianapolis native said. "Seems like just the kind of game I needed to kick-start me after a slow start to the season.

"I had one three-homer game in college [for Purdue]. It was in the Big 10 Tournament my sophomore year against Indiana University. Boiler up."

It was Black's sixth career multi-homer game, and he surpassed his previous career high of six RBIs set in Class A Advanced Winston-Salem's 11-3 win over Salem on Aug. 15, 2012. His four hits fell one shy of matching his personal best, achieved in a 5-for-6 outing for the Dash in a 15-6 rout of Potomac on May 1 that same year.

The 18 runs destroyed the team's 2014 single-game record of nine, while the 20 hits and five long balls also best the previous highs of 14 and four respectively. The Knights currently lead the International League in home runs with 51, and Black's laser show was the ninth Minor League game this year which featured at least three homers by one player.

Black smacked a solo homer to right field with two outs in the third inning and he crushed a 3-2 grand slam -- the first by a Knights player this year -- to right off Benny Suarez with one out in the fifth. Black completed his historic night in the following frame, smacking Suarez's sixth offering of the at-bat to center for a two-run shot.

"Not 100 percent sure on the sequence, but I laid off two sliders, and at 2-2, I flipped a 93-mph fastball into the stands. It would have been strike three," Black said of his grand slam. "After that I took a fastball low, and at 3-2, he threw a belt-high fastball. I stayed back and connected at full extension. I was just trying to get a ball I could drive so that we could go up by one run.

"[The third homer was on a] 3-2 fastball. I saw on film that he missed his target. I can live with striking out on an off-speed pitch. I can not live with missing fastballs. Especially with runners on."

The four-hit effort lifted his average to .246 and took his home run tally from two to five. His seven RBIs doubled his previous mark. The last three-homer game in Knights history came two years ago when Conor Jackson accomplished the feat in a 5-4 extra-inning win over Columbus.

Black left the game in the bottom of the sixth after experiencing some tightness in his side. He said it wasn't worth possibly injuring himself when the team was already ahead.

"I'm sure the trainers will have me sit a game just to make sure it's really gone," he said. "It's still early and they do a great job keeping us healthy and ready to go."

Shortstop Michael Johnson, who has never played a Double-A game and was batting .156 in 22 Carolina League games, replaced Black at first base and went 0-for-2 with his first Triple-A appearance. "I was happy for Michael," Black said. "He's a solid player. He will be in Triple-A on his own terms if he keeps developing."

Black entered Thursday's game with a .223 average in 37 International League games. He had twice as many whiffs (34) as walks (17) and he was in a 2-for-20 slump over his past six games.

"Every season has its challenges," the 6-foot-5 switch-hitter said. "This season was no different. New team, new city, new teammates, higher level. I'm sure all were factors.

"[I made] very minor adjustments of just trying to pull my hands to the inside half of the ball. I've kept the same approach. I have had some tough outs this season, but feel like I will start seeing dividends from my consistency soon."

Catcher Josh Phegley went 4-for-6 with a homer, three RBIs and three runs and left fielder Jared Mitchell added his fourth homer to extend his road on-base streak streak to 17 games. Second baseman Carlos Sanchez went 3-for-5 with a triple, three runs and three RBIs to increase his team-best average to .301.

"Box score pretty much says it all," Black said. "We came out of the gates sprinting tonight. It was good to see everyone get going. Hopefully everyone's confidence is boosted and we can make a solid run."