Jimenez's two-homer night propels Dash to win

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Aug. 12, 2017) - Eloy Jiménez went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBIs, and Winston-Salem toppled the Lynchburg Hillcats 12-7 in front of 5,293 fans on Saturday night at BB&T Ballpark.
Down 3-0 through three and a half innings, the Dash's offense exploded for six runs in the bottom of the fourth, the most runs Winston-Salem (24-24, 48-70) has tallied in an offensive frame this season. Jimenez ignited the outburst with a 426-foot blast off Lynchburg (30-19, 70-48) starter Tanner Tully (0-3) into the Foothills Brew Pen to lead off the inning.

Jimenez later added a two-run, 411-foot shot in the sixth, becoming the second Dash batter this year to hit two home runs in the same contest (Telvin Nash, May 17 vs. Lynchburg). The 20-year-old has crushed 16 home runs, tied for fifth in the Carolina League.
Since joining Winston-Salem on July 13, Jimenez boasts a .380 (38-for-100) average with eight homers and 26 RBIs. The Dominican Republic native also extended his hitting streak to 11 games, the longest active streak in the Carolina League, with a first-inning single. During that span, the fifth-best prospect in baseball per Baseball America sports a .400 (18-for-45) clip with four home runs, 12 runs batted in and 10 runs.
Following Jimenez's long ball, Seby Zavala roped a single to left, and Jameson Fisher earned a 10-pitch walk to put runners at first and second with one out in the inning. Brady Conlan then grounded a ball to third, but Hillcats first baseman Claudio Bautista dropped the throw from across the diamond, allowing Conlan to reach and Zavala to score from second. Yeyson Yrizarri  then reached base on an infield single, loading the bases for Luis Basabe.
Basabe smacked a two-run double to left-center that plated Fisher and Conlan to give Winston-Salem a 4-3 edge. Bryant Flete lofted a sacrifice fly to bring home Yrizarri, and Zack Collins drilled an RBI single to send in Basabe, capping the scoring effort in the frame.
Brandon Dulin kept the offense rolling in the fifth, clocking his fifth High-A homer to right-center to push the Dash's lead to 7-3. The Dash added three more runs in the eighth courtesy of Flete's RBI double and Fisher's two-run single.
On the mound, Dane Dunning (5-5) gritted through five innings, surrendering three runs on nine hits while striking out five. The former Florida Gator now has 140 strikeouts between Winston-Salem and Low-A Kannapolis, third-most among White Sox farmhands.
Lynchburg tallied a run in the first, second and fourth innings. Sicnarf Loopstok and Andrew Calica both recorded RBI doubles, while Sam Haggerty netted a run-scoring single in the second. The Hillcats tacked on a pair of runs in the seventh against Mike Morrison and one in the eighth off Louie Lechich to close the gap to 9-6.
Despite ceding a ninth-inning run in his 1.2 innings of relief, Ian Hamilton retired five of the eight men he faced to pick up his fourth save in five opportunities with the Dash.
Winston-Salem wraps up its three-game series with Lynchburg on Sunday at 2 p.m. from BB&T Ballpark. Right-hander Jimmy Lambert (3-2, 4.92 ERA) toes the rubber for the Dash against Hillcats righty Aaron Civale (7-2, 2.82 ERA). The series finale will be broadcast locally on My 48 (WMYV-TV) in Winston-Salem, as well as online at wsdash.com/broadcast, MiLB.tv and via the TuneIn Radio App.
Sunday also marks another Lowes Foods Family Sunday, where fans can enjoy $1 hot dogs and hamburgers through the first inning. Also, a couple of Dash players will sign autographs on the concourse before the game. As with all weekend contests, kids are invited to run the bases following the game, powered by New Balance Winston-Salem. For tickets and more information, call the Dash at (336) 714-2287 or visit wsdash.com.