Birds defeated by familiar faces 3-2

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (July 13, 2017) -  Eddy Martinez's homer Thursday was not enough as Eloy Jiménez stung the Pelicans with a two-run single in the third inning to lift the Winston-Salem Dash over the Myrtle Beach Pelicans 3-2 in front of 5,771 fans from TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark. 
With Myrtle Beach (52-39, 8-12) leading 1-0, Winston-Salem (34-57, 10-11) rallied in the third inning. Joel Booker led off the frame with a single off Pelicans starter Duncan Robinson (0-2) before advancing to third on a base hit from Luis Alexander Basabe. With Bryant Flete batting, a wild pitch allowed Booker to score, which tied the game at one. Flete drew a walk before advancing to second on a fly out, Basabe also advanced to third on the play. With two outs in the frame, Jimenez delivered with a two-run single to left field to give Winston-Salem the 3-1 advantage. 

Dash starter Brannon Easterling (6-5) was stellar as he allowed just two runs over six innings pitched. Victor Diaz and Ian Hamilton came out of the bullpen for Winston-Salem, and the tandem teamed up to toss three scoreless innings to secure the victory for the Dash. Hamilton retired all six men he faced for his second save. 
With the score tied at zero in the first, Zack Short kicked off the bottom of the frame with a double. P.J. Higgins laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Short to third before scoring on a sacrifice fly from Trent Giambrone to give the Birds the early 1-0 lead. 
After a trio of runs scored for the Dash in the top of the third, Martinez slammed a solo home run, his 10th of the season, to make the score 3-2.
James Norwood and David Berg both tossed two scoreless innings for the Pelicans out of the bullpen. 
Myrtle Beach will play the third game of their four-game set with the Dash on Friday at 7:05 p.m. RHP Thomas Hatch (4-7, 3.33 ERA) will throw for Myrtle Beach against RHP Dane Dunning (3-4, 3.03 ERA). Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on MiLB.tv, MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/Broadcast, the MiLB First Pitch app and TuneIn.
Friday's contest will be a Fidget Spinner Friday, meaning the first 500 kids 12-and-under will receive a free collectible Pelicans fidget spinner. Friday will also double as a Foodie Friday, fans can upgrade their game day experience and enjoy an all-you-can-eat low country boil buffet. 
The 2017 season is the 19th season for the Pelicans franchise and third as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. For information on tickets to see the Pelicans in 2017, please call (843) 918-6000, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.
ABOUT THE PELICANS: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and play their home games at TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The park has ranked in the top eight in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in each of the last six seasons. The same publication also placed the Pelicans in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences in all of sports in each of the last six years and the best in the Carolina League for six straight seasons as well. In May 2015, TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark won the 2015 TripAdvisor.com Certificate of Excellence award. The Pelicans are the two-time defending Mills Cup Champions, winning the title in 2015 and 2016 as well as 2000 and co-Mills Cup championship honors in the inaugural 1999 season. The Pelicans have made ten postseason appearances behind 12 half-season Southern Division championships, including the first half of the 2015 season and second half of 2016. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact the Pelicans at (843) 918-6000 or emailing [email protected].