Hector Gimenez drove in half as many runs as Chattanooga Lookouts fans drove away in donated vehicles.
Gimenez hit a two-run home run to right in the fourth inning and a three-run homer to right in the seventh Saturday night to account for five RBIs in Chattanooga's 6-3 win over Birmingham at AT&T Field. The 28-year-old catcher from Venezuela was activated before the game from the disabled list, where he had resided since Aug. 3 with a leg injury.
Saturday was the always popular "Used Car Night," in which 10 cars, trucks or SUVs were given away before a sellout crowd of 6,293. It was the fourth sellout this season at AT&T, and it was likely the final sellout for the Lookouts under 17-year team owner Frank Burke.
"Everything this year I've known ahead of time is going to be my last one," Burke said before the game. "It's kind of strange, but it is also very gratifying."
Used Car Night was already an annual staple when Burke arrived in 1995, and he has helped continue the event's success, as evidenced by sellouts all 11 times it has been held at AT&T. For the last several years, Used Car Night has been the only sellout for the Lookouts after Independence Day.
"Obviously I like the fact that it fills the ballpark to capacity, and I also like the sheer joy on people's faces when they win a car," Burke said. "I've always gotten a kick out of the cars and the way some of them are described by the dealers. We had one described last year as having 'ice-cold air conditioning if you get that fixed.'
"It's just a fun night."
Jake Oester's bases-clearing double to left-center off Chris Withrow in the fourth inning gave the Barons a 3-0 lead, but Gimenez's first blast trimmed the deficit to a run. Chattanooga tied the game in the seventh on newcomer Jake Lemmerman's sacrifice to left-center, which occurred moments before Gimenez's second shot.
Allen Webster (4-2, 4.12) is scheduled to start today's 2:15 series finale for the Lookouts, with Justin Edwards (3-6, 4.62) scheduled for the Barons.