EL Somerset Patriots

Elijah Dunham Named Eastern League Player of the Week for the Third Time this Season

Published on September 16, 2024 under Eastern League (EL)
Somerset Patriots News Release


Elijah Dunham of the Somerset Patriots (right) celebrates a homer
Elijah Dunham of the Somerset Patriots (right) celebrates a homer
(Somerset Patriots)

Bridgewater, New Jersey - Minor League Baseball has named Somerset Patriots OF Elijah Dunham the Eastern League Player of the Week for games played from 9/9 to 9/15. It is the third time Dunham has been named Eastern League Player of the Week during the 2024 season, all during the second half.

In five games played during this week's playoff-clinching series against New Hampshire, Dunham went 7-for-18 (.389) with 4 HR, 10 RBI, 6 R and 4 SB. Dunham's 10 RBI are the most he has plated in a single series this season.

Dunham went 2-for-4 with a 2 HR and 6 RBI game on Tuesday night. The performance marked Dunham's second career two-homer game and a new career-high in RBI.

In the clinching game on Sunday, Dunham hit his 15th homer of the season in his 20th multi-hit game. Over his final 64 games of the season dating back to 6/13, Dunham ranks among Eastern League leaders with 12 HR (T-4th), 40 RBI (T-9th), 28 XBH (4th) and 115 TB (5th).

Dunham previously won back-to-back Eastern League Player of the Week honors for games played 7/1 - 7/7 and 7/8 - 7/14. Against Reading from 7/1 - 7/7, the Evansville, IN native went 10-for-25 (.400) with 2 HR, 8 RBI, 3 R and 6 XBH in 6 games. He followed up that performance the next week versus Erie by going 8-for-19 (.421) with 2 HR, 4 RBI, 4 R, 4 XBH, 2 SB and a 1.342 OPS over 5 games played.

The honor is the fourth of Dunham's career, the first of which came in 2022, his first season with the Patriots.

Initially signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent in 2020, Dunham has spent parts of the past three seasons with the Patriots. He was named an Eastern League All-Star and Yankees Organizational All-Star in 2022 when he hit .248 with 17 HR, 63 RBI and 37 SB for the Patriots, guiding them to their first Eastern League Championship.

The University of Indiana product has also seen time with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he has played 73 total games between 2023 and 2024. Dunham has played in 264 career games with Somerset, the most of any player in the team's Double-A era. The 26-year-old serves as the Patriots affiliate era career record holder in H (239), HR (41), RBI (145), XBH (107), TB (436), SB (78) and 2B (58).

The Patriots have produced six Eastern League Player of the Week winners this season, handed out to two players - Spencer Jones (6/24 - 6/30, 7/30 - 8/4, 8/26 - 9/1) and Elijah Dunham (7/1 - 7/7, 7/8 - 7/14, 9/9 - 9/15). Trystan Vrieling was the Pitcher of the Week for 4/16 - 4/21, while Vrieling and INF Benjamin Cowles were named Pitcher and Player of the Month for April.

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Elijah Dunham of the Somerset Patriots (right) celebrates a homer
Elijah Dunham of the Somerset Patriots (right) celebrates a homer
   



Eastern League Stories from September 16, 2024


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