Barons' Collins slugs two long balls
Zack Collins made up for lost time in a big way on Sunday.The ninth-ranked White Sox prospect ended an 0-for-7 slide by collecting three hits -- including a pair of solo shots for the second multi-homer game of his career and first in 636 days.But it was not enough to
The ninth-ranked White Sox prospect ended an 0-for-7 slide by collecting three hits -- including a pair of solo shots for the second multi-homer game of his career and first in 636 days.
But it was not enough to power Double-A Birmingham past Montgomery as the Barons dropped a 10-4 decision at Regions Field.
"I felt pretty good," Collins said. "I saw the ball really well and put good wood on it and good things just happened."
The 23-year-old backstop put Birmingham ahead with a blast to right-center field in the opening inning on the first pitch he saw from right-handed starter
After drawing a four-pitch walk in the third, it was déjà vu in the fifth as Collins led off the inning with another first-pitch dinger off Lopez to the same spot.
The No. 10 overall pick from 2016 had two more chances at a milestone game, but he singled to right off southpaw
Gameday box score
"My approach didn't really change after I hit the first two out," Collins said. "I'm always looking to drive the ball and getting that third hit was big for me. In that last at-bat, I'm not trying to draw a walk there because were down so many runs. I got myself into a hitters' count and got a good pitch to hit and I just barely missed it. I got the barrel on it, but I just missed it and it was a can of corn."
Top-ranked White Sox prospect
"Who doesn't want to hit in front of Eloy?" Collins chuckled. "And it's just been clicking for us lately. It takes a lot of pressure off to know that if you get on base there's a guy behind you who's going to drive you in, and if one guy is having a bad night, the next guy is gonna pick him up. You can include (No. 21 prospect
Collins' first multi-homer game came for Class A Advanced Winston-Salem on Aug. 23. 2016.
"I do remember my first [one]. It was my rookie year and we were in Frederick and it was a lot of fun," Collins said. "We won that game and today we lost, so this definitely wasn't as fun, but any time you have a multi-homer game, it gives you confidence and helps you stay relaxed. That's something you can always take into the next game."
Tampa Bay's No. 11 prospect
Rob Terranova is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @RobTnova24.