Clippers' Bradley puts on power show

Before Bobby Bradley stepped up to the plate in the eighth inning with a chance at the cycle, his Triple-A Columbus teammates told him to keep on racing to third if he hit anything into the gap. The slugger did indeed hit one into the gap, it was just too far over the wall to stop at third base. 
"As I rounded third, I told my manager [Tony Mansolino] that I tried," Bradley said with a laugh.
The sixth-ranked Indians prospect crushed two homers, drove in three runs and fell a triple shy of the cycle, but the Clippers fell to the Knights, 12-5, at Huntington Park. Bradley went 4-for-4 to raise his average 27 points to .299.

The 2014 third-round pick fell into a 1-for-15 funk over a five-game stretch from April 24-29, but has hit safely in six straight games that include three multi-hit efforts. The three extra-base hits against the Knights boosted his OPS to .929.
The improved efforts have had a lot to do with Bradley's pregame preparation, which has focused more on individual pitchers rather than an overall game plan or mind-set. It's an approach he worked on this offseason with former big leaguer Ryan Theriot and this year with Clippers hitting coach Andy Tracy.
"It's better game planning for that pitcher and not just a general thing. I switch it up for the pitcher and not just have one consistent approach," Bradley said. "It's just what's going to work best off of who I'm facing."
The 22-year-old got a big opportunity to deliver in the second inning with 29th-ranked Indians prospect Eric Haase on second. On the fifth pitch from southpaw Justin Nicolino, he whacked a double to right field to plate the Clippers' first run. 
Gameday box score
Ambushing Nicolino's first offering in the fourth, Bradley smoked a solo homer over the wall in right-center. He fell into a two-strike hole against the Major League veteran in the fifth, but battled back and laced a single up the middle. 
"It was mostly the plan on eliminating pitches, different things like that," Bradley said of his success. "It's seeing percentages of what they throw and picking one to eliminate, and that's actually been really helpful. I've kind of toned down the aggression part and not going up there blind. We have good scouting reports and things like that, and it helps a bunch."
Needing a triple for the cycle in the eighth, Bradley had history on his mind as he came to the plate. He was aggressive again, taking the first pitch from righty Thyago Vieira deep to right-center for his sixth homer of the year. The native of Gulfport, Mississippi, who had not had four hits in a game since Aug. 4, recorded his first multi-homer night since June 25 with Double-A Akron.
Though he would've loved to have stopped at third for the cycle, Bradley was more than fine with taking another trip around the bases. 
"I wasn't even thinking about hitting a homer there, I was looking for a pitch I could drive," he said. "I got one and I drove it a little too well."
Bradley struggled out of the gate last year, hitting .214 through 97 games with the RubberDucks before putting up a .254 average and three homers over his final 32 contests of the season in the International League. Repeating the circuit to start the year, Bradley already has 17 extra-base hits and 18 RBIs. 
The short stint at the Minors' highest level last year was beneficial for Bradley, who said it helped him adjust to things this year and taught him how to prepare against veteran arms. 

"It actually helped a lot, coming up for a month here last year and get used to this lifestyle," he added. "It's different from Double-A -- all of the levels are different -- but you go from guys that are really high-rated prospects in Double-A. Then you come up to Triple-A and there are guys you're facing that have big league time or you're playing with a bunch of veterans that are trying to get back.
"It's such a different lifestyle. It's really a great experience, you learn so much from the veteran guys."
Indians No. 19 prospect Oscar Mercado went 2-for-5 with his third long ball of the season for Columbus.
For Charlotte, Danny Mendick and Daniel Palka went yard, while Adam Engel went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and a run scored.