Jenkins' first Kernels homer one-upped by Dragons' Collier

The ball was flying in Dayton on Friday night, and two powerful teenage prospects took advantage and stole the show.

MLB No. 4 overall prospect Walker Jenkins cranked his first High-A homer and Reds No. 5 prospect Cam Collier went deep three times as Dayton topped Cedar Rapids, 11-4, at Day Air Ballpark.

Collier pulled a two-run homer to right in the first, went back-to-back with Ethan O’Donnell with an opposite-field solo shot in the second and added a two-run tater to center in the sixth. He became the second Dayton player with a three-homer game at Day Air Ballpark, and only the second this season to accomplish the feat in the Midwest League. Collier’s is the 24th three-homer game in the Minors in 2024.

Drafted 18th overall in the 2022 Draft as a 17-year-old, Collier seemed to find his footing in the second half of his pro debut at Single-A last summer. He's really taken strides in the power department this season at High-A, tripling his home run total from a year ago in fewer games. All told, Collier is slashing .253/.358/.446 with 18 homers and 69 RBIs through 106 games at Dayton.

“He’s a stud,” Jenkins said. “I was talking to him before the game, saying, ‘Why are you still here? You’re too good for this [level].’ He showed that tonight.’”

Jenkins’ solo homer to right in the third came as part of a three-hit night for the 19-year-old in his 20th game at High-A, his eighth multihit game this month since joining the Kernels at the end of July.

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Jenkins missed a good chunk of the year due to a left hamstring issue, but had pretty much put it behind him entirely by the time he got to High-A. Healthy again, he’s shown the full range of tools that made him a 1-1 candidate in the 2023 Draft out of the North Carolina prep ranks, and that ultimately sent him to the Twins with the 4th overall pick.

“I’ve had little tweaks here and there but nothing ever like this,” Jenkins said. “Solely for the fact that to get hurt in-season like that, you have to figure a way to come back and be like, ‘OK, I’m not feeling the way I normally do and I can’t play the way I want to play yet.’ I want to run all over and go [all out], but that’s difficult to do when your hammy is still barking a little bit. Getting that out of the way -- feeling more confident in my body -- has definitely been a learning experience that I think will be good for me going forward.”

After getting his feet wet in his pro debut, Jenkins is now slashing .287/.396/.435 with four homers and 11 steals in 62 games across three levels in his first full pro season.

“I’m starting to feel pretty good,” Jenkins said. “Some of it has just been time. The more time you have, the more time you have to get better.”