Brinson homers twice as Mavs keep raking

When Lewis Brinson came off the disabled list last week, he wanted to get back to contributing to a hot-hitting lineup.

On Wednesday night, the Rangers' sixth-ranked prospect went 3-for-4 with a pair of homers and three RBIs to power Class A Advanced High Desert to a 16-3 romp over Lake Elsinore at Heritage Field.

"I've been saying the last couple of games, just take it one game at a time," Brinson said. "I'm trying to get my timing back and my groove back, and today, I felt really good today. Even in BP, I felt really good."

The 21-year-old center fielder walked in the Mavericks' five-run first inning, then led off the second with his fourth homer of the season.

"I used to hate leading off, but since I'm a better hitter now, I have a couple seasons under my belt, I'm getting comfortable in the leadoff spot, getting up there and seeing the pitcher first and seeing what he's got," Brinson said. "I'm just comfortable up there at the top of the lineup, just trying to get on base for my team and work the pitcher's count early, and late in the game just try to get runners in that are on base."

Brinson grounded out to end the third, but that was the only time the Storm were able to retire the 2012 first-round pick. He smacked a two-run shot to left field off reliever Cody Hebner to cap a three-run fifth and his fifth career two-homer game. 

"The pitcher was tough that I was facing. He got me with two strikes and I sat back on the breaking ball in and, luckily, I got it out. But I was really just trying to hit it up the middle and bring the runner home," Brinson said. "It felt great. First one was kind of a no-doubter, wind was blowing out to center and it got up in that wind, so I knew. But [the second one], I hit it real nice, thought it had a chance but still had to run hard. Wasn't too sure, but it felt good off the bat and it felt good to get that second home run."

Brinson singled to right in the seventh to complete his first three-hit game of the season, two days after connecting for his third homer of the season. 

The Florida native has dealt with his fair share of injuries over the past two seasons, missing the entire month of May due to a tendon problem in his right hamstring after sitting out about a month in 2014 with a bad quad. Since returning from the disabled list, he's hitting .291 with three homers, five RBIs and four walks in six games.

"Just trying to pick up where I left off, not trying to do too much," Brinson said. "It's my third full season, so I'm kind of getting the hang of pacing yourself and not trying to do too much early in the season and putting too much pressure on yourself, trying to control things that are out of your hands. That's been my biggest key to success so far, just going out there, playing the game hard, loving the game and taking it one game at a time, one pitch at a time and just doing what I know I can do."

Despite Brinson's absence, the Mavericks rank second in the California League in homers, runs scored and hits. 

"We're really clicking, everybody's seeing the ball well," he said. "Just trying to add fuel to the fire now that I'm back off [the] injury. This team was hot when I got here and I'm just trying to contribute since I've been back. We have a really good team going, we have really good chemistry, we're trying to win the first half, so today was kind of a glimpse of what we've been doing."

Cleanup hitter Alex Burg went 2-for-4 with a three-run shot that gave him a share of the league lead with Lancaster's A.J. Reed with 15 homers. 

"He's unbelievable," Brinson said of Burg. "That guy, he's been around for a while, he has a great swing, great approach up there. I tell everyone, whenever he comes up, we just sit there and watch. He's been around for a while, so he knows what he's doing. It's fun to watch him go off, finally get a chance to play every day. You can see his talent. He obviously has a lot of pop, he has 15 in the league. He's awesome. He's unbelievable when he's up there."

The homer was Burg's fifth to go with 11 RBIs in his 10 games. And while Brinson is impressed with his production, he's also admires him off the field.

"He's an amazing teammate, one of the best teammates I've ever had. I really go to him to see what he sees in my swing and my approach and pick his brain when I'm not feeling the best," Brinson said. "He always gives me great advice. I'm really happy for him that he's really getting this opportunity, and he's shining out there."

Joe Jackson contributed three hits, including two doubles, and two RBIs for the Mavericks.

Reed Garrett (2-0) benefited from the 17-hit attack, holding Lake Elsinore to three runs on five hits and two walks while striking out two in six innings. Ryne Slack followed with three one-hit frames for his first save.

Padres No. 10 prospect Zech Lemond (3-3) started for the Storm and surrendered eight runs on seven hits and four walks while fanning one in 1 2/3 innings.