Rodgers racks up four hits for JetHawks

Since the start of the month, Brendan Rodgers has come into his own.
Colorado's top prospect collected four hits for the third time in his career while slugging a solo homer in Class A Advanced Lancaster's 5-4 victory over Visalia on Sunday at Recreation Park.

After singling to left field in the first inning, Rodgers stepped to the plate with two outs and the bases empty in the third. He worked the count to 2-2 against Rawhide starter Bo Takahashi before pounding the sixth pitch of the at-bat over the fence in left-center field.
"He just stayed through the ball pretty good," JetHawks manager Fred Ocasio said. "He got a fastball and drove it into left field. He hit it pretty far."
Box score
The blast, Rodgers' first of the year, inspired a playful reaction from his teammates in the dugout.
"I noticed whenever he got to the dugout, all of the players said nothing to him," Ocasio said. "He came in the dugout and they didn't give him a high-five or nothing. He kind of just went and sat in the corner. In a couple of minutes, then they all went to say hi to him and give him high-fives."
Even the manager kept his congratulations to a minimum.
"I just gave him a handshake and [he] continued to home plate. No time to be talking," Ocasio said with a laugh.
Rodgers added a single to left in the sixth and later legged out an RBI single to the left side of the infield in the seventh. MLB.com's No. 12 overall prospect set a season high in hits as he reached four for the first time since knocking out five on July 12, 2015 with Rookie-level Grand Junction.
"He had some good at-bats and some big hits," Ocasio said. "He had a base hit to left field, a two-strike home run to left field, a two-strike base hit to left field and a two-strike base hit on the infield. The good thing about it is they were all good contact and hard-hit balls."
The 20-year-old shortstop, who began the season on the disabled list with a minor hand injury, has compiled a .352/.368/.500 slash line in 13 games for the JetHawks. Since the start of May, he is 11-for-29 (.379) in seven contests.
"He looks much better at the plate right now," Ocasio said. "The thing with him is that he stayed through the ball so well, especially fastballs. I believe all his hits today were on fastballs. He was able to get the bat head out and get some solid contact."

Brian Mundell, Colorado's 23rd-ranked prospect, finished 2-for-3 with a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth.
JetHawks starter Trey Killian improved to 4-0 after allowing four runs on four hits and a walk while striking out three over seven innings.
Visalia reliever Bud Jeter (0-2) served up Mundell's blast and was saddled with the loss.