Mavericks' Kivlehan hits in 20th straight

Patrick Kivlehan is having some fun during his hitting streak, but there may be others who are enjoying it more.

The Mariners' No. 16 prospect went 2-for-4 with a walk, three RBIs and a run scored to extend his hitting streak to 20 games on Friday night in Class A Advanced High Desert's 14-11 loss at Lancaster.

Kivlehan became the second California Leaguer this season to hit in 20 straight games when he doubled in the third inning. But he said he might not be aware of the streak if it wasn't for his family.

"I found out six or seven games ago," Kivlehan said. "I found out from my brother -- he saw it on Twitter. He keeps me updated about it. I actually got a text from him today, telling me it was 20 games."

During the streak, which began on July 25, Kivlehan has 27 RBIs, tying him with Great Falls' Danny Hayes for the most in the Minor Leaguers over that stretch. And he's got four homers, five doubles and 23 RBIs in his last 10 games.

"I think I've just been seeing the ball well. As for the RBIs, the guys ahead of me are getting on base a lot and making it easy for me," the 2012 fourth-round Draft pick said. "I just try to put the ball in play. You put the ball in play, good things are going to happen."

After walking in his first at-bat, Kivlehan plated two with his double off JetHawks starter and Astros' No. 15 prospect Kyle Smith (1-0).

"He was working me away and then he left a pitch over the plate," Kivlehan said. "I put a good swing on it and, luckily, it found the gap."

Even without seeing his brother's text, the former Rutgers football standout realized while he was standing on second base that he'd kept a good thing going.

"I don't really think about it during the games," he said. "[But] when I get a hit, it clicks, 'Oh, the streak continues.' It's cool to have it, but it's not something I think that much about.

"I mean, if it was a 20-game hitting streak in the big leagues, that would be one thing. But it is [Class A Advanced] -- a 20-game hit streak isn't really something to hang your hat on."

Kivlehan has had multiple hits nine times during the streak and he didn't stop with the double on Friday. In the seventh, the New York native battled back from behind in the count to plate Kevin Rivers with an opposite-field single off Jordan Jankowski.

"Honestly, I was just trying to put the ball in play. I was down two strikes," Kivlehan said. "At that point, I just wanted to make contact and, fortunately, I put it through the four-hole for a base hit and Rivers was able to score."

The 23-year-old third baseman hopes to keep providing his brother with reasons to send him updates, but his main focus is "just continue to hit the ball well," he said.

"I don't really have any numbers goals. I just want to put good wood on the ball, and hopefully we win," he said.

Andrew Aplin tripled twice and drove in four runs for Lancaster, giving him a league-leading 102 RBIs. Delino DeShields celebrated his 21st birthday by scoring three times, while Luis Alvarez also collected four RBIs.