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Lewis continues surging for Kernels

Twins top prospect collects three singles, RBI, scores twice
Royce Lewis is 11-for-24 with six runs scored and four RBIs during a five-game hitting streak. (Andrew Dodson/Cedar Rapids Kernels)
April 28, 2018

Royce Lewis is finding his groove with Class A Cedar Rapids. The Twins' top prospect extended his hitting streak to five games and raised his average to a season-high .333 on Friday, going 3-for-6 with an RBI and two runs scored in the Kernels' 6-5, 13-inning loss to Quad Cities at

Royce Lewis is finding his groove with Class A Cedar Rapids. 
The Twins' top prospect extended his hitting streak to five games and raised his average to a season-high .333 on Friday, going 3-for-6 with an RBI and two runs scored in the Kernels' 6-5, 13-inning loss to Quad Cities at Modern Woodmen Park.

Gameday box score
Lewis' RBI came in the top of the 12th, as the first overall pick of last year's Draft whacked a single the opposite way on a 1-2 count against right-hander Robert Corniel. The knock gave Cedar Rapids a 4-3 lead, and Lewis scored on a base hit by No. 6 Twins prospect Alex Kirilloff

The River Bandits tied it in the bottom of the frame on Adrian Tovalin's two-run homer and won an inning later, when Corey Julks worked a bases-loaded walk. 
MLB.com's No. 20 overall prospect, Lewis was brought up to Cedar Rapids last season after hitting .271/.390/.414 in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League. He raked in 11 games with the Kernels, putting up a .311/.367/.400 slash line. 
The Aliso Viejo, California, native began the season with a brand new component to his swing, a leg kick. But after compiling just six hits and a .222 average in his first seven games, Lewis abandoned the kick and was rewarded with a 4-for-4 game in a loss against Burlington on April 22.
"I said that I'm going to go back to just trusting my hands and I didn't use the high leg kick," Lewis said after the four-hit performance. "I really just focused on my hands and luckily found some holes tonight."

All 13 of Lewis' hits over his last five games have been singles. The 18-year-old shortstop collected four round-trippers last year, and he flashed power early this season by thumping a three-run blast to left-center field in a 9-5 win on April 12 at Peoria.
His .333 average is second-best on the Kernels, and his five stolen bases tie him with Twins No. 11 prospect Akil Baddoo for the team lead.

Josh Horton is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @joshhortonMiLB