O's Avery, Mummey shine in spring

If the Baltimore Orioles got a peek at their future leadoff hitter on Thursday afternoon, he may have appeared to have two heads.

O's No. 6 prospect Xavier Avery and his in-game replacement, fellow farmhand Trent Mummey, produced five runs in their club's 11-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins in Grapefruit League play.

Batting first and playing center field, Avery continued his strong Spring showing with three hits -- including two doubles off of veteran starter Carl Pavano -- in four at-bats. He also scored twice and plated a run.

Mummey, who replaced Avery in the lineup and shifted to left field, smacked a two-run, eighth-inning homer off of reliever Brendan Wise. He now has one knock in six at-bats spread across eight games.

Mummey, the Orioles' fourth-round draftee in 2010, lifted 22 long balls in 2011, his first full pro season, at Class A Delmarva and Class A Advanced Frederick. He missed time twice in 2011, first after running into an outfield fence and then due to a hamstring strain. He is ranked No. 27 in the Orioles system by Baseball America

A level above, at Double-A Bowie, last year, Avery batted a career-low .259 but also swiped 36 bases. The former second-round draftee had gone hitless in his previous four Spring Training games but is now batting .333.

Both Avery and Mummey will begin the 2012 season back in the Minors.

Pavano (0-2) yielded six runs on eight hits over four frames.

O's counterpart Wei-Yin Chen (2-1) allowed one run on four hits over five innings.