Walk-off homer completes second cycle

In Birmingham, they call Victor Mercedes "Mr. Magic." The nickname fit after he hit for the cycle in walk-off fashion.

Mercedes slugged a two-run homer in the bottom of the 11th inning to cap his second career cycle and give the Barons a 7-5 victory over the Huntsville Stars at Regions Park.

With the game knotted at 5-5, Erick San Pedro started the Barons' 11th with a walk. Miguel Negron struck out, but Mercedes whacked his 11th homer of the season -- and fourth in six games -- to complete the fifth cycle in team history.

The 29-year-old second baseman also hit for the cycle on June 10, 2007, becoming the first Baron to accomplish the feat since Reggie Jackson in 1967.

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Mercedes had a pair of singles and a double to his credit heading to the 10th. But with the Barons trailing by a run, he legged out a leadoff triple and scored on C. J. Lang's sacrifice fly. The Stars were unable to score in the 11th, setting the stage for Mercedes' heroics.

The native of the Dominican Republic singled in the third and fifth en route to a 5-for-6 performance. It was the first five-hit game by a Baron since Cory Aldridge in June 2006. The walk-off homer was the club's first since Mercedes hit a grand slam to beat Mobile last Aug. 17.

Mercedes has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games and leads the team with 57 RBIs.

Lee Cruz went 3-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and Ricardo Nanita and Javier Castillo chipped in two hits apiece for the Barons (28-28), who have won six of nine.

Fernando Hernandez (6-4) tossed a scoreless 11th for the win. Barons starter Aaron Poreda allowed an unearned run on six hits and two walks while striking out six over six innings.

Robert Hinton (3-4) gave up three runs on four hits and two walks with two strikeouts while recording four outs for Huntsville. Starter Donovan Hand yielded three runs on nine hits with a pair of strikeouts over five innings.

Mike Bell had two hits and drove in three runs for the Stars (27-30).