Mejias-Brean walks off in grand style

It's one of the most improbable scenarios in baseball. Enter the bottom of the ninth down three, put three guys on and win the game with a walk-off grand slam.

But it does happen as Seth Mejias-Brean could surely attest to Thursday.

The Class A Dayton third baseman pulled off the rare feat by smacking the bases-loaded homer that lifted the Dragons over the Beloit Snappers for a 7-6 victory.

It wasn't the 22-year-old Reds prospect's only contribution either. He finished 3-for-5 and added another double, giving him a career-high six RBIs.

"That was one of the best feelings I've had in my whole life, seeing that ball land on the other side of the fence," he said.

The ninth began with a walk to Humberto Valor. Beau Amaral then grounded out, moving Valor to second. Sammy Diaz and Jesse Winker walked, leaving the bases juiced for Mejias-Brean. Beloit brought in Nolan Sanburn to replace Austin House, and Mejias-Brean took the right-hander's fastball and parked it past the right-field wall.

The University of Arizona product wasn't exactly anticipating winning it all with one swing.

"I didn't really think about walking off, I just wanted to keep the inning alive and drive in some runs," he said. "It felt great off the bat, but I didn't think it was going to get out, to be honest. I saw the outfielder running and thought he had a chance to catch it. Then I saw it land and I don't really remember anything after that.

"Just to get the opportunity to do it was unreal, and to actually do it was one of the best feelings."

The 2012 eighth-rounder has been on a tear in the second half after he started the year slowly. After Thursday's memorable display, he's hitting .287/.357/.402 with four homers and 58 RBIs in 89 games for the Dragons.

He was hitting .190 as April turned to May, but he went on to hit .305 in June, and in 15 July contests, he's batting .400/.455/.567.

"It's definitely been satisfying after kind of struggling the first couple months. I hit into some hard outs, tried to get into a rhythm and it was tough," he said. "To actually get things going and win some games is nice. I feel more relaxed, not putting as much pressure on myself. I think in the beginning I was getting myself into holes and feeling like, 'Oh, I'm not hitting well,' and then I'd go 0-for-10 instead of just playing the game."

Meanwhile Mejias-Brean prepared to put the heroics behind him and get ready for the next game.

"It's a new day, I need to come back with the same intensity as tonight to strive, work hard," he said. "It was a great win, a great walk-off and I just have to put it rest tonight, go out tomorrow like nothing happened."