Salcedo walks off, plates six for Baysox

As Erick Salcedo's Double-A Bowie teammates mobbed him around first base Tuesday afternoon, they started pelting him with questions. 
"They were saying, 'What, you think you're a power hitter now?'" Salcedo said. "'What did you do last night? What did you eat this morning?' Stuff like that. We were having a lot of fun."

That'll happen when a player does all of the heavy lifiting in a win.
Salcedo set a career high by driving in all six runs, including the game-winner in the 10th inning, as Bowie walked off with a 6-5 win over Erie on Tuesday at Prince George's Stadum. Before the breakout day, the Orioles prospect had never plated more than three runs in a game. He was the first member of the Baysox to drive in six since Quincy Latimore in the 2015 Eastern League playoffs.
Box score
The 23-year-old shortstop, who went 4-for-5, brought home Bowie's first run when he singled in Audry Pérez in the second. He gave the Baysox the lead again at 2-1 in the fourth with another RBI base hit and extended it to 5-1 with a three-run homer in the sixth.
The SeaWolves forced extra innings with a pair of runs in the eighth and ninth before Adrian Marin's infield single in the 10th loaded the bases with two outs for Salcedo. Batting from the left side against right-handed sidearmer Kurt Spomer, the switch-hitter bounced an 0-2 pitch over the head of second baseman Logan Watkins to plate Aderlin Rodriguez with the winning run.
"I got a little bit of pressure there," Salcedo said of getting the chance to come through again. "I mean, the bases are loaded and two outs, that's it. I kept thinking to myself, 'OK, look for one pitch. Breathe. Take your time and look for your pitch.' I didn't want to think anything other than put the ball in the play. When they throw the ball you're looking for, put the ball in play."

If not for the walk-off, the homer would have been Salcedo's most noteworthy hit of the day. The Venezuela native entered the season with three homers in 1,962 plate appearances in the Minors, and all three came in 133 games last year for Class A Advanced Frederick. Tuesday's blast not only was his third of the campaign, it was his third in five games. Dating back to April 23, Salcedo is 12-for-26 (.462) with three homers, two doubles and nine RBIs in his last eight games.
He traces the resurgence back to discussions he's had with Bowie hitting coach Butch Davis.
"My hitting coach kept saying I have quick hands, so all I had to do was stay back with the ball to take advantage," Salcedo said. "We made some close adjustments off that. It's been amazing that it's worked so well. I was hitting [.227 on April 22]. But ever since, I've thought, 'OK, let's go.' I was in the cage early today, trusting my hands and working on staying back, and today happened."
Still, the surge doesn't mean anyone should change his or her offensive perception of Salcedo, and that includes Salcedo himself.
"I'm surprised, too," he said. "I'm not a power hitter; I'm not trying to be a power hitter. I look for one pitch every time I'm up. Usually, I'm looking for one pitch, I'm looking for a fastball. If I like it, I swing at it. But no major changes in my swing. I don't know how I've got three homers, but it's good to hit it on the barrel this much."

Acquired from the Angels just before the 2016 season, Salcedo is hitting .314/.338/.486 in 20 games in his second year in the Orioles' system. With a .653 OPS in the Minors, the 5-foot-10, 155-pound shortstop's defensive work has kept him afloat into his eighth professional season, but he's hoping his recent run can mean even more offensive bests will come.
"I just want to keep it going," Salcedo said. "I think about what type of player I want to be and I always think I want to play like Omar Vizquel did. I know I'm a small guy, but nothing in my defense has changed. I only want to put the ball in play as much as I can. I feel like I'm doing good with that now."