Fighting Phils' Crawford busts out of slump

Thursday lifted a big weight off J.P. Crawford's shoulders.

The Phillies' top prospect collected three hits and tied a career high with four RBIs as Double-A Reading beat Trenton, 8-1, on Thursday.

After striking out in his first at-bat in the first inning, Crawford belted a two-run single to right field in the third. An inning later, the 20-year-old shortstop doubled into left for his third RBI and ended his night with a run-scoring single into right.

"I felt real good today," said Crawford, who also scored once. "Today I did some stuff with my hitting coach [Mickey Morandini] in the cage and it paid off on the field. I was able to get some pitches to hit."

Crawford's big game snapped a 5-for-35 skid. The skid could serve as a microcosm of the California native's second half, as he entered play with a .644 OPS in 19 games after the All-Star break.

"I needed a day like this, to get my mind off struggling," said MLB.com's No. 6 prospect. "It's good to get some hits, to get some RBIs to get me going again.

"It's just baseball, you're going to slump, you're going to do well. You have to take it day by day and see what comes out.

Overall, Crawford is batting .259 with four homers and a .750 OPS in 59 Eastern League games.

A day after going 4-for-4, Nick Williams reached base twice and scored a pair of runs batting ahead of Crawford.

"He's one of those guys that you know is bound to get a hit in every at-bat," Crawford said. "He's going to get on base and he has speed. It makes my job a lot easier."

Destin Hood plated a pair of runs for the Fightin Phils.

Joely Rodriguez gave up one hit while striking out four over five innings and faced one over the minimum for Reading.

"He had a lot of confidence," Crawford said. "We had his back on defense. He got a lot of ground balls, he only allowed one hit."

Yankees' No. 11 prospect Tyler Wade drove in a run in his second Double-A game for the Thunder.