Mets' Tebow homers, doubles in power show

After his roughest week at the plate in pro baseball, Tim Tebow flexed some muscles and tallied three extra-base hits over the weekend.
On Sunday, the former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL quarterback went 2-for-4 with his third homer and sixth double of the season, also collecting a pair of RBIs in Class A Columbia's 6-3 loss to visiting West Virginia.

Gameday box score
The 29-year-old Mets outfield farmhand went 0-for-15 with six strikeouts over five games -- his longest hitless streak since signing in September -- dating to last Sunday when he broke the funk with an RBI double Saturday, and he followed that with his third multiple-hit performance of the month. Through 35 South Atlantic League games, he's batting .230/.319/.369 with 10 extra-base hits, 14 RBIs and 13 walks.
Facing Pirates right-hander Dylan Prohoroff to lead off the fifth inning, the left-handed hitter socked a 1-0 pitch far over the fence in left-center field.

Up against another righty, Mike Wallace, with two on and one out in the ninth, Tebow lined a two-bagger into right for another RBI.
The showing came a few days after Tebow explained to a national television audience why he's playing Minor League Baseball in the first place. On Tuesday's episode of The Tonight Show, he joked with host Jimmy Fallon that the money drew him in before confessing the real reason.
"I love it," he said. "My first love was playing baseball when I was 4 years old."
He later added, "Every day, I enjoy it every single day. I think it's so important to actually love what you do. We talk about that, but how many times do we actually live it?
"For me, going into this pursuit, there was so much criticism. But for me, it's -- why? I just want to do something I love. I want to pursue it, I want to have fun every single day and do something I love and not let fear or criticism or the unknown cripple me by not being able to pursue what I love."
While that criticism has been well documented, Tebow has undeniably generated monstrous fan interest -- arguably more so than any other player, promotion or ballpark feature this season. Columbia leads the Sally League in attendance, having drawn nearly 130,000 through 24 openings. When Tebow and the Fireflies hit the road, the parks they visit see a surge in crowds -- reportedly by as much as 120 percent.
"Bryce Harper came, and there were definitely a lot of people who came out to see Harper, but that was the first day," Lakewood director of media relations Greg Giombarrese told MiLB.com when Columbia was in town last week. "That pales in comparison to this."