NewsDesme strikes again, homers twice
Oakland outfielder has 10 long balls in last 10 games
By Danny Wild / MLB.com
10/28/09 7:48 PM EST
Temperatures in Phoenix may not be quite as hot as usual, but Grant Desme is certainly heating things up.Desme went yard for the 10th time in 10 games to lead the Phoenix Desert Dogs past the Peoria Javelinas, 11-6, on Wednesday afternoon.
The A's outfield prospect, batting .469 in the Arizona Fall League, is now four homers shy of tying the league's single-season record for home runs set by the Angels' Brandon Wood in 2005. Desme, who claims he had never been this hot at the plate, maintains it is too early to discuss the record.
"I made a little bit of an adjustment with my stride and stuff, other than that it's been feeling good [and being] able to find the barrel pretty good," Desme said. "I just try to keep the same approach every at-bat, that's what's been working."
The 6-foot-2 outfielder homered in his fifth straight game Oct. 26 after going deep in consecutive games from Oct. 15-16. The San Luis Obispo, Calif. native hit a pair Oct. 23 and has gone deep in eight of his last 10 games.
Desme's power isn't completely shocking -- he ranked fifth in the Minor Leagues with 31 home runs in 2009. Still, he has 22 RBIs in his last 10 games, and much of those came off some of baseball's top Minor League arms.
"Yeah, it's been pretty surprising, especially since I only played in A ball this year," Desme said. "This is the best competition I've played against."
The 25-year-old hit a one-out, three-run shot in the first inning off a high-inside first-pitch fastball from Josh Butler (Brewers) to give the Desert Dogs a three-run cushion. He capped the day with a solo drive in the eighth off Omar Aguilar (Brewers) on an 0-1 slider.
The second-round pick in 2007 out of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo has 22 hits and 18 runs scored over his 10-game power surge.
Desme has easily surpassed the hot streaks he amassed earlier this year when he homered in three straight games May 31-June 3 with Class A Kane County and hit five long balls in a seven-game stretch from July 7-13 for Class A Advanced Stockton.
Fellow Oakland prospects Corey Brown and Jemile Weeks also contributed to the victory. Brown drove in three runs and Weeks went 3-for-3 with two RBIs. Orioles third baseman Brandon Waring finished 3-for-5 with a triple and an RBI.
Rays right-hander Mitch Talbot picked up his second win of the fall, despite allowing five runs on six hits over four innings for Phoenix (10-4).
Tigers outfielder Casper Wells hit a three-run shot of Talbot in the third, his third homer of the fall season for Peoria (8-6).
Butler (Brewers) suffered his first loss after surrendering six runs on eight hits and a pair of walks over three innings.
Danny Wild is an editor for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
