Baty drills 3 extra-base hits, including 2 HRs

On Wednesday, Brett Baty snapped a nine-game hit streak with an 0-for-4 performance. On Thursday, he started a new streak in emphatic fashion.

MLB's No. 70 overall prospect drilled two home runs and added a double to drive in four of Double-A Binghamton's 10 runs in its win over Hartford. It's the third time this season that Baty has collected four RBIs in a game, and he's up to 52 on the year -- tied for third-most among the Mets' top 30 prospects with teammate Mark Vientos.

"It's really exciting to know there's a ton of talented young guys in the Mets organization," Baty said. "We really make each other better. We really compete during practice. It's a healthy competition but we're out there making each other better, we're learning from each other, feeding off each other. I really enjoy playing with all of them."

Baty certainly used that energy to fuel his 4-for-5 day at the dish -- his third four-hit effort of the season and second in Double-A. He started his day with a first-inning single that loaded the bases with nobody out. The Rumble Ponies were only able to cash in one run, but it soon wouldn't matter. With Binghamton leading 2-0, the Mets' No. 4 prospect lined a no-doubt solo homer beyond the Rumble Ponies bullpen to extend the lead to 3-0. The dinger kickstarted a three-run inning for the Ponies, who held a five-run advantage when the frame ended.

In the very next inning, Baty would put the game out of reach.

After Nick Meyer drew a one-out walk, Baty fouled off a couple of pitches before finding himself in a 1-2 hole. It was deja-vu on the next pitch as he golfed one to right-center -- nearly the same spot he parked his previous long ball -- and the 21-year-old secured his second two-homer game of the season to put Binghamton up 7-0.

"I was just trying to stay within myself," Baty said. "Me and my hitting coach made a little minor adjustment with my hands prior to the game in the cage and I was feeling it out. It felt good. I was seeing the ball deep, I was seeing it well. Fortunately for me, [the pitchers] left a couple pitches over the plate and I got to them."

Baty added his final hit of the night in the eighth, an RBI double to score the Ponies' 10th and final run of the evening. It's the fourth time in his career that the Texas native has tallied three extra-base hits in a game.

The Mets' 2020 first-round pick has heated up with the balmy weather. After batting .196 through 14 games in July with his new team, Baty has come alive with a .378/.455/.676 slash line with three homers, nine RBIs, six walks and two doubles in 10 August games. He's elevated his Double-A average from .217 on August 1 to .269 after Thursday's big day with 18 RBIs, five homers and five doubles in 24 games for Binghamton.

"I'm getting less quality pitches to hit in the zone at this level. Pitchers command their stuff a little bit better," Baty said. "I would say the same kinda happened to me in 2019 when I went up to Kingsport. It's just a different environment, and I wanted to get acclimated a little bit, but now I'm starting to feel way more comfortable. I'm still staying confident and everything. It's just these little adjustments that I had to make whenever I got promoted, so I think I'm turning it around right now, and it feels good."