In J.J. Moran's first 17 games with the Eau Claire Express, he had one home run and six RBIs.
That changed significantly in back-to-back breakout games on Thursday and Friday.
Moran turned in a pair of outstanding performances, combining for three homers and nine RBIs in a pair of home games against Mankato.
The Express shortstop put on his own fireworks display on July 4 at Carson Park. He ripped a three-run double before blasting a two-run homer in an 11-9 home loss to the MoonDogs.
"J.J. is fun to watch," Express manager Dale Varsho said. "It's great to have him here playing. If you haven't seen him play, come watch him because he's pretty good. He's strong and he hits with a lot of power.
"He's very good offensively and defensively. He's really done a great job for us."
Moran, who plays collegiately for Stanford, credits his recent power surge to a piece of advice he received from one of his Eau Claire teammates.
"Marcelino Alonso talked to me about visualizing," Moran said. "So before every at-bat, I kind of go through a routine where I visualize my at-bat. And it has been working."
Indeed it has. The focus on visualization has resulted in baseballs being deposited over the outfield fence.
On Friday night, Moran crushed a drive to left field that he knew was gone from the moment it left his bat.
"I just used my two-strike approach and tried to be on time for the fastball," he said. "The pitch was up and in, and I got my hands to it and it went out."
Moran is part of an Express team looking to bounce back after a rough first half to the season.
"We are playing a lot better baseball now," he said. "We have some good players on this team. We know we are capable of doing well in the second half."
Moran just finished his freshman season at Stanford, a perennial college power in baseball. He batted .259 while starting a handful of games.
"I got a few starts at DH and some pinch hits, and that was about it," he said of his first college season. "Hopefully, I can get in the lineup next year at third base."
Moran hopes playing for the Express this summer will allow him to progress toward that goal.
"I am trying to get as ready as I can for next season," he said. "I want to get as many at-bats and gain as much experience as I can here this summer. Then I am hoping to have a starting role and help my team at Stanford."
Moran said the transition from hitting with aluminum bats in college to wooden bats in the Northwoods League in Eau Claire "hasn't been too bad."
"There was a little bit of a transition at first," he said. "It's all the same though. You are swinging the bat either way. It's going well."
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