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Three-for-four with a pair of doubles.
A game like that and a minor-league baseball player's future looks a little bit brighter.
Especially when he's had to dodge a few clouds.
Monday night was just such a game for Jeff Bianchi, a Lampeter-Strasburg grad who is playing for the Kansas City Royals' Advanced Class A affiliate in Wilmington, Del.
Bianchi, 21, is in his fourth season in the Royals' organization, having been drafted in the second round by Kansas City in 2005.
His climb through the Royals' chain has not been easy. Injuries have crept up over the course of his career but they haven't diminished his drive.
He always knows a game like Monday's could happen at any time.
"I wish every day was like that," Bianchi said, prior to Tuesday night's game against the Lynchburg Hillcats at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium. "That would be the perfect world."Through his pro baseball career, Bianchi has learned to maneuver through an imperfect world, battling back after injuries and keeping a solid mental outlook through the rehabs.
He encountered back problems after a strong start to his career as a rookie in 2005, and then shoulder tendinitis, which required surgery, ended a second rookie league season in 2006.
He was finally injury-free playing for Class A Burlington (Iowa) in the Midwest League last summer. But the season started late for Bianchi due to his surgery.
Then just 12 games into this season, he suffered a hamstring injury, requiring a three-week trip to the disabled list. But he returned on May 7 and has seen his performance at the plate improve game to game.
"I feel like things are heading in the right direction," said Bianchi, who was called a "five-tool shortstop" by KC scouting director Deric Ladnier when he was drafted. "I'm seeing the ball better and hope to continue to keep things rolling."
Since dealing with injuries is nothing new to Bianchi (6-feet, 175 pounds), he was able to come through the hamstring injury without too much concern. He knew it wasn't serious and knew there would be a lot of season left when he returned.
"When I was hurt, I questioned things," he said. "What if this happened or this didn't happen? But my high school coach, Todd Garber, used to say, 'One pitch at a time.' Whatever's going on at the time, that's the most important thing."
But injuries in three of his first four seasons certainly wasn't what he envisioned when he embarked on a promising pro baseball career.
(730) (571) (87) (43) (13) (3) (2)He's learned that a career doesn't always follow a set path and that all the planning in the world could be for naught. Much is left to his faith.
"My injuries basically set me back a year and a half," he said. "Right now, I'm just trying to get better every day so I can keep progressing through the system."
After a slow start and his stint on the DL, Bianchi's bat has shown some consistency. He had a six-game hitting streak and hit safely in 16 of 19 games at one point. He has 14 multihit games and had three or more hits in a game seven times this season.
"When Jeff came back from the hamstring injury, he had fire in his eyes," said Wilmington manager Darryl Kennedy. "He was determined to turn things around. We all knew he could hit. It was just a matter of getting in there and getting reps on a daily basis. He's been a big sparkplug for us since coming back."
Besides playing on a regular basis, Bianchi, who hit cleanup Tuesday night, and Blue Rocks hitting coach Nelson Liriano have worked on a number of things in the batting cage that seem to be paying off.
"In the last month, Jeff's started to build confidence," Liriano, who watched Bianchi raise his average to .249 heading into Tuesday's game, said. "He's aggressive in the strike zone and is making the adjustments. He really has the tools to be a good player."
Bianchi, rated as the No. 18 prospect in Kansas City's organization entering the season according to Baseball America, has had to make an adjustment in the field, too, moving from shortstop to second base.
Chris McConnell moved from Burlington to Wilmington midway through last season to play short and has stayed there for the Blue Rocks this season, prompting Kennedy to move Bianchi to second.
"I like it at second," Bianchi, who's been a shortstop all his life, said. "I stayed at short at the start of spring training but moved to second toward the end of the spring. I've felt very relaxed there. Balls come off the bat a little differently but it wasn't too much to get used to."
Kennedy said a move back to shortstop is a possibility but for now, he likes Bianchi at second.
And while Bianchi keeps track of the Royals' prospects at both positions, he knows he can only control what he does and doesn't worry about anyone else.
Bianchi, who went 0-for-4 in the Blue Rocks' 4-1 loss to Lynchburg Tuesday night, said he plans on having a good second half of this season. That may earn him a promotion to the Royals' AA team in Arkansas.
"I think Double-A is a reasonable goal for me," he said.
Goals, though, aren't always achieved on schedule. Bianchi knows that better than anyone. As long as the goal is out there, he'll go for it. Even if it takes a little longer than expected.
E-mail: kfreeman@lnpnews.com
