Parraz in groove for Royals in rout of 51s

The Omaha Royals might want to consider bringing Jordan Parraz's family and friends to the rest of their games this season.

Playing in front of them at Cashman Field the past four days, Parraz put together a monster series in which he raised his batting average a whopping 51 points, from .191 to .242.

The former Green Valley High School and College of Southern Nevada standout put on a hitting clinic Tuesday in front of a season-high, sellout crowd of 10,459 on "School Day." The right fielder went 5-for-6 with four doubles, a home run, four RBIs and three runs to lead the Royals to a 17-5 rout of the 51s.

"I don't know if it was my best day (as a professional), but it's definitely top five, for sure," Parraz said. "I got some good pitches to hit, and I just attacked them, and I didn't miss them.

"It was definitely fun to do it in front of my parents. It was awesome. There were a lot of people here every day."

He said 15 to 30 of his friends and family members attended each game of the series, in which he went 10-for-18 with seven doubles, a homer, six RBIs, six runs and three walks.

"He always plays good in front of his family and friends," said Zeke Parraz, Jordan's older brother and a former standout at Green Valley and UNLV who was released by the Oakland Athletics after two seasons. "If he played here, he'd go off. Everything he hit today was hit pretty well. He needed it."

Jordan Parraz doubled twice in Omaha's six-run second inning and once in its five-run third as the Royals (18-19) took an 11-1 lead.

He launched a homer over the wall in left-center field to lead off the eighth inning and made a spectacular catch in the bottom of the eighth, holding onto a foul ball by Jorge Padilla as he crashed into the right-field wall.

Parraz capped his day with a leadoff double in the ninth.

"He swung the bat good. He didn't miss any pitches," Las Vegas manager Dan Rohn said. "He did what he was supposed to do. When we made mistakes, he hit them."

Marc Rzepczynski struggled mightily for the 51s in his first major league rehabilitation start, allowing nearly as many runs (nine) as letters (11) in his long last name.

The left-hander gave up 11 hits, including two homers, walked one and struck out one in 2 1/3 innings.

"It was just one of those days. When I made good pitches, they found holes, and the bad pitches I made were over the plate and got hit hard," Rzepczynski said. "I was overexcited. It was my first game back in a while. But I'll fix my mechanics, and I'll be fine. I'm not too worried about it."

Jai Miller had two homers and three RBIs for the Royals, and Alex Gordon, Irving Falu and Ed Lucas added three hits apiece in Omaha's 21-hit attack.

The 51s (17-23) went 2-6 on their homestand and were outscored 74-27 in the losses. They've lost 10 of their past 15 games and 22 of 33.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354.