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06/14/2007 11:18 PM ET
Watson reaches big 4-0 with hitting streak
Columbus leadoff man doubles, singles twice in win over Ottawa
By Michael Blinn / Special to MLB.com
Brandon Watson, who finished 2-for-4, has four straight multi-hit games. (Joy R. Absalon/MLB.com)

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Brandon Watson went 3-for-5 to extend his hitting streak to 40 games as Columbus took a 3-2 victory over host Ottawa on Thursday.

Watson led off the game with a double to left field to match Frosty Kennedy's 1953 streak for the 13th-longest in Minor League history. He also singled and scored in the third, and he added a base hit in the sixth to raise his batting average to .335.

"It's definitely an honor," Watson said of the streak. "I'm having fun with it."

Next up for the 25-year-old center fielder is Jack Lelivelt, who set the International League record with a 42-game streak in 1912. But that's not Watson's main goal.

"I'm just trying to get on base," he said. "The streak is in the back of my head, but I'm just trying to get on base."

Watson is more concerned with helping the Clippers (30-36) and getting back to the Major League level than superstitions or tinkering with his stance.

Streaking in the Minors
The longest hitting streaks in Minor League history:
#
 69
61
55
50
49
49
46
43
43
43
42
42
40
40
38
38
38
37
37
 Player
 Joe Wilhoit
Joe DiMaggio
Roman Mejias
Otto Pahlman
Jack Ness
Harry Chozen
Johnny Bates
Eddie Marshall
Howie Bedell
Orlando Moreno
Jack Lelivelt
Herbert Chapman
Brandon Watson
Frosty Kennedy
Mitch Hilligoss
Hubert Mason
Paul Owens
Joey Cora
Bobby Trevino
 Team (League)
 Wichita (WL)
San Francisco (PCL)
Waco (BSL)
Danville (III)
Oakland (PCL)
Mobile (SA)
Nashville (SA)
Milwaukee (AA)
Louisville (AA)
Big Spring (LHL)
Rochester (IL)
Gadsden (SEL)
Columbus (IL)
Plainview (WT-NM)
Charleston (SAL)
Binghamton (EL)
Orleans (PONY)
Las Vegas (PCL)
El Paso (TL)
 Year
 1919
1933
1954
1922
1915
1945
1925
1935
1961
1947
1912
1950
2007
1953
2007
1925
1951
1989
1969

"We won, so it's a good thing for everyone," he said. "I'm taking the same approach, I'm coming in the same way everyday. The streak has been wonderful, but it's not all skill."

The Clippers broke a 2-2 tie in the seventh when Juan Brito's bases-loaded grounder to third base plated Kory Casto. Darnell McDonald added three hits and a run scored.

Reliever Alexis Morales (1-0) got the win after yielding one hit and a walk with three strikeouts over 1 2/3 scoreless frames. Luis Ayala and Arnie Munos each pitched a scoreless inning before Chris Booker tossed a perfect ninth for his 18th save, second-most in the International League.

Ottawa reliever John Ennis (3-1) gave up one run on three hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings.

Gary Burnham hit a solo shot, his first, in the fifth, and Pedro Swann went 2-for-2 with a run scored and two walks for the Lynx (27-35).

Michael Blinn is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.