YAKIMA -- First of all, he's not that big.

This is no Prince Fielder lookalike, the Bears center-fielder who of late has performed Ruthian feats to the delight of Yakima County Stadium's masses.

But if Collin Cowgill doesn't stand especially tall at 5-foot-9 his home runs do, even if recorded in the Class A Northwest League.

"It's early, he's young and I'm not going to put him in the Hall of Fame yet," Yakima manager Bob Didier said, "but he reminds me a little bit of Reynolds (ex-Bear and current Arizona Diamondback Mark). He'll hit a ball to the outfield and you think it's a fly ball that's going to be caught, but it carries and carries and pretty soon it's gone."

In the hours preceding Didier's comments Wednesday night, the 195-pound Cowgill had homered three times. That made four in two days and six in five, ballooning his league-leading total to 10 and putting him on pace for an astronomical total of 48.

The NWL long-season record is 37, set in 1964 by Tri-City's John Warner. The short-season mark is 25, set in 1980 by Central Oregon's William Darkis.

Shrugged Cowgill, after his big game Wednesday, "The wind was blowing out tonight."

It was?

For the majority of the 3:41 it took the Bears to subdue Spokane, 9-8 in 11 innings, the flag beyond the right-field fence was motionless.

And Cowgill's first two bombs appeared exactly as Didier had described -- as would-be outs that just kept going.

In the third inning, with David Cooper on first, Cowgill lofted a high drive that left-fielder Tim Rodriguez appeared to have a play on. But Rodriguez, in deliberate pursuit, eventually bumped into the wall, looked up and watched the ball clear the 16-foot barrier.

In the fifth, with Greg Bordes aboard, Cowgill hit a towering shot to the deepest part of the yard. Center-fielder Jared Bolden ran to the warning track, looking as if he either would catch the ball or corral it as it caromed off the fence. But he, too, was halted by the wall and the ball disappeared just to the right of the 406 foot mark.

Cowgill, who'd taken a called third strike in the first and banged into a double play in the sixth, led off the bottom of the ninth with Yakima, having once led 5-1, now behind 6-5. And this time his drive was a no-doubter, an opposite-field blast that neither Bolden nor right-fielder Joey Butler tracked with sincerity.

Asked which homer he'd hit hardest, Cowgill smiled and said, "The last one, I think. It was the most fun, at least."

Though a renowned power threat at the University of Kentucky, where the Lexington native had homered 19 times in 63 games last spring, Cowgill said he'd never before accomplished a big-fly trifecta.

"My roommate at college did once," he said. "It was fun to watch, but I'd have to say it was more exciting to be on this end of it -- especially since we won."

Cowgill also had a two-out single in the bottom of the 11th, a hit that ignited a game-winning rally. His 4-for-6 night raised his batting average to .279, a recent increase that was likely due to extended batting cage sessions with hitting coach Chris Briones.

"I keep telling him to try to hit the pitcher in the head, to take it right back up the middle," Briones said while filling out postgame charts. "And he's doing a better job of it."

"He hit that one back up the middle," deadpanned Didier. "Only he got under it a little and cleared the center-field fence."

So it's clear that Cowgill, diminutive by baseball slugger standards, is nonetheless powerful. Large forearms and strong wrists are apparently the ticket.

"It's that movement," Didier said, making a swinging movement with his hands, "through the hitting area."

But if Cowgill isn't overly large physically, he might be approaching mountainous status otherwise.

"I'll tell you this," Didier said, "if they had an election here in Yakima tomorrow, my old buddy Dave Edler might be out of a job because I'm pretty sure Collin Cowgill could be the mayor of this town. Especially after tonight."