Bees Bullets: Salt Lake Loses Four Of Six In Reno

SALT LAKE CITY – The Bees continue to search for offense after losing four of six games on the road to the division leading Reno Aces.

Reno (67-50, 1st in PCL West) hosted the Bees (55-62, 3rd in PCL West) in a six-game series at Greater Nevada Field August 16-21.

Salt Lake opened the series against the Aces with a promising 10-2 win. The good vibes didn’t last as Reno then stole four of five games to send the Bees packing.

10 runs in game one served as the high water mark for a Bees offense that is desperate for power as they scored just 15 more runs in the next five games.

With five weeks left in the season, Salt Lake finds itself near the bottom of most major offensive categories in the Pacific Coast League. Salt lake has scored 654 runs (eighth) on 1042 hits (seventh). Their 138 home runs are tied with Las Vegas for the fewest in the PCL. Their .264 team batting average is seventh in the league.

Game One: Bees 10 Aces 2

Davis Daniel (4-5) threw six strong innings, allowing a single earned run on three hits without a walk, putting Salt Lake in position to open the series with a victory.

Back-to-back first inning home runs from Michael Stefanic and Dillon Thomas put the Bees in front 2-0.

Thomas and Stefanic each finished with three hits with Kean Wong adding two hits, including his fourth triple of the year, and two runs batted in.

🔥BACK2BACK🔥 @DillonThomas24 pic.twitter.com/pA2Esjck4Q

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 17, 2022

• With four runs batted in, Thomas increased his team lead to 58

Bees are Buzzin' tonight! @Keanwong4's RBI triple gives Salt Lake a 7-2 lead.🤩 pic.twitter.com/OsokYxerAn

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 17, 2022

• Wong stole his 24th base of the year in the first inning, putting him eighth in the Pacific Coast League.
• Salt Lake is the only team in the PCL with two top-10 stolen base leaders. Outfielder Magneuris Sierra is 10th with 22 stolen bags. Outfielder Monte Harrison is 11th with 20 steals.

Game Two: Bees 4 Aces 7

Salt Lake couldn’t hold on to a fourth inning lead as the bats went quiet late, leading to the 7-4 loss. Starter Adam Seminaris gave up five runs on eight hits in just three innings, falling to 0-3 in the loss.

Matt Duffy went 0-for-4 as the designated hitter in his second rehab appearance with the Bees.

Dillon Thomas, Jake Palomaki and Kean Wong each added a pair of hits.

Corbin Carroll is a certified gap hunter 🎯

He picks up his second double of the night and 1️⃣0️⃣th in an Aces uniform (2️⃣5️⃣ games). pic.twitter.com/4JwtC9kqwh

— Reno Aces (@Aces) August 18, 2022

• One of eight Aces doubles on the night
• Reliever Ty Buttrey struck out three in his his lone inning of work.

Game Three: Bees 5 Aces 3

The Bees were content to sit back and let Reno beat themselves on Thursday night. A disastrous three-error fourth inning by Reno allowed Salt Lake to score five unearned runs on their way to the 5-3 win.

Orlando Martinez led the Bees with a pair of hits and two runs batted in. First baseman Mike Ford picked up two hits in his second game since joining the Bees to begin the road trip.

Our first two runs are brought to you by your PCL Player of the Week: Orlando Martinez👌 pic.twitter.com/agpD4lmbHr

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 19, 2022

• After retiring the first two Bees batters of the fourth inning, Reno’s defense committed three errors sandwiched around two walks, allowing the Bees to score all five of their runs in the frame.
• Seven Bees relievers combined to allow seven hits and three earned runs with nine strikeouts in the bullpen day game. Luis Ledo (2-0) finished with the win.

Game Four: Bees 3 Aces 7

A six-run Aces first inning put this game out of reach before many fans had even found their seats.

Bees starter Robinson Pina (0-2) walked the first two batters of the game, gave up a pair of RBI singles before surrendering back to back homers; a Camden Duzenack three-run blast and Jake Hager’s solo bomb.

Dillon Thomas picked up three hits for the Bees including his 14th home run of the year.

"You can forget about that one" 🙌 @DillonThomas24 pic.twitter.com/qfJ4P8gtQY

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 20, 2022

• Four Bees relievers (Ryan Smith, Jonathan Aro, Ty Buttrey and Brian Moran) combined to limit Reno to one run on six hits after Pina lasted just 1/3 of an inning in the start.
• Matt Duffy continued his rehab assignment, starting at first base and going 1-for-4. He is now 1-for-10 since joining the Bees.

Game Five: Bees 2 Aces 4

Salt Lake managed just one base hit through the seven innings, wasting a seven-inning, six strikeout performance from César Valdez (7-5) in the loss.

Trailing 4-0 in the eighth, Steven Duggar picked up his first hit as a Bee, a lead-off double. Two outs later, Jake Palomaki (2) sent a two-run homer over the right field wall.

Jake Palomaki cuts the deficit in half! pic.twitter.com/E4UfoxyIkc

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 21, 2022

• Four Bees base hits matches the season low for hits in a nine-inning game. Salt Lake had four hits five other times this season but had not done it since June 18 against Albuquerque.

Game Six: Bees 1 Aces 4

Los Angeles Angels right-hander Michael Lorenzen went three innings in his first rehab start with Salt Lake as he works back from a right shoulder strain that landed him in the 60-day injured list in early August.

Lorenzen looked good if a little rusty but Salt Lake’s offense went dormant as the Bees managed just five hits and Jake Gatewood accounted for the only run with a fifth inning RBI-single that scored Chad Wallach.

First AAA rehab start for #Angels RHP Michael Lorenzen: 3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K pic.twitter.com/TsS3PXqJOc

— Angels MiLB (@AngelsMiLB) August 21, 2022

• Salt Lake went 4-for-18 (.222) with runners in scoring position over the final three game of the series.

Mr. 4000

Nobody knows more about the Salt Lake Buzz/Stingers/Bees franchise than legendary ‘Voice of the Bees’ Steve Klauke.

A baseball encyclopedia, Klauke called his 4000th game for the franchise on Thursday, August 18 in a 5-3 Bees win.

From the 1994 Buzz program: A profile on @slbeesradio. Happy 4000 Steve! pic.twitter.com/Vy0zRjJnOF

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 19, 2022

After more than two decades with the Salt Lake Bees, tonight, Steve Klauke broadcasts his 4000th Game!🎉 Congratulations, @slbeesradio! pic.twitter.com/yX8xWAYobl

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 18, 2022

Congrats To Snow Canyon Little League

Their run in Williamsport may not have lasted long but it was sure memorable for the first team from Utah to qualify for the Little League World Series.

The youngsters even got a shoutout from their hometown Bees before getting eliminated from competition over the weekend.

From one Utah team to another, congratulations and good luck to the Snow Canyon Little League Team in their first #littleleagueworldseries game today! We’re all cheering for #teamutah! pic.twitter.com/H49zSuNT8X

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 19, 2022

Roster Updates

Roster additions today:
OF Torii Hunter Jr.
INF Mike Ford
INF Matt Duffy (MLB Rehab) pic.twitter.com/cWsEh4XoGV

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) August 16, 2022

• The son of former Buzz and Minnesota Twins great Torii Hunter, Hunter Jr. is batting .216 in 12 games with the Bees this season but provides much needed outfield depth after placing Monte Harrison on the 7-day injured list during the road trip.
• Playing for his fourth Triple-A team in 2022 alone, Ford is batting .211 with one extra-base hit in five games for the Bees. He is hitting .248 overall this year with two home runs.

Following yesterday's game, the #Angels optioned OF Steven Duggar to the @SaltLakeBees.

— Angels PR (@LAAngelsPR) August 18, 2022

• With his third PCL team in 2022, Duggar has been more reliable for his glove than his bat. Hitting .143 in just 14 at-bats with Salt Lake, Duggar finds himself with an interstate batting average of .188 overall. He also has a .153 batting average in 72 MLB at-bats with the San Francisco Giants (36), Texas Rangers (17) and Los Angeles Angels (19).

RHP Michael Lorenzen will begin a rehab assignment today with Triple-A @SaltLakeBees.

— Angels PR (@LAAngelsPR) August 21, 2022

• After throwing three innings on Sunday, Lorenzen is expected to make another appearance with the Bees as they return home to face the Tacoma Rainiers. In 13 starts with Los Angeles this season, Lorenzen has a 4.94 earned run average.

On Deck

The Bees return home where they will face the Tacoma Rainiers (53-64), Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. Game one is scheduled for a 6:35 p.m. (MST) first pitch on Tuesday, August 23.

Purchase tickets to see the Bees play at slbees.com. Listen to voice of the Bees Steve Klauke on The Zone Sports Network & sports.ksl.com.

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