Out to Declaw the Grizzlies
Salt Lake will look to equal or improve on that mark when the squads meet again in four days. First though, manager Bobby Mitchell's club renews acquaintances with the Fresno Grizzlies for the final time this season.
After 12 games, Fresno holds a 7-5 advantage in the '09 series with Salt Lake since the Grizzlies took the last two games of the June 27-30 four-game set in California.
Both the Bees and the Grizzlies boasted a four-hitter at the other's expense. In game one, Terry Evans headed an 8-1 Salt Lake surge with a 4-5 night that included a home run and three RBI to lend ample support to starter Trevor Bell. Bell had quite the game in his own right, tossing seven innings and limiting the Grizzlies to one run on four hits.
Evans kept rolling in game two with a long ball in his third straight contest. This time, the shot was the difference maker in a 3-2 Bees victory. Jeremy Hill saved Dan Denham's sixth victory of the year after Denham relieved Shane Loux's rehab start.
Leave it to a former Buzz pitcher to kill momentum in game three. Ex-Salt Lake Buzz hurler Matt Kinney sat down the first 15 Bees he faced before Ben Johnson began the sixth inning with a double to right-center field in a 7-1 Fresno win.
In game four, it was the Grizzlies' turn for a four-hitter in the series finale. Howie Kendrick plated Evans in the top of the first inning for a 1-0 Salt Lake lead, but Fresno tied the game 1-1 on John Bowker's homerun. Bees starter Mike MacDonald allowed only two runs on five hits in 6 2/3 innings, but his teammates could not come to his aid in a 4-1 loss.
The four-game split completed a rare eight-game series in which the clubs took turns hosting one another back-to-back. Before going 2-2 at Fresno, Salt Lake finished 1-3 at Spring Mobile Ballpark against the Grizzlies.
Salt Lake fell 8-1 in the opening clash at Spring Mobile Ballpark. In the process the team grounded into a franchise-record five double-plays.
Bees shortstop Gary Patchett ended a Bees' six-game losing streak with a tie-breaking homer in the seventh inning of game two, and Hill held the Grizzlies at bay in the ninth to save the Bees 5-4 victory.
Fresno led 1-0 after two innings in game three, and Grizzlies starter Kevin Pucetas limited the home team to one run on seven hits in seven innings in an eventual 5-2 Bees loss.
Already dampened by a lengthy rain delay, Salt Lake fell 8-5 in the final game of the series after falling behind 6-0 with two innings played.
Less than a month after the Grizzlies last played in Salt Lake City, the club returns as winners of three of four games against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox.
The Bees netted the same series result at Portland after the Beavers took first blood after the All-Star break with an 8-4 win over Salt Lake. Portland won despite the fact that the Bees had led 4-1 until the sixth inning.
Salt Lake hurlers Brad Salmon and Bobby Mosebach teamed for a four-hit shutout, as the Bees won game two 2-0 with the offense coming on home runs from Evans and Sean Rodriguez.
Trailing 5-2, the Bees scored five runs in the eighth inning of game three and one more in the ninth for an 8-5 triumph. Evans spurred the Bees with two hits and three RBI.
Dan Denham (8-4) picked up his fourth-straight win in game four, as he allowed no runs on three hits in 5 2/3 innings. His teammates then scored three runs in the sixth inning to erase a scoreless tie en route to a 4-2 win in the series finale.
Returning home, Salt Lake will undoubtedly look to Terry Evans. The outfielder has certainly demonstrated his All-Star credentials against Fresno. Evans has played in all 12 games, hit .383 with 11 runs scored, four doubles, four home runs, 13 RBI, a .723 slugging percentage and a 1.108 on-base percentage.
However, whereas Salt Lake is hitting .268 as a team against Fresno, the Grizzlies are batting nearly .300 (actually .289) against Salt Lake hurlers as a team.
Joe Borchard and Bowker are the foremost culprits. In 12 games Borchard is hitting .319 with seven runs, four doubles, two triples, two home runs and eight RBI. Bowker has logged each game of the season series as well, hitting .463, scoring 12 runs with four doubles, five home runs and 11 RBI.
Salt Lake hosts the Grizzlies beginning Monday at 7:05 p.m., trailing first-place Colorado Springs by 2 1/2 games.