Salt Lake Season In Review

The Salt Lake Bees completed their 23rd season in franchise history in 2016. The Bees finished out of the playoffs with a 63-79 record on the season, 9.5 games behind division-winning El Paso.

On offense manager Keith Johnson made up for a lack of power hitters by utilizing their speed on the base paths. Salt Lake stole 180 bases, shattering the franchise record of 145 set by the 2003 club. The charge was led by Quintin Berry who finished tied for second in franchise history with 35 steals on the year and Todd Cunningham who stole 23 bags. The two combined had more steals than the entire 2105 team which set a record low of 52 stolen bases. Salt Lake finished with just 68 home runs on the season, which set a new franchise record low that was set just last year at 92.

The Salt Lake pitching staff had plenty of individual accolades during the 2016 season. Left-hander Nate Smith was chosen to represent the Angels at the 2016 MLB All-Star Futures Game. Tyler Skaggs became the Bees first Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week since 2014 when he struck out a franchise record tying 14 Omaha batters on July 14. Troy Scribner would earn his own Pitcher of the Week nod two weeks later when he pitched a two-hit shutout at Sacramento in his Triple-A debut on July 31. The two-hit shutout was the first for the Bees since June 16, 2009.

The clubhouse was full of new faces all season long as the Bees set franchise records for transactions (231) and players used (74). Relief pitcher A.J. Achter accounted for 16 transactions in an unprecedented season of player movement. Overall, 36 players suited up for the Bees and the Angels including MLB debuts for pitcher Greg Mahle and catcher Juan Graterol and seven MLB rehabilitation assignments including Gold Glove shortstop Andrelton Simmons and former University of Utah standout C.J. Cron. The Bees also saw two-time Cy Young Award Winner Tim Lincecum pitch in seven games, including two at Smith's Ballpark.

Smith's Ballpark hosted 503,659 fans in 2016, marking the first time since 2013 the club broke the 500,000 mark. With two rainouts during the regular season the Bees averaged 7,195 fans over the 70 home dates, the sixth highest mark in the PCL. During the season the Bees hosted 10 fireworks nights and fans enjoyed theme nights including Salt Lake Gulls and Buzz throwbacks, Salt Lake Angels and Utah Jazz nights and community events like Pack the Park Pink and Military Appreciation Night.

The 2017 Pacific Coast League season begins on Thursday, April 6, 2017 with the Bees home opener coming on Tuesday, April 11. More information is available on www.slbees.com.

The Salt Lake Bees completed their 23rd season in franchise history. The Bees finished out of the playoffs with a 63-79 record on the season, 9.5 games behind division-winning El Paso.

On offense manager Keith Johnson made up for a lack of power hitters by utilizing their speed on the base paths. Salt Lake stole 180 bases, shattering the franchise record of 145 set by the 2003 club. The charge was led by Quintin Berry who finished tied for second in franchise history with 35 steals on the year and Todd Cunningham who stole 23 bags. The two combined had more steals than the entire 2105 team which set a record low of 52 stolen bases. Salt Lake finished with just 68 home runs on the season, which set a new franchise record low that was set just last year at 92.

The Salt Lake pitching staff had plenty of individual accolades during the 2016 season. Left-hander Nate Smith was chosen to represent the Angels at the 2016 MLB All-Star Futures Game. Tyler Skaggs became the Bees first Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week since 2014 when he struck out a franchise record tying 14 Omaha batters on July 14. Troy Scribner would earn his own Pitcher of the Week nod two weeks later when he pitched a two-hit shutout at Sacramento in his Triple-A debut on July 31. The two-hit shutout was the first for the Bees since June 16, 2009.

The clubhouse was full of new faces all season long as the Bees set franchise records for transactions (231) and players used (74). Relief pitcher A.J. Achter accounted for 16 transactions in an unprecedented season of player movement. Overall, 36 players suited up for the Bees and the Angels including MLB debuts for pitcher Greg Mahle and catcher Juan Graterol and seven MLB rehabilitation assignments including Gold Glove shortstop Andrelton Simmons and former University of Utah standout C.J. Cron. The Bees also saw two-time Cy Young Award Winner Tim Lincecum pitch in seven games, including two at Smith's Ballpark.

Smith's Ballpark hosted 503,659 fans in 2016, marking the first time since 2013 the club broke the 500,000 mark. With two rainouts during the regular season the Bees averaged 7,195 fans over the 70 home dates, the sixth highest mark in the PCL. During the season the Bees hosted 10 fireworks nights and fans enjoyed theme nights including Salt Lake Gulls and Buzz throwbacks, Salt Lake Angels and Utah Jazz nights and community events like Pack the Park Pink and Military Appreciation Night.

The 2017 Pacific Coast League season begins on Thursday, April 6, 2017 with the Bees home opener coming on Tuesday, April 11. More information is available on www.slbees.com.