Jose Molina's first at-bats in more than five weeks were a case study in progression.
The catcher, who arrived in Salt Lake Tuesday for a major league rehab assignment, overcame two strikeouts to provide the game-winning hit in the Stingers' 4-3 victory over Fresno Tuesday at Franklin Covey Field.
"He was sitting up there watching a few pitches," said Salt Lake manager Garry Templeton. "But he was patient. He battled and then he got a pitch he could hit. It turned out to be the winning run."
Molina's RBI double in the seventh inning — scoring Scott Morgan, who had reached on a double and advanced to third on a sacrifice fly — followed seven pitches he fouled off. It also came after three words of advice from Templeton: pull the trigger.
The recommendation came after Molina, who is recovering from a broken thumb on his glove hand, struck out looking in his first trip to the plate. He struck out swinging the next time up and then delivered the third time around.
"It wasn't easy the first couple of at-bats," said Molina. "It's still not easy."
It's kind of like having a wall in your way, he explained.
The barrier, however, was reduced with one destructive swing. Molina said he simply wanted to hit the ball hard and not waste a scoring opportunity with a runner on third base.
Templeton said that's what makes Molina such a valuable player. He and older brother Bengie look to drive the ball up the middle or to an opposite field with two strikes, the Stingers manager added.
"They both do a heckuva job," said Templeton, whose team is 5-1 in its past six games with a Molina in the line-up. Bengie completed a five-game rehab assignment with Salt Lake on Sunday and was re-routed to Single-A Rancho Cucamonga for more work.
As for Jose, it's yet to be determined how long he'll remain with the Stingers. Molina figures he'll be around until he's 100 percent again.
Templeton wouldn't mind if it takes a while.
"We're just happy to get him back," he said. "I don't know if we'll keep him (for a while or not). I would love to, but he's on a major league rehab assignment."
Trailing 1-0 after a solo homer by Yorvit Torrealba in the third, Salt Lake erupted for three runs in the bottom of the inning. Jose Nieves got things started with an RBI double. He later scored on an error before Jose Fernandez homered to make it 3-1.
It wasn't enough, however, to put Fresno away. The Grizzlies pulled even in the fourth when Cody Ranson belted a homer and Chris Magruder added a run-scoring single.
The series continues Wednesday at 7 p.m. Salt Lake RHP Scot Shields (3-5, 3.84 ERA) and Fresno RHP Brian Knoll (0-2, 7.40 ERA) are the scheduled starters.
BEE LINES: Tuesday's attendance was 4,922 . . . Fresno is the top affiliate of the San Francisco Giants . . . Fernandez's 18th homer of the year moved him into a tie for the PCL lead . . . Eight Salt Lake batters had one hit in the contest . . . The Stingers lead Iowa by four games in the PCL Central.
E-mail: dirk@desnews.com