SALT LAKE CITY — Roberto Lopez is the ultimate utility player.
Whatever role the Salt Lake Bees need the six-season veteran to fill, he can oblige — even when that means serving as a Spanish language translator or entertaining the crowd on the piano.
“I’ve never really been afraid to try new things,” he said in the middle of his second stint with the Bees.
Officially listed as an outfielder on the team roster, Lopez has played six different positions on the field during his ascent from Orem to Salt Lake. He started at third base but alternated between there and the outfield in high school and college. It wasn’t until the summer after his junior year at USC that his versatility was really tested.
“I played all nine positions in one game,” he said. “The coach was like, ‘Can you play second base? Can you play third? Short?’ I said, ‘If you need me there, I’ll play.’ I moved from 9 all the way down to 1. I closed the game.”
He added, “If they throw me out there at short or second, I’m not going to say no. Obviously, I’ll probably be a little nervous, but I would enjoy it more than anything else.”
This summer, Lopez has worked at the corners in the infield and the outfield, served as a designated hitter, and even closed a game on the mound back in May. He has served as a translator during interviews and jumped up to play when the Tavernacle Dueling Pianos visited Spring Mobile Ballpark.
“I was peer-pressured a little bit into that,” Lopez said. “Everybody was telling me I should go play, so finally I broke down and I was like, ‘All right, I’ll go play.’”
In spite of his ability to move around the field, Lopez feels it is his bat that will take him the furthest.
“Playing all kinds of positions definitely does add a little bit more value,” he said, “but ultimately, what’s going to keep me in the lineup is going to be my performance at the plate.”
In his rookie season in Orem, Lopez was one home run short of the triple crown with 14 homers, 72 RBIs and a .400 season batting average. He is currently batting .285 with eight home runs and 49 RBIs for the season.
Bees manager Keith Johnson echoed the importance of his bat.
“Anytime you’re at the Triple-A level and you show the ability to play as many positions as he can play and you swing the bat pretty good, there’s value in that,” he said. “That gives us a lot of flexibility, and he’s been doing a great job for us.”
The 27-year-old, who studied policy planning and development with an emphasis in real estate in college, said he ultimately wants to expand his resume a little more and take advantage of the degree.
“I learned a lot that offseason,” he said, referring to when he worked for a friend's company, “and whenever baseball is over, I hope to continue with it.”
OELTJEN UPDATE: Outfielder Trent Oeltjen suffered a fractured nose after being hit with a stray pitch in the fourth inning of the Bees' loss to Omaha Saturday. The 30-year-old made an appearance at the ballpark Sunday, and is now waiting for the swelling to go down before determining the next step.
Sarah Thomas earned a degree in Mathematics from the University of Utah and is currently pursuing an MBA at Westminster College. She has been covering sports for the Deseret News since 2008.