When I get to put on a hat like that or a jersey like that, I’m representing somebody that lived that memory. Fifty years from now, somebody’s going to throw on a throwback Angels jersey with the No. 44 that I wore, and for me, that’s special because you’re a part of history. Hopefully I can play just as hard as the guys that wore this jersey. – Daniel Robertson
Saturday night’s contest between Salt Lake and Sacramento may have raised some eyebrows and caused confusion to the fans at Smith’s Ballpark.
Throwing things back to the ’70s, the usual black-and-yellow cladded Bees came out of the dugout in rockin’ orange caps and hats with turquoise script in honor of the Salt Lake Gulls in the Bees/Gulls' 6-4 win over Sacramento in the series opener.
On the mound, starting pitcher Alex Sanabia put together six solid innings of work to register just his second win of the season, his first in 14 starts. Sanabia gave up seven hits and a home run, but he limited the damage to just four runs in his time on the bump, and struck out five in the process.
Leading the way at the plate was Alfredo Marte, who went 2-for-3 at the plate with three RBIs, but his biggest hit came in the fifth inning. With the game tied at 3-3, Marte stepped into the batter’s box and lined one deep to left for a three-run home run. The ball screamed off his bat, making its way out of the park in a hurry to give the Bees a 6-3 lead.
Before the Bees existed, there were a number of other teams that made their way through Salt Lake, including the Gulls. Created in 1970, the Gulls were a minor-league affiliate for the California Angels until 1981, when the team changed alliances to the Seattle Mariners. They were in the same league that the Bees play in now, the Pacific Coast League, and even won titles in 1971 and 1979.
There’s a rich history of baseball in Salt Lake City, whether with the Bees or the Gulls. Some notable names that appeared in Gulls lineups were Alvin Davis, Ken Phelps and Harold Reynolds, but one current Bee who understands and respects the tradition of the sport in the Beehive State is outfielder Daniel Robertson.
“When I get to put on a hat like that or a jersey like that, I’m representing somebody that lived that memory,” Robertson said of the team’s ensemble on Saturday. “Fifty years from now, somebody’s going to throw on a throwback Angels jersey with the No. 44 that I wore, and for me, that’s special because you’re a part of history. Hopefully I can play just as hard as the guys that wore this jersey.”
Robertson didn’t play in Saturday’s contest, but it’s probably because he was getting some much-needed rest after his near-two-month stint in the major leagues, one of the longer stays for any Bee this season. In addition to fine-tuning his game in Anaheim, Robertson got to rub shoulders with one of the best hitters the game will ever see in Albert Pujols and probably baseball’s best overall player in Mike Trout.
“Those are two of the best players in the game,” Robertson said of Pujols and Trout. “Just to be able to be around them on a daily basis and see how they go about their business to see how they approach the game … that was big to me.”
After the Angels made a number of transactions before the trade deadline on Friday, Robertson found himself back in Salt Lake City with the Bees, but before that, the outfielder took as many notes as possible.
The Bees and the Angels sit on opposite ends of the win-loss spectrum, as Salt Lake boasts the PCL’s worst record while Los Angeles sat in first place in the American League West for much of the season before a five-game skid placed it three games behind the Houston Astros.
Robertson saw firsthand what it takes to win at the major-league level, and he hopes to take what he observed there and apply it in Salt Lake City to help turn things around down the last stretch of the 2015 campaign.
“It sounds like a broken record, but it’s kind of what’s instilled in me in a way that I play the game, all I want to do is win,” Robertson said. “If I can be linked to teams that win, then I feel like I’ve done my job. … I’m gonna play the game to win."
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GAME NOTES: Saturday's win was the third straight for the Bees. … Seven Salt Lake players recorded a hit. … Kyle Kubitza hit his 35th double of the season. … The attendance was 8,115. … The River Cats are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.
Twitter: @GriffDoug