SALT LAKE CITY — Sometimes in order to come out on top in baseball you need a little luck. At times Sunday night at Smith’s Ballpark, luck didn’t seem to be on the side of the Bees. After all, they jumped out to an early five-run lead only to have it wither away. Later, after taking a one-run lead in the bottom of the seventh, thanks to an ill-timed passed ball by the Grizzlies, the Bees found themselves locked in yet another tie, this time with extra innings looming.
All that changed in the bottom of the ninth inning, however.
With a runner on, Zach Houchins, and nobody out, Dustin Ackley crushed the game-winning walkoff homer over the right field fence, giving the Bees a thrilling 10-8 victory.
“We have had a lot of games like this this year, but we always seem to come back,” said Ackley. “That says something about this team. We don’t panic in these type of games.”
Ackley added, “There are a lot of good players on this team. That makes this sort of win possible.”
Among those who made the victory possible were Shane Robinson, who finished 3 for 5 with two RBIs, and David Fletcher, who finished 3 for 5 with two runs scored.
In the end though, it was Ackley and his homer that gave the Bees the victory.
STRONG FINISH: Thanks to two hits in this latest contest, Bees infielder extraordinaire Sherman Johnson extended his team-best hitting streak to 14 games. The streak marks the best stretch of the season for Johnson, who has had his share of struggles at the plate. Case in point, even with the hitting streak, Johnson sports a less than stellar .246 batting average.
But Johnson has made incremental improvements since making his Triple-A debut in 2016, most notably on defense. The Florida State Seminole has played every position on the diamond this season, save catcher. Johnson has also made appearances in the outfield, showcasing the requisite versatility of a big-league utility man. Still under the Angels’ control, as far as his contract status is concerned, Johnson is almost assuredly set to don the yellow and black in 2018.
OVER BEFORE IT BEGAN: The Bees' playoffs hopes were, for all intents and purposes, dashed prior to the first pitch Sunday night. The El Paso Chihuahuas, who held both a one-game lead on first place in the Pacific Southern Division and the tiebreaker between the clubs, erupted for six runs in the first inning of their contest against the Sacramento River Cats. In fact, all six runs came before the Chihuahuas recorded a single out. Outfielder Hunter Renfroe was responsible for most of the damage with a grand slam.
Sacramento made a run at it in the seventh, plating three runs, but it was all in vain as El Paso triumphed 7-3. The win marks the third straight year the defending PCL champions have claimed the Southern Division, and yet the first-place finish by the Chihuahuas is a bit of a surprise. After all, the Bees held the chief spot in the division for the majority of the season, including from May 28 to Sept. 2.
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BEELINES
Bees — 10
Grizzlies — 8
In short: Dustin Ackley hit the game-winning homer in the bottom of the ninth
Record: 72-69
Up next: Fresno RHP Cy Sneed (1-1, 9.82) at Salt Lake RHP Daniel Wright (6-10, 6.99), Monday, 12:05 p.m.
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