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MWL1 Burlington Bees

Bees Put up Double Digits in Win over Peoria

July 4, 2018 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Burlington Bees News Release


Burlington, IA. - It was one of the biggest crowds of the season last night, as fans were excited to see a great fireworks show after the game. But the fans also got to see their Burlington Bees (3-10,33-49) had another explosive night of offense, taking down the Peoria Chiefs (7-5,46-36) 10-6. Anfernee Benitez (2-0) appeared in his first game with the Bees since June 9th, after spending sometime down in rookie level. Benitez looked great last night in his three innings of work, allowing just one hit, and striking out three. Johan Oviedo (3-7) struggled in his three and a third innings, allowing seven runs on eight hits, walking five, and striking out four.

Bees take the lead after the third

Burlington had a rough first inning defensively, committing two errors and allowing a run to score. Irving Lopez hit a ball to shallow left, but the Bees let the ball drop, because of poor communication on calling for the ball. Later on, Keinner Pina tried picking off Lopez at first, but the Ball went past Connor Fitzsimons, allowing Lopez to reach second. That was all Julio Rodriguez needed for motivation, as he sent a single into left field, scoring Lopez and giving Peoria a 1-0 lead.

Bees got things started in the second inning, with Keinner Pina getting a two out single. Julio Garcia tied things up at 1-1, with his third triple of the season, driving in his fifth run in the past five games. Burlington then got the bases loaded with no outs in the third, after Leonardo Rivas and Hunter hit back to back singles, and Orlando Martinez drew a walk. Oviedo then lost Torres to a walk as well to drive in a run, giving the Bees a 2-1 lead. Peoria did manage to get out of the third with only one run given up, but Burlington would make them pay for letting them load them up again.

Bees take control after big fourth inning

Fitzsimons was the first of many to reach base in the fourth inning, reaching on a one out walk. After Rivas singled for his second hit, Hunter went opposite field for his second single, but this one drove in a run and gave Burlington a 3-1 lead. After Martinez drew his second walk to load up the bases again, Torres busted the game wide open. Torres cleared the bases with his second triple of the season and gave Burlington a 6-1 lead. Pina gave Burlington their fifth run of the inning later with a two out single, making the score 7-1.

Bees add a pair in the fifth

Burlington kept the offense rolling in the fifth with Rivas drawing a one out walk and Hunter reaching on his third hit of the ball game, putting runners at the corners. Patrick Dayton then committed a balk, allowing both Rivas and Hunter to score, giving Burlington an 8-1 lead. Torres then added another RBI on a single to center, giving the Bees a commanding 9-1 lead.

Peoria escapes a possible big inning

Peoria got one run on the board in the seventh on a solo homerun from Bryce Denton, making the score 9-2. However, Burlington was threatening big again in the seventh, after Hunter and Martinez singled back to back to start the inning, putting runners at the corners with no outs. Fans were expecting something big as Torres stepped up to bat again, but this time grounded into a double play. Hunter still managed to score on the play, giving Burlington an eight run lead again at 10-2.

Bees allow four runs in final two innings

The Bees looked like they lost a little bit of their focus being up 10-1, as Peoria got the bases loaded with no outs in the eighth. Burlington did catch a break though, getting the Chiefs best hitter Elehuris Montero to ground into a double play, only scoring a run and getting two outs in the inning. Rodriguez added one more run on a single to right, making the score 10-4 Burlington.

Peoria added two more runs in the ninth on a throwing error by Garcia to first, and an RBI single from Montero to make the score 10-6. Peoria did make the game more respectable looking, but the Bees never really looked like they were worried about them coming back.

Offense starting to get it going

The Bees completely overwhelmed the Chiefs pitching staff, putting up ten runs on 15 hits in the game. The offense did exactly what I had hoped they would do by being patient at the plate and it paid off, as the team drew nine walks. They had a good night going 4-15 with runners in scoring position and drove in three of their runs with two outs. Although the strikeout number was high again at 13 total, it's hard to criticize the lineup when they have gotten ten plus hits in three straight games. Hunter led the team, going 4-6 with an RBI and three runs score. Rivas reached base four times, hitting two singles and drawing two walks. Pina was 2-4 with and RBI. Martinez went 2-3 with two walks, and Torres was the star of the night, going 2-4 and driving in five runs.

Still lots of work to be done

Although these past two wins have really made this team get a lot of confidence, they still have a lot of work to do if they want to turn this season around. Burlington is still last in the division and trails the top team in the Midwest League Cedar Rapids Kernels by eight games. Burlington has shown what they are capable of in these wins over a very good Peoria team, but will need to play like this consistently if they want a shot at the postseason.

Looking Ahead

The Bees will hit the road after a six game homestand, and travel to Peoria for a two games series at Dozer Park. The Bees are expected to start Luis Madero, who is 2-6 with a 3.53 ERA in 13 starts. Madero will be looking to bounce back after a rough game against Cedar Rapids, where he allowed four runs on ten hits in five innings of work. Jesus Cruz is expected to make his fourth start with the Chiefs and has done well so far. Cruz has a 1-1 record and only a 1.64 in 11 innings of work. Opponents do have a .279 batting average against Cruz, so Burlington may want to be more aggressive, by swinging at pitches early in the count.

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