PCL Las Vegas Aviators

Bees Sting Shorthanded Aviators, 6-2

Published on August 7, 2021 under Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Las Vegas Aviators News Release


Long before they arrived at Las Vegas Ballpark for Friday night's Triple-A West game against the Salt Lake Bees, the Aviators knew they would be facing an uphill battle - except that hill more resembled a mountain. And it was as steep as Mt. Everest.

Thanks to a slew of injuries and yet another roster move that left his ballclub shorthanded, Las Vegas manager Fran Riordan was forced to pencil in a lineup that featured one outfielder playing second base and another playing third; one catcher playing left field and another playing first base; and a relief pitcher with a 7.71 ERA starting on the mound.

In other words, for the Aviators to win their third consecutive game and fourth in their last five, they were going to need to play perfect baseball and catch more than a few breaks.

Neither happened.

In one of its most lackluster efforts of the season, Las Vegas finished with just four hits - and produced just three baserunners through the first six innings - while six pitchers surrendered nine hits, issued eight walks and threw four wild pitches. The end result? A 6-2 loss to the Bees before a Fireworks Night crowd of 6,671.

After combining for 15 runs and 22 hits in a pair of victories over the Tacoma Rainiers (Tuesday) and Salt Lake (Thursday), the Aviators' offense had no answer for Salt Lake starting pitcher Brian Johnson. Despite entering the night with a 6.32 ERA, the southpaw completely dominated Las Vegas in his six innings of work, surrendering just a first-inning walk to Las Vegas center fielder Skye Bolt and a pair of soft singles to catcher-turned-left fielder Carlos Pèrez (one in the third and one in the sixth).

Johnson recorded six strikeouts, faced three batters over the minimum and never let a runner get as far as second base.

While Johnson had an easy go of it, the same couldn't be said for Aviators right-hander Matt Blackham, who was asked to make his first start since 2015 and just the seventh of his seven-year professional career because of a shuffling of the starting rotation. While he didn't surrender a hit in his 1 1/3 innings on the mound, Blackham walked five batters, including three of the first four he faced. Two of those three came around to score as the Bees (36-43) grabbed a 2-0 first-inning lead.

James Naile followed Blackham to the mound and got out of a two-on, one-out situation to end the second inning. However, the right-hander struggled in the third, allowing three runs on five hits as Salt Lake sent eight batters to the plate. When Las Vegas reliever Argenis Angulo replaced Naile and allowed a two-out, fourth-inning homer to Michael Stefanic, Salt Lake had a 6-0 lead. It might as well have been 16-0, given how the Aviators (40-40) were swinging the bats.

That's not to say there weren't a few bright spots for the home team on another otherwise disappointing night:

- Catcher Austin Allen, who went 3-for-4 with a double and a homer in Thursday's victory, delivered his team's first run with a solo homer in the seventh off Bees reliver Tyler Danish.

- First baseman Francisco Peña crushed an opposite-field solo homer with one out in the bottom of the ninth to extend his hitting streak to 11 games.

- Other than Stefanic's homer, Angulo pitched two solid innings, as did fellow reliever Reymin Guduan (two hits, one walk, three strikeouts). Also, southpaw A.J. Puk, who earned the save Thursday, pitched a perfect eighth inning and right-hander Grant Holmes retired three of the four batters he faced in the ninth.

- The Aviators played flawless defense, despite the fact several guys were placed in unfamiliar positions. With second baseman Nate Mondou (knee) and third baseman Vimael Machín (oblique) sidelined with injuries - and with outfielder Seth Brown having been promoted to the Oakland A's prior to the game - outfielders Mickey McDonald and Marty Bechina played third and second base, respectively. Also, Pèrez made his first start in left field, while Peña (a catcher by trade) once again manned first base, as the Aviators haven't had a true first baseman since the A's released slugger Frank Schwindel late last month.

GAME NOTES: Peña, who finished 1-for-4, is batting .356 (16-for-45) during his hitting streak with six homers and 14 RBI. He's now second on the team in home runs (16) and tied for first in RBI (51). ... Six Las Vegas pitchers combined for nine strikeouts to go with the eight walks. ... Mondou (who left Thursday's game after fouling a ball off his knee in the bottom of the sixth inning) and Mondou (who hasn't played since departing Monday's game against Tacoma) are both listed as day-to-day. ... Salt Lake leads the season series against the Aviators, 12-8 (5-3 at Las Vegas Ballpark). ... The Bees, who went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position and left seven runners on base in Thursday's loss, went 4-for-13 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10 on Friday. ... Brown was recalled to Oakland to replace outfielder Ramon Laureano, who was suspended 80 games for violating MLB's performance enhancing drug policy. Brown had spent the entire 2021 season with the A's until being optioned to Las Vegas on Sunday. He started three games during his brief stint with the Aviators and went 4-for-14 with a double, triple and RBI.

WELCOME HOME, CHAMP: A little more than a week ago, Las Vegas native Erica Sullivan was in Tokyo wowing her country by earning in a silver medal in the 1,500-meter freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics. On Saturday, the former Faith Lutheran Middle School student and 2018 Palo Verde High School graduate will at Las Vegas Ballpark, where she will participate in the pregame "Play Ball" segment.

Sullivan swam the 1,500-meter race - the first time it was ever included as an Olympic women's swimming event - in 15 minutes, 41.41 seconds, finishing only behind decorated Olympian Katie Ledecky.

ALONE AT THE TOP: The Aviators, who led all of Minor League Baseball in attendance during Las Vegas Ballpark's inaugural season in 2019, once again are a popular attraction with Las Vegas baseball fans this season. Through 44 home games, the club has welcomed 277,485 fans through the turnstiles, which is tops in the 10-team Triple-A West.

ON DECK: Veteran right-hander Homer Bailey (1-1, 4.80 ERA) will take the ball for the Aviators on Saturday and fellow righty Cooper Criswell (0-1, 5.40) in the third game of the six-game series. First is 7:05 p.m., with the first 2,000 fans through the gates receiving a free Aviators T-shirt.

Unable to make it to the ballpark Saturday? Cox Cable customers can tune into the game on Yurview Channel 14.

Catch every Aviators game throughout the season on Raider Nation Radio 920-AM, and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook @AviatorsLV. Follow Aviators beat writer Matt Jacob on Twitter @MattRJacob.

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Pacific Coast League Stories from August 7, 2021


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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