Late Rally Not Enough as Bees Fall to Rainiers, 5-4
May 31, 2025 - Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Salt Lake Bees News Release
TACOMA, WA. - The Salt Lake Bees dropped their sixth game in a row and fifth of the series falling 5-4 to Tacoma on Saturday night.
Tacoma Rainiers 5, Salt Lake Bees 4
WP: Adonis Medina (2 - 2)
LP: Jack Dashwood (0 - 2)
Game Summary
The Bees got to Tacoma starter Jhonathan Díaz early. David Mershon led off the game with a single and moved to third on Christian Moore's double to left. J.D. Davis then put Salt Lake on the board with an RBI groundout, giving the Bees a 1-0 lead after the top of the first.
Jake Eder held the Rainiers scoreless through four innings, working around three hits with a three-up three-down fourth inning.
Salt Lake had multiple chances to pad its lead in the early innings. In the second, Chad Stevens singled and reached third on a wild pitch but was stranded. In the third, Moore singled and Davis doubled, setting up runners on second and third with one out, but a pair of outs ended the threat.
The Bees remained stuck at one run through five innings, but their breakthrough came in the sixth.
Salt Lake opened the sixth with three straight hits-Davis, Kavadas, and Lugo-loading the bases. After a strikeout, a balk by Díaz allowed J.D. Davis to score and the other runners to move up. Kyren Paris followed with a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Kavadas to make it 3-0.
But Tacoma responded quickly. Shaun Anderson gave up four hits in the bottom half, including a two-run double from Austin Shenton and an RBI single by Samad Taylor. The Bees did cut down a fourth run at the plate, but the game was suddenly tied 3-3.
The Rainiers took the lead for good in the seventh. Rhylan Thomas led off with a single and stole second before scoring on a Dominic Canzone infield hit, making it 4-3. One inning later, Spencer Packard added insurance with a solo home run down the right field line off Michael Darrell-Hicks.
Trailing 5-3 in the ninth, Salt Lake showed resilience. Kyren Paris was hit by a pitch and promptly stole second. A fielding error at first allowed Rivero to reach, and Tucker Flint's bunt resulted in a throwing error by catcher Harry Ford, allowing Paris to score and cutting the deficit to 5-4.
With runners at second and third and just one out, the Bees looked poised to at least tie the game. Christian Moore was intentionally walked to load the bases, but J.D. Davis grounded into a game-ending double play.
Game Notes
Salt Lake dropped its sixth straight game and fifth of the current road trip, despite leading in four of the five games in the series. The Bees' offensive struggles continued as they left eight runners on base and went just 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position.
The Bees finished May with an 11-15 record. After enduring a seven-game losing streak from May 7-14, they bounced back to win eight of their next nine games, including a five-game winning streak from May 20-24-their longest since an 11-game run from July 14-31, 2024.
Salt Lake suffered its third one-run loss of the series, falling to 4-8 in one-run games this season. The Bees are now 11-31 when allowing four or more runs.
Niko Kavadas stayed hot at the plate Saturday, going 2-for-4 with a run scored for his second straight two-hit game and third multi-hit performance of the series. He has now hit safely in six of his last eight games and reached base in 26 of the last 27.
Christian Moore continued his strong start with Salt Lake, going 2-for-4 on Saturday for his fifth multi-hit game in just 11 appearances. He also notched his second double with the Bees and has hit safely in seven of those 11 games.
J.D. Davis went 2-for-4 on Saturday, marking his second straight multi-hit game and third of the series. He recorded his first double since May 15 against Sacramento-his seventh of the season-and has now scored in six of his last nine games.
Chad Stevens extended his hitting streak to 10 games, posting a .341 average during that stretch with 4 home runs, 12 RBIs, 10 runs scored, and a stellar 1.205 OPS.
Jake Eder made his seventh start of the season, tossing four scoreless innings while allowing just three hits. It was his second outing of at least three innings without giving up a run and marked the fewest hits he's allowed since his May 7 start against Sugar Land.
Up Next
The Bees will look to snap their losing streak and avoid being swept in the series finale on Sunday with first pitch slated for 3:35 p.m. MST.
Pacific Coast League Stories from May 31, 2025
- Rainiers Rally Late to Beat Bees 5-4, Win Sixth-Straight - Tacoma Rainiers
- Late Rally Not Enough as Bees Fall to Rainiers, 5-4 - Salt Lake Bees
- Sugar Land Scores Four Runs in the Ninth, But Comeback Falls Short - Sugar Land Space Cowboys
- Aces Silenced by Express in 6-0 Loss - Reno Aces
- Tacoma Rainiers Game Notes - vs. Salt Lake - Tacoma Rainiers
- OKC Comets Game Notes - May 31, 2025 - Oklahoma City Comets
- Tacoma Uses Big Second Inning to Cruise Past Salt Lake - Salt Lake Bees
- Aviators Top Comets, 9-7 - Oklahoma City Comets
- Rainiers Strike Out Season-High 16 Bees in 7-2 Victory, Earning Series Win - Tacoma Rainiers
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