Prieto back from show, but Stingers lose twice

For Chris Prieto, Tuesday's return to Salt Lake City went pretty well.

For the rest of the Salt Lake Stingers, the day pretty much stunk.

Salt Lake dropped a pair of day games to the Iowa Cubs at Franklin Covey Field, 4-0 and 7-5.

The Stingers got respectable pitching in the first game but only managed one hit; in the second game, they pounded out 13 hits but had a harder time reaching home plate than the Cubs, who did a better job of bunching their 10 hits.

Prieto, meanwhile, the centerfielder who last week made his first trip to the major leagues after 12 seasons in the minors, was sent back to Salt Lake by the Angels in time for Game 2 of Tuesday's doubleheader. He got off a plane, came to the park in time to see the bottom of the seventh inning of the first game, warmed up and batted leadoff in the nightcap. He tripled in that first at-bat and scored Salt Lake's first run of the game, then singled twice to make it a 3-for-4 day.

"It's nice to do that," Prieto said of his hitting performance, "but it would have been better to get a win."

In three plate appearances with the Angels, Prieto went 0-for-2 with a sacrifice bunt, but he didn't feel intimidated by big-league pitching.

"To tell you the truth, once I settled in that first game, it was really like just another game," he said.

Prieto said he was given no indication when called up how long he might stay, but he knew that the Angels needed starting pitching, so when they called up Ervin Santana from Double-A Arkansas, he wasn't entirely surprised to be the guy sent down.

Having had a taste of the majors, though, he wants another even more than before.

"I definitely have the fire to get back there," he said.

Prieto's presence will help Salt Lake, since he's a strong defensive centerfielder and good leadoff hitter. The Stingers have been in first place in the PCL's Northern Division since opening day, but they've been inconsistent lately. Before losing the two Tuesday they'd won five in a row, and before that they lost six straight.

Tuesday's losses came at the hands of an Iowa team that has the worst record in the entire PCL. Now they embark on a 12-game road trip, the longest of the season, beginning with Oklahoma on Thursday.

"I'm looking forward to seeing this club get after it," said Stingers manager Dino Ebel.