Offensively flat Salt Lake Bees lose fourth straight game

SALT LAKE CITY — With the promise of postgame fireworks on Saturday night — to the delight of the 13,684 spectators who flooded to Spring Mobile Ballpark — fans could forgive the fact that the Bees failed to produce any of their own.

Salt Lake's offense came out flat once again, dropping a 7-5 contest to Las Vegas. The Bees have now lost four straight games.

Salt Lake scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth before Jeff Baisley's check-swing grounder resulted in the game's final out.

"Like I've said all year, if we execute we win," Salt Lake manager Keith Johnson said. "We've had opportunities in almost every game, but we've been inconsistent. That's why we're below .500 this year. This league isn't forgiving, and there are guys on other teams who have hurt us."

The Bees got on the board in the fourth inning when Freddy Sandoval lifted a two-run homer over the wall in right, tying the score at 2-2 and waking up the crowd in the process.

Efren Navarro belted a triple to right in the bottom of the sixth — his seventh straight game with an extra-base hit — then gave the Bees a one-run lead when he scored on a bloop single by Gil Velazquez.

The lead, though, was short lived. Las Vegas' Ryan Shealy blasted a mammoth two-run shot in the top of the seventh to give the 51s a 4-3 lead. Another two-run homer, this time by Ricardo Nanita in the top of the ninth inning, gave the 51s just enough breathing room to pull out the win.

The Bees and 51s will conclude their five-game series tonight at 6:05 p.m.

email: mpayne@desnews.com