Salt Lake Bees: Big crowd watches Bees throttle Cubs

Salt Lake's biggest crowd of the season got their money's worth — and then some — Saturday night at Spring Mobile Ballpark.

The Bees put on quite a show for the 10,639 fans in attendance. Their 16-7 victory over the Iowa Cubs featured a rare inside-the-park homer by Sean Rodriguez and a no-hit bid by Salt Lake starter Sean O'Sullivan that extended until there was one out in the seventh inning.

By game's end, Rodriguez and Matt Brown each hit two home runs and Ryan Budde sent another one over the fence for Salt Lake.

"It was nice," Bees manager Bobby Mitchell said after the series opener between division leaders. "It's always nice — in front of a big crowd — to do well,"

It didn't take long for the Bees to get going. They stung Iowa starter Greg Reinhard with a pair of two-run homers with two outs in the first inning. Brown and Rodriguez had the blasts.

Two innings later, Salt Lake added another two-out run when Budde doubled down the third base line.

Reinhard was pulled after giving up six hits and three walks over three innings.

Iowa reliever Jesse Estrada didn't fare much better in the fourth. He gave up an RBI single to Freddy Sandoval before Brown slammed his second two-run shot. Budde later singled in another score before the Cubs switched pitchers again with two outs. Lefty Jason Ruhlman promptly surrendered a run-scoring single to Gary Patchett but got out of the jam when Budde was thrown out at second on the play.

Salt Lake sent nine batters to the plate and scored five times in the inning to build a commanding 10-0 advantage.

It swelled to a dozen when Rodriguez hit the seventh inside-the-park homer in the 16-year history of the franchise with one on in the bottom of the sixth.

"Tiring," Rodriguez said of his run around the bases. "Real tiring."

O'Sullivan's no-hit bid, meanwhile, carried over into the seventh. That's when Iowa's Jake Fox singled up the middle on a full count with one out to give the Cubs their first hit. They went on to score three runs before the inning was complete.

The Bees, however, matched the output in the bottom of the seventh when Freddy Sandoval, Brown and Rodriguez drove in runs.

Iowa followed with two scores in the eighth, but Salt Lake followed with a solo homer by Budde.

The Cubs capped all scoring with two runs in the ninth.

O'Sullivan (3-1), who pitched seven complete innings, picked up the victory.

"He had unbelievable command of his pitches and mixed them up real well," Mitchell said. "(He) just pitched a great game."

Rodriguez agreed.

"He was on point and that was fun to watch."

The series continues today at 2 p.m. Salt Lake RHP Brad Salmon (1-0, 2.08 ERA) and Iowa RHP Esmailin Caridad (3-2, 4.54 ERA) are the scheduled starters.

BEE LINES: Salt Lake's previous season-high in attendance was 10,157 on April 10th ... The Bees equaled a season-high with 19 hits ... The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have optioned catcher Bobby Wilson to Salt Lake and sent catcher Flint Wipke from the Bees to Double-A Arkansas.

e-mail: dirk@desnews.com