This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Todd Cunningham belted a three-run homer in the eighth inning to give the Salt Lake Bees a 7-6 win over the host Albuquerque Isotopes on Sunday night.
Salt Lake trailed 6-3, but scored one run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Cal Towey. With two outs and nobody on base in the eighth, Brendan Ryan and Sherman Johnson were walked by Rockies reliever Adam Ottavino, who is on an injury rehab assignment with the Isotopes. After a double steal put them at second and third, Cunningham lofted a 3-1 pitch into the left-field bullpen for his fourth home run of the season and put the Bees in front by a run.
An error and a walk put the potential tying and winning runs on base for Albuquerque in the bottom of the ninth. Salt Lake relief pitcher Jose Valdez retired the next two batters on a pair of pop ups. Former Bee Chris Nelson was at the plate when Valdez threw a wild pitch to move both runners into scoring position. He worked the count full before flying out to end the game and give Valdez his first save with Salt Lake. Chris O'Grady (2-1) worked a scoreless seventh inning to earn the victory. Towey led the Bees with two hits and two runs batted in, as all nine starters had at least one hit. Dating back to last season, Salt Lake has now won eight consecutive games versus the Isotopes.