The Las Vegas Aviators are hotter than the top floor of the Mandalay Bay parking garage.
Cade Marlowe drove in a career-high six runs Tuesday night as Las Vegas opened its six-game series against Salt Lake with a 10-6 victory over the Bees at The Ballpark at America First Square.
The Aviators improved to 50-30 and have won six of their last seven games after taking five of six from Sacramento. The victory kept Las Vegas atop the Pacific Coast League West.
Fast start withstands Bees rally
Las Vegas struck quickly, scoring three runs in the opening inning behind Michael Stefanic’s single, consecutive hit batters, a bases-loaded walk and Jared Dickey’s sacrifice fly.
The Aviators doubled their lead in the second when Marlowe launched a three-run homer to right field, his seventh of the season, chasing former major league right-hander Alek Manoah after just 1⅓ innings and giving Las Vegas a 6-0 lead.
Salt Lake answered with three runs in the second before trimming the deficit to 6-5 in the third, forcing the Aviators to turn to their bullpen earlier than planned after starter Joey Estes allowed five runs on six hits and three walks while striking out seven over three innings.
Bullpen takes control
Nick Hernandez (3-1) steadied the game with two perfect innings, striking out five of the six batters he faced to halt Salt Lake’s momentum.
Andrew Bash followed with 1⅔ scoreless innings and four strikeouts before Wander Suero struck out all three hitters he faced in the ninth to earn his third save. Aviators pitchers combined for 20 strikeouts while holding the Bees to eight hits.
Marlowe delivers career night
Las Vegas regained breathing room in the sixth when Stefanic singled for his third hit of the game and later scored on Marlowe’s RBI single to make it 7-5.
The Bees answered with a run in the bottom half, but the Aviators pulled away for good in the eighth when Brian Serven doubled and Dickey lined an RBI single to left. Marlowe capped his biggest offensive game of the season with a two-run single in the ninth.
Marlowe finished 3-for-5 with a home run, six RBIs and a stolen base. Stefanic collected three hits, while Tommy White and Serven added two apiece. Dickey drove in two runs as Las Vegas totaled 14 hits and reached the 50-win mark.
Up Next
The Aviators continue their six-game series against the Salt Lake Bees on Wednesday at The Ballpark at America First Square. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. PDT. Probable pitchers had not been announced following Tuesday’s game.
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Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Las Vegas Aces, Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.
