Four Burlington Bees were honored on the Prospect League’s Western Conference All-Star Team on Tuesday.
First baseman Mason Schwalbach, shortstop Kooper Schulte, outfielder Cole Yearsley and pitcher Kael Clarkson were named to the 20-player team.
Yearsley was the league’s top hitter with a .416 average. He scored 37 runs and drove in 28, finishing with a 1.116 OPS.
Schulte was sixth in the league in hitting with a .341 average. He scored 53 runs, the third most in the league this season, drove in 48 runs, and had a .943 OPS.
Schwalbach hit .392, with 31 hits and 20 RBIs.
Clarkson was 3-2 in eight starts with a 2.75 earned run average. He allowed 33 hits in 36 innings, striking out 29 while walking 12.
The Burlington Bees needed last-out heroics to extend their season.
But the Clinton LumberKings had the last answer.
Jalen Martinez’s infield single in the 10th inning scored Drew Phillips with the winning run in the LumberKings’ 3-2 win over the Bees in Friday’s Prospect League Northwest Division championship game at Clinton.
The Bees, who had won the second-half title to clinch the first playoff appearance since joining the league in 2021, had tied the game with two outs in the ninth inning when Owen Nowak singled to center field to score Jace Figuereo and Kooper Schulte.
The Bees couldn’t score in the top of the 10th inning. They had runners on first and third with two outs, but Schulte’s fly ball to left field ended the inning.
Phillips, who started on second base in the bottom of the 10th inning under the league’s extra-inning rule, advanced to third on Braeden Sunken’s wild pitch with one out. The Bees brought the infield in to try to cut down the runner at the plate, but Martinez was able to get the hit to win the game.
Clinton scored both of its runs in the second inning. Cougar Cook’s double scored Martinez, then Cook scored on James Hackett’s single.
Bees starter Kael Clarkson pitched five innings. Mitchell Cox, Zach Leuschen and Sunken held the LumberKings scoreless over the next three innings to give Burington a chance in the top of the ninth.
The Bees went 33-22 this season, including the 21-7 record in the second half, both franchise highs in the Prospect League.
The Burlington Bees finally get to experience the postseason in the Prospect League.
The Bees won on the road against the Quincy Doggy Padders 12-2 on Thursday night, clinching the second-half Northwest Division title.
The Bees (33-21) went 21-7 in the second half, winning the division title by 1 1/2 games over the Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp, who lost to the Clinton LumberKings 7-4 on Thursday.
Burlington will play at Clinton in the divisional championship game at 6:30 p.m. Friday.
The Bees, who needed to win or Illinois Valley to lose to clinch the division, led 3-2 after two innings, then pounded the Doggy Paddlers with a six-run eighth inning before adding three runs in the ninth.
Cole Yearsley’s grand slam was the big blow in the eighth inning. It was one of two Bees’ home runs in the game — Corey Boyette hit a solo home run for Burlington’s first run.
Jake Miller went 4-for-4 to lead the Bees. Owen Nowak had three hits. Yearsley and Boyette each had two.
Blake Gaskey was the winning pitcher, striking out eight over seven innings while allowing two runs.
Only a half-inning was played before Wednesday’s doubleheader showdown between the Burlington Bees and the Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp sank in the muddy depths of Community Field’s right-field turf and warning track.
A sudden heavy rain that hit right after the Bees scored two runs in the top of the first inning led to a delay of more than 90 minutes before umpires ruled that the field was unplayable.
Instead of two games that could have determined the second-half champion of the Prospect League’s Northwest Division, the two teams went their separate ways with the Bees holding a half-game lead over the Pistol Shrimp with Thursday’s regular-season finales to be played.
The Bees (32-21 overall, 20-7 second half) play at Quincy (16-37, 7-23), while Illinois Valley (31-22, 20-8) plays host to first-half division champion Clinton (33-19, 15-12). A Bees win or an Illinois Valley loss would clinch the first playoff bid in Burlington’s five seasons in the league.
“We wanted to play them today, show them that we deserve it for real,” Bees manager Owen Oreskovich said after meeting with his players in the dugout following the announcement of the cancellation. “But we’re going to go out there tomorrow with the same mentality.”
The Bees were the visiting team in the first game, which was a make-up of the June 25 game at Illinois Valley that was rained out, and struck quickly for a 2-0 lead. Cole Yearsley’s double scored Jace Figuereo, then Yearsley scored on Corey Boyette’s sacrifice fly.
But rain started to fall as the Bees took the field for the bottom of the inning, then it began pouring as Illinois Valley’s Lucas Smith stepped to the plate. Plate umpire Preston Childers waved the teams off the field as Bees staff members and players, with some help from a couple of Illinois Valley players, got the tarp on the field.
The rain stopped within 15 minutes, but after the tarp was removed, there was standing water along the warning track in front of each team’s dugout, and a large area in right field behind where the infield ended was swampy. The two teams decided to wait 90 minutes to try to play again, but the field failed to dry.
“I mean, it really rained hard there,” Oreskovich said. “We did whatever we could. We got the tarp on right away. But right field is a problem, and the warning track was a problem. That’s just real life. There was nothing we could do.”
Even if the game had been able to restarted, it likely wouldn’t have gotten finished — more rain fell 90 minutes after the game was called off.
The outfield had already taken a half-inch of rain overnight — the infield had been tarped after Tuesday’s win over Johnstown.
Now it’s all about one game.
“We’re going to be foot on the gas pedal as soon as we get on the bus tomorrow,” Oreskovich said. “We’re going to be rocking, ready to go in there and get a win to get into the playoffs.”
Photo: Bees players Jace Figuereo (24), Mitchell Cox (40), Raul Gil (15) and Jack Duncan (32) help get the tarp on the field as a heavy rain falls on Community Field during the first game of Wednesday’s scheduled doubleheader. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
Two games, one night, and a half-game separating the two teams.
Oh, and it might rain all day.
The Burlington Bees have never been to the playoffs in their five seasons in the Prospect League, but they get a chance to advance to the postseason after Tuesday’s 9-6 win over the Johnstown Mill Rats at Community Field.
The Bees (32-21 overall, 20-7 second half) maintained their half-game lead over Illinois Valley (31-22, 20-8) in the Northwest Division heading into Wednesday’s 5 p.m. doubleheader between the two teams at Community Field.
“Anyone who says it’s just another night is lying,” said Bees first baseman Keanu Spenser, who is in his third season with the team and has gone through some of the past struggles. “This is as big as it gets.”
“It’s fun,” said Bees manager Owen Oreskovich, who has led the team the last four seasons. “I’m excited for it. I know these guys are, too. We’re going to go into it full go, ready to go after it and win.”
The weather forecast isn’t good — the National Weather Service has forecasted an 80% chance of rain, with rainfall between a half and three-quarters of an inch. That just added to the importance for the Bees of getting this win and staying ahead of the Pistol Shrimp, who defeated Alton 11-1 Tuesday night.
“We were just, ‘Win this one and worry about what comes next,'” Oreskovich said. “We had to win tonight. Like you said about the weather, who knows what can happen tomorrow? It’s supposed to rain all day, but it might, or it might not. You never know.”
It’s why Oreskovich pieced together his pitching for this win, going to the bullpen after starter Alex Logan walked four and allowed two runs in the top of the first inning. The Bees tied the game on Spenser’s two-run home run in the bottom of the inning, but Oreskovich went to Jack Duncan (2-0) to start the second inning.
Reliever Jack Duncan gave the Bees four innings and picked up the win. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
“He was huge,” Spenser said. “Everybody in the bullpen did a great job, but that kept us in the game.”
Marshall Robinson got the Bees out of a second-and-third jam in the sixth without a run and then pitched a scoreless seventh, Sean O’Dowd pitched a scoreless eighth inning before giving up a run in the ninth, then Morgan Jennings got the save by getting the last three outs with the bases loaded.
“Dunc was huge,” Oreskovich said. “Marshall was huge. Sean’s first inning was really good. Then Morgan gets us out of trouble. We don’t win the game without those guys.”
The Bees slowly cut into Johnstown’s lead. Corey Boyette had an RBI single in the third inning, Lincoln Cardwell hit a solo home run in the fourth, then Burlington took the lead in the fifth on Caleb Seibers’ run-scoring single and a bases-loaded walk to Cardwell.
The Bees added two runs in the sixth when Boyette doubled to score Marcus Beatty, then Boyette scored when Kooper Schulte reached on a fielder’s choice.
Schulte’s sacrifice fly in the eighth scored Boyette with Burlington’s final run.
The stage was set for two on Wednesday.
“We had to win today, and that was our focus,” Oreskovich said. “Tomorrow is going to be fun.”
Top photo: Burlington’s Keanu Spenser (left) is greeted at home plate by Corey Boyette, Kooper Schulte and Owen Nowak after his two-run home run in the first inning. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
His pre-game meal and the 105-degree heat index didn’t make for a good combination for Burlington Bees starting pitcher Danny Harris.
Four pitches into Monday’s start against the Johnstown Mill Rats at Community Field, Harris bent over, sick, behind the Community Field mound.
Two batters into the inning, after he went over to cover first base on a ground out, Harris came back to the mound and, well, the contents of his meal were evacuated into the grass.
“I did not think I was going to throw up,” Harris said. “I thought it was just jitters and then it was like, ‘OK, I guess I’m going to throw up.”
With that out of the way, Harris stayed a while on the mound. He threw 7 ⅓ innings in the 5-3 win that helped the Bees extend their lead in the Prospect League’s Northwest Division.
The Bees (31-21 overall, 19-7 second half) have a half-game lead on Illinois Valley, just two nights before the two teams play a doubleheader at Community Field.
The Bees extended their winning streak to six games, and have won nine consecutive home games as they head into the final three days of the regular season.
“It’s a good start (to the week),” Harris said. “We’ve never had six wins in a row, now we’ve done that. We just want to keep it going.”
Harris kept going after his early gastric distress. He allowed just one run over the first seven innings before giving up two runs in the eighth.
“About halfway through that game, I thought, ‘We’re going to stick with him,,” Bees manager Owen Oreskovich said. “He was getting his outs. Not a lot of (strikeouts), but he was getting his outs. And it’s hard to take a guy out when he’s getting his outs.”
“It was just grit, work ethic,” Harris said. “It was, ‘How bad do you want to go out there and compete for your team and get a win?’ I’ve got to get a chance for my guys to make the playoffs.”
Oreskovich said he kept an eye on Harris’ health.
“He was all good,” Oreskovich said. “We were getting him iced up, getting water in him.”
Harris (4-1) allowed six hits and struck out three, getting double plays in the fourth and sixth innings after the Mill Rats got their leadoff hitters on base. He got first-pitch strikes on 17 of the first 24 hitters he faced.
“I was trying to live down in the zone,” Harris said. “Compete, get strike one, and then attack because it’s easier to get them out when they’re on their heels. I was just trying to be efficient — a groundout is the same as a strikeout.”
The Bees had a three-run seventh inning to take a 5-1 lead, and the length of the inning made Oreskovich think about taking Harris out.
“I wanted to see what he had in him,” Oreskovich said.
Harris gave up singles to Brady Gavula and Brennon Seigler, with both runners moving up on Kuyper Lashutka’s sacrifice bunt. Jace Essig’s single up the middle brought in both baserunners and ended Harris’ night.
“He was really good,” Oreskovich said.
Jack Duncan came in and retired the next two hitters on just four pitches, then Braeden Sunken pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his seventh save.
“That’s what we need out of those two, and we’re going to need that this week,” Oreskovich said.
The Bees took a 1-0 lead in the first when Cole Yearsley singled and scored when Kooper Schulte’s fly ball to right field was turned into a three-base error.
Johnstown tied the game in the third inning on Cooper Rasmussen’s sacrifice fly, then the Bees took the lead back in the fifth when Jace Figuereo scored on a wild pitch.
Schulte and Owen Nowak had run-scoring singles in the seventh, and Corey Boyette scored on a wild pitch for the Bees’ final run.
A day after going 0-for-5 in a 5-4 loss at Normal, Burlington Bees shortstop Kooper Schulte was mowing the grass behind the Community Field outfield fence.
A few hours later, after going through his normal pre-game routine, Schulte was in uniform and back at his usual position.
It’s been a summer of long days for Schulte, who along with being one of the top hitters in the Prospect League is working as an intern with the Bees, getting a full view of baseball from the playing side and the business side.
“Some days are harder than others, like when I work here in the morning and then have to play a game that night,” said Schulte, who will be a senior on Iowa’s baseball team this fall. “But honestly, it’s better for me to get up in the morning and get going than it would be for me to sleep in and be lazy.”
It hasn’t affected his play. Schulte, who opened the season getting five hits and hitting for the cycle in the 12-5 win over Quincy on May 27, is seventh in the league in hitting at .345. He has four home runs and 20 runs batted in and is tied for fifth in the league with 11 doubles, one of the reasons why he was selected to the league’s All-Star Game.
“I’m really happy,” said Schulte, who hit .268 with the Hawkeyes this season, going 0-for-12 in his final seven games. “Coming here from Iowa, I thought I needed a new start. I’m just doing things a little bit different this summer, and it’s worked out for me. Hopefully I just keep going the rest of the summer.”
It is Schulte’s second season with the Bees — he hit .373 in 2023 before a hand injury ended his season — but he’s learning about the other side of the game through the internship is doing for Iowa, where he is majoring in sport and recreation management.
“Mainly I work with the grounds crew,” Schulte said. “I get here around 10 a.m., work on the field, mow the field, work on the base paths, set up for (batting practice), all the fun stuff.
“I’ve learned quite a bit, actually. Like different ways to take care of the field. (Assistant general manager/director of stadium operations) Blaise (Rosson) has been teaching me a lot — when I ask questions, he always has answers to it. I’ve been working a little bit with operations too, like social media stuff, restocking the concession stands, and stuff like that.”
“Every single day, he’s here in the morning doing his internship stuff, and then he’s going in the (batting) cages to get in work, then he goes and gets lunch and comes back and does more work,” Bees manager Owen Oreskovich said. “He’s one of the hardest workers — he might be the hardest worker I’ve ever been around or coached. And he’s a phenomenal player as well.”
If anything, Schulte said, the summer has helped him get back to being the player he knows he can be.
“It’s just been better mentally, more than anything,” said Schulte, who is living at home in nearby New London. “I’m playing with some guys I’ve played with in the past, whether it’s been with the Bees or at Southeastern (Community College). Maybe just being back at home was important, but it’s also been more about being competitive and getting back to who I am. I needed to get back to my roots, know what makes me good and keep doing that.”
Bees manager Owen Oreskovich (left) congratulates Kooper Schulte after his triple in the season opener against Quincy. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
Schulte said his first year with the Hawkeyes taught him a lot.
“That first year, I learned the competition at the Division I level is pretty good,” he said. “I learned that I’ve got to stay on me, not listen to the outside noise or anything like that. Know what works for me, and stick to it. Trust the process.”
Schulte also has been working with his father, Justin, who is Southeastern’s head baseball coach.
“His dad raised him right,” Oreskovich said. “His dad is an incredible coach, and did an incredible job with him.”
Oreskovich said Schulte is one of the leaders in the clubhouse.
“He always speaks up, he’s always giving the pre-game speech,” he said. “He gets on guys when he has to, and he leads by example as well.”
“It’s something I wanted to do,” Schulte said. “I’m going to be a senior next season. So it’s my goal to be one of the leaders.
“I just want to be the person that I am this summer, taking it into fall (with the Hawkeyes) and then into the spring. Be competitive, be the guy that pushes my teammate, things like that.”
Top photo: Burlington Bees shortstop Kooper Schulte is batting .345 this season while also working for the team as a summer intern. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
Kael Clarkson’s first two innings set up his last four.
Clarkson allowed one run in a hot day’s work, and Caleb Seibers drove in five runs as the Burlington Bees defeated the Quincy Doggy Paddlers 11-1 in 6 ½ innings in Sunday’s Prospect League game at Community Field.
The Bees (30-21 overall, 18-7 second half) kept the lead over Illinois Valley in the battle for the second-half playoff spot from the Northwest Division. The Pistol Shrimp defeated Clinton 9-5 on Sunday, so Burlington remained percentage points ahead in first place in the division.
Clarkson (3-2) retired the first six hitters he faced, then pitched his way out of trouble in the rest of his six-inning stint. The quick work he made in those first two innings was important considering the game was played on a day when the heat index hit 100 degrees at game time.
“It really helped with my confidence,” Clarkson said. “It gave me a lot of confidence not getting crazy tired early in the game, so I could go longer into the game.”
Clarkson said the battle with the heat was more mental than physical.
“Making sure you tell yourself that you’re OK, that you’re not tired, even though you are,” he said. “That’s what helped me. Just staying positive and just trying to work through the heat. Getting quick innings is a big part of that.”
The lone run Clarkson allowed came in the third inning, when Quincy’s Jimmy Koza singled in Jack Linenfelser. But Clarkson left runners on first and third to end the inning when he struck out Tommy Harrison, starting a trend that would continue the rest of his outing.
Quincy had runners on second and third with no outs in the fourth inning, and first and second with no outs in the fifth and sixth innings, and didn’t score either time. Clarkson got two infield popups to end the fourth, a double play to end the fifth, and a strikeout and an infield popup combined with a runner thrown out trying to steal third to get out of the sixth.
“The defense always makes great plays,” Clarkson said. “They always have my back. And when I’m in those jams, I just try to get outs, get weak contact, let them work, and they’ll help me get out of all that.”
“He just beared down and dug deep there,” Bees manager Owen Oreskovich said. “That’s what you want to see out of these guys. Sometimes you don’t get that this late in the summer, but he went out and got out of trouble.”
Clarkson struck out five and walked two.
“My change-up was really working — I think I threw 12 in a row at one point,” Clarkson said. “All of my strikeouts came on changeups.”
The Bees scored six runs in the first inning, with Seibers’ two-run home run to left field capping the outburst. Burlington didn’t score again until the fifth inning, when Keanu Spenser scored on a wild pitch, then set up the 10-run rule with a four-run sixth inning that included Seibers’ three-run double down the left-field line.
Caleb Seibers (second from left) is congratulated after his two-run home run in the first inning. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
“We had that big start, but we needed to keep putting pressure on them, although we did get some runs late, which was good to see,” Oreskovich said.
Spenser and Kooper Schulte each had three hits for the Bees, who had 16 hits.
Jared Marty (2-6) was the losing pitcher for Quincy.
The Bees, who have won eight consecutive home games, play host to a two-game series with the Johnstown Mill Rats starting Monday. They close the home part of the regular-season schedule with Wednesday’s doubleheader against Illinois Valley.
“We’re all pretty excited right now,” Clarkson said. “We’re very confident we can win the rest of this week and get into the playoffs.”
Top photo: Burlington Bees starter Kael Clarkson gave up one run in six innings in Sunday’s win over Quincy. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
The Burlington Bees head into the final days of the Prospect League regular season with a rested bullpen and in first place.
The Bees’ 7-4 win over the Thrillville Thrillbillies on Thursday night was called after 5 1/2 innings because of rain and wet grounds.
The victory, combined with Illinois Valley’s loss at Clinton, puts the Bees (27-21 overall, 15-7 second half) into the Northwest Division lead by percentage points over the Pistol Shrimp.
Burlington and Illinois Valley meet at Community Field in a doubleheader on the penultimate day of the regular season next Wednesday, but the Bees head into this final stretch of the season with momentum. They’ve won seven consecutive home games, and seven of their last eight games overall.
The Bees scored four runs in the third inning, two in the fourth and three in the fifth. They had 10 hits, with every hitter getting on base at least once. Danny Rollins went 3 for 3, and Kooper Schulte and Caleb Klein each had two hits.
“Guys are locked in now and getting good (at-bats),” Bees manager Owen Oreskovich said. “It’s a beautiful thing to see.”
Rain fell throughout the game from the third inning on, and after Thrillville batted in the sixth, Thrillbillies manager Patrick Morey met with Oreskovich and plate umpire Preston Childers as the radar showed heavier rain approaching. The game was called after a short discussion.
“The field was already wet, so we couldn’t tarp it,” Oreskovich said. “And there was lightning in the area.”
What it did, though, was keep Oreskovich from using his bullpen heading into a stretch of eight games in seven days without a day off. Starting pitcher Blake Gaskey (3-1) went six innings, allowing seven hits while striking out six.
“It does help (our bullpen),” Oreskovich said. “We’ve got what, eight games in a row? So it helps, for sure.”
Photo: Burlington Bees pitcher Blake Gaskey threw six innings in Thursday’s win over the Thrillville Thrillbillies. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
Fans aren’t getting nine innings of baseball at Community Field these days.
Not that Burlington Bees manager Owen Oreskovich is complaining.
The 16-6 win over the Thrillville Thrillbillies in Wednesday’s Prospect League game was the third consecutive home win for the Bees that was decided by the league’s 10-run rule.
It’s not that the fans aren’t getting value for their tickets, considering the run production in all three games. The Bees had 15 hits in this game, with six players getting two or more hits.
The hits are coming from up and down the lineup. Marcus Beatty, hitting second, was 4 for 5 with three runs batted in. Caleb Seibers, hitting sixth, hit two home runs. Kila Teixeira, hitting seventh, went 3 for 3 and drove in two runs.
“I hope it stays like that,” Oreskovich said. “It’s very important — if we need somebody to bunt anywhere in the lineup, we can get one down and then we’ve got guys to drive the run in. It’s huge, the lineup we have right now, and hopefully we keep doing what we’re doing.”
“Just a lot of us have the mindset of putting the ball in play, making something happen, moving guys around,” said Teixeira, who is hitting .333 this season. “I hit for the situation. Whatever happens, happens after that.”
Teixiera is on a seven-game hitting streak, hitting .414 in this current stretch. Teixiera, who is from Hawaii Pacific, didn’t see any game action in the college season, but has filled in different roles for the Bees this summer.
“Coming out here to play, I’ve had fun,” Teixiera said. “I didn’t play this season, but I’ve come here wanting to show what I can do. I’ve got nothing to lose, so I just leave it all out there.”
“He puts together great at-bats, and he’s good with two strikes, too,” Oreskovich said. “It’s awesome to see.”
Bees catcher Lincoln Cardwell makes a catch on a foul ball. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
The Bees (26-21 overall, 14-7 second half) took a 3-1 lead in the third inning on back-to-back home runs by Corey Boyette and Seibers and a run-scoring single from Lincoln Cardwell.
The Thrillbillies tied the game in the top of the fourth inning, then the Bees broke the game open with seven runs in the bottom of the inning. They added six runs in the sixth, then held on to the 10-run rule in the seventh despite Thrillville getting three runs and having runners in scoring position with two outs.
Five Bees were hit by pitches, bringing their league-leading total to 100.
Michael Schaul (2-0) was the winning pitcher. Ty Anderson (0-1) took the loss.
Photo: Bees left fielder Marcus Beatty makes a leaping catch in Wednesday’s 16-6 win over the Thrillville Thrillbillies. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
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