Walton grand slam powers Salt Lake’s seven-run seventh in comeback win

Donovan Walton changed the night in one swing, turning a tense game at The Ballpark at America First Square into Salt Lake’s loudest comeback of the season. His grand slam in the seventh inning capped a six-run burst that sent the Bees past El Paso 10-5 in front of 5,688 fans in South Jordan, Utah.

Salt Lake had spent most of the game chasing after El Paso jumped on George Klassen in the first inning. Five straight batters reached with two outs, three runs crossed, and the Angels’ 24-year-old right-hander was knocked out of the game before he could settle in. Klassen, born Jan. 26, 2002, in West Bend, Wisconsin, had been optioned to Salt Lake on April 12, and the early damage put the Bees in a hole they had to climb out of on a clear night with 13 mph wind blowing out to left field.

That climb came all at once in the seventh. Salt Lake batted around and stacked baserunners until Walton delivered the shot that everyone in the park would remember. The slam scored Nick Madrigal, Denzer Guzman and Trey Mancini, gave Salt Lake its first grand slam of the 2026 season and marked Walton’s first since July 2024, when he was with Sacramento. Walton entered the game hitting .283 with seven home runs and 28 RBIs, and the blast pushed his season line deeper into impact territory while giving the Bees a swing that instantly reshaped the scoreboard and the mood.

The bigger question is whether that inning says more about Salt Lake’s current form or just one explosive stretch. The answer may be both. The Bees did not let El Paso turn the early lead into separation, then seized control once the Chihuahuas’ pitching had to navigate the middle innings. Salt Lake has now won three of the first four games in the series, and the 10-5 final reflected how sharply the game tilted once the seventh opened up.

El Paso still had some production. Catcher Anthony Vilar went 2-for-3 with a walk, center fielder Nick Schnell homered for the Chihuahuas’ only long ball, and Pablo Reyes saw his on-base streak end at 30 games after an 0-for-5 night. Still, the night belonged to Walton and to a Salt Lake club that is starting to look increasingly at home in its second season at The Ballpark at America First Square, a venue that opened on April 8, 2025, and has quickly become the backdrop for a team building real momentum.