By JOHN BOHNENKAMP
Tanner Reinartz is getting his first full lesson in the difference between wood bats and metal bats.
Reinartz, playing for the Burlington Bees in the Prospect League this summer after a big first season of college baseball, has struggled a bit with the adjustment.
Wednesday’s 10-4 win over the Clinton LumberKings might have been the breakout game for the right fielder from Rochester, Indiana.
Reinartz had two hits and drove in four runs hitting in the No. 3 spot in the Bees’ lineup.
“It was great,” Reinartz said of his night. “I’ve been struggling at the plate. I’ve been getting a lot of cage work, tee work. It paid off tonight.”
Reinartz hit 15 home runs and drove in 60 runs this season at Huntington University, an NAIA school in Indiana. He hit .338 with a 1.210 OPS.
But Reinartz came into this game hitting .207 with the Bees. It’s his first season in a wood-bat league, although he said he did play in a couple of wood-bat tournaments before.
“The swing weight is completely different from an aluminum bat, and the barrel’s a lot smaller,” Reinartz said. “Your misses are misses. With an aluminum bat, you can end-cap a ball and it leaves the yard, but with a wood bat it’s a single.”
“It was good to see him have a game like this,” Bees manager Owen Oreskovich said. “I know he can hit the ball, I’ve seen him do it in (batting practice), that’s why I’ve got him hitting where he’s at.”
The Bees (4-4) struck early against the LumberKings (3-5). Leadoff hitter Foti Rigopoulos singled on the first pitch of the first inning, then Juan Fernandez followed with a double. Reinartz then singled to drive in both runners.
Reinartz then had a two-run single as part of the Bees’ seven-run fifth inning, a heavy-traffic inning that Oreskovich said shows the balance of Burlington’s lineup.
“We’ve got a lot of guys who had good at-bats,” he said.
Fernandez drove in two runs. Lucas Krebs drove in two runs hitting out of the fifth spot in the lineup.
Oreskovich got another good pitching night. Starter Riley Fuller allowed just one earned run in four innings. Ty Mikkelsen (1-0) allowed one run in two innings. Jaylan Patterson threw two shutout innings, then Jake Weissenberger pitched a scoreless ninth.
Nick Hartje (0-1) was the losing pitcher.
The Bees are now 3-0 at home, settling into their season after a five-game road trip to the eastern part of the league.
“It’s just a desire to win, come out with these boys every day and grind,” Reinartz said. “I’ve known these guys for a week, and they’re like brothers to me.”
UP NEXT: The Bees play at Quincy on Thursday night before returning home for games Friday and Saturday against the O’Fallon Hoots.
Photo: Bees manager Owen Oreskovich (left) talks to Tanner Reinartz at third base during the seven-run fifth inning in Wednesday’s game. (Steve Cirinna Photography)
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June 4, 2026
