ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

Bee guy Q&A: Matt Hilton explains of why swarm delayed Dodgers-Diamondbacks

May 1, 2024, 11:12 AM

Beekeeper clearing the bees at Chase Field D-backs-Dodgers game....

Beekeeper clearing the bees at Chase Field. (Arizona Sports Photo/Felisa Cardenas)

(Arizona Sports Photo/Felisa Cardenas)

We know there are questions swarming in your head about how the Diamondbacks-Dodgers game on Tuesday night got delayed by a mass of bees accumulating on the home plate netting. You probably want to know why that happens and how the “bee guy” became a local celebrity in an instant.

Bickley & Marotta had a chance to better understand the curious behavior of bees when beekeeper Matt Hilton of Blue Sky Pest Control joined the show on Wednesday morning.

Some questions were answered by the bee guy:

Why did the bees swarm and collect in Chase Field?

“When a bee colony gets large enough, there’s a large chunk of bees that will break off from the original colony and they’ll have a new queen with them as well. That’s called a swarm. That will fly a bit and it’ll land somewhere — usually it’s pretty random. When they land they just have that queen in there and all the bees are just surrounding her, protecting her.”

Why did nobody notice the bees near home plate? Do they really gather that quickly?

“(Bees will form a ball) in a matter of minutes. Once the swarm shows up, you’re talking thousands of bees that will just cruise into an area. When they decide a spot to land, those thousands and thousands of bees, they’re landing and all balled up in a matter of minutes.”

Can the bees get agitated?

“They can. The reality is most times when they’re swarming like this, they’re pretty docile. Their main focus is just covering that queen bee and protecting her. But if they do get riled up — let’s say a ball had hit the net and it disturbed them — then they can get agitated and that’s when it can start turning south.”

You handle bees every day at work. Did you get nervous about performing work in front of thousands of fans?

“Oh, yeah. It was absolutely crazy. My mind kept going through all the scenarios of how it could go south on my drive out there. Yeah, luckily it went really well. It couldn’t have gone any better actually.”

So do beekeepers always have their gear ready to go in their car?

“Yeah. I always have my bee gear ready to go. … We get deployed quite frequently, and often with bee situations, it’s a very urgent matter that we got to respond very quickly.”

How was throwing out the first pitch?

“That was super, super cool. I don’t know who they had planned to do the first pitch if it weren’t me … I feel bad for the guy. I was happy to do it. I was a little bummed I didn’t get the strike. I won’t talk too much about how far right that went. … I won’t be drafted anytime soon.”

Arizona Diamondbacks

Trey Mancini...

Alex Weiner

Diamondbacks take a chance on former Orioles slugger Trey Mancini

The Diamondbacks have agreed to a minor league contract with former Orioles slugger, cancer survivor and World Series champion Trey Mancini.

5 hours ago

Randal Grichuk...

Alex Weiner

Randal Grichuk returns to Diamondbacks on 1-year deal

The Diamondbacks have agreed to re-sign outfielder Randal Grichuk, who finished red hot in 2024, Mark Feinsand first reported on Tuesday.

3 days ago

MLB umpire Pat Hoberg was fired by the league on Monday over sports gambling...

Associated Press

Umpire Pat Hoberg fired by MLB for sharing sports gambling accounts with friend who bet on baseball

Umpire Pat Hoberg was fired by MLB on Monday for sharing his legal sports gambling accounts with a friend who bet on baseball games.

4 days ago

Diamondbacks Kristian Robinson...

Alex Weiner

Diamondbacks announce spring training roster with Gino Groover, Kristian Robinson

The Diamondbacks released their spring training roster for big league camp on Friday, including prospects Gino Groover and Kristian Robinson.

7 days ago

Garrett Hampson...

Alex Weiner

D-backs signing stout defender Garrett Hampson to minor league deal, spring training invite

The Arizona Diamondbacks are signing utility defender Garrett Hampson to a minor league deal with a spring training invitation.

7 days ago

The roof of Chase Field is opened prior to the game between the Washington Nationals and the Arizon...

Brandon Cadiz

Diamondbacks: Chase Field roof will be ready by Opening Day

Fans can rejoice, as the Arizona Diamondbacks will have their Chase Field roof fully functional for Opening Day for the first time in two seasons.

8 days ago

Bee guy Q&A: Matt Hilton explains of why swarm delayed Dodgers-Diamondbacks