How a beekeeper became the talk of Major League Baseball

A game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers was delayed for nearly two hours Tuesday — because of bees.

Just minutes before the game started, stadium officials realized that thousands of bees had accumulated at the top of the home plate netting. The Diamondbacks had to call in a beekeeper, Matt Hilton, to remove the bees.

Once he arrived at Chase Field in downtown Phoenix, Hilton rode out onto the field in a bullpen cart and hopped on a scissor lift to get up to the swarm. He then sprayed the bees and vacuumed the swarm up for their eventual relocation.

The Diamondbacks rewarded Hilton for saving the day by having him throw out the game’s first pitch in his beekeeping gear.

“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,” he told Arizona Sports.

Why did the game have to be delayed?

Hilton told Arizona Sports’ “Bickley & Marotta Show” that the swarm broke off from a larger colony and randomly chose Chase Field as its new home. He said it doesn’t take long for the swarm to form.

“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,” he said.

The bees were moved to keep fans and players safe. If a foul ball hit the net, the bees could have been provoked and sent into a stinging frenzy, according to Hilton.

“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,” he said.

How beekeeper Matt Hilton has taken over baseball

The world of baseball has had fun with Hilton and Arizona’s bee delay. Even the Salt Lake Bees joined in on the fun with a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Hilton’s game-saving performance also earned him his own baseball card.

Topps announced on X Wednesday that it signed a deal with Hilton to make autograph cards of Hilton and the bee swarm.

The card was only available for purchase Wednesday and Thursday. Fans could purchase a single card for $8.99, a five pack for $32.49, a 10 pack for $54.99 or a 20 pack for $89.99.