AZL Cubs Season Comes To An End
The tough thing about a one game playoff series is there are no second chances, and that’s exactly what the AZL Cubs wanted after this one. The Cubs committed six errors and were generally sloppy all night as they fell to the Athletics 15-3 and were eliminated from the playoffs.
Paul Blackburn got the start for the Cubs and was decent over the first three innings giving up three runs on four hits while striking out three. The Cubs were in a 3-0 hole early but got right back into it with two runs in the fourth to cut the deficit to one, unfortunately that’s as close as they would get. The A’s scored seven times in the fateful 6th inning that saw three walks, and two wild pitches from Cubs pitching. The A’s would add three more in the 7th and one final tally in the 8th to put this one to bed. Carlos Penalver had a great game at the plate going 3-for-4, but hit with no one on all night. Trevor Gretzky also had a solid game at the plate going 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI’s. Juan Paniagua was the bright spot out of the Cubs pen as he tossed two strong innings giving up one run, unearned, on one hit while walking two and striking out one.
Unfortunately the Cubs were not playing with a full deck as Shawon Dunston Jr. was unable to go tonight, I’m sure he wanted to but the organization was being cautious with him after he was hit by a pitch earlier this week. Great season from the Cubs, they crushed the ball all year, unfortunately they didn’t have enough to get past the A’s. Most of these players will head to instructional leagues during the off-season, we will keep you up to date on their progress all off-season and have a season recap in the next few days.
Thanks for reading,
- George
AZL Cubs – Playoffs Start Tonight (BRACKET)
It doesn’t get any bigger than this, here is a reminder of how the AZL playoffs work.
The three division winners will be joined by a Wild Card team in the playoffs. The team with the best record will meet the Wild Card team and the other two division winners will meet in one-game playoffs. The two winners will meet in a championship game.
Here is a fancy bracket that I made.
It’s win or go home, the winner of the two games tonight will face off in the Championship Game. Both games are scheduled to start at 9:00 PM CST, we will have full updates. The Cubs and A’s have not announced starters yet, when they do I will update this post. Go Cubs!!
Thanks for reading,
- George
Vogelbach and Martinez-Pumarino Named to AZL All-Star Team!
It’s a short season so the AZL selects an all-star team as an end of year award. It’s not your typical, you’re an all-star now go play in a meaningless game, it’s basically an MVP award at each position, with one player awarded the overall MVP award. The AZL Cubs have two players that have been named best at their position for 2012, first baseman Daniel Vogelbach and relief pitcher Carlos-Martinez-Pumarino!
Both guys had outstanding seasons for the AZL Cubs, what’s most impressive is Daniel Vogelbach was not even with the AZL Cubs for the whole season, quite the accomplishment. The full list of MVP’s can be found here, here’s a look at what Vogelbach and Martinez-Pumarino did this year.
Congrats to both guys, and good luck in the playoffs as both Boise and the AZL Cubs are headed there.
Thanks for reading,
- George
8/27: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Here is the start of the last week of the regular season in the minor leagues. The Boise Hawks were off and Daytona was postponed.
The Cubs scored three in the second and that was enough as they beat the Giants 3-1. Ryan McNeil was outstanding pitching four scoreless, hitless innings. he did however walk three and struck out two, his ERA now sits at 1.35. Corbin Hoffner was equally as impressive striking out five in two scoreless innings. After Chad Marin gave up a run, Alvido Jimenez came in and struck out two, pitching 1.1 perfect innings and getting the win. Steve Perakslis pitched the ninth and notched his second save of the season. Yasiel Balaguert was all the offense the Cubs needed hitting a three-run home run in the second. Carlos Penalver, David Bote, and Dan Lockhart all had a hits a piece in the Cub win.
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Peoria beat Wisconsin again on Monday, beating them 7-3. Starling Peralta was good on Monday starting and getting his fifth win of the year. He pitched six innings allowing two runs on three hits, while walking two and striking out eight. Luis Liria struck out two in two innings and Bryce Shafer pitched the final frame giving up a run and striking one out. Jacob Rogers had another nice night at plate going 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs. Bijan Rademacher had two hits of his own knocking in two on the night and Chadd Krist had a hit and an RBI as well. Timothy Saunders and Dustin Geiger each had a hit and scored a run, with Saunders stealing his seventh base of the season. Jorge Soler had a double and scored two runs in the win.
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Tennessee scored five in the first two innings and held on to beat Mobile 5-3. Dae-Eun Rhee started and got the win going five innings, allowing two runs, one earned on eight hits. Zach Rosscup, Casey Weathers, and Tony Zych combined to pitch the next three innings and got the ball to Brian Schlitter who notched his fifth save of the season pitching a perfect ninth. Jae-Hoon Ha had nice night at the plate going 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs. Junior Lake and Logan Watkins each had two hits, with Watkins scoring a run and Lake having a double. Matt Szczur and Rubi Silva each had a hit in the Smokies win.
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Iowa scored two in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough losing to Nashville 4-3. Seth McClung started and took the loss allowing four runs on eight hits in five innings. Esmailin Caridad, Jaye Chapman, and Marcus Hatley all pitched a hitless and scoreless inning each of baseball. Greg Rohan ended the night 2-for-4 with a home run, his fourth since moving to Iowa. Dave Sappelt hit his seventh homer of the season, a two run shot in the ninth. James Adduci, Tony Campana, and Alfredo Amezaga all had a hit in the Cubs loss on Monday night.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
8/26: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Sunday’s minor league recap. Daytona did not play as they had a scheduled day off.
The AZL Cubs won a big one on Sunday beating the Athletics 5-2. Duane Underwood started and pitched the first 2.1 innings giving up two hits and allowing no runs. Juan Paniagua got the win striking out three over the next 1.2 innings. After Carl Lang gave up one run in his inning Anthony Prieto pitched the next two, followed by Carlos Martinez-Pumarino who finished this one off giving up a run, but striking out three in two innings. Ben Carhart had another nice night at the plated going 3-for-5 with an RBI. Trevor Gretzky got his average over .300 as he went 3-for-4 with a run scored in this one. Carlos Penalver and Jeff Baez each had two hits a piece with Baez knocking in one run. Shawon Dunston had a double and an RBI in the Cubs win. With the win the Cubs are now only one game in back of the Athletics for the division lead.
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After winning the division on Saturday, Boise came back Sunday and lost 5-1 to Vancouver. Felix Pena got the start and took the loss allowing four runs on five hits over 4.1 innings. He also walked three and struck out five. Su-Min Jung and Tyler Bremer combined to pitch the final 3.2 innings on Sunday. The Hawks had a few highlights at the plate, however. Jeimer Candelario ended the night 2-for-3 and Darien Martin also had two hits. Stephen Bruno had yet another hit in this one and also drove in the Cubs lone run. Gioskar Amaya and Marco Hernandez each a hit in the Boise loss.
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Peoria was all over Wisconsin from the get go, eventually winning 10-3. Jeffry Antigua was outstanding on Sunday pitching seven strong innings allowing no runs on three hits, while striking out seven. Pete Levitt pitched the final two frames allowing three unearned runs in the ninth inning. Dustin Geiger led the way offensively going 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Jorge Soler go into the fun as well going 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.. Jacob Rogers also had two hits, including his first home run with Peoria. The top of the order did their job as well, as Zeke DeVoss and Pin-Chieh Chen each had two hits. DeVoss added a run and an RBI and Chen scored four runs and drove one in as well. Oliver Zapata and Sergio Burruel each had hits with Zapata adding an RBI in the Chiefs victory.
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Tennessee scored one in the bottom of the eighth to win the game 4-3. Eric Jokisch was pretty good in this one giving up three runs on eight hits in seven innings. He also walked one and struck out four, his ERA now sits at 2.97. Trey McNutt continued to pitch well out of the bullpen pitching the final two innings and getting the win. Jae-Hoon Ha was outstanding at the plate going 3-for-4 with a double, triple, RBI, and a runs scored. Elliot Soto was 2-for-3 with an RBI and Rubi Silva had a hit and an RBI of his own. Matt Szczur also contributed with hit and a run scored in the Smokies victory.
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Iowa scored one in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough losing 4-3 to Oklahoma City. Chris Rusin got the start and pitched good, but took the loss. He pitched seven innings, allowing three runs on four hits, while walking one and striking out seven. Blake Parker tossed the final two innings allowing one run and striking out two. James Adduci, Blake Lalli, and Matt Tolbert all were 2-for-4 with Adduci knocking in a run and Lalli scoring two. Brian Esposito had a double and an RBI and Adrian Cardenas pinch hit with an RBI single in the Cubs loss.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
The AZL Cubs Are in the Playoffs
On the same night the Boise Hawks won their division in the second half, the AZL Cubs have also clinched a playoff berth. The Cubs are currently 35-18 and have at least clinched the wild card for the Arizona League. They are still battling the Athletics for the Arizona League East division lead as they currently sit two games back with three to play, one being against the A’s. Here are the playoff procedures for the Arizona League. There will be three division leaders and one wild card team going to the playoffs. The team with the best record will face the wild card team and the other two division winner will play each other in a one-game playoff. The winners of those two games will then meet in the championship game. It looks like the game for the Cubs will be against the Athletics no matter what as the East division winner will most likely have the best record and the other will be the wild card team. When it becomes official we will let you know.
Thanks for Reading and Go Cubs!!!
-Mark
8/25: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Saturday’s minor league recap.
It was a game of big innings early, until the ninth when the AZL Cubs walked off with another win, this time 8-7. Paul Blackburn started, but wasn’t at his best giving up three runs on four hits in three innings of work. Rafael Dolis and Jasvir Rakkar each pitched an inning allowing two runs a piece. Ethan Elias did a great job keeping the Giants at seven runs as pitched the next three innings allowing no runs on no hits, while walking two and striking out four. The good luck charm Steve Perakslis improved his record to 4-0 as he got the win after pitching a scoreless ninth. The Cubs had a lot of nice days offensively. Carlos Penalver and Yasiel Balaguert each had two hits and drove in two a piece. Ben Carhart was 2-for-6 with a walk off single and Shawon Dunston had one hit, a double and three RBIs. Trevor Gretzky and David Bote both contributed with two hits and combined two score three runs for the Cubs. Daniel Lockhart and Garrett Schlecht each had a hit and an RBI in the Cubs victory. The victory clinched a spot in the playoffs for the Cubs.
Boise got out to a quick start and held on to beat Vancouver 8-6. After a recent struggle Jeimer Candelario appears to have broken out as he went 3-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored, and three RBIs. Stephen Bruno stayed red-hot going 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. Dan Vogelbach also had two hits, including a double and an RBI. Wilson Contreras and Gioskar Amaya each had a hit with Contreras knocking in two and Amaya one. Albert Almora left the game early with an apparent injury, but I have no word yet as to what the problem was. Ian Dickson started, but did not factor in the decision as was only able to last 4.1 innings as he allowed four runs on seven hits. Hunter Ackerman did get the victory as he threw the next 2.2 innings giving up one run and striking out five. Eduardo Orozco got the ball to Nathan Dorris and Dorris closed out the win and the second half for Boise. With the victory Boise is the second half winners and are headed to the playoffs.
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A three run fourth was enough for Joseph Zeller and the Cubs bullpen as they beat Wisconsin 3-2. Zeller pitched quite well giving up one run on seven hits in six innings. Sheldon McDonald pitched the next two innings allowing one run, but got the ball to Larry Suarez who notched his fifth save of the season striking out two in a scoreless ninth. Timothy Saunders had another nice night going 2-for-4 with a homer and a double. Chadd Krist also hit a home run, a two run shot in the fourth inning. Oliver Zapata had a hit, two walks, and two stolen bases and Zeke DeVoss also added a hit in the Chiefs win.
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Daytona lost game one to Tampa 3-2. Although they only had three hits, they threatened late, but couldn’t finish. Ronald Torreyes, Elieser Bonne, and Vladimir Frias were the only Cubs to have hits on Saturday. Nelson Perez drove in the two Cubs runs in game one without the benefit of a hit. Eduardo Figueroa started, but took a no decision as didn’t give up a run in four inning, while striking out six. Matt Spencer took the loss as he really struggled with his command walking five and allowing all three of the Yankees runs to score in just 0.2 innings. Matt Iannazzo finished game one out throwing a scoreless 1.1 innings.
Daytona returned the favor in game two as Ryan Searle and staff only allowed three hits in a 4-1 win. Searle started and pitched pretty good going five innings allowing one run on three hits and striking out five. From there Jeff Lorick pitched a scoreless sixth and Scott Weismann notched his fourth save of the season throwing a perfect seventh. John Andreoli and Ronald Torreyes hit one-two in the order and set the table of the Cubs in this one. Torreyes was 2-for-4 with a triple, two runs scored, and an RBI. John Andreoli was also 2-for-4 with a double, triple, and two runs scored. Rebel Ridling had two hits of his own and drove in one run and Nelson Perez drove in another run, again not having a hit. Javier Baez broke through with a double in the victory.
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Mobile scored one in the ninth to tie it and got one in the 10th to beat Tennessee 4-3. Nicholas Struck was in line for the win pitching seven innings, allowing two runs, one earned on six hits, while striking out six. Zach Rosscup did his job getting the ball to Frank Batista, but Batista couldn’t get the save in this one allowing the ninth inning run. Casey Harman took the loss allowing an unearned run in the 10th. Rubi Silva had a nice night at the plate going 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs. Jae-Hoon Ha had three hits and Junior Lake had two hits and a run scored. Logan Watkins was 1-for-5 with a home run for the Smokies in the tough loss on Saturday.
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Things have been better for Iowa as of late and Saturday was no different as they beat Oklahoma City 4-1. Ty’Relle Harris started and got the win pitching six strong innings. He allowed one run on four hits while striking out six. Miguel Socolovich and Jeff Beliveau each pitched a perfect frame to get the ball to Jairo Asencio who struck out two and pitched a scoreless ninth to record his fifth save of the season. The Cubs had a few nice nights offensively on Saturday starting with Diory Hernandez who had a home run and three RBIs. Dave Sappelt was 2-for-4 with an RBI and Matt Tolbert also had two hits with a run scored. Greg Rohan and Jeff Frazier each had two hits a piece with Frazier having two doubles and Rohan having one. It is good to see Iowa finishing the season strong.
It was an exciting night, Congrats to Boise Hawks and the AZL Cubs in clinching a playoff birth.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
8/24: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Our nightly trip through the Cubs minor leagues. The AZL Cubs were off on Friday night.
Things were looking good for Boise after a six run second, but Vancouver quickly scored four in the bottom half and ended up beating the Hawks 7-6. With Tayler Scott staked to a four run lead, it was easy to assume this one was over, but Scott was not at his best today, but left with a chance to win as he left with the lead. He pitched five innings allowing five runs on seven hits, while walking four and striking out three. Rafael Diplan pitched the final three innings and took the loss as he gave up two runs, one of which was unearned. At the plate Marco Hernandez had a good night going 3-for-4 with a run scored. Albert Almora and Jeimer Candelario also had good nights as each had two hits with Almora scoring a run. Lance Rymel had one hit on the evening and also drove in two runs. Darien Martin and Stephen Bruno each had a hit and an RBI in the loss. Not a good loss for Boise, but they have come back strong all second half, I expect much of the same.
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Beloit took an early lead and never looked back beating Peoria 8-2 on Friday night. Yao-Lin Wang started and took the loss pitching 4.1 innings and allowing six runs, four earned on 10 hits. Willengton Cruz pitched two innings allowing two runs and Austin Reed pitched a scoreless frame. There were only a couple bright spots on the offensive side of things for the Chiefs in this one. Dustin Geiger was 2-for-3 with a home run, his 17th of the season and two RBIs. Chadd Krist also had two hits and Zeke DeVoss added a hit and scored a run as well. Jorge Soler got the night off for Peoria.
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Daytona won the first game of a double-header on Friday 4-3. Kyle Hendricks started and got his first win with the Cubs as he went five innings allowing two runs on three hits, while striking out three. AJ Morris recorded his fifth save of the season as he pitched the final two innings of game one. Down 2-0 Elieser Bonne quickly gave the Cubs the lead connecting on a three run homer, his third of the season. In the sixth inning Christian Villanueva gave Daytona a two run lead as he hit his third home run since coming to the Cubs. John Andreoli had two hits in the win.
Game two didn’t go as well as Daytona lost to Tampa 11-5. Matt Loosen had a really rough outing as he gave up eight runs on five hits to go along with six walks and seven strikeouts. Hunter Cervenka proved to not be much better allowing three more runs over the next 2.2 innings. Offensively speaking Christian Villanueva started right where he left off going 2-for-3 witha double and two runs scored. Elieser Bonne also had two hits including a double and John Andreoli had a hit and two RBIs. Rebel Ridling and Nelson Perez each had a hit and an RBI a piece. Javier Baez was held hitless in game one, but added a hit and an RBI in the game two loss.
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A seven run third inning helped Tennessee beat Mobile 11-5. Dallas Beeler was the beneficiary of all those runs as he got the win despite giving up five runs in five innings. Kevin Rhoderick and Tony Zych pitched two scoreless innings a piece to close out the game. The Smokies a had few really nice nights at the plate starting with Matt Sczcur who was 2-for-4 with a home run and three runs scored. Logan Watkins was 3-for-5 with a double, two runs scored, and an RBI. Jae-Hoon Ha and Rubi Silva each had two hits with Ha having two doubles and driving in three. Silva hit his first home run and drove in two. Junior Lake had a home run of his own and knocked in three. Justin Bour had a double and walked three times, but unbelievably didn’t have an RBI in the Smokies 11 run win.
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Iowa scored two in the seventh and one in the eighth to defeat Oklahoma City 5-3. Yoanner Negrin started, but did not factor in the decision as he gave up three runs on eight hits in six innings pitched. Jay Jackson got the win in relief as he pitched a scoreless seventh inning. After Scott Maine threw a scoreless eighth Jairo Asencio struck out two in the ninth and picked up his fourth save. Tony Campana had a nice night at the top of the order going 2-for-4 with a triple, a run scored, and an RBI. Jeff Frazier and Diory Hernandez each had two hits with Hernandez driving in one run. Adrian Cardenas had only one hit, but it was a home run as he knocked in two in the Cubs win.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
8/23: Around the Cubs Minor League System
A look at August 23 minor league recap.
Down 8-2 the AZL Cubs came storming back to not only tie the game in the ninth, but score five in the 10th to win it. Dillon Maples started, but struggled with his control walking four and giving up four runs in just 1.2 innings. After Loiger Padron gave up four runs over 2.1 innings the rest of the pen did a pretty good job only allowing one more run to score. Chad Martin ended up getting the win as he struck out four in just one inning. Justin Marra had a good night at the plate going 3-for-5 with three doubles and two RBIs. David Bote and Trevor Gretzky each had two hits and two RBIs a piece in the win. Shawon Dunston had two hits and an RBI and Yasiel Balaguert drove in two runs of his own. Ben Carhart ended the night 1-for-4 with an RBI and three runs scored and Anthony Giansanti scored two and knocked on in as well. This was a great comeback win for the Cubs.
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Boise has been scoring a lot of runs lately and Thursday was no different beating Vancouver 11-5. Boise once again pounded out 17 hits to go along with their 11 runs. Albert Almora was back in the lineup and he went 4-for-5, including two doubles, three runs scored, and two RBIs. Wilson Contreras and Darien Martin each had three hits with Martin knocking in three runs and Contreras scoring three and driving in one as well. Dan Vogelbach and Stephen Bruno each had two hits, both collecting doubles. Rock Shoulders and Izaac Garsez both had a hit and RBI in the Hawks victory. Hayden Simpson started and got the win as he allowed three runs on six hits in five innings, while striking out seven. Brian Smith pitched two nice innings in relief not giving up a run and striking out two. Tyler Bremer finished this one off for the Hawks striking out two over the last 1.1 innings. Boise’s magic number is now at two.
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Behind Michael Jensen Peoria beat Beloit 6-1. Jensen was stellar pitching six innings allowing only one run on two hits, while striking out four. He is now 11-5 with a 3.47 ERA. Justin Berg and Larry Suarez combined to pitch the final three innings, not giving up a run and striking out three. Leadoff hitter Zeke DeVoss had a really nice game going 3-for-4 with a home run. Pin-Chieh Chen continued to impress as he had two hits, two runs scored, and two RBIs. Jorge Soler and Chadd Krist each had a double and Soler had an RBI. Timothy Saunders is human as he didn’t have a hit in this, but he did drive in a run and Jacob Rogers contributed to the win with a hit and a run scored.
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Robert Whitenack gave up three in the first and that was all Clearwater would need beating Daytona 3-0. On a positive note Kyler Burke pitched three scoreless innings in relief striking out three. Matt Iannazzo, Scott Weismann, and Jeff Lorick combined to throw the final two innings of the game. Offensively there really is nothing to report as Daytona only had three hits. John Andreoli, Ronald Torreyes, and Rebel Ridling were the only Cubs to have hits in the shutout loss.
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After scoring five runs over the first two innings Tennessee had to hold on in this one beating Chattanooga 5-4. Austin Kirk started, but got a no decision as he wasn’t able to finish five innings giving up four runs in 4.2 innings. He gave up four hits, walked five, and struck out six. Trey McNutt pitched a perfect innings and recorded his eighth win of the season. Brian Schlitter struck out three in two innings and Frank Batista earned his 24th save of the season as he pitched a scoreless ninth. At the plate Justin Bour was 2-for-4 including his 35th double and an RBIs bringing his season total to 109. Jae-Hoon Ha and Junior Lake each had a double and drove in two runs of their own. Rubi Silva and Michael Brenly each had a hit and a run scored in the Smokies victory.
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A two run second was enough for Oklahoma City as they hung on to beat Iowa 2-1. Ryan Rowland-Smith started and took the loss giving up two runs in five innings. Marcus Hatley, Jeff Beliveau, and Esmailin Caridad combined to pitch the final four innings allowing only one hit and striking out five. Offensively speaking the Cubs had only six hits and one run, but there were a couple of good performances. Dave Sappelt was 2-for-4 including a double and an RBI. James Adduci also had a double in the this one and he stole his sixth base of the season. Tony Campana, Alfredo Amezaga, and Matt Tolbert all had a hit a piece with Amezaga scoring the Cubs only run in the 2-1 loss.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark






































