Results tagged ‘ Josh Vitters ’
Cubs Bats Stay Cold on Tuesday
Justin Germano and Homer Bailey went back and forth early each throwing up zeros for the first five innings. Germano ran into some problems in the sixth when he walked the first three batters in the sixth inning and just like that Germano’s night was done. Manuel Corpas was brought 
into a tough spot and got Scott Rolen to fly out, but Ryan Hanigan delivered the big blow hitting a three run double into the right center gap. Corpas got out of the inning and pitched the seventh as well not allowing another hit. Alberto Cabrera and Jaye Chapman did their job keeping the Reds right where they were as they combined to pitch two scoreless innings. The Cubs threatened in the eighth when with one out Darwin Barney delivered his second hit of the game and would later score the Cubs lone run when Bryan LaHair lined a double down the right field line. Homer Bailey was really good for the Reds, but that would be the end of his night and in came our old friend Sean Marshall. After hitting Dave Sappelt he struck out Josh Vitters and got Anthony Rizzo to ground out to end the Cubs threat in the eighth inning. With no Aroldis Chapman the Cubs saw Jonathan Broxton in the ninth and did absolutely nothing going three up and three down to end the game losing 3-1. The Cubs offense was not good again on Tuesday only able to muster up four hits against the Reds, two of which were by Barney who extended his hitting streak to 13.
Game Highlights:
LaHair’s RBI Double
Jackson’s Running Catch
Sveum Postgame
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
Cubs Use Long Ball to Sweep Away Pirates
Wins at this point of the year don’t mean much for the Cubs, sure they might be able to avoid 100 losses, but that’s about it. Across the field in the other dugout these wins mean everything, which renders this weekend as a complete disaster for the Pirates as they walk away from this series without a single win. 
Today it was a combination of solid starting pitching from Chris Rusin, and the long ball as the Cubs blasted three home runs in the 4-2 victory. Rusin was solid on the mound for the Cubs as he tossed five strong innings giving up one run on five hits while walking three and striking out three. Unfortunately the Cubs bullpen couldn’t hang on to a one run lead late so Rusin had to settle for a no decision. After the Pirates tied the game in the seventh on a James Russell balk, Alfonso Soriano continued is ridiculous 2012 by blasting his 28th home run of the season in the eighth to put the Cubs up for good 4-2. Soriano finished the day 1-for-4 with a home run, and two RBI’s, he’s now has 94 RBI’s on the season to go with his 28 home runs. Josh Vitters and Anthony Recker had the other two home runs for the Cubs today, it was Recker’s first major league home run. Carlos Marmol had an uneasy ninth inning but was able to nail down his 18th save of the season and lowered his ERA to under four, which was something that no one thought he would do this year back in May.
Game Highlights:
Soriano’s Game Winning Home Run
Marmol Escapes with the Save
Sappelt’s Nice Grab
Recker’s First Career Homer
Josh Vittes Goes Deep
Thanks for reading,
- George
Updated: Cubs Top 20 Prospects
MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo has done an updated top 100 prospects lists as well as each organizations top 20. Mayo will probably come out with a list prior to the 2013 season, but here is where Cubs prospects stand as of now according to Mayo. To check out the entire top 100 list and to read a little more on these Cubs prospects.
1. Javier Baez – SS (#24)
When the Cubs picked Almora they new his bat was going to play and that is exactly what happened. The Cubs top pick from 2011 was outstanding in his time with Peoria this year hitting .333/.383/.596 with 12 home runs, 33 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He struggled a bit when moving to Daytona, but overall it was very successful season for the young shortstop.
2. Albert Almora – OF (#52)
The Cubs top pick in this years draft didn’t sign right away, but when he did he didn’t disappoint. He started with the AZL Cubs and moved to Boise shortly after. Combined he played in 33 games hitting .321/.331/.464 with two home runs and 19 RBIs. He also hit 12 doubles.
3. Brett Jackson – OF (#74)
It has been an interesting year for Brett Jackson who has dropped a bit in the prospect watch. The good news first he has made it to the show and when he makes contact does some damage as he left Iowa with 22 doubles, 12 triples, and 15 home runs, to go along with 27 stolen bases. He also plays great defense, the bad news is he has really struggled making contact striking out over 200 times between his two stops.
4. Arodys Vizcaino - RHP (#76)
Vizcaino was considered one the Braves best young pitchers and was deemed untouchable last year. Things changed a bit this year as he missed the entire season after elbow surgery in March. The Cubs are very pleased to have acquired Vizcaino, but it remains to be seen how he will recover from surgery. Lets hope it is as a starter, but at the least he is a power arm out of the pen which the Cubs need badly as well.
5. Jorge Soler – OF (#77)
Jorge Soler did quite well in getting accustomed to baseball in America. He is still very raw, but at 20 the Cubs feel very strongly he will be a big contributor to the big club in the future. He spent time with the AZL Cubs and moved to Peoria where he finished the year. He combined to hit .299/.398/.463 with five home runs and 25 RBIs in just 34 games.
6. Matt Szczur – OF
The speedy outfielder had a nice season in Daytona hitting .295/.394/.407 with 38 stolen bases, but struggled a bit in 35 games with Tennessee.
7. Trey McNutt - RHP
McNutt did not have the year he was looking to have going 9-8 with 4.26 ERA. He struggled a bit and was moved to the bullpen, but maybe it will be better for him and the Cubs.
8. Junior Lake -SS
Lake played the entire year in Tennessee and did a pretty good job going .279/.341/.432 with 10 home runs, 50 RBIs, and 21 stolen bases. He is still very raw and will continue to work on his game.
9. Pierce Johnson – RHP
The Cubs took Johnson with the 43rd overall pick in this years draft and he did quite well making six starts, two with the AZL Cubs and four with Boise.
10. Josh Vitters - 3B
The former first round pick, number 3 overall finally put it all together this year in Iowa hitting .304/.356/.513 with 17 home runs and 68 RBIs. The PCL All Star got the call up, but has struggled so far with the Cubs, but at only 23 the future is still very bright for Vitters.
11. Dillon Maples – RHP
It took a while for Maples to make his first appearance, but when he did he showed signs of what he could be. He was a bit inconsistent in his six appearances, but he will have more opportunities next season to show what he has. He has tremendous upside.
12. Robert Whitenack - RHP
Coming off of Tommy John surgery Whitenack struggled pitching for Daytona going 1-6 with a 5.96 ERA. Although the numbers don’t look good, remember he is coming off of major surgery and has good upside.
13. Dan Vogelbach - 1B
Not many Cubs prospects did as much damage as Vogelbach did this year. The big first baseman played in 61 games this season between the AZL Cubs and Boise Hawks. He hit .322/.410/.641 with 17 home runs and 62 RBIs.
14. Ben Wells – RHP
A 2010 draft pick the 19-year-old Wells missed most of the season with a right elbow strain. He made a few appearances at the end of the year, but will look to stay healthy in 2013.
15. Paul Blackburn – RHP
Another 2012 draft pick Paul Blackburn was chosen 56th overall out of high school. He made nine appearances for the AZL Cubs going 2-0 with a 3.48 ERA.
16. Jeimer Candelario - 3B
Candelario played the entire season at Boise and at only 18 the corner infielder showed he can hit a little bit. The switch hitting Candelario hit .281/.345/.396 with six home runs and 47 RBIs.
17. Gioskar Amaya – 2B/SS
Amaya played his season in Boise and put up some good numbers. He his .298/.381/.496. The 19-year old filled up the stat sheet with six doubles, 12 triples, and eight home runs. He also drove in 33 and stole 15 bases.
18. Tony Zych - RHP
Zych shared time between Daytona and Tennessee out of the bullpen. He combined to going 5-4 with a 3.67 ERA with 64 strikeouts in 61.1 innings.
19. Alberto Cabrera – RHP
Cabrera, who moved to the bullpen this year started in Double-A, but quickly moved to Triple-A before finally ending up with the big club. His minor league numbers were really good going 4-1 with 3.11 ERA with 74 strikeouts to only 14 walks. He has struggled since coming to the Cubs, but we’ll see where he factors in going forward.
20. Marcus Hatley – RHP
Hatley pitched well in Tennessee out of the bullpen going 3-1 with a 3.40 with 46 strikeouts in 45 innings. He then got the call to Iowa where he struggled in his time there.
It is good to see the Cubs have five players who are inside the top 80 in MLB. You can also see the emphasis the Cubs placed on pitching, drafting Pierce Johnson and Paul Blackburn in this years draft as well as bringing in Arodys Vizcaino in the Paul Maholm deal. Looking a little further into things is the talent Theo Epstein and company brought in this year. They obviously brought in the three pitchers above as well as Albert Almora and Jorge Soler. three of those five are inside the Cubs top five and Pierce Johnson makes it four in the top 10. The exciting thing is there are more who they brought in who I would guess are close to cracking this top 20 and who may even show up in the top 20 before the 2013 season gets underway. Keep checking back this offseason as we will talk more in-depth about these prospects as well as many more.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
August 20 – 22, 2012; @ Brewers – Series Preview
It’s a battle for fourth place! Sorry, I was just trying to liven things up a little bit. The Brewers have had the Cubs number this year as they have won seven out of the first ten games between the two clubs. The Cubs pitching staff has taken it on the chin during the season series as the Brewers are averaging 4.6 
runs per game over the first ten games. Funny thing is the Cubs are actually averaging 4.8 runs per game this year against the Brewers, the numbers get a little out of whack when you win 8-0 and 10-0, which is what the Cubs have done against the Brewers, all or nothing I guess. Coming into this series both teams are struggling, only going 3-7 in their last ten games. Not sure that matters much when you take into account the home and road record of the two teams. The Brewers have been really good at home going 35-28, conversely the Cubs have been dreadful on the road to the tune of 17-45, yikes. The Cubs are going to have to score with the Brewers if they want any chance to take this series as the Brewers are 5th in the National League in runs scored.
August 20, 2012 – August 22, 2012; Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI
If this info is not enough, please go here to use the CSN channel finder to find CSN+ near you!
Here are the pitching matchups for the three game series.
Monday August 20, 2012
Cubs: Justin Germano (2-2, 3.91 ERA)
Milwaukee: Mark Rogers (0-1, 4.94 ERA)
Tuesday August 21, 2012
Cubs: Chris Rusin (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Milwaukee: Marco Estrada (0-5, 4.52 ERA)
Wednesday August 22, 2012
Cubs: Travis Wood (4-9, 4.83 ERA)
Milwaukee: Yovanni Gallardo (12-8, 3.67 ERA)
Season Series: Brewers lead 7-3
Prediction: Cubs win series, 2-1
Thanks for reading, go Cubs!
- George
Losing streak reaches 6; Bats MIA again
Well, that was fast. The Cubs and Padres completed this one in two 
hours and 25 minutes, unfortunately the Cubs came out on the short end. Part of the reason for the quick game was the Cubs approach at the plate. After a solid 28 pitch first inning the Cubs fell back into bad habits as they rushed through at bats. A troubling sight considering it was only a two run game thanks to a stellar effort turned in by Travis Wood. Wood went six strong innings allowing two runs on five hits while walking three and striking out three. With the loss Wood falls for 4-8 on the season with an ERA of 4.77. As I mentioned, the Cubs offense was lacking and that’s putting it mildly. Eric Stults and company held the Cubs to just five hits as they shut down the Cubs from the word go. Welington Castillo was the only offense in the loss he went 2-for-4 at the plate. The Cubs were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base. Josh Vitters made his first major league start and was held hitless, just like everyone else, but did make an outstanding defensive play that might have saved a run. The Cubs losing streak now sits at six, and until the bats get going that number will grow. Full box score and highlights after the jump.
CONFIRMED: Vitters and Jackson Called Up
Although nothing has been confirmed by the Cubs, a reliable source miCubs has reported that both Josh Vitters and Brett Jackson are getting called up for the series finale in LA today. We will keep you updated once more is known.
UPDATE 1: Carrie Muskat confirms that both Vitters and Jackson have been called up. Patrick Mooney has also confirmed both promoted.
UPDATE 2: Jeff Baker has been traded to the Detroit Tigers and Tony Campana has been sent to Iowa to make room for Vitters and Jackson.
CONFIRMED: Josh Vitters and Brett Jackson are in Los Angeles for the Cubs, they have been called up! We will have more throughout the day.
-Mark & George
8/4: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Here’s a look at the Cubs minor league affiliates on Saturday, August 4. The AZL Cubs were off tonight.
After a couple of losses Boise got back on track beating Spokane 6-2 of Saturday. Tayler Scott got his fourth win of the season allowing two runs, one earned in 5.1 innings pitched. Matt Iannazzo and Nathan Dorris were able to finish the game off, not allowing a run in the last 3.2 innings. Daniel Vogelbach had a great game going 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Stephen Bruno also had two hits and scored three runs. Jeimer Candelario had a double and also drove in a run. It was nice to see Boise bounce back and hopefully will have continue to have a good second half.
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Peoria’s first game in a long time without Javier Baez didn’t turn out too good losing to Clinton 8-1. Joseph Zeller started and struggled taking the loss. He gave up six runs, five earned on eight hits in just 3.2 innings. Just like that the Chiefs were down 6-1 and they never recovered. Chadd Krist had a really nice game at the plate going 2-for-4 with a home run and a double. Pin-Chieh Chen was the only other Chief to record a hit on Saturday. Larry Suarez and Bryce Shafer both pitched well, while Luis Liria got roughed up a bit. That’s now three losses in a row for Peoria, let’s see if they can end that skid tomorrow.
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A six run second was way too much for Daytona losing to Dunedin 12-5. Matt Loosen started and took the loss, giving up seven runs, four earned in two innings. He wasn’t the only Cubs pitcher who struggled as Scott Weismann and Eduardo Figueroa didn’t have their best stuff either combining to give up five runs over five innings. The Cubs did have some good things happen at the plate as they scored five runs on nine hits. Rebel Ridling was 2-for-4 with a home run and a double. Rubi Silva and Elieser Bonne each had two hits, with a run scored and an RBI. John Andreoli and Ronald Torreyes each had an RBI in the defeat. In his first game in Daytona Javier Baez went hitless. Daytona’s trying to make a push at the playoffs so they need to get back on track tomorrow.
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Tennessee took the first game of Saturday’s double-header beating Jackson 6-5. The middle of the Smokies order was the key to game one’s victory as Junior Lake, Justin Bour, and Michael Burgess all had two hits and two RBIs. They combined to go 6-for-11 with six RBIs and Justin Bour hit his 13th homer of the season. The two guys at the top Matt Szczur and Logan Watkins each had a hit and a run scored as well. Nicholas Struck got the win, his 12th of the season pitching five innings allowing three runs on six hits. Frank Batista struggled a bit, but picked up his 20th save of the season.
A late rally wasn’t enough for Tennessee to pull out game 2 of the double-header. The Smokies scored four in the seventh, but it wasn’t enough losing 8-7. Casey Harman started, but only gave up one run, but lasted only three innings. Casey Weather took the loss, giving up three runs in one inning. Kevin Rhoderick continued his struggles giving up another four runs in only 1.2 innings. Justin Bour hit his second home run of the night ending game two 2-for-2 with a homer and three RBIs, he now has 91 on the season. Michael Brenly and Nelson Perez each added two RBIs and Brenly had two hits. Logan Watkins had one hit, walked twice, and scored three runs. All in all Tennessee ended up splitting.
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Tied at one going to the bottom of the eighth, Josh Vitters and the Cubs decided they had enough of the losing. After taking the lead by 2-1, Vitters stepped to the plate and put the game out of reach launching his 17th home run of the season. Jairo Asencio would close it out as Iowa beat Colorodo Springs 5-1. Chris Rusin started and pitched well giving up only one run in on four hits in seven innings. He also struck out eight in a no decision. Michael Bowden got the win pitching a scoreless eighth. There wasn’t a ton of offense outside of Vitter home run, but there was a little bit. James Adduci went 1-for-4 with an RBI. Brett Jackson and Dave Sappelt each had a hit and a run scored.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
8/3: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Minor league recap for August 3, 2012.
The AZL Cubs continued their tear beating the AZL D-Backs for their fifth straight victory. It wasn’t as easy as it should have been however as the D-Backs scored five times in the ninth, but the Cubs hang on to win 7-5. Dillon Maples made his second start on his road to recovery and turned in some solid work going 1.2 innings only allowing one hit while walking two and striking out one. Paul Blackburn, one of two 2012 supplemental draft picks continued his strong season. Blackburn worked 3.1 innings allowing only one hit while walking one and striking out two to earn his second victory of the season and lower his ERA to 1.86. 2012 draft picks Corbin Hoffner and Jasvir Rakkar also worked scoreless innings. It was another night of fireworks from the AZL Cubs offense. Albert Almora, who is on fire right now, went 2-for-4 with a double, a walk, and a run scored. Shawon Dunston, and Ben Carhart each had two hits on the night with Carhart recording his 8th double of the season. Jacob Rogers had a big night at the plate as well going 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI, a walk, and three runs scored.
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The Boise Hawks raced out to a 4-0 lead, and held a 5-2 lead by the 5th inning but couldn’t hang on as Spokane plated three runs in the 8th on their way to a 6-5 win. Jose Arias didn’t get very deep into this one for the Hawks as he tossed 2.2 innings giving up two runs on four hits while walking three and striking out three. Arias left with the lead, but Hayden Simpson couldn’t hang onto it. Simpson worked 4.1 innings giving up three runs on six hits while striking out six. Eduardo Orozco only gave up only one run in his inning of work, but that was the deciding run as Orozco was hung with his first loss of the season. Gioskar Amaya had another solid night at the plate, what else is new? Amaya was 2-for-4 with his ninth triple of the season, an RBI, a walk, and a run scored, he is now hitting .315. Daniel Vogelbach continued to be a doubles machine as he was 1-for-3 at the plate with his 5th double while with Boise. Rock Shoulders had a productive night as well going 1-for-4 with his 6th home run of the season, a two run shot.
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The Chiefs jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead against Quad Cities but couldn’t hang as they fell 4-2. Yao-Lin Wang continued his transition to the starting rotation as he went 5.1 innings giving up two runs on four hits while walking three and striking out six. Wang left with the game tied at two, and unfortunately Jeffry Antigua could keep the River Bandits off the board. Antigua went 1.2 innings giving up two runs on three hits while striking out two earning his first loss of the season. Javier Baez continued his assault on Single-A pitching in the loss as he was 2-for-4 with his 12th home run of the season, he also stole his 20th base. Baez is now hitting .336 on the season, and there are whispers that he is close to earning a promotion. Zeke DeVoss had a solid night at the top of the Chiefs order going 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored.
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The D-Cubs fell behind early, and couldn’t dig out of that hole as they dropped this one to Dunedin 6-2. Kyler Burke started for the D-Cubs, and was responsible for that hole I was talking about. Burke gave up three runs in the first and then settled down after that. He went five innings giving up three runs on four hits while walking two and striking out four. Hunter Cervenka had a rare awful outing as he struggled with his command in two innings of work, walking four and giving up three runs, two earned. Rubi Silva continued his strong 2012 season at the plate going 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, he is now hitting .302 on the campaign. Christian Villanueva followed up his stellar Cubs debut by going 1-for-4 with a double and a spectacular catch in the field that I’m hoping to get video of shortly.
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Smokies postponed, again.
Things seem to go from bad to worse for Iowa each night. Tonight was no different as the I-Cubs battled Colorado Springs all game before surrendering three runs in the top of the ninth to lose 4-1. Ryan Rowland-Smith got the start tonight and was outstanding as he went six strong innings giving up one run on two hits while walking three and striking out six. Jaye Chapman, who was acquired from the Braves a couple of days ago took the loss as he was knocked around in the ninth. Chapman worked one inning giving up three runs on three hits while walking one, he fell to 0-1 on the season. The I-Cubs were dreadful with runners in scoring position, and they had plenty of chances too, when it was all said and done they were 0-for-10 in the loss. Josh Vitters had a big night once again for Iowa, he went 3-for-4 with his 32nd double of the season. Vitters is now hitting .304 on the season as he continues to try to force the Cubs hand and give them no choice but to award him the promotion he deserves. Dylan Heuer has some great photo’s from the game, head on over to his website to check them out!
Thanks for reading,
- George
8/2: Around the Cubs Minor League System
Nightly minor league recap for August 2, 2012.
The AZL Cubs let things get interesting in the ninth, but they held on to win 6-5. It was a good night for the highly touted prospects of the Cubs. Albert Almora was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Jorge Soler also had a double and drove in two runs on Thursday. Shawon Dunston and Jacob Rogers each had two hits with Dunston driving one run in. Anthony Prieto started and pitched two scoreless innings. He was relieved by 2012 3rd round pick Ryan McNeil who got his first professional win. McNeil struck out two in two innings of work. Jin-Young Kim came in to close things down recording the final two outs of the game and earning his second save. As much as it got close it was still good to see the Cubs get the win.
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As good as Boise has been lately Thursday was not there night losing 15-1. In a game like that there just aren’t too many highlights, but we will try to find a couple. Marco Hernandez and Daniel Vogelbach each had two hits, which those four were the only hits the Hawks had all night. Vogelbach drove in his sixth run since being landing in Boise. James Pugliese got the start and took the loss, but all five runs he gave up were unearned in his five innings of work. Michael Heesch, Rafael Diplan, and Lance Rymel all struggled in relief. hopefully the Hawks can forget about this one and get back on track tomorrow.
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Peoria just didn’t have enough to get the win tonight dropping Thursday’s game to Quad Cities 6-4. Starling Peralta started and took the loss in this one going five innings giving up three runs on three hits, while walking three and striking out six. The game took a turn for the worse when Justin Berg entered and he gave up three runs, unfortunately for him all were unearned in his two innings of work. Sheldon McDonald threw a scoreless ninth striking out one. After an eight RBI two home run performance how could Dustin Geiger do anything close. Well, he went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run staying red-hot. Bijan Rademacher and Pin-Chieh Chen each had two hits, with Chen driving in two. Oliver Zapata had a hit and an RBI and Wes Darvill hit a triple. Javier Baez had a rare rough day going 0-for-4. Peoria will look back to getting on track tomorrow.
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Daytona stayed hot and won another one Thursday defeating Fort Myers 8-2. The story of the night came from newly acquired Christian Villanueva who came over in the Ryan Dempster deal. In his first two at bats in the Cubs organization he hit two home runs. He ended the night going 2-for-3 with two home runs, two runs scored, and two RBIs. Ronald Torreyes continues to just hit going 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs. John Andreoli, Rafael Lopez, and Timothy Saunders all had two hits a piece with Lopez driving in one. Robert Whitenack started, but didn’t last long enough to get the win, as he only allowed one run, but struggled with his control walking four. Ryan Searle got the win in relief, his fifth of the season. He struck out five in 3.1 innings allowing only one run on two hits. AJ Morris threw the last two inning allowing no runs and striking out one. Daytona is trying to make a push here as they are really playing well as of late.
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Not much good came out of this one as Tennessee lost to Pensacola 6-1. Tennessee was only able to muster up two hits, both coming off the bat of Logan Watkins. Watkins ended the game 2-for-4 with a home run. In his first appearance in the Cubs organization Jacob Brigham only lasted three innings allowing three runs, two earned on five hits. He also walked three and struck out two. Zach Rosscup pitched five innings in relief allowing one run and striking out four and Tony Zych struggled in his one inning of relief. Tomorrow is a new day.
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Iowa lost another losing to Colorodo Springs 7-4 on Thursday. Brooks Raley took the loss giving up six runs on 10 hits in six innings. Marcus Hatley pitched two really nice innings striking out three and not allowing a base runner. Josh Vitters and Dave Sappelt each got back on track as they both went 3-for-5. Greg Rohan followed his big day yesterday with another two hit, two RBI performance tonight. James Adduci had two more hits and drove in one run. Brett Jackson had one hit and stole his 26th base of the season. There isn’t much more that can be said for Iowa that hasn’t been said already.
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Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
8/1: Around the Cubs Minor League System
August 1, nightly recap of the minor leagues.
The AZL Cubs had a double header on Wednesday, with each game being seven innings a piece. The pitching did a great job in the first one winning 4-0. The 43rd overall pick in this past years draft Pierce Johnson made his first appearance of the season. He started and pitched one scoreless inning. Carlos Martinez-Pumarino improved to 4-0 pitching four scoreless innings in relief. He gave up three hits, one walk, and struck out three, his ERA on the season is 0.93. Steve Perakslis secured the shutout by striking out five in two scoreless innings. Albert Almora was back in the lineup and leading off on Wednesday. He delivered going 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Jorge Soler was 2-for-4 with a run scored and three stolen bases. Ben Carhart had a double and an RBI.
The AZL Cubs had a good time of it in game two as well defeating the AZL Indians 7-2. Ben Carhart was 2-for-4 with twor runs scored and Yasiel Balaguert also had two runs with a run scored. Trevor Gretzky had one hit and an RBI and Neftali Rosario collected two RBIs without getting a basehit. Albert Almora didn’t have a hit, but collected his sixth RBI of the season and Jorge Soler was 0-2, but walked twice and scored two runs. Brian Smith started for the Cubs and thew two perfect innings while striking out two. Loiger Padron improved his record to 3-0 with his win in relief. he gave up two runs, but struck out six in three innings of work. Alvido Jimenez closed out the game striking out three in two scoreless innings.
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Boise was back at it and won again on Wednesday. After getting a big lead early, they gave up nine runs in the last four innings, but held on to win 14-10. There were a lot of good things happening offensively in this one. Xavier Batista was 3-for-5 with two doubles, a home run, and three RBIs. Jeimer Candelario and Dong-Yub Kim each had two hits and drove in three as well. Stephen Bruno hit his first home run of the season, a two run shot in the third inning. Daniel Vogelbach and Trey Martin each two hits with Martin scoring three runs. Lance Rymel had quite a nice night going 3-for-4 with an RBI. It was a tale of two games on the mound. Su-Min Jung started and pitched well allowing one run on three hits in three innings, while striking out three. Nathan Dorris got his first win of the season as he pitched the next two scoreless innings. Unfortunately Tyler Bremer and Willengton Cruz both struggled, but a win is a win.
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Peoria won a crazy one on Wednesday scoring three in the top of the ninth to win 11-10. The day belonged to Dustin Geiger. Geiger was 3-for-5 with a double, two home runs and eight RBIs, yes eight RBIs. He stole the show early and finished it late with a two run bomb that turned out to be the game winner. Javier Baez had two more hits, including a double. He also scored two runs and drove one in. Zeke DeVoss and Pin-Chieh Chen each had two hits, with Chen scoring three. Zach Cates started and didn’t have his best stuff, but came away with a no decision. Bryce Shafer got the win striking out four of the five outs he recorded. Austin Reed picked up his first save of the season pitching a scoreless ninth. Congrats to Geiger on just an ubelievable game.
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Daytona scored one in the fifth and one in the seventh to win a pitchers dual 2-1. Lendy Castillo continued his comeback throwing four innings, giving up three hits and allowing an unearned run. He had four strikeouts in the start. Eduardo Figueroa got the win, his third of the season pitching three scoreless innings. Scott Weismann and Jeffrey Lorick combined to pitch the last two innings, with Lorick earning his second save of the season. Rubi Silva was 1-for-4, but drove in the two Cubs runs on Wednesday. Ronald Torreyes continued hitting the ball going 2-for-3. John Andreoli and Taylor Davis each had two hits in the contest. It was a good win for Daytona.
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Because of rain Tennessee had another double header on Wednesday. The first one was a continuation of the night before. The Smokies got two in the fifth, winning 4-2. There were a couple bright spots on the mound. Dae-Eun Rhee started and took a no-decision pitching four solid innings only allowing one run on three hits. Trey McNutt got the win in relief pitching three innings allowing one run on two hits and Kevin Rhoderick recorded his eighth save of the season striking out three in two scoreless innings. Justin Bour was 1-for-4 with another RBI. Greg Rohan went 1-for-2 with an RBI and Nate Samson was 1-for-2 with a home run and two RBIs.
One was all Tennessee needed as Justin Bour was the hero hitting a walk off home run in the bottom of the seventh. He now has 12 home runs and 86 RBIs on the season. Dallas Beeler started and was tremendous allowing only one hit in five scoreless innings of work. Brian Schlitter picked up his second win in relief pitching the final two frames. Junior Lake, Nelson Perez, and Matt Cerda all had one hit a piece in the victory. Two wins to start the month is the right way to start it.
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Iowa was able to score six, but an eight run inning was way too much to come back from losing 11-6. We’ll start with the offense in this one. Brett Jackson was 3-for-5 with a double, triple, and a run scored. Josh Vitters hit his 16th home run of the season and had two RBIs. Greg Rohan, who was just promoted from AA was 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBIs. James Adduci collected two more hits including a triple and an RBI. Ty’Relle Harris got the start and took the loss as he was not very sharp. Michael Bowden did a very nice job striking out six in three innings and recently acquired Jaye Chapman threw a scoreless inning in relief.
All around it was a nice night for the Cubs minor leaguers with the only loss coming in Iowa.
Thanks for Reading,
-Mark
