Cubs Minor League News: PCA raking, Vazquez with five hits, Brown impressive, more |
Thursday was a tale of two results for the Cubs and their minor league system as they went on to post a 2-2 overall mark. On the one hand, the lower-level teams continued to struggle with their opponents as this week hasn't gone as planned. On the other hand, the upper-level minor league teams put on a show as things are starting to get exciting in AA and AAA.
After relying on their offense all season, it was nice to see the Cubs pitching carry them for once as they took down the Clippers in an old-fashioned pitcher's duel. Ben Brown made his AAA debut and was as good as advertised, proving his start to the AA season wasn't a fluke. Brown gave the Cubs 5 2/3 innings and allowed one run on three hits. He walked two and struck out seven as he was on point from the start. Ben Brown’s Iowa debut was worth the wait. He went 5 2/3 innings, 3 H, 1 ER, 7K/2BB last night. Brown leaned heavily on his fastball and slider with another nine pitches listed as a cutter (with a few SI). He generated 13 whiffs and had a 31% CSW% on the night. Ben Brown is here. pic.twitter.com/sCd7PfAwMK
Clearly Ben Brown is feeling it in his AAA debut. He walks off the mound disappointed with a 5 2/3 inning, 3 H, 1 ER, 7K/2BB performance. He was 94-96.8 on the fastball and generated 11 whiffs on the night. Brown is a stud. pic.twitter.com/myw6Shuv6h Bailey Horn, Cam Sanders, and Manny Rodriguez followed him as that trio combined to allow one hit and struck out five across the final 3 1/3. With Brown doing his thing, you had Gavin Williams delivering a strong start for the Clippers as he allowed one run in his five innings to lower his season ERA to 0.87. With the score tied 0-0 in the fourth, Jake Slaughter opened up the scoring as his solo shot put the Cubs in front 1-0. Jake Slaughter breaks the scoreless tie with this solo home run! pic.twitter.com/DatM9V2Evg That score would hold until the sixth when Zack Collins connected for an RBI double to tie things up 1-1 and chased Brown from his start. Looking to cash in against the Clippers pen, Miles Mastrobuoni came through as an eighth-inning RBI double was the difference. Along with those two hits, Darius Hill and Yonathan Perlaza picked up hits as the Cubs had four hits in the win. BOOM! Manny Rodríguez strikes out the side in the ninth and we even the series 1-1. pic.twitter.com/XhcRlt38xA
It took a while for the Smokies offense to show their potential this season, but lately, things are trending upward. Led by a strong Porter Hodge start that saw him strike out seven in just under five innings of work, the offense took over and exploded against the Trash Pandas for the win. Tennessee opened the scoring with a pair of runs in the first, only to see the Trash Pandas match them with an error and a Jeremiah Jackson single to bring things to 2-2. Once the second inning started, the Smokie's offense took over, as they could do no wrong in this one. Luis Vazquez put the Smokies on top for good with a two-run double before a double play ball pushed across another run to make things 5-2. One inning later saw Tennessee push across six more runs as this was the first of two six-inning frames. Pete Crow-Armstrong and Vazquez opened that frame with solo shots, while Haydn McGeary and Pablo Aliendo delivered RBI doubles to push the lead to 10-2. Top @Cubs prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong takes this one DEEP to right field! An Andy Weber single capped off the massive frame, with the Smokies leading Rocket City at 11-2. RBIs from Chase Strumpf and McGeary in the fifth pushed the lead to 13-2 before another six-run frame in the sixth closed out the scoring. A bases-loaded walk to Owen Caissie and hit by a pitch to Strumpf opened the scoring, but the BJ Murray Grand Slam was the decisive blow as the Smokies led 19-2 at this point. BJ Murray GS. pic.twitter.com/cYMgYGbhOG The bullpen took care of the rest from there, with Riley Martin striking out five in what could have been his best outing of 2023. With 18 hits, there was plenty of support to go around, with Vazquez leading the way with five hits and three RBIs. Weber added four hits, with PCA picking up three and McGeary two. Murray Jr led the team with four RBIs as the Tennessee offense continues to thrive in this series. Smells like trash, but tastes like victory! #BestYearEver #NextStartsHere #Cubs pic.twitter.com/OwV76Is90k
Apart from their dramatic win on Tuesday, things haven't gone as planned for the Cubs in this series, as the Kernels have had their number so far. Connor Noland did his part on the mound, allowing just one run on 3 2/3 innings of work. He struck out three as his ERA fell below 4.00. You also had Chase Watkins and Bailey Reid deliver good performances, while Sam Thoreson was hit hard for five runs (four earned). South Bend knew they were going to be in for a challenge early on, with Orlando Rodriguez dominating the Cubs on the mound. The right-hander allowed just one run through five innings while striking out six. His ERA is now sitting at 1.10 for the season. The lone run off of Rodriguez came in the first inning when Fabian Pertuz delivered an RBI single. That came after Jose Salas had a single of his own in the first inning as the game was tied up 1-1 after one. Still tied in the fifth, Cedar Rapids took the lead for good when Kala'i Rosario picked up an RBI single to make things 3-1. One inning later saw the Kernels bust things wide open as they began to take it to Thoresen at the plate. Keoni Cavaco started the scoring with an RBI double, while Ernie Yake added an RBI triple to push the lead to 5-1. Just a few candid shots @SBCubs on a beautiful night for baseball @CubsCentral08 @NSideBound @mj_ernst @MWLtraveler @cubprospects @CubsZone pic.twitter.com/bzYvKbhw3d A costly error brought home another run, with Noah Cardenas capping off the massive inning with an RBI double to push the lead to 7-1. Rosario capped off the scoring for Cedar Rapids in the eighth with an RBI single as the Kernels made quick work of the Cubs 8-1. The Cubs had six hits, with Pagan leading the way with two. Scott McKeon, Pertuz, Juan Mora, and Casey Opitz had the rest of the hits. Not our night.
Last year, the Riverdogs gave the Pelicans fits, and this season it is the Fireflies who continue to hold the best record in the Carolina League. Led by a complete offensive attack and a strong pitching performance from Ben Kudrna, the Fireflies made quick work of Myrtle Beach 6-0. Kudrna set the tone from the start and got through six innings with six strikeouts, as this was his best start of the season. Grant Kipp opposed him, who wasn't terrible but still needs some work, as he allowed three runs in four innings with six strikeouts. Kipp allowed the game's first run on an RBI double by Brett Squires in the first as that proved to be the game-winning hit. Lizandro Rodriguez extended that lead to 3-0 in the third with an RBI single, as that would be all Kipp would allow in his four innings. With Marino Santy now on the mound in the fifth, the Fireflies pushed the lead to 4-0 with a wild pitch, with Daniel Vazquez using an RBI single to make things 5-0. Another Santy wild pitch in the seventh pushed across the game's final run in another ugly loss for the Pelicans. Seven players picked up hits for the Pelicans as they are looking for answers against this loaded Fireflies team. Final from Columbia.#MBPelicans | #NextStartsHere pic.twitter.com/auCeNvfcCVIOWA CUBS 2 - COLUMBUS CLIPPERS 1
TENNESSEE SMOKIES 19 - ROCKET CITY TRASH PANDAS 2
That's his third home run of the season for @SmokiesBaseball: pic.twitter.com/5fLSm2vCUS
CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 8 - SOUTH BEND CUBS 1
Back to it as we try to tie the series tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/tMYoQNj8k6COLUMBIA FIREFLIES 6 - MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 0
