Cubs Minor League News: Horton and Ferris impressive, Caissie raking, Nwogu homers, more

Horton is rising through the farm system fast (Photo courtesy: Tennessee Smokies)

by Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - Thu Aug 03 11:30:19 GMT-05:00 2023

What was supposed to be a lighter night on the diamond, as Wednesday is usually an off day for the DSL and the ACL Leagues, turned into a seven-game day as virtually every Cubs affiliate was on the field. However, the results were not good as the Cubs went 1-5, and that came with one game being rained out as things haven't gotten off to a good start this week.

IOWA CUBS VS. TOLEDO MUD HENS (Postponed)

Today’s August 2 game is postponed due to wet playing conditions. We will play a doubleheader tomorrow, August 3, starting at 5:08 pm, with gates opening at 4 pm. pic.twitter.com/ManM2rfY73
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) August 2, 2023

TENNESSEE SMOKIES 13 - CHATTANOOGA LOOKOUTS 4

The Smokies are trying to bury the rest of their division by the second week in August as they continue to dominate the Southern League in the second half. Wednesday saw them blow out the Lookouts, scoring 12 of their 13 runs in two innings. All eyes were on the Smokies on Wednesday as the Cubs No. 2 prospect Cade Horton was on the bump making his AA debut.

Despite not picking up the win, Horton was as good as advertised as he gave Tennessee four scoreless frames allowing just two hits and striking out six.

Cade Horton with 4 Ks though 3 scoreless in his AA debut. Breaking ball/fastball combo for the K here. pic.twitter.com/JaNAIKkfNs
— Brad (@ballskwok) August 2, 2023

Cade Horton's Tennessee Smokies debut: 4.0 IP, 2 H, 6 K, 0 ER. Welcome to Kodak, Cade! @cadehorton14 #SmokiesBaseball #NextStartsHere #BestYearEver #Cubs pic.twitter.com/7YxPpBLHyj
— Tennessee Smokies (@smokiesbaseball) August 3, 2023

He gave way to a trio of relievers, including Porter Hodge, who picked up the win. With the game tied 0-0 entering the fourth, Cole Roederer put the Smokies in front for good as his sacrifice made things 1-0. The Smokies were just getting started offensively at that point as they pushed across seven more runs in the eighth inning to take an 8-0 lead.

Owen Caissie started that inning with an RBI triple before coming home on the Haydn McGeary single.

The double: pic.twitter.com/X0BWKeF1ap
— Brad (@ballskwok) August 3, 2023

Throw in a bases-loaded walk from Roederer, and the Smokies extended the lead to 4-0, only to have Jordan Nwogu deliver the big blow that inning as his Grand Slam busted the game wide open 8-0.

It took six innings for the Lookouts to break through as Alex McGarry ended the shutout bid with a sacrifice fly before Drew Mount and Ivan Johnson added a pair of RBI singles to make things 8-3. Chattanooga would add another run in the eighth to pull within 8-4, but the Smokies offense went on another scoring binge scoring five times in the bottom of the eighth to pull away.

Levi Jordan opened the scoring in that inning with an RBI double and then came around to score on the Caissie groundout. That was followed by three bases-loaded walks as the Smokies stayed hot with a 13-4 win.

WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS 4 - SOUTH BEND CUBS 2

Despite their best efforts to take a 2-0 series lead, it was the Rattlers who got the last laugh as they doubled up South Bend 4-2 to even things up. Looking to continue his recent run of strong starts was Brody McCullough, and despite not being at his best, he kept the Cubs in the game.

We're starting to just expect @CF13_ to make these jaw-dropping catches every time.
But still, just wow 👀 pic.twitter.com/XFmEBYSNec
— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) August 3, 2023

McCullough only lasted four innings, but in those innings, he allowed three runs, with only two coming as earned runs. His problem was going up against Cameron Wagoner, who handcuffed the Cubs offense through six innings, allowing one run and striking out seven. Both teams opened the scoring in the second inning, with Alex Hall putting Wisconsin in front with an RBI single while the Felix Stevens double-tied things up 1-1.

That score held until the fourth when the Timber Rattlers took the lead on the Eduardo Garcia triple and never looked back. Jose Acosta added a sacrifice fly in that fourth inning as the Rattlers held a 3-1 lead at this point. Wisconsin maintained that lead until the ninth when a costly error led to another run as the Cubs trailed 4-1 late.

Not willing to go down without a fight, the Cubs showed plenty of fight and pulled within 4-2 on a wild pitch before losing by that score. James Triantos led the way with two of the team's four hits.

DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS 8 - MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 6 (Completion of Tuesday)

Remember when the Pelicans opened their game with a 4-0 lead on Tuesday, well things quickly went South as Nick Hull had a rough day on the mound. Hull couldn't get past the third inning as he allowed five runs, putting his team in a tough spot.

Three of those runs came in the second as an Anthony Gutierrez single put the Wood Ducks on the board, while an error and fielder's choice made things 4-3. Fresh off his promotion to Myrtle Beach, Rookie Brett Bateman picked up his first RBI in the third as a sacrifice fly made things 5-3. Once again, Down East would respond, and with one swing off the bat of Miguel Villarroel, things were tied 5-5 as he left the yard in a hurry.

Down East would take the lead for good in the bottom of the fourth as Danyer Cueva picked up a two-run single to make things 7-5, with the Konner Piotto homer making things 8-5 in the fifth. Myrtle Beach pulled within 8-6 late on the Reivaj Garcia double but would fall by that score.

DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS 4 - MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 3

Things went from bad to worse for the Pelicans on Wednesday as they dropped the second game of the day and were swept in a doubleheader. Jackson Ferris was the tough-luck loser in this one despite giving the Birds a phenomenal start.

Ferris was dialed in through four innings allowing just one run on no hits. He walked two and struck out nine as he kept the Wood Ducks offense guessing. The same can be said about Aidan Curry, as he matched Ferris pitch for pitch and kept the Pelicans scoreless through five.

Tied 0-0 in the fourth, Down East broke through as the RBI fielder's choice from Gutierrez gave them a 1-0 lead. The Wood Ducks would extend their lead later in the inning as the Quincy Scott single put the Pelicans in a 3-0 hole. That hole would grow to 4-0 in the fifth before the Pelicans started to mount a late-game rally.

Looking to score their first run of the game in the seventh, Rafael Morel delivered as his two-run shot made things 4-2. Throw in an RBI forceout from Garcia, and the Birds were within 4-3 but were unable to get the tying run home. Morel led the Pelicans with two hits and two RBIs as he was joined by Ismael Mena and 18th-round pick Brian Kalmer.