Cubs Minor League News: Morel stays hot, Ballesteros blasts grand slam, PCA does El Mago

Cubs Minor League News: Morel stays hot, Ballesteros blasts grand slam, PCA does El Mago
by - Senior Writer - Sat Apr 15 09:22:09 GMT-04:00 2023

Friday night was a good night on the diamond for the Cubs minor Leauge system as they posted a 2-2 mark. However, two games got away late, as the Cubs were a few innings away from a perfect mark. That would have been nice to see, especially after their struggles on Thursday, but at the very least most of their games have been exciting to watch.

OMAHA STORM CHASERS 11- IOWA CUBS 8

From an offensive perspective, the Iowa Cubs are the most fun team to watch in the minors, and you could argue the most fun to watch in the entire system. However, their pitching has yet to hold up, as their bullpen allowed eight runs over the final two frames.

That took away the effort that Javier Assad and Brendan Little put forth as they allowed three runs in five innings, with Cam Sanders tossing two scoreless frames. The combination of Nick Burdi and Manny Rodriguez was terrible, however, as they allowed eight runs in just over an inning of work.

If the offense is what you like, Iowa is the place to be, as Nick Loftin opened the game with a two-run single in the first and an early 2-0 lead. Iowa ensured that lead didn't last long, with Christopher Morel leading off the game with another homer before Brennen Davis tied things up with a sacrifice fly.

That score would hold until the fifth when Loftin used a sac fly to put Omaha back in front before the Cubs offense ripped off six unanswered runs.

That all started with RBI singles from Morel and Mike Tauchman in the fifth to put the Cubs back in front 4-3. They continued to add on in the six, with Sergio Alcantara leaving the building for a two-run shot.

Leading 7-3 in the eighth, the Cubs saw their lead quickly vanish as a Tucker Bradley double pulled Omaha within two, with Tyler Gentry making it a one-run game with a single. Omaha tied the game off an Iowa error as the shootout was on.

The Cubs were fortunate to retake the lead in the bottom of the eighth using a bases-loaded walk from Tauchman to do it, but four more runs from Omaha in the ninth sealed the Cubs fate in their 11-8 loss. Morel had two more hits to raise his average to .378, with Alcantara and Matt Mervis adding two. Mervis is also hitting .293 as he continues to produce in AAA.

TENNESSEE SMOKIES 11- MONTGOMERY BISCUITS 5

When this series ends, it will go down as the Owen Caissie coming out party as he has been mashing. Granted, he had two more hits with another RBI; another prospect stole the show as Bryce Ball helped power the Smokies to a big win.

That was crucial as Jordan Wicks couldn't make it out of the third inning and struggled in his second straight outing this season. Wicks had some issues in AA last year before settling in, but Hunter Bigge, Michael McAvene, Bailey Horn, and Riley Martin backed him to allow one run across the final six-plus innings. Those arms also struck out 12 hitters as the Smokies struck out 19 in the game.

Jordan Nwogu got the Smokies off to a fast start with his solo shot in the second, but a pair of Montgomery homers by Heriberto Hernandez and Blake Hunt had the Biscuits in front 4-1 in the fourth. Once the fifth inning got underway, it was all Tennessee as Pete Crow-Armstrong picked up one of his three hits with an RBI double to make things 4-2. The game's big blow came later in the inning when Ball uncorked a game-winning Grand Slam to put the Smokies in front for good 6-4.

Tennessee continued to build on that lead as the game went on and scored five unanswered runs to close things out. Crow-Armstrong added an RBI triple, with Caissie, Nelson Maldonado, and BJ Murray Jr picking up RBI singles.

Chase Strumpf also had an RBI double in the eighth as the Smokies offense continues to play well.

With his three hits, Crow-Armstrong is now hitting .357, and you have to wonder how long he can hit at that level before a promotion is coming. Caissie and Nwogu also added multi-hit nights, with Ball leading the way with his four RBIs.

BELOIT SKY CARP 10 - SOUTH BEND CUBS 8

If you thought Iowa's loss was painful, South Bend's was equally as painful as they don't want to see Beloit for a while. Despite leading nearly the whole game, the bullpen trio of Adam Laskey, Tyler Santana, and Chase Watkins let this one get away as they aided to five runs across the final three frames.

That took away from an ok start by Luke Little, who allowed three runs in 3 2/3, but only one was earned. Haydn McGeary is expected to have a big season in High-A, and he is already showing the Cubs why. After hitting his first homer of the season on Thursday, McGeary was back at it again and went deep in the first inning for the 2-0 Cubs lead. He would add an RBI double in his second at-bat in the third to put the Cubs back in front 3-2.

With the game tied 3-3 in the fourth, it was time for the South Bend offense to come to life, with DJ Artis starting that off with an RBI single to put the Cubs back in front. Yohendrick Pinango answered that with an RBI double to extend the lead to 6-3 as his big series continued. Despite the Cubs best efforts to pull away, Beloit had other ideas, as a Jacob Berry double and the Yiddi Cappe groundout in the fifth pulled the Sky Carp to within 6-5.

Cappe would not only double to make things 7-6, but he connected for the two-run shot in the ninth to put the Sky Carp in front 10-7. That hit proved the game-winner as Scott McKeon drove in a run with a single in the ninth before the Cubs offense sputtered. Artis, McKeon, and Pinango had three hits in the game, with McGeary, Casey Opitz, and Bradlee Beesley picking up two.

MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 7 - LYNCHBURG HILLCATS 4

Despite the early season struggles, the Pelicans will figure it out, as Buddy Baily will have this team ready. Fortunately for them, some early offense set the tone, as all seven came in three innings before the game was called after five.

Brody McCullough made his second professional start and once again pitched well. The right-hander lasted 3 2/3 and allowed two runs to bring his season ERA to 2.45. Angel Gonzalez took over for him and surrendered two runs in just 1 1/3, but struck out all four outs he recorded.

Following a scoreless first inning, Cristian Hernandez put the Pelicans on the board as his two-run single gave them the lead for good, 2-0.

That was followed by a Jefferson Encarnacion double in the third as the Pelicans were off and running 3-0. As mentioned above, all seven of the Pelican's runs came in a three-inning stretch, with the final four coming on a fourth-inning grand slam by Moises Ballesteros to push the lead to 7-0.

The Hillcats got two runs back in the bottom of the fourth on a Maick Collado sacrifice fly paired with an RBI ground out while also adding two more in the fifth on the Collado walk and the Angel Zapate single. That would be as close as they would get as mother nature gave the Pelicans a 7-4 rain-shortened win.

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