Cubs Minor League News: Kilian rocked, Windham homers, Amaya with two hits, more
Kilian didn't have his best outing (Photo via I-Cubs)

Cubs Minor League News: Kilian rocked, Windham homers, Amaya with two hits, more
by - Senior Writer - Thu Aug 18 10:18:38 GMT-04:00 2022

You wouldn't have guessed that three teams are in the playoff hunt, judging by how things have gone this week. Following a rough night on the diamond where the full-season squads posted a winless record, it is time for a reality check to get back on track.

INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS 10 - IOWA CUBS 5

Tuesday saw a pitcher's duel in which the Cubs won 2-1. Wednesday was a vastly different story as the Indians doubled up the Cubs 10-5. Caleb Killian picked a lousy time to have one of his worst outings of the season as he surrendered six earned runs in just three innings. His ERA is now 4.03, and it seems unlikely he will be making a return to Chicago this season.

Not only did Killian find himself in a 2-0 hole after the Brendt Citta RBI single in the first, but the Hoy Park double in the second put the Indians in front 3-0. David Bote did his best to keep the Cubs close with an RBI single in the top of the third, only to have the Indians strike for seven runs across the next five innings as they took a 10-1 lead into the ninth.

Give Iowa a ton of credit for how they played in that final inning, as they refused to go down without a fight. Tyler Payne started a huge inning with an RBI double only to see a wild pitch make things 10-3. Throw in the Matt Mervis sacrifice fly and the Narcisco Crook single, and Iowa scored four times in that ninth inning, but still fell 10-5.

BIRMINGHAM BARONS 9 - TENNESSEE SMOKIES 4

Entering the week, the Smokies had a golden opportunity to potentially bury the Barons post-season chances. Instead two games into this week's series, the Barons have made up two games as they topped the Smokies 9-4. All nine of their runs came in the span of two innings, with all coming before the fourth inning.

That was because DJ Herz continues to struggle in AA, and some might wonder if he was promoted a tad soon. Not only did he get through just 1 2/3, but he was charged with seven earned runs in what has been a miserable time. He gave way to plenty of bullpen arms, including Zac Leigh, who made his AA debut with a pair of strikeouts in one inning of work.

Not only did all of Birmingham's runs come before the fourth, but so did the Tennessee runs as they raced out to a big early lead again. For the second straight night, it was the Smokies putting up a three spot in the first inning with Bryce Ball picking up a sacrifice fly ahead of the two-run single by Miguel Amaya. Bryce Windham would add a solo shot in the second inning to extend the lead to 4-0, but that is when things went south.

It was in the bottom of the second when things went south in a hurry as Birmingham scored seven times to take the 7-4 lead. Evan Skoug and D.J. Burt drove in the first two runs, while the bases-loaded walk by Jose Rodriguez made things 4-3. With the bases still loaded, Ian Dawkins came through with the winning hit as his RBI double cleared the bases to make things 6-4 before getting another run to cap off the inning.

The Barons added to their lead in the third inning with Rodriguez homering in back-to-back nights to make things 9-4, which was how the game ended. Amaya had a much-needed big night at the plate picking up three hits with two RBIs. Jake Slaughter, Andy Weber, and Windham added two hits.

SOUTH BEND VS BELOIT (Postponed, DH on Friday)

DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS 7 - MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 1

One night after being shut out through nine innings, it was the Wood Ducks turn to flip the scrip taking down the Pelicans in relatively easy fashion. Winston Santos was on the mound as the right-hander tossed one of his best outings of the year.

Not only did he get through seven innings, but he did so by allowing just one run while the offense took care of the rest. He needed a strong outing because Didier Vargas was dealing in his own right. Granted, he only lasted five innings, but he struck out five while allowing just two runs. With the game knotted at 0 entering the fourth, the Wood Ducks struck first as Miguel Villarroel picked up the RBI single for the early 1-0 lead.

One inning later saw that lead double as Cameron Cauly grabbed the game-winning sacrifice fly to make things 2-0. The Pelicans tried to keep things close late with Ethan Hearn picking up an RBI double, but that would be the only run they would score as the Wood Ducks picked up five-unanswered runs to close the game. All five came on homers, with Yosy Galan grabbing a two-run shot in the seventh and Abimelech Ortiz hitting a three-run shot in the eighth. Parker Chavers had two hits in the win, while Hearn and Moises Ballesteros had one.

Rookie League

Only one rookie league team was in action on Wednesday as the DSL Blue Squad fell to the Yankees 5-3 in the resumption of a suspended game. The Cubs held a 3-2 lead entering the seventh before a Willy Montero single, and a costly error brought three runs home for the Yankees to give them the win.

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