Cubs Minor League News: Mervis blasts homer, Kilian impressive, Caissie and Aliendo homer
Photo courtesy: Iowa Cubs

Cubs Minor League News: Mervis blasts homer, Kilian impressive, Caissie and Aliendo homer
by - Senior Writer - Thu Jul 27 11:02:46 GMT-04:00 2023

All I do is win, win, win, no matter what. That was the theme of the night for the Cubs Minor League system as they continue to pile up the wins this week. Just one day after going 6-1, the Cubs were back on the diamond, where they posted a 4-0 mark.

Another game was suspended due to weather, but the Cubs were winning that game, too, so you could say they were 5-0 Wednesday night. That makes for a record of 11-1 over the past two days, which is an incredible run, no matter who the franchise is.

IOWA CUBS 10 - MEMPHIS REDBIRDS 7

Don't look now, but at 58-38, the Iowa Cubs have the best record in the Cubs system and are starting to click on all cylinders. That tends to happen when you have an offense like them, but now their pitching is beginning to come around. Caleb Kilian is one of the reasons why the pitching has turned around, as he ran his record to 7-1.

Despite his 4.15 ERA, Kilian has dramatically shifted his game and is more concerned with pitching to contact than striking out hitters. Kilian gave the Cubs 5 2/3 and allowed just one run on five hits as the offense took care of the rest. Once Kilian left, it was a different story, but the offense did more than enough to hold off the Redbirds.

The Cubs didn't waste any time grabbing the lead as Jake Slaughter belted his team-leading 17th homer in the second to put Iowa in front 1-0.

They made that lead hold until the fourth when Kilian surrendered his lone earned run on the Juan Yepez triple to bring things back to even 1-1. Once the sixth inning rolled around, the Cubs offense got going in a big way as they scored seven times in two innings to bust things open.

Four runs came in the sixth, with Edwin Rios picking up the go-ahead two-run single, followed by another single from Alexander Canario. Jared Young picked up his first RBI since returning to Iowa as his grounder made things 5-1. One inning later, it was an 8-1 lead with Matt Mervis unloading for the three-run shot. Despite his power numbers being down this season, Mervis is still having a good year as he continues to mash in AAA.

Trailing 8-2 in the eighth, the Redbirds began to battle back as a pair of homers from Matt Koperniak and Moises Gomez pulled the Redbirds within 8-5. Iowa answered that with a pair of runs in their half of the ninth as Rios came through with another RBI single ahead of the Canario Fielder's choice. Memphis continued to keep things interesting late, with Luken Baker and Koperniak adding RBI singles in the bottom of the ninth, but it was the Cubs holding them off 10-7.

Everyone in the lineup had at least one hit, with six players picking up two. Yonathan Perlaza, Nick Madrigal, Rios, and Mervis were just a few of those, with Mervis and Rios leading the way with three RBIs.

TENNESSEE SMOKIES 10 - ROCKET CITY TRASH PANDAS 2

Sparked by a trio of massive innings, the Smokies made quick work of Rocket City to pick up the 10-2 win. Walker Powell set the tone on the mound, giving the Smokies six strong innings to improve to 6-5. He gave way to Porter Hodge and Samuel Reyes while the offense was on fire early.

It is always nice to be given a lead before you even take the mound, but the Smokies wanted to ensure Powell had nothing to worry about in his start. They pushed across three runs in the opening frame, with Owen Caissie opening the scoring with a two-run blast while Pablo Aliendo added an RBI single to make things 3-0.

A Sonny DiChiara homer in the second put Rocket City on the board, but after pushing across four runs in the fourth, it was the Smokies building a 7-1 lead and never looking back. The long ball played a role in that inning, with Bradlee Beesley connecting for a solo shot while Andy Weber added a two-run bomb. You also had another RBI hit from Caissie mixed in as the Tennessee offense continues to cook.

The final run of the game for the Trash Pandas came from DiChiara in the bottom half of the fourth as his sacrifice fly made things 7-2 in favor of the Smokies. Aliendo capped off the scoring in the ninth as his three-run homer lifted the Smokies to the 10-2 win.

Aliendo was one of six players with a multi-hit game as he led the way with four RBIs. Caissie, Haydn McGeary, and Pete Crow-Armstrong also had two hits, with Caissie driving in three.

SOUTH BEND CUBS 9 - PEORIA CHIEFS 3

Sometimes, all it takes is one start for a pitcher to figure things out, which is the case for Brody McCullough. After struggling through his first three starts in High-A, McCullough has now put forth two great outings, including his four-inning outing on Wednesday. Granted, he did earn a no-decision, but you are doing your part anytime you allow just one run, as the offense took care of the rest for him.

It didn't take long for the Cubs to grab the lead as they pushed across four runs in the second to make things 4-0. Peoria helped with an error that led to the game's first run, which Christian Franklin followed with a double to make things 2-0. Ethan Hearn put an exclamation point on that massive inning as his two-run single had the Cubs in front 4-0, proving to be the winning run.

Those were the games only runs until the fifth inning when Felix Stevens used an RBI single to extend the lead to 5-0. It may have taken the Chiefs five innings to break through, but they did manage to push their first run across in the bottom of the fifth as Jeremy Rivas made things 5-1.

The Cubs continued to do damage in the sixth, with Kevin Made earning an RBI on the bases-loaded walk while a double play extended the Cub's lead to 7-1. They were leading 7-2 in the eighth when James Triantos left the building to close out the day for South Bend, as his homer gave the Cubs a 9-2 lead.

Nathan Church would add an RBI for Peoria in the bottom of the ninth, but it wasn't enough to top South Bend 9-3.

Stevens and Moises Ballesteros led the way with three hits, while Hearn added two hits and two RBIs from the No. 9 spot. Triantos also picked up two RBIs as Luis Verdugo was the lone player without a hit.

MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 10 - FREDERICKSBURG NATIONALS 5

The offense was undoubtedly the story all night in the Cubs system, as were crooked innings as the Pelicans used an early six-run frame to grab the lead. Ironically, that would have been enough for them to win this game, but they wouldn't stop there as left-hander Jackson Ferris was on the mound.

Ferris has been good all season, but he didn't have it on Wednesday after walking four and allowing two runs in 2/3. Fortunately for him, Koen Moreno and the offense did as Moreno tossed three scoreless frames to earn the win while the offense gave them all the support they needed. There haven't been many times you could say Ferris has played from behind, but after a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk led to two first-inning runs, Ferris was done.

The lead held up early but didn't last long as Andy Garriola tied things up in the third with an RBI double. Myrtle Beach then proceeded to bust things open in the fourth as they scored six times to take an 8-2 lead, with Ismael Mena opening the scoring with a triple to put the Birds in front 4-2. That was followed by a Reivaj Garcia to extend the lead to 5-2, with Garriola delivering the big blow with a three-run shot.

Despite trailing by a bunch on the scoreboard, the Nationals continued to battle as Cortland Lawson pulled them to within 8-4 in the fifth with his RBI hit. That would be as close as the Nationals would get as Garriola added to his already big day with another RBI double late, with Garcia capping off the scoring for the Pelicans with a sacrifice fly.

Garriola had the hot hand in this one, picking up a team-best four hits while single-handedly outscoring the Nationals with six RBIs. Garcia, Hernandez, and Pedro Ramirez also had solid days as they came away with three hits.

DSL CUBS RED 5 - DSL CUBS BLUE 2 (Suspended in 4th)

In what was a rare treat, one Rookie League game was happening on Wednesday with the Cubs vs Cubs battle taking place. Sure, the weather suspended this game in the fourth with DSL Red up 5-2, but there were still some great moments leading up to the stoppage.

Both teams picked up a run in the first, with DSL Red scoring on an error and DSL Blue scoring on the Derniche Valdez sacrifice fly. Once the second inning rolled around, DSL Red took control as Sandy Sanchez doubled home a pair for a 3-1 lead while an RBI fielder's choice made things 4-1. DSL Blue responded with another sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second, with Joan Delgado capping off the scoring with a solo blast in the third.

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