Cubs Minor League News: Perlaza sizzling, Walk-off homer by Aliendo, Garriola's grand slam |
Friday marked the first time this season that all four Cubs full-season Minor League affiliates were on the field. Why is that significant? Well, not only does it give Cubs fans a chance to watch the up-and-coming prospects when the big club is not on, but for the next five months, we will be treated to a full slate of games with more on the way once Rookie ball starts.
Given the excitement, expectations, and anticipation surrounding the minor leagues this season, having as much baseball as possible is always good. Friday saw the minor league system bring plenty of excitement as you had a walk-off win, an extra-inning win, and a grand slam by an up-and-coming power hitter. All that led to the system grabbing a 3-1 record, which you always like to see.
Ironically, the lone loss on the day came from the team that entered the day 4-0. However, all was not lost in this one as Riley Thompson dazzled in his first start. The former top-10 prospect has dealt with his share of injuries, but after dominating his playoff start for AA last season, Thompson showed he still has top-10 potential. All he did in his AAA debut was give the Cubs four innings of one-run, one-hit ball, making it look relatively easy. He walked one and struck out six, which was a very good start for him. Very solid first outing for Riley Thompson yesterday. The problem for him was some defensive miscues late in the game that led to four runs off of Rowan Wick, three of which were unearned. That ultimately sealed the deal for the Cubs. Two great plays from Jake Slaughter for the @IowaCubs tonight! pic.twitter.com/HbdJW5jBxX Jared Young provided all the offense for the Cubs in this one as he started the scoring with an RBI single in the second for the 1-0 lead. Young added a sacrifice fly later in the game for his second RBI, but the Cubs offense was silenced by Louie Varland, who struck out nine in five innings. The lone run off of Thompson came in the fourth when Kyle Garlick picked up an RBI double to tie things up 1-1. Former Cub Hernan Perez delivered the go-ahead homer off of Wick in the fifth, while the costly miscues led to three unearned runs in the sixth, capped off by the Mark Contreras homer. The Cubs were held to six hits, with Yonathan Perlaza leading the way with three. Just a home run away from the cycle, Yonathan Perlaza is your @Therookiedsmia Player of the Game. pic.twitter.com/7HeJN2xTkJ
After a less-than-appealing season opener on Thursday, the Smokies were back in action with Jordan Wicks on the mound. Like the Iowa game, Wicks was given little help from his defense as he allowed four unearned runs in 3 2/3 as the Smokies were playing catchup once again. That was until a five-run bottom of the ninth capped off by the Pablo Aliendo walk-off three-run shot gave the Smokies a dramatic victory. For the most part, Wicks was excellent as he held Birmingham scoreless through three. Had it not been for the defense in the fourth, who knows how long the Smokies stayed with him as Birmingham ripped off four unanswered runs in that fourth inning off the strength of the Tyler Osik double and singles by Xavier Fernandez and Tyler Neslony. Yoelqui Cespedes added a two-run shot in the fifth inning to put the Barons on top 6-0 before the Smokies offense finally kicked it into gear. Chase Strumpf ended the shutout with a sacrifice fly in the fifth, followed by RBI doubles from Bryce Ball and Nelson Maldonado to cut the deficit in half to 6-3. Bryce Ball with an RBI double! Smokies trail 6-2 in the bottom of the 5th. pic.twitter.com/Gx3g5Oi2RV Maldonado was just getting started as his single two innings later brought home two more, and just like that, it was a 6-5 game. Nelson Maldonado adds two more RBIs to his night with a double in the bottom of the 7th. Smokies trail 6-5. pic.twitter.com/DuHnAjjwrJ Hoping to keep things close, the Smokies had to watch Neslony leave the yard for a two-run shot in the eighth while helping push another run across via an error in the ninth to put the Barons back up four. With just three outs to work with, the Smokies ensured that Yoelvin Silven wouldn't mess with this lineup again. One out walks from Ball, and BJ Murray Jr were sandwiched around a Maldonado single as the Smokies loaded the bases with one out. Down to their final out, it was Owen Caissie keeping things alive as his RBI single pulled the Cubs within 9-7. That set the stage for Aliendo, who needed just two pitches to leave the yard as his walk-off three-run shot lifted the Smokies to the 10-9 win. Aliendo and Maldonado not only had three hits, but also drove in three runs. Followed by a Pablo Aliendo walk off blast! pic.twitter.com/4k9hHy7z0O
The defending Midwest League Champs were the last of the Cubs affiliates to kick off their season and opened up with a road series against the River Bandits. What good is an opening night win without some drama as the Cubs had an early lead, lost the lead, and then rallied in extra innings to secure the victory. The big story on the night was South Bend starter, Richard Gallardo. The former ace of the Pelicans staff struggled after his promotion last season, but got back to his old 2021 form in this one. Gallardo gave South Bend five scoreless innings, allowing three hits and four strikeouts as he left with the lead. Credit Kevin Alcantara for that, as he played a part in South Bend's first run while the Fabian Pertuz groundout in the fourth made things 2-0. Moving to the sixth, the Cubs still held that lead as Lance Rymel called on Joe Nahas to relieve Gallardo. After appearing to get out of a jam, it was ruled there was catcher interference on the play, thus extending the inning. That proved costly as River Town used the extra out to come through with an RBI single to tie things back up 2-2. Nahas went on to toss two more scoreless frames before Sheldon Reed took over in the ninth. Reed didn't help himself in that ninth inning as a pair of walks put him in a jam, only to see him pitch around it to force extras. In the extra frame, the Cubs came through as Haydn McGeary delivered the game-winning RBI single while Pertuz added some insurance with a two-run single to make things 5-2. Reed took care of the rest to close the door and give the Cubs their first win of 2023. McGeary and Pertuz led the way with two hits, as did Alcantara. Pertuz also paced the offense with three RBIs.
One day after falling to the Riverdogs, the Pelicans sent a message in dominating fashion on Friday. 2022 10th-round pick Brody McCullough was on the mound and showed great skill by striking out five in 3 2/3 innings. He gave way to Yovanny Cabrerra, who finished the fourth, while Kevin Valdez and Koen Moreno took care of the final five frames. While McCullough was good, he didn't have to be, as the Pelicans bombarded Jonny Cuevas and Kikito Severino for 12 runs in four innings. Three of those runs came in the first, with Andy Garriola starting things off with a two-run double, with an error aiding the third run. A Jefferson Encarnacion single in the third made things 4-0, but the eight-run fourth inning busted the game wide open. Credit Parker Chavers and Garriola for that, as Chavers connected for a three-run shot to make things 7-0, while Garriola one-upped him with a grand slam to finish with six RBIs. Chavers added an RBI single later in that inning, as those two were responsible for all eight runs that inning. Miguel Pabon added the final run for the Pelicans in the eighth with a single, while Cooper Kinney ended the shutout bid with a ninth-inning homer. While Encarnacion led the way with three hits, four other players, including Chavers, Garriola, Rafael Morel, and Pedro Ramirez, had two. Garriola (6) and Chavers (4) combined for 10 RBIs in the win. SAINT PAUL SAINTS 6 - IOWA CUBS 2
Finished the day with 6Ks and a BB limiting hitters to only 1 H and 1 R.
You can see the expanding arsenal and he got whiffs on both breaking pitches (gyro slider and curveball). pic.twitter.com/rqSq377bD8
TENNESSEE SMOKIES 10 - BIRMINGHAM BARONS 9
SOUTH BEND CUBS 5 - QUAD CITIES RIVER BANDITS 2 (F/10)
MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 13 - CHARLESTON RIVERDOGS 1
