Cubs Minor League News: Wicks impressive, PCA raking, Stevens and Pagan homer, more
Photo courtesy: Iowa Cubs

Cubs Minor League News: Wicks impressive, PCA raking, Stevens and Pagan homer, more
by - Senior Writer - Sat Aug 05 08:47:53 GMT-04:00 2023

What was supposed to be a busy night on the diamond turned into a quieter night as two games were suspended due to the weather. Both happened to be in the DSL and will be made up at a later date. In the meantime, there were still five games in the Cubs system, and all five came with ups and downs.

This was a night where pitching dominated in the wins but struggled in the losses. That does happen, but with a 3-2 record on the diamond, the Cubs can at least hold their heads up high for an overall good night of Minor League Action.

IOWA CUBS 3 - TOLEDO MUD HENS 1

Looking to bounce back from a rough showing in which they were swept in a doubleheader, the Cubs turned to their No. 5 overall prospect Jordan Wicks who delivered in a big way. Despite missing his last turn in the rotation, Wicks didn't miss a beat as he had his best outing with AAA Iowa.

Wicks gave the Cubs five dominating innings of One-run, one-hit baseball as he improved to 3-0 since his promotion.

After him, the bullpen trio of Tyler Duffy, Brendon Little, and Cam Sanders were lights out as they struck out seven in four innings. The only run Wicks allowed came in the first, and it was a gift at that, as Toledo grabbed the 1-0 lead on a wild pitch. He would settle in after that and dominate the rest of the way as Toledo searched for answers.

The Toledo lead didn't last long as Edwin Rios tied things up with an RBI single in the bottom of the first.

That score would hold until the bottom of the fourth when Luis Vazquez delivered the game-winning single to put the Cubs up 2-1. Not only was Wicks doing his thing on the mound, but MR. Hollywood Pete Crow-Armstrong had a special night as he picked up his first career AAA hit in the bottom of the fifth. That hit was a home run, as that was the final run in a 3-1 win for the Cubs.

Iowa had six hits in the ball game, with Miles Mastrobuoni leading the way with two.

CHATTANOOGA LOOKOUTS 3 - TENNESSEE SMOKIES 1

Despite dropping this game to the Lookouts and a double dip lingering on Saturday, you had to like how the Smokies pitching stood up. With the promotion of Wicks to AAA and DJ Herz recently getting traded, the Smokies staff was down two arms as they looked to piece together a rotation the rest of the way.

Kohl Franklin could be one of those pieces, and despite struggling with his command occasionally, he still managed to toss 4 2/3, allowing just one run. That would typically be enough to win, but when Carson Spiers gives you six shutout innings, you are in a tough spot, as the offense was nowhere to be found.

It took five innings for anyone to score as Jose Torrens took Franklin deep to give the Lookouts the 1-0 lead. That was the only run Franklin would allow, but it was a hole that the Smokies offense couldn't climb out of. That 1-0 lead held until the seventh when Alex McGarry came through with a massive RBI single to extend the lead to 3-0.

Down to their final three outs, the Smokies had work to do to get back into the game, but a Cole Roederer homer did help as the Smokies trailed 3-1. That was the only run they would score in the contest as they dropped their first game of the week to the Lookouts 3-1. Owen Caissie continued to murder the baseball as he led the way with two hits, as did Casey Opitz.

SOUTH BEND CUBS 5 - WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS 3

Very quietly, the Cubs have started to play better and are beginning to climb back into the second-half race. Granted, they still have a ton of work to do, but with another win against Wisconsin, the opportunities are there. Michael Arias had an excellent bounce-back start and pitched great despite picking up a no-decision.

Arias gave the Cubs five strong innings allowing two runs and striking out six. He gave way to Tyler Santana and his three scoreless frames as the Cubs did enough to win this game. Arias and the Cubs found themselves trailing early as Brock Wilken picked up an RBI single in the first for the 1-0 lead.

Wisconsin held that lead for a few innings only to see Ezequiel Pagan strike for the two-run blast in the third to put the Cubs in front 2-1.

After Je'Von Ward tied things up in the fifth, another long ball gave the Cubs the lead yet again, with Felix Stevens picking up another homer in the sixth.

That homer was followed by a pair of RBI doubles from Josh Rivera and Christian Franklin in the next two frames as the Cubs took a 5-2 lead into the ninth.

With just three outs to go, Wisconsin didn't go away quietly as Darrien Miller picked up an RBI single to pull them within 5-3, but that was it. Rivera had a great night as the 2023 third-rounder picked up three hits with his game-winning RBI.

DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS 7 - MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 1

Down East has been a problem all week for the Pelicans, and it continued on Friday. Sparked by a pair of three-run frames, Down East was too much as they picked up another win 7-1.

In a battle of first-place teams, Grant Kipp was on the short end of his start allowing four runs in five innings to fall to 3-7. His ERA remains a steady 3.24, as he has received little offensive support. What do you expect when Joseph Montalvo tosses five shutout innings across from him to lower his ERA to 2.42? Kipp has been placed against some of the best the game has to offer, and it hasn't worked in his favor.

Kipp matched Montalvo pitch for pitch in the early stages until the two-run triple from Miguel Villaroel in the fourth gave the Wood Ducks the lead for good, 2-0. Villaroel would end up scoring on the Anthony Gutierrez single, while an additional run in the fifth had the Birds trailing 4-0.

Still, with a goose egg on the board in the eighth, Andy Garriola ended that as his RBI single made things 4-1. Unfortunately, that was the last of their runs as Down East added three more in the bottom of the eighth to pull away 7-1.

ACL CUBS 2 - ACL GUARDIANS 1

Alexis Hernandez with a first-inning homer while Jose Escobar picked up the game-winning single in the sixth.

DSL CUBS RED 1 - DSL TIGERS 0 (Suspended in the fourth)

The Cubs scored the only run thus far on a wild pitch. Alfredo Romero has lowered his ERA to 2.10 with his three scoreless innings so far.

DSL ASTROS 5 - DSL CUBS BLUE 3 (Suspended in the fourth)

After trailing 5-0 in the bottom of the third after the four-run inning by the Astros, the Cubs got three runs back as Darlyn De Leon opened the scoring with a double. Edward Vargas would single him home later in the inning to make things 5-3.

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