Chicago Cubs Minor League Recap: Cabada Circles The Bases, Hunsaker And Caple Carve Up The Zone

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Chicago Cubs sent RHP Shelby Miller on a rehab assignment to Iowa Cubs.

Grant Kipp Turns In Three Scoreless Innings In Iowa's Game One Shutout Loss

Iowa collected six hits and left eight runners on base in a 6-0 loss to St. Paul in the opener of a seven-inning doubleheader.

B.J. Murray led the offense with a 3-for-4 afternoon that included a double. Owen Miller followed with two hits in four at-bats, and Chas McCormick reached twice on a single and a walk. The Cubs never brought a runner home and struck out 10 times as a group. Greg Jones went down on strikes three times, and Jordan Nwogu drew a walk but also struck out twice.

Owen Ayers delivered a clean throw to second for the tag in the first.

Grant Kipp handled the start and gave Iowa three scoreless innings, allowing no hits with three walks and four strikeouts. Hoby Milner followed and took the loss, retiring two batters while giving up three hits and two runs. Jayden Murray covered 2 1/3 innings with three runs on one hit, a walk, and two strikeouts. Shelby Miller closed the game with one inning, two hits, one run, and a walk in a rehab appearance.

St. Paul broke through in the fourth. With two outs and runners at the corners, back-to-back hits off Milner, a single and then a double to left, produced the first two runs of the game. The visitors added three more in the sixth on a home run to right field off Jayden Murray, and a sacrifice fly to center in the seventh accounted for the final margin.

Player	AB	H	BB	K
BJ Murray, 1B	4	3	0	0
Owen Miller, 3B	4	2	0	1
Owen Ayers, C	3	0	0	1
Kevin Alcántara, DH	3	0	0	2
Justin Dean, RF	3	0	0	1
Chas McCormick, CF	2	1	1	0
Greg Jones, 2B	3	0	0	3
Ben Cowles, SS	3	0	0	0
Jordan Nwogu, LF	2	0	1	2

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Grant Kipp	3	0	0	0	3	4	0
Hoby Milner	0 2/3	3	2	2	0	1	0
Jayden Murray	2 1/3	1	3	3	1	2	1
Shelby Miller	1	2	1	1	1	0	0

Owen Ayers And Ethan Hearn Homer Early, But Iowa Drops Game Two 5-4

Iowa built a four-run first inning and could not hold it, falling 5-4 to St. Paul in the nightcap.

Owen Ayers did the most damage, going 1-for-2 with a home run, a walk, and an RBI.

Ethan Hearn drove in three runs on his lone hit, a three-run home run.

BJ Murray and Owen Miller each singled, Miller adding a double, and Ben Cowles reached with a hit in two at-bats. Iowa managed only five hits and stranded two runners, and the lineup struck out 10 times, all of them after the opening frame.

Andrew Wantz started and worked two innings, giving up four hits, two runs, three walks, and two strikeouts. Luis Peralta was the story out of the bullpen with two hitless innings and five strikeouts, and Ethan Roberts added a scoreless inning with two strikeouts.

Tyler Ferguson took the loss after allowing three hits and three runs in one inning, and Gabe Klobosits finished with a scoreless frame and a strikeout.

The first inning contained all of Iowa's scoring. Ayers led off the bottom half with a home run to right-center, and after Murray and Kevin Alcantara reached, Hearn drove a three-run shot to the same part of the ballpark for a 4-0 lead. St. Paul answered with two doubles in the third to trim the lead to 4-2, then pushed across three runs in the sixth on a bases-clearing double off Ferguson to take the lead for good.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Ben Cowles, 3B	2	0	1	0	0	0
Owen Miller, 2B	3	0	1	0	0	0
Owen Ayers, DH	2	1	1	1	1	1
BJ Murray, 1B	3	1	1	0	0	1
Kevin Alcántara, RF	3	1	0	0	0	1
Ethan Hearn, C	3	1	1	3	0	2
Jordan Nwogu, LF	3	0	0	0	0	0
Ed Howard, SS	2	0	0	0	0	2
Greg Jones, PH	1	0	0	0	0	1
Hayden Cantrelle, CF	1	0	0	0	1	1
Chas McCormick, PH	1	0	0	0	0	1

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Andrew Wantz	2	4	2	2	3	2
Luis Peralta	2	0	0	0	0	5
Ethan Roberts	1	0	0	0	0	2
Tyler Ferguson	1	3	3	3	1	0
Gabe Klobosits	1	0	0	0	0	1

Brooks Caple And Three Relievers Hold Rocket City To One Run In Knoxville's 4-1 Win

Knoxville scored all four of its runs in the second and third innings and rode its pitching the rest of the way in a 4-1 win over Rocket City.

Andy Garriola paced the lineup at 3-for-4 with a double, a run, and an RBI. Alex Madera went 2-for-3 and drove in two runs from the eight hole. Kane Kepley tripled and scored in a 1-for-4 game at the top of the order, Alex Ramirez singled, scored, and drove in a run, and Ariel Armas doubled and scored. The Smokies finished with eight hits and left only four runners on base.

Brooks Caple started and earned the win, going 5 1/3 innings with five hits, one run, three walks, and four strikeouts. Frankie Scalzo Jr. retired both batters he faced to finish the sixth. Tyler Schlaffer worked two scoreless innings with a walk and two strikeouts, and Tyler Ras closed it out with a scoreless ninth for the save. The bullpen combined for 3 2/3 innings without allowing a hit.

The second inning turned the game. Garriola singled with one out, Armas doubled him to third, and Madera lined a single to right that scored both runners for a 2-1 lead.

Knoxville added two more in the third, when Kepley opened with a triple and scored on Ramirez's single to center, and Ramirez came around on Garriola's double to right. Rocket City's only run came on a two-out double in the second.

Karson Simas showcased an impressive grab at short to hold Rocket City in the 4th.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Kane Kepley, CF	4	1	1	0	0	0
Alex Ramírez, RF	4	1	1	1	0	1
Miguel Useche, 1B	4	0	0	0	0	2
Edgar Alvarez, 1B	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter Trice, DH	3	0	0	0	1	1
Andy Garriola, LF	4	1	3	1	0	1
Dom Krupinski, 3B	3	0	0	0	0	2
Ariel Armas, C	3	1	1	0	0	0
Alex Madera, 2B	3	0	2	2	0	0
Karson Simas, SS	3	0	0	0	0	3

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Brooks Caple	5 1/3	5	1	1	3	4
Frankie Scalzo Jr.	0 2/3	0	0	0	0	0
Tyler Schlaffer	2	0	0	0	1	2
Tyler Ras	1	0	0	0	0	0

Angel Cepeda Homers And Kade Snell Doubles Twice, But South Bend Falls 7-4

South Bend led twice early and could not hold either lead, dropping a 7-4 decision at Great Lakes.

Angel Cepeda led the offense with a 2-for-5 night that included a home run, a double, two runs, and an RBI.

Kade Snell went 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI, and Brennan Hudson was 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI from the nine hole. Josiah Hartshorn doubled, scored, and finished 1-for-4, and Matt Halbach singled home a run. The Cubs totaled eight hits, drew four walks, and left seven runners on base.

Pierce Coppola started and took the loss, allowing three hits and four runs, three earned, over three innings with three walks, two strikeouts, and a home run. Luis Rujano followed with two scoreless innings, giving up two hits and a walk while striking out three. Anhuar Garcia worked the final three innings and was charged with six hits and three runs, striking out three without issuing a walk.

Cepeda opened the game with a home run to left in the first, and Hudson's second-inning single put South Bend ahead 2-1. Great Lakes answered with a two-run homer in its half of the second and took a 4-3 lead on a double in the third. Snell's RBI double in the top of the eighth pulled South Bend within 5-4, but Great Lakes answered in the bottom half with four consecutive two-out singles off Garcia for the 7-4 final.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Jose Escobar, DH	4	0	0	0	1	1
Angel Cepeda, SS	5	2	2	1	0	3
Josiah Hartshorn, RF	4	1	1	0	0	1
Matt Halbach, 3B	4	0	1	1	0	0
Kade Snell, LF	4	0	2	1	0	1
Logan Poteet, C	1	1	0	0	1	0
Justin Stransky, C	2	0	0	0	0	1
Alexey Lumpuy, CF	3	0	0	0	1	1
Michael Hallquist, 2B	4	0	0	0	0	2
Brennan Hudson, 1B	3	0	2	1	1	1

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Pierce Coppola	3	3	4	3	3	2	1
Luis Rujano	2	2	0	0	1	3	0
Anhuar Garcia	3	6	3	3	0	3	0

Juan Cabada's Inside-The-Park Home Run Caps Myrtle Beach's 5-1 Win

Myrtle Beach scored in three separate innings and got 15 outs from its starter in a 5-1 win over Hill City.

Juan Cabada was the standout, going 3-for-3 with an inside-the-park home run, two RBI, and a run scored out of the designated hitter spot.

Caden Sorrell singled home a run in a 1-for-4 game.

Corey Nunez singled, drove in a run, and scored.

Ethan Conrad singled, walked, and scored a run, and Jose Silva and Jan Luis Reyes each singled and scored. The Pelicans finished with eight hits and left only four runners on base.

Riely Hunsaker started and earned the win with five innings of two-hit, one-run ball, walking one and striking out eight. Luis Mata followed with 2 1/3 scoreless innings on two hits and two walks with a strikeout. Sam Mettert recorded the save, covering the final 1 2/3 innings without allowing a hit while walking one and striking out two.

The second inning put Myrtle Beach in front. Conrad singled, Nunez singled him home and advanced to third on an error in center field, and Derik Alcantara brought Nunez in with a sacrifice fly to right for a 2-0 lead. Cabada finished the scoring in the seventh. With two outs and Silva aboard, he lined a ball into the right-center field gap and circled the bases for a two-run, inside-the-park home run and a 5-1 lead.

Defensively, the Birds pulled a slick 6-3-2 double play in the 6th.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Juan Cabada, DH	3	1	3	2	0	0
Alexis Hernandez, SS	3	0	0	0	1	1
Caden Sorrell, CF	4	0	1	1	0	0
Ethan Conrad, RF	3	1	1	0	1	1
Corey Nunez, 3B	4	1	1	0	0	0
Derik Alcantara, LF	3	0	0	1	0	1
Jose Silva, C	3	1	1	0	0	1
Fernando Cruz, 2B	3	0	0	0	0	2
Jan Luis Reyes, 1B	3	1	1	0	0	2

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Riely Hunsaker	5	2	1	1	1	8
Luis Mata	2 1/3	2	0	0	2	1
Sam Mettert	1 2/3	0	0	0	1	2

Top-20 Prospect Performance

Jefferson Rojas: DNP
Pedro Ramirez: DNP
Jaxon Wiggins: DNP
Josiah Hartshorn: 1-for-4, 2B, R, K
Kevin Alcantara: 0-for-6, R, 3 K (doubleheader)
Ethan Conrad: 1-for-3, BB, R, K
Kane Kepley: 1-for-4, 3B, R
Owen Ayers: 1-for-5, HR, RBI, BB, R, 2 K (doubleheader)
Jonathon Long: DNP
Kaleb Wing: DNP
James Triantos: DNP
Brooks Caple: 5 1/3 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, W
Mason McGwire: DNP
Ty Southisene: DNP
Will Sanders: DNP
Juan Cabada: 3-for-3, HR, 2 RBI, R
Eli Lovich: DNP
Ariel Armas: 1-for-3, 2B, R
Jostin Florentino: DNP
Grant Kipp: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K

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