Chicago Cubs Minor League Recap: Late Rallies Carry Three Cubs Affiliates To Victories

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• Chicago Cubs designated LHP Hoby Milner for assignment.

Three Iowa Homers And A Cowles Double Beat Omaha

Iowa trailed Omaha 5-2 through four innings and won 7-6 on 11 hits, three of them home runs. The Cubs did not draw a walk and struck out five times.

Owen Miller led the offense at 3-for-4 with two runs scored. James Triantos went 2-for-4. Leadoff man BJ Murray homered for his only hit in four at-bats.

Owen Ayers hit a home run and drove in two runs. Jackson Cluff homered and drove in a run. Ben Cowles was 1-for-3 with a double and two RBI. Austin Wynns doubled and scored.

Wynns doubled and took third on a Justin Dean groundout. After a BJ Murray flyout, Greg Jones singled to center to score Wynns, and Ayers followed with a two-run home run that put Iowa ahead 6-5. Miller and Triantos singled before Cowles flied out. Omaha tied the game in the seventh, and Iowa answered in the eighth when Miller singled, moved up on a Triantos groundout, and scored on Cowles' double to right field.

Braxton Garrett started and allowed five runs on five hits over five innings, walking one and striking out four. Three of those hits left the yard. Tyler Santana gave up one run on three hits across two innings with two strikeouts. Jayden Murray worked 1 2/3 innings without allowing a hit or a run, walking three and striking out two. Eduarniel Núñez recorded the final out in 1/3 of an inning. Iowa left four men on base.

Knoxville Loses A Two-Run Lead In The Ninth At Biloxi

Knoxville carried a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning and lost 4-3 to Biloxi. The Smokies collected seven hits and six walks, struck out nine times, and stranded 10 runners.

Leadoff man Alex Ramírez went 2-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored. Cleanup hitter Miguel Useche was 2-for-5 with two doubles and two RBI. Edgar Alvarez went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Ariel Armas had a hit and a walk in three at-bats with two strikeouts. Kane Kepley drew a walk and struck out once in four at-bats without a hit.

Knoxville scored in the first when Ramírez reached and came home on a Useche groundout. Useche doubled Ramírez in again in the fifth.

The eighth inning gave the Smokies their cushion: Useche doubled, Armas singled him to third, and Alvarez singled to right field to make it 3-1. Knoxville then struck out three straight times to end the frame.

The ninth unraveled. Biloxi opened with two walks and a single to load the bases, then singled to shortstop to score a run. A groundout to first base plated two more when the throw home got away from Useche for a throwing error, and the game ended 4-3.

Brooks Caple started and allowed one run on three hits over five innings, walking two and striking out six. Tyler Schlaffer followed with three innings, giving up two hits and no runs while striking out two. Vince Reilly recorded one out and was charged with three runs, one earned, on two hits and two walks.

Angel Cepeda's First-Inning Homer Sets Up South Bend In Wisconsin

South Bend scored three runs before recording an out and held on for a 7-6 win at Wisconsin. The Cubs finished with 10 hits, four walks, six strikeouts, and six runners left on base.

Angel Cepeda drove in three runs on a home run in four at-bats. Leadoff man Josiah Hartshorn had one hit and three walks in two official at-bats and scored a run. Jose Escobar went 2-for-5 with an RBI. Reginald Preciado doubled, drove in a run, and scored. Justin Stransky doubled in a run and scored. Matt Halbach had a hit, an RBI, and a run in three at-bats.

The first inning set the tone. Hartshorn walked, Escobar singled him to third, and Cepeda homered to center field for a 3-0 lead.

Kade Snell walked before a double play and a strikeout ended the inning.

Wisconsin pulled within 3-2, and South Bend answered with two runs in the seventh. After two strikeouts, Halbach was hit by a pitch, Stransky doubled him home, Hartshorn walked, and Escobar singled to left field to score Stransky.

Two more followed in the eighth on an Espinoza single, a Preciado double, and a Halbach single. Wisconsin scored three in the bottom of the eighth to make it close.

Pierce Coppola started and gave up one run on three hits in 3 2/3 innings, walking one and striking out two. Noah Edders allowed four runs on five hits over 3 2/3 innings with one walk and three strikeouts. Jackson Kirkpatrick walked two without recording an out and was charged with a run. Adam Stone finished with 1 2/3 hitless innings, one walk, and two strikeouts.

A Four-Run Seventh Pushes Myrtle Beach Past Augusta

Myrtle Beach trailed 3-1 entering the seventh inning and scored four times on the way to a 6-5 win at Augusta. The Pelicans managed only six hits, drew three walks, struck out nine times, and committed two errors.

Leadoff man Juan Cabada went 2-for-5 with three RBI and two strikeouts. Alexis Hernandez had a double and a walk in three at-bats, drove in two runs, and scored twice. Darlyn De Leon went 2-for-5 with a run. Caden Sorrell had one hit in four at-bats with two strikeouts. Jhoander Irigoyen walked, drove in a run, and scored.

The seventh was the difference. Irigoyen and Eli Lovich drew walks, and after a Derniche Valdez flyout, Hernandez doubled to left field to score both and tie the game 3-3. Jose Silva was hit by a pitch, Jan Luis Reyes flied out, and Cabada singled to right field to bring home Hernandez and Silva for a 5-3 lead.

Myrtle Beach added a run in the ninth when Hernandez walked, moved up on a Reyes groundout, and scored on Cabada's second RBI single. Augusta pushed across a run in the bottom of the ninth on a fielding error by De Leon.

Riely Hunsaker started and gave up three runs on four hits over five innings without a walk, striking out six. Two of the hits were home runs. Ashton Pocol worked 1 1/3 innings and allowed one unearned run on two hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Jordan Henriquez covered 2 2/3 innings, giving up two hits and one unearned run without a walk. Myrtle Beach left five runners on base.

Top-20 Prospect Performance

1. Josiah Hartshorn: 1-for-2, 3 BB, R
2. Cade Townsend: DNP
3. Jaxon Wiggins: DNP
4. Owen Ayers: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, K
5. Kane Kepley: 0-for-4, BB, K
6. Ethan Conrad: DNP
7. Caden Sorrell: 1-for-4, 2 K
8. Kaleb Wing: DNP
9. Myles Bailey: DNP
10. Brooks Caple: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
11. James Triantos: 2-for-4
12. Will Sanders: DNP
13. Juan Cabada: 2-for-5, 3 RBI, 2 K
14. Jostin Florentino: DNP
15. Derniche Valdez: 0-for-4, K
16. Grant Kipp: DNP
17. Jose Escobar: 2-for-5, RBI
18. Ariel Armas: 1-for-3, BB, 2 K
19. Fernando Cruz: DNP
20. Brandon Birdsell: DNP

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