Chicago Cubs Minor League Report: Knoxville Blanks Chattanooga to Move One Win Away from Clinching Playoff Berth

Chicago Cubs Minor League Report - June 20

Affiliate Overview

Triple-A Iowa Cubs
Series vs. Indianapolis Indians (Pittsburgh Pirates): Cubs lead, 3-1
Season Record: 30–40-1

Double-A Knoxville Smokies
Series vs. Chattanooga Lookouts (Cincinnati Reds): Tied, 2-2
Season Record: 37–30

High-A South Bend Cubs
Series at Fort Wayne TinCaps (San Diego Padres): Tied, 2-2
Season Record: 40–23

Single-A Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Series at Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles): Pelicans lead, 3-1
Season Record: 27–38

Affiliate Highlights

Triple-A: Iowa Cubs

Season Record: 30–40-1
Series Opponent: Indianapolis Indians (29-44)
Series Standing: Lead, 3-1

June 19: The Iowa Cubs clinched at least a series split with an 11-7 victory over the Indianapolis Indians on Friday night at Principal Park. The Indians took a 3-0 lead, scoring once in the first and adding two more in the second. RBI-singles from Chas McCormick (2-for-3) and Brett Bateman (2-for-6) in the second made it 3-2 and the Cubs took a 4-3 lead in the third thanks to RBI hits from James Triantos (1-for-4) and Christian Bethancourt (3-for-4). Indianapolis went back in front with two runs in the fourth but the I-Cubs responded in the home half of the frame, with Jonathan Long (1-for-4) crushing a grand slam. Iowa made it 11-5 in the fifth, with Owen Miller (2-for-6) doubling home a run and BJ Murray (3-for-5) launching a two-run shot, his eighth of the campaign. The Indians scratched a run across in each the seventh and ninth innings but Iowa was able to hold on for the 11-7 win. Andrew Wantz picked up the win out of the bullpen to improve to 3-0 on the season. Wantz allowed three runs on four hits over four innings of work, striking out three and walking one. Offensively, all nine Cubs starters recorded at least one hit in the ballgame, with six batters tallying multi-hit efforts.

Double-A: Knoxville Smokies

Season Record: 37–30
Series Opponent: Chattanooga Lookouts (36–31)
Series Standing: Tied, 2-2

June 19: The Knoxville Smokies evened their series against the Chattanooga Lookouts with a 2-0 shutout win on Friday night at Covenant Health Park. The Smokies now take a one-game lead in the Southern League North Division with two games left to play in the first half of the season. Their magic number to clinch a postseason spot is two. Both teams traded zeroes through the first six innings of the ballgame, with Knoxville starter Jace Beck turning in five of those innings. Beck allowed just two hits and whiffed a career-high 10 batters with just one walk issued. Yenrri Rojas followed out of the bullpen and picked up the win in relief to improve to 2-5 on the season. Rojas tossed two scoreless frames and retired all six of the batters that he faced. The Smokies finally broke the deadlock in the seventh on a pair of RBI-singles from Carter Trice (1-for-3) and Ariel Armas (1-for-3). Tyler Ras earned his first save of the season by turning in two shutout innings to end the game, allowing just one hit and striking out two.

High-A: South Bend Cubs

Season Record: 40–23
Series Opponent: Fort Fayne TinCaps (27–40)
Series Standing: Tied, 2-2

June 19: The South Bend Cubs evened their series at the Fort Wayne TinCaps with a 7-6 victory in 11 innings on Friday night at Parkview Field. The TinCaps raced out to 5-0 after their first trip to the plate before the Cubs got on the board with two runs in the third. Josiah Hartshorn (1-for-4) drove in a run on a sacrifice fly and Matt Halbach (1-for-6) picked up an RBI on a fielder’s choice. South Bend plated two more in the fifth to make it 5-4, thanks to an RBI-double from Hartshorn and an RBI from Miguel Useche (0-for-5). Fort Wayne got one of those runs back in the home half of the fifth to make it 6-4 but the Cubs were able to tie the ballgame in the eighth with their third two-spot of the contest. Ty Southisene (2-for-5) provided the clutch knock, driving in a pair on a single. The game would head to extras with neither team able to score in the 10th, with South Bend reliever Ethan Bell stranding the winning at third. Southisene delivered again in high leverage, singling home the go-ahead run in the 11th to give the Cubs the 7-6 lead. Bell would then leave the tying run on third in the bottom of the frame to give South Bend the win. Bell improved to 3-0 on the season after 2 1/3 shutout innings, allowing no hits and striking out four batters to go along with three walks. Koen Moreno got the start for the Cubs and took no decision. Moreno allowed five runs, one earned, on five hits over four innings, striking out two and walking two. Hartshorn’s two RBI brought his High-A total to 30 in just 22 games.

Single-A: Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Season Record: 27–38
Series Opponent: Delmarva Shorebirds (24–43)
Series Standing: Lead, 3-1

June 19: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans dropped their contest at the Delmarva Shorebirds, 8-4, on Friday night at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. The Pelicans took a 3-0 lead in the second, plating one on a wild pitch and two thanks to a single off the bat of Alexey Lumpuy (3-for-4). The Shorebirds got on the board with a run in the third to make it 3-1 and that score would hold until the seventh. Delmarva would go in front with three runs after the stretch but Logan Poteet (2-for-3) would make it 4-4 with a solo shot in the eighth, his 11th long ball of the season. The hosts, however, would score four in their trip to the dish in the eighth to go ahead 8-4. Myrtle Beach would go down in order in the ninth to end the game. Kaleb Wing got the start for the Pelicans and did not factor in the decision. Wing allowed one run on three hits over 2 2/3 innings of work, striking out three but issuing four walks. Sam Mettert was handed the loss, falling to 0-1 on the season. Mettert allowed four runs, all unearned, on three hits over two innings, whiffing two batters. The Myrtle Beach offense went 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position on the night, leaving 13 runners on base.

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