Chicago Cubs Minor League Report: Sanders Fires Quality Start for Iowa, Ayers Puts Final Touches on Incredible June at Knoxville

Chicago Cubs Minor League Report

Affiliate Overview

Triple-A Iowa Cubs
Series at Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers): Cubs lead, 1-0
Season Record: 33–46-1

Double-A Knoxville Smokies
Series vs. Columbus Clingstones (Atlanta Braves): Smokies lead, 1-0
Season Record: 44–32

High-A South Bend Cubs
Series at Beloit Sky Carp (Miami Marlins): Sky Carp lead, 1-0
Season Record: 44–28

Single-A Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Series vs. Hickory Crawdads (Texas Rangers): Crawdads lead, 1-0
Season Record: 31–43

Affiliate Highlights

Triple-A: Iowa Cubs
Season Record: 33–46-1
Series Opponent: Toledo Mud Hens (39-42)
Series Standing: Lead, 1-0

June 30: The Iowa Cubs opened their series at the Toledo Mud Hens with a 3-1 victory on Tuesday night at Fifth Third Field. The Mud Hens took the lead with a run in the second but the Cubs plated two in the third to take the lead. Moisés Ballesteros (1-for-2) singled home a run and Jonathan Long (0-for-3) put Iowa in front with a sacrifice fly. Owen Miller’s (1-for-4) RBI-triple in the third made it 3-1 and that score would hold the rest of the way thanks to a stellar outing from I-Cubs starter Will Sanders. Sanders twirled his second quality start of the season to improve to 5-0. He allowed one run on two hits over six innings of work, striking out five and walking none. Jayden Murray (2.0 IP) and Luis Peralta (1.0 IP) combined for three scoreless innings out of the bullpen, whiffing three with no walks issued. Peralta would earn his first save of the season by holding Toledo scoreless in the ninth.

Double-A: Knoxville Smokies
Season Record: 44–32
Series Opponent: Columbus Clingstones (32–39)
Series Standing: Lead, 1-0

June 30: The Knoxville Smokies claimed a series-opening win in dominant fashion, defeating the Columbus Clingstones 12-3 on Tuesday night at Covenant Health Park. Both teams scored twice in the first, with Alex Ramírez (2-for-5) launching a two-run blast to tie the game. Ramírez would then give Knoxville the lead for good with a two-run single in the third. Hayden Cantrelle (1-for-3) made it 5-2 with a solo shot in the fourth, his first homer of the year and Edgar Alvarez (1-for-5) picked up an RBI-single in the fifth. The Smokies made it 9-2 in the sixth thanks to RBI-doubles from Ariel Armas (1-for-3) and Owen Ayers (1-for-3) and an RBI-single from Jefferson Rojas (3-for-5). Andy Garriola (2-for-4) increased his home run tally to 16, tied for third most in the Southern League, with a solo shot in the seventh, with the Smokies scoring twice more in the frame on an error. The Clingstones would add one in the eighth but the contest was well out of reach. Connor Schultz tossed his first quality start of the season to record his first win of the campaign, improving to 1-3. Schultz allowed two runs on two hits over six innings of work, walking two and striking out two. Offensively, eight of the nine Knoxville starters hit safely in the ballgame, with three batters recording multi-hit efforts. Ayers finishes his June with a slash line of .451/.554/.824 for a 1.378 OPS over 25 games.

High-A: South Bend Cubs
Season Record: 44–28
Series Opponent: Beloit Sky Carp (33–41)
Series Standing: Trail, 1-0

June 30: The South Bend Cubs were blanked in their series opener at the Beloit Sky Carp, 4-0, on Tuesday night at ABC Supply Stadium. Three runs from the Sky Carp in the third would be more than enough offense as the Cubs were held to just five hits in the ballgame. Beloit would later add another tally in the sixth to make it 4-0 while holding South Bend to just one at-bat with runners in scoring position over the final three frames. Jostin Florentino got the start for the Cubs, taking the loss and falling to 0-4 on the season. Florentino allowed three runs on two hits over five innings of work, walking two and striking out six. Brayden Spears turned in two scoreless frames in relief, issuing one walk and whiffing two. Kane Kepley went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles at the plate.

Single-A: Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Season Record: 31–43
Series Opponent: Hickory Crawdads (43–31)
Series Standing: Trail, 1-0

June 30: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans opened their series vs. the Hickory Crawdads with a 6-3 defeat on Tuesday night at Pelicans Ballpark. The Crawdads plated three runs in their first trip to the plate and would keep the lead wire-to-wire. Hickory would eventually score once in the fifth and twice in the sixth to take a 6-0 lead. The Pelicans would cut that advantage in half with three runs in the eighth, thanks to a bases-loaded walk from Darlyn De Leon (1-for-3) and an RBI-single from Alexis Hernandez (1-for-4), while adding their final tally in the frame on an error. The Crawdads would leave the tying run at the plate in that frame and send Myrtle Beach down in order in the ninth to seal the win. Emilio Ramos got the start for the Pelicans and was handed the loss, falling to 1-1 on the season. Ramos allowed three runs on one hit over three innings of work, walking four and striking out two. Jhon Rosario turned in three scoreless frames out of the bullpen, giving up just one hit while issuing one walk and whiffing one. Offensively, Myrtle Beach was held to just two hits in the ballgame, but were able to draw five walks.

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