Chicago Cubs Minor League Wrap: August 15

Everyone wins! OK, Iowa lost too.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs’ home field was playable tonight and they split a doubleheader with the Columbus Clippers, losing game one 9-5 and winning game two 5-1.

Jordan Wicks started game one on a rehab assignment and went 2+ innings. He took the loss after he allowed four runs on five hits. Wicks walked two and struck out three. He threw 59 pitches and 36 were strikes.

Left fielder Owen Caissie hit a solo home run in the second inning, his 13th on the year. Caissie went 2 for 3.

Shortstop Luis Vazquez then went back-to-back with Caissie in the second. Vazquez then hit a second solo home run in the bottom of the seventh, which was also his seventh home run this year. Vazquez is 2 for 3.

Caissie’s home run went a long way.

Vazquez’s two home runs:

I’ve been talking up the defense of Kevin Alcántara. Here’s a reason why.

Caleb Kilian had another strong rehab start, going 4.2 innings and giving up one run on six hits. He struck out six and walked no one. Kilian threw 79 pitches, 55 for strikes.

Josh Staumont finished the top of the fifth inning and ended up getting the win. He walked the first batter he faced and got the other one to pop out to short.

The I-Cubs did all their damage in the fifth inning, scoring all five runs and having four of their five hits. Second baseman James Triantos tied up the game when he singled home left fielder Cole Roederer.

Triantos went 1 for 3 and scored later in the inning after stealing third base.

Roederer was 1 for 2 with a double and a walk.

Third baseman Matt Shaw was 2 for 3 with a two-run single and one run scored.

Triantos’ RBI single.

Shaw’s two-run single.

I go back and forth about Owen Caissie’s range in right field, but there’s no questioning his arm.

Tennessee Smokies

The Tennessee Smokies usurped the Birmingham Barons (White Sox), 8-6 in 12 innings.

Starter Antonio Santos allowed four runs on three hits over 4.2 innings. That will happen when two of the three hits were home runs—one solo home run in the fourth and one three-run home run in the fifth. Santos walked four and struck out six.

Daniel Missaki pitched 2.1 scoreless innings and Zac Leigh pitched two more scoreless innings to finish out regulation.

Blake Whitney pitched the tenth and the eleventh innings, gave up one unearned run in each frame, and got the win after the Smokies scored twice in the top of the twelfth. Whitney allowed two hits. He struck out two and walked one batter intentionally.

Jeff Belge pitched a scoreless bottom of the 12th and got the save. He did allow a two-out dribbler of a hit in front of the plate, but he struck out the other three batters he faced.

Third baseman Luis Verdugo hit a two-run double in the 12th inning that turned out to be the difference in the game. Verdugo was 2 for 6 with three total RBI and one run scored.

Left fielder Christian Franklin was 2 for 4 with two walks. He scored twice and drove in one run.

Catcher Pablo Aliendo was 2 for 4 with two walks and two RBI.

DH Ezequiel Pagan was 2 for 6 and scored one run.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs grilled the Cedar Rapids Kernels (Twins), 6-4.

Terrific start for Will Sanders, who is starting to make a name for himself. Sanders went six innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on four hits in picking up the win. More importantly, Sanders struck out eight and walked no one.

Brad Depperman pitched the ninth and got his first save since 2022. Depperman gave up a leadoff single, but then retired the next three batters, striking out the final one.

Red-hot catcher Ethan Hearn hit his ninth home run of the year in the fifth inning with the bases empty. Hearn was 2 for 4 with a walk and two runs scored. He was also hit by a pitch.

Left fielder Jordan Nwogu, went 2 for 3 with a walk and two stolen bases. He scored once and drove in one.

Second baseman Ed Howard was 2 for 5 with a double.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans captured the Columbia Fireflies (Royals) in a jar, 8-0.

Juan Bello threw the first six innings and allowed just two hits, both singles. Bello struck out three and walked no one.

Connor Schultz threw the final 2.1 innings in a non-save situation, giving up just one single. Schultz struck out one and walked no one.

The Pelicans blew this game open with a five-run second inning, highlighted by a three-run home run by right fielder Ivan Brethowr, the first of his professional career. Brethowr was 1 for 4 with a walk.

Shortstop Eriandys Ramon set a new franchise record for doubles in a game by going 4 for 4 with four doubles and a walk. Ramon scored three times and drove in one.

Center fielder Alfonsin Rosario went 2 for 5 with a double and two RBI.