It is the last day of the regular season, but the games continue for Daytona, Kane County and Boise.
Iowa Cubs
The Iowa Cubs grounded the Oklahoma City RedHawks (Astros), 11-1.
Starting pitcher Dae-Eun Rhee was dominating today, tossing seven scoreless innings. He gave up six hits. Most impressively, Rhee struck out 11 and walked only one. Rhee finishes the season with an overall record of 8-6.
Right fielder Ryan Kalish had a big day, going 4 for 5 with a double. He scored twice and had two RBI.
Catcher Eli Whiteside was 3 for 5 with a pair of doubles. He had three RBI.
Shortstop Elliot Soto was 3 for 5 with a double and a run scored. Center fielder Jae-Hoon Ha was 2 for 5 and scored once.
Coming into the final series of the year with Oklahoma City, the Iowa Cubs needed to sweep the four-game series and get some help to make the postseason. They held up their end of the bargain and swept the RedHawks, but Omaha swept Colorado Springs to claim the division title. So Iowa will have to be content to have been the spoiler for the Astros' top farm team.
Iowa finishes the season 74-70.
And if you haven't read Ken Rosenthal's story about the role Manny Ramirez played on the Iowa Cubs, you need to check it out now.
Tennessee Smokies
The Tennessee Smokies lost to the Chattanooga Lookouts (Dodgers), 5-1.
Ivan Pineyro pitched the first four innings and gave up three runs on seven hits, two of which were home runs. He struck out two and walked no one.
Shortstop Addison Russell was 2 for 3 with a double. Left fielder Pin-Chieh Chen was 2 for 5.
The Smokies had a disastrous final stretch of the season, losing ten of their final eleven games. Their final combined record was 66-73.
Daytona Cubs
Getting ready to take on Dunedin tomorrow. Remember, the Daytona Cubs have never lost a playoff series in franchise history.
Kane County Cougars
The Kane County Cougars lost to the Peoria Chiefs (Cardinals), 6-5 in 12 innings.
Paul Blackburn started, but he only threw two innings as he's just getting ready for the playoffs. Blackburn gave up a hit and a walk, but no runs. He did not have a strikeout.
The Cougars then gave David Garner, Zak Hermans and Michael Wagner two innings apiece. James Pugliese pitched 1.2 innings before giving way to Jasvir Rakkar Rakkar took the loss after he gave up a run in the top of the 12th on a wild pitch. Rakkar pitched 2.1 innings and gave up the one run on one hit. He walked one (the eventual winning run) and struck out three.
Catcher Mark Zagunis batted leadoff and was 2 for 4 with a double and two walks. He even stole a base. Zagunis scored once.
DH Chesny Young was 2 for 4 with a walk and a run scored. Right fielder Yasiel Balaguert was 2 for 6 with an RBI and a run scored. First baseman Cael Brockmeyer was 2 for 5 with a run batted in.
Kane County finishes the season with a record of 91-49. That's the best record in all of baseball and a Kane County franchise record. They easily won both halves of the season.
They take on the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in Appleton on Wednesday.
Boise Hawks
The Boise Hawks scored four runs in the bottom of the ninth to stun the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (Giants), 6-5.
It was a good start for Josh Conway, who went just three innings but did not allow a run. He allowed just two hits, both singles. He struck out four and didn't walk anyone.
Yomar Morel entered a tie game in the eighth inning and gave up two runs. Morel pitched just the one inning and gave up three hits, two of which were doubles. Morel struck out one and did not walk anyone.
Charlie White moved from right field to the mound to pitch the ninth and get his second win (as a pitcher) on the year. He pitched one inning and allowed one run on two hits and a walk. He struck out one. He was 1 for 4 with a walk and a run scored at the plate.
Second baseman Jason Vosler singled home Kevin Brown in the bottom of the ninth to score the fourth and winning run in the ninth. Vosler was 1 for 4 with a walk and Brown went 1 for 5 and scored twice.
Shortstop Gleybar Torres went 3 for 5 with a triple and a big two-run double in the ninth. Torres would also score in the ninth.
First baseman Alex Tomasovich was 2 for 5 with an RBI.
The Hawks finish their season with a record of 41-35. They will take on Hillsboro at home tomorrow in a best-of-three series.