Cubs Minor League Wrap: May 17

There was a whole lot of baseball played today.

Iowa Cubs

Eight runs and 18 hits weren't enough as the Iowa Cubs fell to the Tucson Padres, 9-8 as an Iowa ninth inning rally fell short.

Starter Guillermo Moscoso pitched five innings and allowed four runs on nine hits. Two of the runs were unearned. Moscoso struck out eight and didn't walk anyone.

Esmalin Caridad relieved Moscoso in the sixth and didn't make it out of the inning. He took the loss after allowing three runs on four hits over two-thirds of an inning. He neither walked nor struck anyone out.

Second baseman Logan Watkins hit a solo home run in the fourth inning. It was his third of the season. Watkins was 1 for 5 with a walk.

Left fielder Brett Jackson was 4 for 5 with a double. He scored once. Third baseman Josh Vitters went 3 for 3 with a double. Vitters scored two runs and had one RBI.

First baseman Brent Lillibridge was 2 for 5 with a run scored. Right fielder Dave Sappelt was 2 for 5 with an RBI.

Center fielder Darnell McDonald was 2 for 4 and scored a run. Catcher J.C. Boscan went 2 for 4 with an RBI.

Tennessee Smokies

The Tennessee Smokies blinded the Chattanooga Lookouts (Dodgers), 4-3. The win was Tennessee's sixth in seven games following a seven-game losing streak.

Starter Kyle Hendricks improved his record to 3-2. He pitched seven innings and allowed three runs on six hits. Hendricks struck out three and had his usual control by walking only one.

Zach Rosscup pitched the ninth inning and got his first save. No one put the ball in play against him as he issued a lead-off walk and then struck out the next three batters to end the game.

Third baseman Christian Villanueva went 3 for 4 with two doubles. He had one RBI and scored one run.

Center fielder Matt Szczur was 2 for 5.

Daytona Cubs

The Daytona Cubs swept a double-header from the Lakeland Flying Tigers, 5-1 and 7-4 in 12 innings.

In the first game, Yeiper Castillo went the distance for a seven-inning complete game. He allowed a solo home run in the seventh inning and four total hits. Between the second and the seventh inning, he retired fourteen batters in a row. Castillo walked one and struck out two.

The four and five hitters, right fielder Jorge Soler and third baseman Dustin Geiger did all the damage in game one. Soler was 4 for 4 with a solo home run in the fifth inning, his sixth blast of the year. Soler scored three times.

Geiger had three doubles and a triple in a 4 for 4 game. Geiger had four runs batted in.

In the second game, Eduardo Figueroa started and put Daytona behind early, allowing two runs in the first and another two in the third. He finished with allowing four runs on four hits over three innings. He walked two and struck out one.

After that, the Daytona bullpen shut Lakeland out for the next nine innings. Austin Reed didn't allow a hit in two scoreless innings. Sheldon McDonald gave up two hits and a walk over four scoreless and winning pitcher Frank Del Valle allowed two hits over three innings. Del Valle struck out three and did not walk anyone.

Lakeland managed to get Dustin Geiger to ground out in the seventh inning. Otherwise, Geiger went 3 for 4 with a double and two walks. (One of those walks was intentional.) Geiger scored twice and had one RBI.

So if you don't want to do the math yourself, Geiger was 7 for 8 with four doubles, a triple and two walks. He scored two runs and had five RBI. Not bad for a day's work.

Soler also stayed hot in the second game, going 3 for 6 with a double and a run scored.

Daytona took the lead in the top of the twelfth on a two-run double by left fielder Taiwan Easterling. Easterling was 2 for 6 with a double and a triple.

Shorstop Javier Baez was 2 for 5 with a triple to lead off the twelfth inning. He scored three times. Baez walked once.

Catcher Chadd Krist went 2 for 6 with a stolen base. Krist had one RBI.

Kane County Cougars

The Kane County Cougars were harvested by the Cedar Rapids Kernels (Twins), 4-3 in 12 innings.

Starter Dillon Maples allowed two runs on two hits over five innings. Maples walked one and struck out five.

Lendy Castillo had five innings of gravity-defying relief as he gave up only one run on five hits and three walks. He allowed at least one baserunner in all five innings. Castillo struck out four.

Nathan Dorris collected his first loss. He allowed one run on two hits and two walks over 1.1 innings. Dorris fanned two.

Right fielder Bijan Rademacher was 3 for 5 with a double. He scored two runs. Third baseman Jeimer Candelario went 2 for 5 with a double and he scored the other run.