Chicago Cubs Minor League Wrap: July 27

Iowa beat Louisville tonight for the first time since 1997. (No, they haven’t played each other since then either.) I don’t have individual game stats for the 1997 Cubs, but Kerry Wood and Brooks Kieschnick played for Iowa that year. Marc Pisciotta led the team in saves.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs sawed off the Louisville Bats (Reds), 3-2.

Matt Swarmer pitched the first four innings and gave up two runs on six hits. Swarmer walked three and struck out four.

Scott Effross relieved Swarmer to start the fifth inning and got the win after Iowa took the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Effross pitched two scoreless innings, allowing just one hit. He walked one and struck out two.

Jake Jewell picked up a two-inning save. Jewell surrendered no runs and no hits, but he did struggle to find the strike zone a bit as he walked two and hit one batter. Jewell struck out one.

Catcher Erick Castillo had all three RBI for the I-Cubs tonight. He hit a two-run double in the fifth inning and an RBI single in the sixth. Castillo was 3 for 4.

Castillo drove in center fielder Ian Miller twice. Miller went 3 for 4 with a triple. Miller is hitting .324 in July after hitting .343 in June.

Tennessee Smokies

The Tennessee Smokies were identified and reported by the Chattanooga Lookouts (Reds), 4-3.

Starter Peyton Remy took the loss after allowing one run in the first inning and three in the second. Two of those runs in the second came on a home run. Remy’s final line was four innings, allowing four runs on eight hits. He struck out three and walked no one, but he did hit one batter.

Third baseman Levi Jordan hit a solo home run in the fifth inning, his fourth on the year. Jordan went 1 for 2 with a walk and a hit-by-pitch.

Second baseman Chase Strumpf was 2 for 4 and scored once.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were robbed by the Quad Cities River Bandits (Royals), 4-2.

Ryan Jensen gave up a home run to the leadoff batter in the bottom of the first inning. After that, he was terrific, but he still got the loss. Jensen pitched five innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on six hits. (His defense did not help him tonight.) Jensen struck out a career-high ten and walked just one.

Second baseman Jake Slaughter hit an RBI triple in the seventh inning and then scored on single by third baseman Ryan Reynolds, accounting for both South Bend runs. Slaughter went 2 for 4 and Reynolds was 3 for 4 with a double.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were stung by the Augusta GreenJackets (Braves), 5-3.

Starter Manuel Espinoza gave up two runs on five hits over four innings. He struck out three and walked one.

Danis Correa tossed two scoreless innings of relief and the only baserunner he allowed came on a hit batsman. Correa struck out five.

With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, reliever Jarod Wright gave up a two-run walk-off home run to Cam Shepherd. Wright’s final line was three runs on two hits over 2.2 innings. Wright walked one and struck out two.

First baseman Matt Mervis hit a three-run home run in the seventh inning for all of Myrtle Beach’s offense. Mervis now has seven home runs this year. He was 1 for 5.

Right fielder Jacob Wetzel was 2 for 4 with a walk and he scored on Mervis’ home run.

Shortstop Kevin Made went 3 for 4.

Center fielder Ezequiel Pagan went 2 for 4.

ACL Cubs

Were tied with the Rockies 3-3 in extras. Will update later.