Chicago Cubs Minor League Wrap: August 22

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs charged the St. Paul Saints (Twins) with heresy, 5-2.

Cory Abbott got the start and he gave up one run on four hits over 5.1 innings. The one run he allowed was a home run to a rehabbing Byron Buxton. Abbott walked four and struck out five.

Dillon Maples relieved Abbott in the sixth inning with runners on first and second and one out and got out of the inning without allowing a run to score. Maples faced three batters: the first one grounded out and the second one was hit by a pitch to load the bases. But he struck out the final one to end the inning and his day.

Michael Walden got the win in his Cubs debut. Walden gave up an unearned run in the seventh inning after an error by shortstop Abiatal Avelino. But the I-Cubs retook the lead in the top of the eighth. Walden’s final line was one unearned run on one hit. He struck out one and walked no one.

Scott Effross pitched the final two innings for his second save. Effross allowed two hits and issued one walk but gave up no runs. Effross struck out one.

Avelino went 2 for 4 with a walk. He had an RBI single in the eighth inning to make up for his error in the bottom of the seventh. He also scored all the way from second on a grounder to third base in the first inning. He just never stopped running.

Center fielder Trayce Thompson added an insurance run in the ninth with a solo home run, his fifteenth of the year. Thompson was 1 for 5.

DH Greg Deichmann was 2 for 4 with a walk.

Tennessee Smokies

The Tennessee Smokies split a doubleheader with the Birmingham Barons (White Sox), losing the first game 4-3 in eight innings and winning the second game 7-1.

Ryan Jensen made his Double-A debut in game one and struggled a bit, allowing three runs on four hits over four innings. Most of the damage was done on a two-run home run in the fourth by Craig Dedelow. Jensen struck out three and walked two.

Eury Ramos took the loss after allowing the automatic runner to score in the top of the eighth. Ramos’s final numbers were one unearned run on one hit in one inning. Ramos struck out one and did not walk anyone.

The Smokies scored all three run in the fourth inning. Catcher Tyler Payne and first baseman Cam Balego hit back-to-back doubles and then Carlos Sepulveda singled Balego home. Both Payne and Balego were 1 for 3 with an RBI and one run scored. Sepulveda was 1 for 4 with the RBI.

Second baseman Delvin Zinn was 2 for 3.

Alex Katz started game two and allowed one run on five hits over three innings. Katz walked two and struck out three.

Because Katz didn’t go five innings, the win went to Samuel Reyes. Reyes did not allow a baserunner over two scoreless innings. He struck out two.

Right fielder Nelson Velazquez hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning and the Smokies never looked back after that. It was Velazquez’s 18th home run this year and sixth with the Smokies. He added on a two-run single in the sixth inning for five total RBI in game two. Velazquez was 3 for 4 and scored twice.

Third baseman Chase Strumpf hit a two-run home run in the third inning to account for Tennessee’s other two runs. It was Strumpf’s seventh home run of 2021. Strumpf was a perfect 2 for 2 with two walks.

Sepulveda was 1 for 2 with two walks in game two. He scored once.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were pick-pocketed by the Quad Cities River Bandits (Royals), 7-1.

Max Bain got the hard-luck loss after giving up just two runs on two hits over five innings. One of the two hits was a solo home run by Michael Massey, who later in the game hit a three-run home run off Jose Albertos. Bain struck out eight, walked just one and hit one batter.

First baseman Tyler Durna hit a solo home run in the sixth inning for South Bend’s only run of the game. It was Durna’s fifth home run this year. He was 1 for 4.

Nico Hoerner had one at-bat in a rehab appearance and grounded out to short. He left the game in the middle of his second at-bat.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were turned to sawdust the Fayetteville Woodpeckers (Astros), 9-7.

Daniel Palencia did not allow a hit over his 4.1 inning start. He was charged with two runs, however, after he walked two batters in the fifth and then exited. Reliever Jared Wright then entered the game and allowed both runners to score on a double. Palencia walked four and struck out five.

Gabriel Jaramillo surrendered a grand slam in the bottom of the eighth inning and took the loss. Jaramillo was charged with four runs on four hits in one inning of work. Jaramillo struck out two and walked no one, but he did hit one batter.

Catcher Casey Opitz got his first two hits in low-A today. He went 2 for 4. He scored twice and had one run batted in.

Shortstop Ed Howard had a good game, going 2 for 2 with a sac fly. He was also hit by a pitch. Howard had two total RBI and scored one run.

Center fielder Ezequiel Pagan had a two-run double in the second inning. He was 1 for 4 and later scored a run in the second.

ACL Cubs

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