Chicago Cubs Minor League Wrap: June 20

The news that many of you have been waiting for has come to pass: both catcher Moises Ballesteros and first baseman/outfielder Felix Stevens have been promoted from Low-A Myrtle Beach to High-A South Bend. Also, catcher Casey Opitz got bumped up from South Bend to Double-A Tennessee.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs were blue after losing to the Memphis Redbirds (Cardinals), 8-5.

Starter Ben Brown took the loss after he gave up two runs in the fourth inning and another one in the fifth after retiring the first eight batters of the game and nine of the first ten. Brown’s final line was three runs on five hits over 4.2 innings. He walked two and struck out five.

Ryan Jensen had a bad day in relief. Not only did he allow one runner inherited from Brown to score in the fifth, he was rocked for five runs of his own, four earned, over just two-thirds of an inning.

The Cubs also got bad news as Codi Heuer left a rehab appearance after this:

Left fielder Yonathan Perlaza homered to lead off the bottom of the first, his seventh on the season. Perlaza went 1 for 5.

Catcher Dom Nuñez had two one-run singles in a 2 for 4 game. Nuñez scored one run.

Third baseman Edwin Ríos went 2 for 5.

Tennessee Smokies

Rained out at home. It will be made up as part of a doubleheader with Pensacola on June 22.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were boiled by the Fort Wayne TinCaps (Padres), 8-4.

In a familiar theme today, starter Luis Devers fell apart in the third inning after a strong first two innings. Devers allowed five runs on three hits over 2.1 innings. He walked three, hit one batter and struck out four.

Third baseman Luis Verdugo had an RBI double in the bottom of the ninth inning and then scored on a Bryce Ball double. Verdugo went 2 for 4 and Ball was 1 for 4.

Left fielder Ezequiel Pagan was 2 for 4.

Both Ballesteros and Stevens were 0 for 4 with a strikeout in their High-A debuts, although Stevens did have an RBI groundout in the ninth.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Rained out in Kannapolis. The game will not be made up.

ACL Cubs

Are losing to the Athletics, 6-3 in the sixth inning.

The big news in this game is that Brailyn Marquez threw his first pitches in a game that counted since his major-league debut in those two-thirds of an inning he threw on the final day of the 2020 season. Marquez faced four batters: single, wild pitch, walk, strikeout swinging and line out to first base that turned into an inning-ending double play.

Starter Drew Gray got rocked for four runs, three earned, on two hits, a walk and two hit batsmen over two-thirds of an inning.