Chicago Cubs Minor League Recap: Canario homers again and Horton dominates AA
As the Chicago Cubs move closer and closer to roster expansion in September there are plenty of candidates demanding a call-up with their good play recently.
Iowa Cubs (AAA) (69-50)
The Iowa Cubs lost to the Indianapolis Indians 9-4
The Cubs took a 2-0 lead in the first and managed to keep the lead until a very rough eighth inning where they gave up six runs and couldn’t come back. It was nice to see a second consecutive day of great power output from two Cubs players who could find themselves on the major league squad when rosters expand though.
Jake Slaughter (3B) went 1-for-4 with his 21st homer of the season, two RBI and a run scored.
Matt Mervis (1B) went 1-for-3 with a double, a walk and a run scored.
Alexander Canario (OF) continued to knock the rust off as he went 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, a single, two RBI, and a run scored.
Samuel Reyes (RHP) started yesterday and lasted three innings. He didn’t give up any runs on two hits and a walk and struck out three to keep his ERA at AAA at 0.00 across 10.2 innings pitched.
Tennessee Smokies (AA) (66-49)
The Tennessee Smokies beat the Chattanooga Lookouts 8-4
The Smokies dominated yesterday although they also had a late-inning scare like their Iowa counterparts. They jumped out to an 8-0 lead after the fourth inning and while they gave up four runs in the 7th it wouldn’t be enough to stop them from taking home the W.
BJ Murray (3B) went 2-for-5 with two singles, an RBI, and a run scored as he raised his season average back to .270.
Levi Jordan (SS) went 2-for-4 with two singles, a walk, two RBI and two runs scored.
Cade Horton (RHP) is an absolute monster. When it comes time to re-rank prospects it’s going to be hard not to have him in the top three as he hasn’t missed a beat in AA. He pitched five scoreless innings yesterday only giving up two hits and three walks while striking out six.
Zac Leigh (RHP) pitched two scoreless innings and only gave up one hit and no walks while striking out three.
South Bend Cubs (A+) (50-64)
The South Bend Cubs lost to the Cedar Rapids Kernels 8-4
South Bend kept the trend of an early lead going by having a 3-0 lead after the second inning. They even managed to maintain that lead until the top of the 5th but unfortunately for them, that’s as far as things would go and they fell 8-4.
Yohendrick Pinango (OF) was one of just two Cubs with a multi-hit day as he went 2-for-4 with a triple, a single and a run scored.
Felix Stevens (OF) went 1-for-4 with a solo home run.
Connor Noland (RHP) had an interesting day. He went 4.1 innings and gave up four runs (only two earned) on seven hits, one walk and eight strikeouts to fall to 1-7 on the year with a relatively solid 3.82 ERA.
Yovanny Cruz (RHP) finished the game out with 1.2 innings of scoreless baseball and allowed just one hit and no walks while striking out three.
Myrtle Beach Pelicans (A) (67-48)
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans beat the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 3-2
It wasn’t quite as high-scoring as the game on Tuesday, but the Pelicans came away victorious over the Cannon Ballers again yesterday. The best part definitely came in the bottom of the ninth when 2023 draft pick Jonathon Long hit a walk-off two-run homer to give the Pelicans a tie for the best record in the Cubs minor league system.
Brian Kalmer (DH) went 1-for-2 with a single, two walks, and two runs scored. He’s hitting .344 at Low-A.
Jonathon Long (3B) went 2-for-4 with the game-winning homer, a single, two RBI and a run scored.
Jackson Ferris (LHP) remains my favorite player in this system. He went four innings and allowed one run on three hits and two walks while striking out five.