Cubs Minor League News: Hernandez smacks homer, Amaya strikes out three times, more |
For whatever reason, the success of the full-season leagues hasn't translated to the Rookie League side of things, as it has been a tough go thus far. Not only do all three teams have eight wins each, but they have put together just a 24-56 record thus far this summer.
On Monday, things continued to be a struggle, with the Cubs watching their system go 0-3. This is becoming far too common of a theme for the Rookie League teams, and you have to wonder once the draft is over if additional help will improve things.
Across five innings of this game, the Cubs hung right with the Brewers and outscored them 2-0. The problem was that when the Brewers scored, they did so in chunks, using a three-run and four-inning to do the damage. Granted, the Cubs may have scored first on the Moises Ballesteros single in the first, but the Brewers bounced back to take the lead for good. Quinton Low and Jonatan Guzman had RBI singles in that inning, with an error helping the Brewers take a 3-1 lead after one. Guzman was credited with the game-winning hit as the Cubs scored just one more run the rest of the way. The Brewers kept the pressure on and extended their lead to 7-1 in the fourth as they brought home four more runs to bust things wide open. Cristian Hernandez would cap off the scoring in the fifth on his third homer as the Cubs fell 7-2. Parker Chavers made his season debut and led the way with two hits as Rafael Morel joined him. Miguel Amaya continues to go through the motions, picking up one hit, but striking out three times.
Only one of the games on Monday was competitive, and it happened to be DSL Blue. Although the pitching wasn't great, the offense gave the Cubs ample opportunities to win, only to let the lead get away late. Sound familiar? Leading 1-0 in the first off the Jose Herrera single, the White Sox not only took a 2-1 lead on an error, but started to create some distance in the fourth. That was because Arnold Prado and Lionel Chapelle homered to spark a four-run frame that saw the White Sox open up a 6-1 lead. With one swing of the bat from Herrera, the Cubs were right back in it as his three-run shot made things 6-4 in the third. Add in a bases-loaded walk and an RBI forceout play, and the Cubs rallied to tie things up with a five-run third. The Cubs continued their recent momentum shift with Carlos Altuve giving the Cubs the lead with an RBI single in the fifth and Herrera capping off his five-RBI day with a single in the sixth to make things 8-6. Looking to close things out late, it was the White Sox turn to rally in the seventh, with Carlos Jimenez picking up an RBI single before a costly throwing error tied the game. The next inning saw the White Sox complete the comeback bid as Chapelle delivered the game-winning single in a 9-8 win. Herrera led the way with three hits and five RBIs as he was the lone player to record multiple hits.
Just like in Arizona, the Cubs played right with the Brewers outscoring them 2-0 most of the game. However, a three and six-run frame proved to be the difference, as the Brewers needed just two innings to secure the win. You have to feel for Kevin Valdez in this one as he struck out six over three scoreless frames before the Cubs bullpen imploded. The moment he left the game, you could see the Brewers starting to gain momentum, which proved costly as Angel Pereira delivered the game-winning bases-clearing double in the top of the fifth to put the Brewers on top 3-0. Thankfully the Cubs were not going to go away quietly as they pulled within 3-2 in the bottom of that inning with Joan Delgado cashing in with an RBI single. Unfortunately, that would be as close as things would get as the Brewers brought home six runs in the seventh to pull away 9-2. Three of those runs came on bases-loaded walks, while a pair of wild pitches brought home two more. The Cubs had six hits in the loss as Carlos Ramos, and Erbin Jacque had two.ACL Brewers 7 - ACL CUBS 2
DSL WHITE SOX 9 - DSL CUBS BLUE 8
DSL BREWERS 9 - DSL CUBS RED 2
