Cubs Minor League News

Jerry Lai - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - 16 hours ago

Could the Cubs have won more games on Friday? Maybe, but at least all the games were competitive, which is all you can ask for. The result was 2-2 showing for the full season teams and 2-3 if you throw in another Rookie League loss.

At this point in the season, the results will be the results, but as long as you have constant growth and development from your prospects, you have to be happy with where things seem to be trending for the future.

IOWA CUBS 7 - COLUMBUS CLIPPERS 5

This was an exciting yet strange game, but one the Cubs found a way to win. What looked to be an offensive explosion early, with eight combined runs scoring in the first, turned into a pitchers' duel late as both bullpens took over from the second inning on.

Neither Aaron Davenport nor Kenta Maeda had a great start, with Davenport lasting just one inning and Maeda pitching into the fourth before seeing his night come to an end. The positive was watching Maeda get backed by three runs of first-inning support as the Cubs opened up a quick 3-0 lead in the first.

The scorching-hot Christian Franklin opened the scoring with a solo shot, while RBI doubles from Ben Cowles and Owen Caissie brought home the other two runs. Not only did Maeda give that lead away in the bottom of the first, but all five of the Columbus runs came in the first inning as this was looking to be a slugfest.

Brayan Rocchio started the scoring with a two-run shot, while a Kody Huff double put the Clippers in front 4-3. They would add another run-off of an RBI groundout as the Cubs were down 5-3. From that moment on, this was all about the Cubs' bullpen, as they didn't allow a run the rest of the way and were flat-out dominant.

Michael Fulmer (2 1/3) and Luke Little (2) combined to go 4 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out nine, while Gavin Hollowell got the final inning. Still trailing in the fourth by that 5-3 score, the Cubs offense got back to work as Moises Ballesteros re-introduced himself to AAA with an RBI single that pulled the Cubs back to even 5-5.

Bally ties the game! pic.twitter.com/4APDPB1Co7
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) May 24, 2025

Iowa managed to grab the lead for good off an error that put the Cubs in front 6-5 before Jonathon Long closed out the scoring with a ninth-inning solo shot to lift the Cubs 7-5.

427 feet off the bat of Jonathon Long!🚀 pic.twitter.com/hsdzrA3t9B
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) May 24, 2025

Long was one of three Cubs with multiple hits, joining Cowles and James Triantos.

Moving on to tomorrow pic.twitter.com/HCMR7R2t6h
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) May 21, 2025

BILOXI SHUCKERS 3 - KNOXVILLE SMOKIES 1

Although the Smokies took this one on the chin, seeing their pitching show up was nice, as that has been an issue recently. Will Sanders continued his business, allowing three runs in five innings, but it wasn't enough as the Smokies lost 3-1.

Sanders didn't walk a man and struck out five, as his ERA is still very good at 2.64. Sanders was backed by some instant offense, with BJ Murray Jr putting the Smokies on top with a first-inning sacrifice fly, but that was it for their offense as Tate Kuehner overcame some command issues to get through 5 2/3 innings for the win.

Immediately taking the lead, the Smokies gave it up as the Luis Lara double in the bottom of the first made this a 1-1 game. The score would stay that way until the fourth when Darrien Miller came through with the game-winning RBI that put the Shuckers on top for good, 2-1. Biloxi closed out the scoring with a fifth-inning groundout as their bullpen took care of the rest in a 2-1 win. Knoxville had six hits in the loss, with Pedro Ramirez leading the way with two, raising his average to .288.

WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS 2 - SOUTH BEND CUBS 1

If the South Bend Cubs have taught us anything this season, they would be a resilient group unwilling to give up. You continued to see that this week as the Cubs took an early lead and gave it up before falling 2-1. That is par for the course for this team this season, as they have struggled to find the wins.

You have to feel for Nick Dean in this one, who delivered his best outing of the season and has nothing to show for it. Dean gave the Cubs six innings, allowing only two runs and striking out seven, but when your offense is held to one run, that outing doesn't matter, as Ryan Birchard was slightly better.

The lone run of the game for the Cubs came in the fourth when Edgar Alvarez went deep for the second time in the series to make this a 1-0 game. Apart from that, Birchard was lights out as he scattered five hits through six innings and struck out seven. The long ball played a role for both teams in this one, with Hedbert Perez taking Dean deep in the fifth to tie things up 1-1.

One inning later, it was Marco Dinges coming away with the game-winning hit as his RBI single brought home the go-ahead and final run in a 2-1 victory. Drew Bowswer was responsible for two of the Cubs' five hits.

MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 8 - HICKORY CRAWDADS 7 (F/11)

What started as another pitcher's duel turned into an offensive showdown late, as 11 runs were scored after the seventh inning. That included a five-run frame for the Pelicans to take the lead before they found a way to get it done in extras, 8-7.

Alfredo Romero got the ball for the Birds and delivered a strong showing by giving up two runs (1ER) in four innings. Romero has been rolling in his past three starts and is settling in on the mound. Both of the runs he allowed came in back-to-back innings, with Rafe Perich opening the scoring with an RBI single in the second and Chandler Pollard tacking on a double in the third to make this a 2-0 game.

It took the Pelicans four innings to break through, with Christian Olivo starting the scoring for the Birds with an RBI single, but with Antonis Macias adding a single in the fifth, it was the Crawdads holding a 3-1 lead. That lead looked like it would be enough until the seventh inning when the Pelicans' offense picked a great time to come to life.

Backed by a pair of RBI singles from David Avitia and Leonel Espinoza sandwiched around an RBI grounder, the Pelicans surged in front as they took their first lead of the day, 4-3. They were just getting started as Matt Halbach added a two-run double to close out a five-run inning, as it was the Pelicans in front 6-3.

Their lead was short-lived as the Crawdads flipped their offensive switch in the eighth to tie things back up 6-6 as the bases loaded Hector Osorio RBI triple helped push this game to extra innings. With neither team coming away with a run in the 10th, the Pelicans struck first in the 11th as Jose Escobar put Myrtle Beach back in front for good, 7-6, with a single.

The Pelicans would tack on another run off an error to take an 8-6 lead, which would go down as the winning run. Looking to stay alive in the bottom of the 11th, Hickory pulled within a run off a passed ball, but that was it as Jackson Krikpatrick closed things out for the win. Espinoza led the Pelicans with three hits, while Olivo and Ayers added two.