Cubs Minor League News: Solar Sox cooled off by red-hot Scorpions |
Dustin Riese
· · 13 hours ago
MESA - If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best, and the Mesa Solar Sox (12-13) were up against the best on Thursday as they faced off against the Scottsdale Scorpions (18-7) at Sloan Park. Looking to cap off an overall strong homestand, the Solar Sox offense has been leading the way over the past few games, finally turning the corner this season.
As good as their offense has been, you knew that at some point they would have an off night, and unfortunately for the Solar Sox, that night came on Thursday as the Scorpions took down Mesa 7-3. This game was decided in the first two innings as the Scorpions scored two runs in each of the first two frames to help race out to an early 4-1 lead. Had they not scored the rest of the night, those runs would've been enough to win this game, but it was the Scorpions' offense adding three more runs late to pull away for the win. As has been the case most of the fall, two of the Cubs' four hitting prospects were in the lineup, but it wasn't the two you may be thinking of, as Owen Ayers and Cole Mathis were given the night off. That meant it was time for Ed Howard and Logan Poteet to shine, as these are the two hitting prospects looking to finish strong. A shortstop by trade, Howard has shown some defensive versatility in the past, and he used that in this one to make a rare start in left field. What may seem like moral victories at this point, Howard picked up another hit to go 1-3 at the plate, as his average sits at .224. Poteet, on the other hand, is in free-fall mode at the dish, but that is what happens when you aren't getting consistent playing time in the field. After appearing in his first game in five days on Wednesday, Poteet was back in the lineup Thursday, making his first start in over a week. You can see the rust from not getting enough reps at the plate, as Poteet goes 0-3 and his average falls to .158. At some point, the Cubs would love to see him get hot, but given what Ayers has done at this point in the fall, it will be hard to give Poteet consistent playing time behind the dish. Those two may have been the only Cubs hitters on the evening, but they weren't the only prospects, as Moreno was on the mound for the first time in what feels like forever. The right-hander was one of the Solar Sox's most dominant arms to begin the season, but has since run into a few rough patches in his past outings. Looking to get back on track, the Solar Sox have taken him out of the starter's role and have since stuck him in a relief role to give him some work. In his one inning of work, Moreno didn't allow a run, walking one and striking out one to lower his ERA to 3.86 for the season.
