The Kane County Cougars capped off their 2014 season with a 7-2 win that completed their sweep of the entire Midwest League playoffs and secured them the title. They were as dominant as a team can be, all year long, so the championship is well-deserved.
Daury Torrez struck out 3 over 5 innings, allowing 1 runs on 5 hits in the process. Michael Heesch pitched the next 3 innings and gave up 1 run on 2 hits while striking out 6 before giving way to Francisco Carrillo for a no-hit, 2 strikeout ninth.
Jacob Rogers had been a big bat for the Cougars all season long, and in the final game he had the team’s only home run. Rogers also walked and finished with 3 hits.
Mark Zagunis finished 2 for 5 with a stolen base and a postseason OPS of 1.179.
Thanks to his own 3 hit performance, Jeimer Candelario nearly matched Zagunis’s postseason figure. Candelario bounced back from a rough regular season to hit .353/.593/.412 in the playoffs.
And with that, the 2014 minor league season is over.
That also means this is the final Minor League Daily of the year.
Off season minor league coverage on Bleacher Nation will begin in earnest at some point after the conclusion of the World Series. This stands to be one of the more interesting winters on the minor league side of things. Between the potential for the Cubs to shuffle multiple affiliations, the always nerve-wracking Rule 5 draft, and the expected flood of accolades and award for the system and prospects, we should have no shortage of things to talk about.
[Brett: An enormous thanks to Luke for keeping us all engaged, entertained, and informed about the Cubs’ various minor league seasons. I hear all the time from folks who tell me that it’s their favorite way to start the day, reading about Cubs prospects, so make sure you let Luke hear it, too here or on Twitter.]