Vitters has enjoyed a breakout season in Triple A this season, and he was rewarded by being named to the All-Star Game. He was the only Cub prospect who played in this game. The promising prospect came into the game in the middle innings, played third base, and had a very non-Vitters-like day at the plate.
Think of the two things Vitters is least known for doing and you’ll have a pretty good idea how his at bats went. That’s right, he walked in one and struck out in the other. That’s the sort of game we are used to seeing from Brett Jackson. I can’t complain, though. Vitters has put together the best half season of his career while playing against the best pitching he’s seen in his life, and I am very glad he got the recognition of an All-Star appearance. That he had some success is just an added bonus.
Scores From Yesterday
Iowa – The Iowa Cubs were off on Wednesday. Tennessee – The Smokies game was rained out. They will make it up as part of a double header today. Daytona – Thanks to fantastic pitching the Cubs overcame two errors and won 7-2. Peoria – Peoria won a classic pitchers’ duel by a final of 1-0. Boise – Good pitching led to a 5-1 Hawks win. Arizona – Five AZL Cubs combined to pitch a two hitter. They won 4-2.
Performances of the Day
[Daytona] Kyler Burke pitched six innings in which he gave up two runs on six hits and struck out four.
[Daytona] Burke’s bullpen was even better. Jeffrey Lorick sat down five batters, all of them with strikeouts. Brian Schlitter was perfect as he recorded the four out save.
[Daytona] Matthew Szczur was batting third in this game, and he responded with a 2 for 4, two doubles performance. Ronald Torreyes also had two hits, including a triple.
[Peoria] Starling Peralta allowed just two hits in seven shut out innings while striking out four. The tall, 21 year old right hander has an ERA of 1.81 in the month of July.
[Peoria] The Chiefs’ bullpen was also very good. Larry Suarez and Yao-Lin Wang pitched an inning each to complete the shout out. It was Wang’s 12th save.
[Peoria] Javier Baez hit a solo home run in the second inning. That proved to be all the scoring in this game.
[Hawks] Jose Arias gave up a run on a solo home run, but not much else in his five innings of work.
[Boise] Trey Martin hit his first home run for the Hawks in this game. Rock Shoulders hit his third.
[Arizona] David Henrie did the lions’ share of the pitching. He tossed four hitless innings in relief and struck out three.
[Arizona] Lendy Castillo (remember him?), Carl Lang, Corbin Hoffner, and Stere Perakslis all pitched for the Cubs in this game as well.
[Arizona] Daniel Vogelbach finished 2 for 4 with a double and his fourth home run. He drove in three of Cubs’ runs. Vogelbach also had a stolen base.
[Arizona] Daniel Lockhart had a three hit game that included his third double. He also had a stolen base.
Other Minor League Notes
The Daytona Cubs were off and running again in this game. The following players all had stolen bases: Micah Gibbs (his second), Matt Szczur (his 29th), John Andreoli (his 31st), and Eliser Bonne (his 14th).
The Lendy Castillo sighting in Arizona yesterday marked the first time Castillo has appeared in a game in the minors since he went on the disabled list. I imagine the Cubs will play his rehab assignments cautiously as they bring him up the farm system. He is very likely to reappear in the majors this season, but that may not be for a few weeks yet. [Brett: If the Cubs want to keep him (without spilling over into next season), they need to accumulate 90 days of him on the active roster, and not on the DL. So, with about half of that out of the way, I reckon he’ll get over his injury just in time for the Cubs to get those 90 days. He’ll probably come back up after all the trading is done.]
Farm System Standings
AAA – Iowa Cubs : 38 – 53.
Pacific Coast League American Northern Division – Third Place: 18.0 Games Behind.
AA – Tennessee Smokies : 9-10
Southern League North Division – Third Place : 1.5 Games Behind
High A – Daytona Cubs : 10-10
Florida State League North Division – Third Place : 1.0 Games Behind
Low A – Peoria Chiefs : 7-12
Midwest League Eastern Division – Fourth Place : 4.0 Game Behind
Short-Season A – Boise Hawks : 9 – 17
Northwest League East Division – Third Place : 7.0 Games Behind
Rookie League – AZL Cubs : 13 – 4
Arizona Rookie League East – First Place (tie) : 0.5 Games Ahead
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NEWSLETTER
The Triple A All-Star game was last night. The Pacific Coast League All Stars beat their International League rivals 3-0, but for Cub fans that was only a side show. The real story was Josh Vitters.
