The minor league season is nearly at an end. Before this week is out we will see some of the Cubs’ farm teams playing their final game of 2012. If you had planned to get to the ballpark this summer, I suggest you hurry.
The dates of the season finales for each team are as follows.
Tuesday, Aug 28 – Arizona
Saturday, Sept 1 – Boise
Sunday, Sept 2 – Daytona (weather permitting)
Monday, Sept 3 – Iowa, Tennessee, Peoria
Arizona and Boise will both be in the playoffs. The exact playoff schedule for Arizona has not yet been announced; the Boise Hawks will begin their 2012 postseason at home against Yakima on Monday, Sept 3. That best of three series will continue on Tuesday and Wednesday (if necessary) in Yakima with the winner advancing to the league championship series over the weekend.
Scores From Yesterday
Iowa – Iowa lost a road contest 4-3. Tennessee – Tennessee rallied back to .500 on their (next to) final home game of the season. The Smokies won this one by a score of 5-3. Daytona – Brett, I think we need to launch a Bleacher Nation Umbrella franchise in Daytona. The Cubs were… again… rained out. They will attempt the doubleheader today; I’m not optimistic. Peoria – A four run fourth inning carried Peoria to the 7-3 win. Boise – The division champion and playoff bound Boise Hawks had Monday off. So far as I know, they managed to travel back home to Idaho without any mechanical incidents. That’s progress! Arizona – A three run homer was all Arizona needed to win this one 3-1.
Performances of the Day
[Iowa] Greg Rohan and Dave Sappelt both hit long balls for the Cubs. I still expect to see Sappelt in Chicago just as soon as the Triple A season ends.
[Tennessee] Fan favorite Jae-Hoon Ha gave the home crowd something to remember him by. His three run bomb in the first inning put the Smokies ahead for good.
[Tennessee] Junior Lake had two more hits, including a double. He is hitting .314/.351/.543 in his last ten games.
[Peoria] Starling Peralta pitched another pretty good game. He lasted six innings, struck out eight, and held Wisconsin to two runs on three hits.
[Peoria] For the second day in a row Jacob Rogers homered as part of a two hit game.
[Arizona] Ryan McNeil opened the game with four innings of hitless baseball. Corbin Hoffner allowed two hits in the next two innings, but he also struck out five in that span.
[Arizona] Yasiel Balaguert hit a three run homer in the second inning. It was his second home run in Arizona.
Other Minor League Notes
The Smokies pulled off an unusual trifecta in Monday’s game. The outfield trio of Ha, Matthew Szczur, and Rubi Silva each earned an outfield assist, and they each did it at a different base. Ha cut down a runner at second, Silva at third, and Szczur (playing in left for this game) had the assist at home.
With one game left to play in the regular season, the Arizona Cubs are in a near virtual tie with the Arizona A’s for the division lead. The Cubs lead by a game in the wins column, but trail by the same margin in losses. Currently the A’s lead the division by mere percentage points. Should the Cubs win today, and should the A’s lose, the Cubs would win the division.
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