The Smokies have won two in a row in Birmingham, home of the Barons. For much of the season those Barons have been the best team in the Southern League, and they are still the only team with a better overall record than Tennessee. For now. There are still three games left to play in this series, and if the Cubs’ affiliate sweeps them the Smokies will take over first place in the overall league standings.
And they are not alone in making such a push. The Daytona Cubs of the High A Florida State League hold the overall season lead in their division and are within striking distance of Fort Myers for the league lead. The road to that milestone is a little rougher for the Cubs than it is for the Smokies, but it is still quite doable.
Scores From Yesterday
Iowa – Iowa committed two errors on their way to this 3-2 loss. Tennessee – The Smokies piled on seventeen hits in this 9-2 win. Daytona – Daytone had the day off. This one was scheduled, too. It wasn’t a rain out. Kane County – Kane County fell behind early and never caught back up. They lost 9-2. Boise – The game got away from the Hawks late as they lost 6-3. Arizona – Arizona took the lead in the top of the ninth, but gave it up in the bottom. They lost 5-4.
Performances of Note
[Iowa] Mike Olt finished 1 for 3 with a walk in this game, and he walked twice in 3 trips to plate the day before. That’s to the good. On the other hand, this hit was his first since August 13.
[Iowa] Casey Coleman had another pretty good game. Over 6 innings he allowed 1 run on 5 hits and a walk while striking out 3. He could be a candidate to break camp with the Cubs bullpen in the spring.
[Tennessee] The best day at the plate for the Smokies came from Rubi Silva. The outfielder finished 3 for 3 with a double, a triple, and two walks. Given that he entered the game with just a pair of walks this month that last stat might be the most significant of the bunch. If Silva could just take a few more free passes his .283/.304/.471 line would become notable enough that we might be talking about him breaking out in the same terms as Alcantara.
[Tennessee] Speaking of Arismendy Alcantara, he hit his 14th home run and doubled in this game. His double play partner Javier Baez doubled twice and finished 3 for 4 with a walk (and no strikeouts).
[Tennessee] Dae-Eun Rhee pitched a very nice game. Over 7 innings he allowed just 3 hits, 1 walk, and struck out 3. Two runs scored off him, including a home run, but all in all it was a very impressive outing.
[Kane County] Jeimer Candelario had the only extra base hit (a double) and the only multi-hit game for the Cougars as he finished 2 for 4.
[Kane County] Justin Amlung and Al Yevoli both pitched well in relief. Amlung, in particular, allowed nothing but a walk in his 2.2 innings of work.
[Boise] Zach Godley struck out 3 and walked 2 in his 2.2 innings of hitless relief.
[Boise] The Hawks managed to score their 3 runs on just 5 hits despite none of those hits going for extra bases.
[Arizona] Trevor Clifton allowed a hit and struck out twice that in his 2 innings of work.
[Arizona] Charcer Burks and Jeffrey Baez both doubled and finished 2 for 4. Baez also stole two bases, bringing him to 24 with Arizona this season.
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NEWSLETTER
The Smokies have won two in a row in Birmingham, home of the Barons. For much of the season those Barons have been the best team in the Southern League, and they are still the only team with a better overall record than Tennessee. For now. There are still three games left to play in this series, and if the Cubs’ affiliate sweeps them the Smokies will take over first place in the overall league standings.
