Eugene had a chance to win the first half title. Hillsboro lost, opening the door for the Emeralds to move into a tie with a win over Tri-City. And since Eugene held the tie breaker, that tie would send the defending champion Emeralds back into the post season.
It didn’t happen that way. Instead, the Emeralds were shut out and the first half title went to Hillsboro.
Eugene still has a chance to make the postseason, though. They can still claim the second half’s playoff slot by winning the second half division title. That quest starts today.
Triple A: Iowa Cubs
Oklahoma City 9, Iowa 3
The Cubs opened this game with six shutout innings of pitching.
Aaron Brooks: 6.1 IP, 4 R, 8 H, 1 BB, 5 K
Dillon Maples: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K
Jemile Weeks: 2 for 4
Jeimer Candelario: 1 for 4, 2B
Osvaldo Martinez: 1 for 4, 2B
Double A: Tennessee Smokies
Tennessee 2, Jacksonville 0 in nine innings
This game had a lot of very good pitching.
Adbert Alzolay: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 5 K
James Pugliese: 2 IP, 2 H
Craig Brooks: 1 IP, 2 K
Yasiel Balaguert: 1 for 4, 2B
David Bote: 2 for 4, 2B
Andrew Ely: 1 for 2, 3B, 2 BB
Jacksonville 3, Tennessee 1
A pinch hit homer was all the offense for the Smokies in this one.
Zach Hedges: 5 IP, 3 R, 7 H, 1 BB, 3 K
Ryan McNeil: 1 IP, 1 K
Ian Rice: 1 for 1, HR
High A: Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Down East 3, Myrtle Beach 2 in thirteen innings
The Pelicans were scoreless after the second.
Duncan Robinson: 5 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 1 BB, 1 K
Dakota Mekkes: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 K
Pedro Araujo: 3 IP, 3 H, 4 K
Zack Short: 1 for 6, 2B
Trent Giambrone: 1 for 5, 2B
Tyler Alamo: 2 for 5, BB
Low A: South Bend Cubs
Beloit 6, South Bend 0
Not only were the Cubs held to just two hits, they also committed three errors.
Manuel Rondon: 4.2 IP, 5 R (3 ER), 5 H, 4 BB, 4 K
Andruw Monasterio: 1 for 4, 2B
Short Season A: Eugene Emeralds
Tri-City 4, Eugene 0
This game was scoreless through six innings.
Javier Assad: 6 IP, 1 H, 4 K
Miguel Amaya: 1 for 4, 2B
Jose Gonzalez: 2 for 3
Rookie: AZL Cubs
Arizona had the day off.
Other Notes
The Cubs teach a plate approach of selective aggressiveness, and not all teams do. So when we see a guy come into the Cubs’ organization and start posting career numbers while almost looking like a totally different player stats-wise, it is reasonable to wonder if that Cubs’ approach is having an impact. And when that player is hitting .339/.373/.527 in Iowa having never had a batting average over .300 or an OBP over .340 since rookie ball, it is reasonable to wonder a little harder. And when you see that he has a BABIP of .437, it is reasonable to tip your cap to a guy having one heckuva year and leave it at that. No one sustains a .437 BABIP, and despite his incredible season we are probably safe not adding Chris Dominguez to the short list of prospects who broke out very late. Not yet, anyway.
Dakota Mekkes has now made 13 appearances in High A, each time for no fewer than four outs, and he still hasn’t given up a run. I’m running out of adjectives here. This is just getting silly.
A note from Brett on Mekkes: For what it’s worth, when I watched him this Spring, I could see immediately that he was going to be very difficult for lower-level minor leaguers to hit. He’s huge and has a complicated delivery that makes the ball so hard to track. In that way, I think what we need to know is whether that deception will work against more advanced hitters, but clearly the Cubs want him working on some things at the lower levels first. As a pure college reliever, you usually don’t get your hopes too high for guys like that, but the first step for these types is always dominating at the lower levels. And so far, batters simply don’t have a chance.
NEWSLETTER
