IL Iowa Cubs

August 11 Game Notes: Iowa Cubs at Omaha Storm Chasers

Published on August 11, 2023 under International League (IL)
Iowa Cubs News Release


IOWA CUBS (63-46) @ OMAHA STORM CHASERS (50-57)

Friday, August 11 - 7:05 PM - Werner Park - Papillion, NE

RHP Michael Rucker (0-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Jonathan Bowlan (3-3, 5.28)

TONIGHT'S GAME: The I-Cubs and Storm Chasers head into the weekend for the fourth game of the series tonight. Taking the hill for Iowa will be right-hander Michael Rucker. Entering tonight's contest, Rucker has made two appearances with one start for Iowa after spending much of the season up in the big leagues with Chicago. Rucker was added to Iowa's roster on August 1 after getting optioned from Chicago. The 29-year-old was optioned to Triple-A once already this season for a brief stint back in June. In 34 games with the Cubs, the righty is 2-1 with a 5.03 ERA, allowing 22 earned runs on 39 hits and 17 walks in his 39.1 innings pitched. Over that span, he also struck out 39 batters, allowing opponents to hit .262 against him. Rucker has tossed just 5.1 total innings in his two appearances with the I-Cubs this season but has been effective as he has allowed just two hits, zero runs, and has tallied one walk compared to three strikeouts. Omaha will send right-hander Jonathan Bowlan to the mound. On the year, Bowlan owns a record of 3-3 with a 5.28 ERA in seven appearances (five starts) with the Storm Chasers. Over 30.2 innings of work for Omaha the 2018 second round draft pick has allowed a total of 33 hits and 18 earned runs to go along with 17 walks and 25 strikeouts while opponents are hitting at a clip of .268 against him. He also has one save to his credit since joining the Storm Chasers. Bowlan started the season in Double-A with Northwest Arkansas and was promoted to Omaha on June 20. In his time with the Naturals, he had a record of 1-5 and an ERA of 7.20 over 10 appearances with nine of those being starts.

MORE THAN TEN: After last night's 10 run performance, the Iowa Cubs have scored 10 or more runs 20 times this season. They are 20-0 when scoring in the double digits this season. The I-Cubs have done it twice this week already with 20 runs on Tuesday night and 10 runs last night. Their 20 games in the double digits are the most in a single season since the I-Cubs had 21 in 2008. The franchise record for the most double-digit games in a season is 22 which came in 2004. With 41 games left this season, Iowa is on pace to score 10 or more runs in 27.5 games. If Iowa can stay on pace, they will far surpass the franchise record.

HIGGINS KEEPS HITTING: Since returning to Iowa, P.J. Higgins has been a staple in Iowa's successful offense. The catcher is slashing .357/.417/.667 with four home runs and 13 RBI. Higgins has recorded a hit now in three straight games. In two games against Omaha, Higgins is 3-for-10 with two runs scored, one double, one home run, six RBI and two walks. His six RBI are the most in a two-game stretch in his entire eight-year career. Higgins leads Iowa with his .357 average, .667 slugging percentage and 1.084 OPS. Behind the plate, Higgins has not allowed a passed ball in 97.0 innings. He boasts a .333 caught stealing percentage as he's hosed two runners in six stolen base attempts. His percentage is the highest among Iowa's active roster.

AGAINST OMAHA: With three straight wins to open the series, Iowa will go for its fourth in-a-row tonight at Werner Park. Its three wins to start the current series makes it five consecutive wins against the Storm Chasers dating back to July 2-3. The I-Cubs are now 9-4 this year against Omaha overall, going 7-2 in their nine games at Werner Park this year. Iowa is now 332-299 all-time overall against the Storm Chasers, going 153-162 all-time on the road.

CRAZY EIGHTS: In back-to-back nights, the I-Cubs have scored eight runs in a single inning. Last night, it was the seventh inning, when Luis Vazquez plated the first runs of the evening for Iowa on a two-run single. P.J. Higgins and Alexander Canario knocked in three runs combined on a pair of singles. Miles Mastrobuoni topped things off with a three-run home run to give Iowa their sixth, seventh and eighth runs of the inning. On Wednesday night, in a 20-1 win, Iowa's eight spot came in the first inning of the game after slugging four home runs. Eight runs in a single inning marks the season-high for the I-Cubs this year. They've reached this feat now three times in 2023. The first eight-run inning came way back on April 29 against Louisville, when scored eight runs in the first inning of that contest as well.

FRESH RANKINGS: Yesterday, MLB.com released a new Top-30 Prospect Rankings for the Chicago Cubs organization. Before the new rankings, Iowa had seven Top-30 prospects on their active roster. With the new rankings, they still have seven, but there are some new faces. Five of Iowa's top prospects remained on the new list. Pete Crow-Armstrong remains as the Cubs' top prospect in the organization. Ben Brown moved from the No. 3 prospect to the No. 5. Jordan Wicks was re-ranked as No. 10 after being No. 5 previously. Matt Mervis moved from No. 6 to No. 13. Alexander Canario went from No. 10 to No. 14. Dropping out of the rankings were Chase Strumpf and Riley Thompson who were No. 23 and 26, respectively. Possibly the most notable addition to the Top-30 Prospect list is Luis Vazquez. Since being promoted to Iowa on June 28, the Puerto Rican has shown off his talent. In 33 games with the I-Cubs, Vázquez is slashing .261/.385/.450 with 17 runs, six doubles, five homers, 22 RBI and 19 walks. In the field, the infielder has committed just one error in 127 total chances, good for a .992 fielding percentage. The other addition to Chicago's Top-30 list that is currently on Iowa's active roster is pitcher Luke Little. His Triple-A career is still very young as he's made just two appearances for Iowa this year. He's tossed 3.0 innings, allowing two earned runs for a 6.00 ERA. Little has struck out six hitters compared to two walks. Prior to his promotion to Iowa, Little recorded a 3-2 record with a 3.12 ERA in 23 games with Double-A Tennessee. Along with Chicago's Top-30 Prospect Rankings, MLB.com release a new list for MLB's Top 100. The Cubs have five players on the list, two of them playing in Iowa. Crow-Armstrong is ranked No. 12 and Brown is No. 92 in the Top-100.

SHORT HOPS: After starting the year with a record of 0-4, Chris Clarke picked up his second consecutive win after being credited with the victory for last night's contest, improving his record to 2-4...Since his return to Iowa's roster earlier this month, Tyler Duffey has not allowed a run over his three relief appearances, tossing a total of 4.1 scoreless innings...Despite a slow start going 0-for-6 with four strikeouts in his first two Triple-A games, the No. 1 ranked prospect in Chicago's system, Pete-Crow Armstrong, has since gone on a six-game hitting streak which is the longest active streak going by an I-Cub...The win last night pushed Iowa's record to 6-0 in games that Jordan Wicks has started.

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