July 26 Game Notes: Iowa Cubs at Louisville Bats
IL Iowa Cubs

July 26 Game Notes: Iowa Cubs at Louisville Bats

Published on July 26, 2025 under International League (IL)
Iowa Cubs News Release


IOWA CUBS (50-49, 11-14) at LOUISVILLE BATS (44-56, 12-13)

Saturday, July 26 - 6:15 PM CT - Louisville Slugger Field - Louisville, KY

RHP Will Sanders (5-0, 3.89) vs. RHP Chase Petty (2-7, 4.14)

TONIGHT'S GAME: The Iowa Cubs play the fifth of a six-game series at the Louisville Bats tonight...right-hander Will Sanders is slated to start for Iowa...right-hander Chase Petty will start for Louisville.

WALKED OFF: The I-Cubs suffered a walk-off loss to the Louisville Bats last night by a 6-5 score in nine innings...it marked the fifth walk-off loss for Iowa this year... Ben Cowles led the offense as he went 2-for-4 with a triple and three RBI... Brandon Birdsell made the start and worked 5.1 innings and allowed three runs on six hits with three strikeouts... Riley Martin tossed 1.1 scoreless frames in relief.

CINCO DE HIT-O: Tuesday night, Owen Caissie tallied the team's first five-hit game of the season...he went 5-for-5 with two doubles, and a two-run homer (20)...the last time an I-Cub had a five-hit game was when P.J. Higgins did it against the Omaha Storm Chasers on September 5, 2023...he is one of eight players in the International League this season with a five-hit game.

NASTY NOLAND: Last Sunday's starter Connor Noland earned his ninth win and tossed a career-high-tying 7.0 innings with seven strikeouts...Noland is the first I-Cub to have at least nine wins in a season since Matt Swarmer had 10 and Colin Rea had 14 in 2019...he is the second Iowa Cub to toss at least 7.0 scoreless innings, following Kenta Maeda on June 22 at Nashville.

ALL ABOARD: Infielder Ben Cowles has been heating up in July and has raised his average from .221 to .236 prior to tonight's game...Cowles is batting .306 (19-for-62) with six doubles, two triples, three home runs and 13 RBI in 16 July games...he has reached base in eight consecutive games dating back to July 12.

DO NOT PASS: Wednesday night, Iowa recorded their seventh shutout of the season with a 9-0 win over Louisville...marked their first shutout since a 3-0 win on June 15 also vs. Louisville...the I-Cubs recorded six shutouts all of last season.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NISHANT!: Today, Iowa Cubs Media Relations Assistant Nishant Brahme celebrates his 24th birthday...he shares this date of birth with Hall of Fame pitcher Hoyt Wilhelm and two-way player Sad Sam Jones ...he also shares a birthday with actress Sandra Bullock and musician Mick Jagger.

FREE PASS: Wednesday night, Iowa recorded their second-most walks of the season with 11, trailing the team's season high of 12 set on May 17...the I-Cubs are one of three teams in the International League this season with at least two games of at least 11 free passes.

PROSPECTING: Thursday, MLB.com updated their Top 30 prospects in the Cubs' organization and it features 10 players on the I-Cubs, including No. 1 Owen Caissie, No. 2 Moises Ballesteros, No. 4 Kevin Alcántara, No. 6 Jonathon Long, No. 9 Brandon Birdsell, No. 10 James Triantos, No. 14 Christian Franklin, No. 16 Jack Neely, No. 21 Will Sanders and No. 23 Ben Cowles.

JULY MASHIN': Wednesday night, infielder Jonathon Long became the third I-Cub this season to reach 15 home runs, along with Carlos Pérez and Owen Caissie ...Jonny has tallied six multi-hit efforts during the month of July...Long has earned a batting average of .324 (22-for-68) and added six doubles with six home runs and 18 RBI...Long has walked in seven straight games, which is tied for the longest such streak by an I-Cub this season, along with Christian Franklin from June 1-8.

BALLY, BALLY: Catcher Moises Ballesteros hit his ninth home run of the season Thursday night...Bally has reached base in 21 straight games dating back to June 24 in which he is batting .325 (27-for-83)...he is tied for the International League lead with 108 hits with teammate Jonathon Long and ranks second with a .331 batting average.

MAJOR LEAGUE REHAB: Tonight, right-hander Porter Hodge is expected to begin a Major League rehab assignment...Hodge has been out since July 9 with a right shoulder impingement.

Check out the Iowa Cubs Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



International League Stories from July 26, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central