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June 10 Game Notes: Iowa at Toledo

June 10, 2022 - International League (IL)
Iowa Cubs News Release


IOWA CUBS (25-31) @ TOLEDO MUD HENS (28-27)

Friday - 6:05 CT - Fifth Third Field - Toledo, OH

RHP Caleb Kilian (2-0, 2.06) vs. RHP Chase Anderson (2-3, 5.62)

TONIGHT'S GAME: Iowa will send righty Caleb Kilian to the mound tonight, looking to snap their four-game losing streak including the first three games here at Fifth Third Field to Toledo. Kilian is coming off of his Major League debut against the Cardinals, in which he threw five innings of three-run ball, allowing just three hits and two walks while striking out six. So far with the I-Cubs, the No. 5 ranked prospect in Chicago's system is 2-0 with a 2.06 ERA through nine starts. He has allowed nine earned on 35 hits and 15 walks while striking out 41 batters over his 39.1 innings pitched. He faced Toledo once in their series at Principal Park, going four innings, allowing one earned run on three hits while walking two and striking out three. Looking to give Toledo the series win with their fourth straight victory over the I-Cubs is right-hander Chase Anderson. Anderson is 2-3 with a 5.62 ERA through 10 starts this year, allowing 26 earned runs on 42 hits including 11 home runs. He has struck out 36 batters while walking 20 over his 41.2 innings pitched. Back on April 13 against Iowa, Anderson threw four scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out five.

BACK FROM THE BIGS: Caleb Kilian will make his first start today since returning from Chicago, where he made his Major League debut last Saturday. Kilian put up dominant numbers in the first third of the season for Iowa, earning a 2-0 record and a 2.06 ERA in his first nine starts with the club. When he received the call, Kilian was ranked second in the International League in ERA and second on the I-Cubs in strikeouts with 43. In his first taste of big league action, the righty held his own, allowing three runs while striking out six in five innings against the Cardinals. The start was enough to get the Cubs to extra innings, though they eventually lost, and left Kilian with no decision. He was optioned the next day, on June 5, but today will mark his first outing since then.

WHERE'D THE OFFENSE GO: In the six-game series against St. Paul last week, Iowa scored five or more runs in five of the six games, including a 13-run effort. They averaged 7.3 runs per game, with their lowest offensive output being three runs in the series opener. In those six games, Iowa's offense hit .291 (64-for-220) as a team with 23 extra-base hits. Through the first three games this series against Toledo, they are hitting just .188 (15-for-80) as a team with just four extra-base hits. The I-Cubs are scoring just 1.6 runs per game through the first three games, with just two runs in their last 19 innings against the Mud Hens.

SNAPPED: Iowa recorded just seven hits in their 14 innings last night, with two in the first game followed by five hits in game two of the doubleheader. With the lack of offense, five different players had hitting streaks snapped, led by John Hicks (9). Hicks' streak started back on May 26 and the catcher hit .371 (13-for-35) with two doubles, a triple and four home runs over his nine-game stretch. The next highest streaks were Nelson Velazquez (6) and Levi Jordan (6). It was each player's longest streak, while Velazquez' started on May 28 and Jordan's dated back to April 14 prior to getting assigned to Double-A Tennessee. Darius Hill (3) and Trent Giambrone (3) each had three-game hitting streaks snapped last night as well.

QUALITY ARMS: Iowa got two pitchers back in their bullpen yesterday that each had a huge impact on the staff prior to their respective departures. Conner Menez has bounced around on and off of Iowa's roster for the last month, getting his contract selected by Chicago on May 9. He threw a scoreless inning for the Cubs on May 13 in his first Major League action this year, then was optioned back to Iowa on May 17. He didn't pitch before landing on the injured list on May 22 and was activated on May 31. He had a scoreless outing for Iowa on June 3 but was then designated for assignment on June 4. The lefty cleared waivers and is now back on Iowa's roster after getting outrighted on June 6. Surrounding all of the transactions, Menez has been great for the I-Cubs. The 27-year-old is 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA on the year, allowing just four earned runs on 12 hits over his 17.1 innings of work. He has walked eight batters compared to 20 strikeouts. The southpaw faced Toledo twice the first time they matched up at Principal Park, going 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in those two games. In 5.1 innings against the Mud Hens, Menez allowed one run on four hits while walking one and striking out three. He has thrown two or more innings six times for Iowa, topping out at 3.2 on April 30 against Indianapolis. The other pitcher that was added back to Iowa's roster yesterday was right-hander Ben Leeper after being placed on the injured list back on May 21. The year started off rough for the 24-year-old, allowing five earned runs over his first five games, surrendering those five runs on 11 hits over just 6.0 innings. Since April 28, however, Leeper is on a 10.1 inning scoreless streak, allowing just four hits and one walk compared to 13 strikeouts. In those eight games, he has earned both of his saves and opponents have hit just .118 against him. In all, Leeper is 0-2 with a 2.76 ERA in 13 games, going 2-for-3 in saves, allowing five earned runs on 15 hits including two home runs. He has walked five batters compared to 23 strikeouts on the season.

KEPT IT ALIVE: Infielder Dixon Machado extended his hitting streak to a season-long nine games with his single in the first inning of game one last night. Nine straight games with a hit ties the longest hitting streak for any I-Cubs hitter this season after John Hicks had his nine-game hitting streak snapped last night. Machado has been a consistent force at the top of the lineup this whole season for Iowa, notching 42 starts hitting from the leadoff spot, 37 more than the next closest player. The 30-year-old is tied for the team-lead having played in 48 games this year and is hitting .294 (53-for-180) with nine doubles and 15 RBI over those 48 games. Machado has had multiple long hitting streaks over his career, topping out at 12 games with Double-A Erie from August 15-29 in 2014.

AGAINST TOLEDO: After the doubleheader sweep yesterday, Toledo continues to dominate Iowa at Fifth Third Field, going 3-0 so far this year and 7-2 in the past two seasons. Their 7-2 record at home and 6-5 record at Principal Park gives them the all-time series lead of six games, at 13-7. In 2022, the two teams sit at .500, with Iowa going 4-1 at home and now 0-3 on the road. Through those first eight games this year, the two teams have played each other tough, being separated by just one run. With their two one-run victories last night, Toledo is now outscoring Iowa 31-30 this year.

SHORT HOPS: Iowa dropped to 0-17 this year when scoring less than three runs and 2-2 when allowing just one run...with two one-run losses last night, Iowa went from 7-9 to 7-11 in one-run games this year...Iowa's two hits in game one of the doubleheader marked the fewest hits in a seven-inning game this year, previously set at four; they have been one-hit in a nine inning game this year.

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