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June 18 Notes: Iowa vs. Omaha

June 18, 2022 - International League (IL)
Iowa Cubs News Release


IOWA CUBS (29-34) vs. OMAHA STORM CHASERS (30-32)

Saturday - 6:08 - Principal Park - Des Moines, IA

RHP Robert Gsellman (1-2, 4.19) vs. RHP Zack Greinke (1-0, 0.00)

TONIGHT'S GAME: Tonight's game between Iowa and Omaha will feature two major league arms, with Robert Gsellman squaring off against major league rehabber Zack Greinke. Gsellman enters tonight's contest with a 1-2 record and a 4.19 ERA through his first seven games with Iowa. The righty was nearly untouchable through his first five games with Iowa, allowing just two earned runs on eight hits over 15.1 innings. After those five games he went up to Chicago and was a reliever in the big leagues for a month before returning to Iowa's roster. Since rejoining the I-Cubs, Gsellman has struggled, allowing seven earned runs on seven hits and three walks over just four innings pitched. He will look to bounce back tonight, squaring off against Greinke, who is set to make his second major league rehab start for the Storm Chasers. The six-time All-Star spun five one-hit innings against Lehigh Valley in his first start on Sunday, striking out four along the way. The 2009 Cy-Young award winner was placed on the 15-day injured list back on May 30 with a right flexor strain.

A WORK IN PROGRESS: For just the second time this season, Iowa has now gone through the first four games of a series without allowing at least one run in the ninth inning. The first time it happened this year was on the road at St. Paul, where they lost two of the four games, resulting in the I-Cubs not pitching in the ninth. Iowa has yet to go a full six-game series without allowing a run to score in the ninth inning.

RUNNING UP THAT HILL: After two days out of the lineup, Darius Hill picked up right where he left off yesterday. The outfielder went 2-for-4, boosting his average to an even .400 (20-for-50) after 12 games in Iowa. Since joining the I-Cubs on May 31 from Double-A Tennessee, Hill has now hit safely in nine of 12 games, including seven multi-hit games. He has collected three or more hits in three of his last five games, giving him a third-place tie on the active roster for most games with three or more hits. The five players who rank above or tied with Hill on that list have all played at least 38 games, more than three times as many as Hill himself. In addition to leading the active roster in average, Hill's 18 hits in June are tied with Narciso Crook and Dixon Machado for most on the team. Both Crook and Machado have played at least two more games than Hill this month.

BACK ON TRACK: Matt Dermody made his eighth start of the season yesterday, giving him the most on the active roster. After beginning the season with a solid 3.77 ERA (6ER/14.1IP) in his first three starts, Dermody had struggled of late. In each of his last four starts coming into last night, he'd given up at least three runs, earning him a 9.42 ERA (15ER/14.1IP) over those four outings. The lefty turned it back around against Omaha, however, completing his first scoreless start of the 2022 season. He spun four shutout innings, allowing just one hit and three walks, and struck out six, which tied his season high. Dermody now owns a 5.48 ERA on the season, including a 5.79 (21ER/32.2IP) mark as a starter, and has made more starts for the I-Cubs than he has in any season since 2014.

THE BIG 3-0: Infielder Dixon Machado went 1-for-4 with a single and a run scored against Omaha last night, extending his on-base streak to 30 games. Over his last 30 games, dating back to May 12, Machado is hitting .304 (34-for-112) with 14 runs scored, five doubles, a home run and 12 runs batted in. He has taken 18 walks compared to just 14 strikeouts over that span, bumping his on-base percentage to .414. The 30-year-old has either a hit or a walk in each of those games to keep his streak alive and has both a hit and walk in eight of the 30 games.

BACK IN ACTION: David Bote returned to Iowa's lineup last night for the first time since June 2 against St. Paul. Bote was placed on the 60-day injured list by Chicago on March 19 due to left shoulder surgery. He started his first rehab with Iowa on May 19, playing in 12 games with the I-Cubs from May 19-June 2. Over that span, the infielder hit .178 (8-for-45) with four runs scored, two doubles, two runs driven in and six walks compared to 11 strikeouts. He was pulled from his rehab assignment to get more tests done and has since been cleared to resume baseball activities. Last night, in his first game back with Iowa, Bote went 1-for-2 with a two-RBI double as part of Iowa's four-run third inning.

SHUT IT DOWN: For the third time this series, Erich Uelmen entered for the ninth inning last night, earning his second save of the series and fourth of the year. With saves in back-to-back appearances, Uelmen now leads Iowa with his four saves. Despite allowing a leadoff single last night, the righty struck out the final three batters of the game, to close out the win for the I-Cubs. It marked his 12th game this year in which he has multiple strikeouts, giving him two or more strikeouts in 57% (12-of-21) of his games. Not only does Uelmen lead the team in saves, he also holds the team-lead in ERA (1.91), while being second in innings pitched (33.0) and strikeouts (38).

AGAINST OMAHA: The I-80 rivalry continues tonight, with Iowa and Omaha set to play game five of their six-game series. The I-Cubs will look for the series win tonight, as they already earned at least a series split with last night's 5-3 win. The victory brought Iowa's record to 8-2 against Omaha this year, giving them one more win than they had all year last year against the Storm Chasers at Principal Park, when they were 7-15. Iowa is now 43 games over .500 against Omaha all-time at Principal Park, going 176-134, while holding a 317-291 overall all-time record against the Storm Chasers dating back to 1998.

SHORT HOPS: Wyatt Short earned the first win of his Triple-A career last night after pitching in 15 games for Iowa over 2019 and this season...last night's attendance of 10,534 marked their biggest of the year, and the most fans at Principal Park since August 30, 2019, when 10,724 fans saw the I-Cubs beat the Memphis Redbirds to claim the Pacific Coast League American Northern Division championship...Iowa moved to 2-0 when Narciso Crook starts at first base with last night's win.

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