May 29 Game Notes: Iowa Cubs vs. Syracuse Mets

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May 29 Game Notes: Iowa Cubs vs. Syracuse Mets

May 29, 2025 - International League (IL)
Iowa Cubs News Release


IOWA CUBS (27-23) vs. SYRACUSE METS (24-29)

Thursday, May 29 - 6:38 PM CT - Principal Park - Des Moines, Iowa

RHP Kenta Maeda (0-0, 14.29) vs. RHP Blade Tidwell (2-2, 4.07)

TONIGHT'S GAME: The Iowa Cubs will take on the Syracuse Mets in the third of a six-game series... Kenta Maeda is slated to make his third start with Iowa this season...Mets No. 15 prospect Blade Tidwell will make his 10th start for Syracuse tonight.

DOUBLEHEADER SWEEP: The Iowa Cubs were swept in a doubleheader yesterday by scores of 3-2 and 4-2 to the Syracuse Mets... Connor Noland started game one and allowed three runs (one earned) across 6.0 innings... Moises Ballesteros hit his fifth home run of the season in the sixth inning...in game two, Ben Cowles drove in the I-Cubs only two runs... Christian Franklin went 2-for-4 as he was the lone I-Cub with a multi-hit effort.

GO LONG: Jonathon Long is batting .352 (31-for-88) with four home runs and 22 RBI in 24 May games...Long ranks among International League leaders in hits (T-1st, 61), batting average (3rd, .349), total bases (T-4th, 93), RBI (6th, 37), slugging percentage (8th, .531), OPS (8th, .947) and on-base percentage (9th, .416)...on May 22- 23, Long homered in back-to-back games for the fifth time in his career and first since Aug. 29-30, 2024 with Double-A Knoxville... he became the sixth I-Cub to homer in back-to-back games this season and first since Chase Strumpf on May 16-17.

R. MARTIN: Reliever Riley Martin has gone 2-0 with a 1.61 ERA (4 ER in 22.1 IP) with 34 strikeouts in 15 outings this season...Riley has not allowed a run in his last 10 appearances (16.1 IP) since April 18...among International League pitchers who have thrown at least 20.0 innings, his ERA ranks seventh.

THE GAUNLET: Iowa has played 29 of their 50 games this season (58%) against teams that are above .500...they have gone 18-11 (62%) vs. such teams this season which is the best record against teams that are above .500.

VS. SYRACUSE: Iowa and Syracuse will face off just once this season in a six-game series this week...both teams met in 2024...Iowa lost four of six games played in Syracuse last year.

AWARD TOUR: Carlos Pérez was named the International League Player of the Week for the period of May 12-18 the league announced yesterday...in five games vs. St. Paul, Pérez slashed .615/.737/1.615 (8-for- 13) with five doubles, two home runs and seven RBI...he became the first I-Cub to be named IL Player of the Week this year and first since Moises Ballesteros on Aug. 26- Sept. 1...Carlos snapped his extra-base hit streak at six games Wednesday...it is tied for the longest such streak in the International League this season and longest by an I-Cub since Alexander Canario (seven) on May 18-25, 2024.

WELCOME, WILL!: Right-handed pitcher Will Sanders officially joined the Iowa Cubs prior to tonight's game from Double-A Knoxville...Sanders, 23, made nine starts with Knoxville this season and went 3-2 with a 2.64 ERA (13 ER in 44.1 IP) with 44 strikeouts and just eight walks...at the time of his promotion, he ranked among Southern League leaders in WHIP (3rd, 1.04), ERA (4th) and strikeouts (9th)...he was the Cubs' Cubs' fourth round selection in the 2023 First- Year Player Draft (113th overall) out of the University of South Carolina.

HEY, IT'S FRANKLIN: Outfielder and Cubs' No. 25 prospect Christian Franklin hit the second leadoff of the season for Iowa Friday night (last - 5/15, Matt Shaw)...Franklin also tallied a career-high five RBI last Thursday...it is tied for the second-most RBI in a game this season by an I-Cub following Jonathon Long on May 14 vs. St. Paul (6)...the four hits also marked a career high...since May 11, Franklin is batting .435 (17-for-40) with nine extra-base hits and seven RBI...his 32 walks also rank tied for fourth in the International League this season.

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?: Despite being in fifth place in the International League West Division, the I-Cubs have are tied for the best run differential in the division with Nashville (+59)...the two teams are ahead of next best Memphis (+27)...just two teams have a better run differential than Iowa in the entire International League, Lehigh Valley (+95) and Durham (+52).

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