IL Iowa Cubs

September 3 Game Notes: Iowa Cubs at Toledo Mud Hens

Published on September 3, 2023 under International League (IL)
Iowa Cubs News Release


IOWA CUBS (72-56) @ TOLEDO MUD HENS (61-69)

Sunday, September 3 - 5:05 PM CT - Fifth Third Field - Toledo, OH

RHP Riley Thompson (2-7, 5.23) vs. RHP Keider Montero (2-1, 6.75)

TONIGHT'S GAME: Iowa and Toledo will play the sixth and final game of the series tonight, as well as the final game of 18 between the two teams this season. The I-Cubs will send Riley Thompson to the mound, looking to bounce back from his loss in the series opener. In that outing, the right-hander allowed three earned runs on five hits and three walks over 2.2 innings pitched, striking out two batters. Thompson is 2-7 with a 5.23 ERA in his 21 games with Iowa this year, allowing 38 earned runs on 60 hits and 43 walks, striking out 62 batters over his 65.1 innings pitched. On the other side, Keider Montero will take the ball for Toledo, set to make his second start of the series and fifth of the year for the Mud Hens. In game one of the series on Tuesday, Montero spun 5.0 innings of three-run ball. He allowed just one hit, a home run, while walking three and striking out four. Through four starts with Toledo, Montero is 2-1 with a 6.75 ERA, allowing 15 earned runs on 28 hits and six walks, striking out 20 batters in his 20.0 innings pitched.

SLOW START: After starting the year with Iowa and playing in 45 games before landing on the injured list, Brennen Davis recently returned to Iowa's active roster. The outfielder spent three months on the injured list, made nine rehab starts between the Arizona Complex League and High-A South Bend prior to returning to Iowa. Unfortunately for Davis, the return to Iowa's active roster hasn't exactly gone to plan. After going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts on Friday, the 23-year-old went 0-for-5 with another three strikeouts last night. On the season, Davis is now hitting .188 (31-for-165) with seven doubles, three home runs and 20 runs batted in. He has walked 18 times compared to 41 strikeouts, stealing nine bases along the way. In an injury-shortened 2022 season with Iowa, Davis hit .191 (27-for-141) with six doubles, four home runs and 13 RBI with 23 walks compared to 52 strikeouts. He has played in four more games (47) this year than he played in last year (43), striking out 11 less times so far this year but also slugging at a clip of .285 compared to .319 last year.

TURN IT BACK AROUND: Back from August 4-22, Pete Crow-Armstrong was on fire, recording at least one hit in all 15 games played. The 21-year-old set the season long record for Iowa with that 15-game hitting streak, slashing .318 (21-for-66) with five doubles, a triple, four home runs and 11 runs batted in. He also took nine walks compared to 15 strikeouts over the 15-game period, raising his on-base percentage to .400. Since the streak ended, however, Crow-Armstrong has hit .182 (6-for-33) in his last nine games. The Cubs No. 1 ranked prospect has just one double, walking four times compared to 13 strikeouts over that time. In last night's game, the outfielder went 1-for-5 with four strikeouts, marking just the third time this year that an I-Cubs hitter has struck out four times in a single game. In 27 games with Iowa, Crow-Armstrong is now hitting .255 with six doubles, one triple and four home runs, driving in 13 runs while taking 14 walks and striking out 36 times.

DOUBLE OR NOTHIN': Yonathan Perlaza was one of two players in Iowa's lineup last night to record a multi-hit game, also taking two walks. The switch hitter has been a rock all year for the I-Cubs, being just one of three players who have stayed on Iowa's active roster all year long. With his two hits in last night's game, Perlaza is now hitting .290 on the year with Iowa, recording 37 doubles, three triples, 19 home runs and 72 RBI. He has also taken 65 walks and stolen 11 bases. Perlaza is tied for the team-lead in games played, while leading the team in runs scored, hits, doubles and walks. He is also second on the active roster in home runs, runs batted in and stolen bases. Perlaza's 37 doubles not only lead the team, they also lead all of Triple-A baseball and rank fifth in all of baseball. With one more double this year, the 24-year-old will crack into the history books for Iowa. The most doubles all-time in a single-season in I-Cubs history is 45 done by Steve Hammond in 1986, while three players are tied for third with 38 doubles in a single-season. The last player to record 38 doubles in one year with Bryan LaHair back in 2011. Perlaza's 65 walks are four away from cracking the top-10 in the International League.

NOT THE NORM: Chris Clarke allowed three earned runs over his 2.0 innings pitched last night, surrendering five hits while striking out three. His three earned runs marked just the fourth time all year he has allowed three or more earned runs this year, with the last time coming on August 18 against Louisville. Clarke gave up just three total earned runs over 10 outings from July 9 through August 15. The right-hander is 4-5 with a 4.15 ERA in 28 games with Iowa this year, allowing 30 earned runs on 67 hits and 22 walks while striking out 57 batters.

AGAINST TOLEDO: The I-Cubs and Mud Hens are scheduled to play the sixth and final game of the series tonight, with Toledo currently leading the series three games to two. Tonight's contest will be the final game of 18 this season between the two teams, with the Mud Hens ahead of Iowa 10-7. With Iowa having gone 2-3 so far this series entering the finale tonight, they are 19-31 all-time overall against Toledo, including going 5-12 on the road against the Mud Hens.

SHORT HOPS: Iowa's offense struck out 15 more times last night, the most of any single game through the first five games against Toledo; they have now struck out 62 times in those five games, averaging 12.4 strikeouts per game this series...Bailey Horn blew his third save of the year last night, as Iowa has now blown 26 games this year, going 30-for-56 in save opportunities...the longest start Iowa has gotten this series came from Caleb Kilian, who spun 4.1 innings back on Thursday; the other four starts have combined to go 7.2 innings, with three of the four going just 1.2 innings.

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