Seven-Run Inning Hinders Cubs in 9-4 Loss to Peoria
July 4, 2025 - Midwest League (MWL)
South Bend Cubs News Release
South Bend, IN - With a Fourth of July attendance of 7,541, the largest Four Winds Field crowd of the season, the South Bend Cubs (28-51) dropped Friday's game to the Peoria Chiefs (34-44). In their 9-4 victory, the Chiefs scored seven runs in the fourth inning to take an 8-0 lead. Peoria has clinched a series win after going 3-0 against the Cubs at Dozer Park earlier this week.
Cubs starting pitcher Erian Rodriguez battled his command throughout the early part of the night, walking four and hitting three Chiefs in 3.2 innings. He first ran into trouble in the second inning, walking consecutive hitters to open the inning before escaping on a lineout double play. Peoria would break the scoreless tie in the top of the third inning, using a leadoff single and back-to-back hit batsmen.
The Chiefs took full control in the top of the fourth inning, sending 12 hitters to the plate and scoring seven runs. A Cubs error opened the door for Peoria, which scored its first run of the frame on a double by second baseman Tre Richardson. Shortstop Jon Jon Gazdar later picked up an RBI single, giving the Chiefs a 3-0 lead.
Peoria later loaded the bases with two outs for right fielder Ian Petrutz, who knocked away five consecutive foul balls before being hit by the last Erian Rodriguez pitch of the night. Lefty Chase Watkins entered the game to pitch for South Bend but didn't fare much better, walking in a run before allowing a three-run double to designated hitter Graysen Tarlow.
Watkins and fellow left-hander Evan Taylor combined to hold the Chiefs at eight runs for a while, each covering multiple innings. Taylor worked around leadoff walks in both of his frames, leaving the bases loaded with a called third strike in the seventh. Right-hander Kenyi Perez did allow a run in the ninth inning, bringing the game to its final score of 9-4.
Offensively, South Bend had opportunities in nearly every inning but couldn't find results until the second half of the game. Peoria starting pitcher Jose Davila tiptoed around danger early, as the Cubs either put the leadoff on or left a runner at second base in each of his first four scoreless innings. The Chiefs ran him back out for the fifth inning, and the Cubs finally cashed in via a two-run home run by Jefferson Rojas. The second baseman's seventh long ball of the season and second extra-base hit of the night helped chase Davila from the mound before he could complete five innings.
Peoria's bullpen, which hadn't allowed a run in the first three games of the series, also had problems. In the sixth inning, left-hander Michael Watson walked four consecutive Cubs, forcing in a run and trimming the Chiefs' lead to 8-3. However, with the bases loaded and one out, he got Rojas to roll into an inning-ending double play.
The Cubs would score once more against right-hander DJ Carpenter in the seventh. First baseman Cameron Sisneros rolled an RBI single into right field, drawing the Cubs within an 8-4 score. Another single then brought the tying run to the on-deck circle, but that hitter didn't bat as Carpenter earned a strikeout with two runners on base. Carpenter and right-hander Benjamin Arias shut out the Cubs in the eighth and ninth innings, clinching a series victory for Peoria.
Despite the loss, Rojas and shortstop Cristian Hernandez each extended their long on-base streak, Rojas to 16 games with a two-hit night and Hernandez to 17 games. They'll take on the Chiefs again at 7:05 PM on Saturday, with right-hander Ryan Gallagher scheduled to pitch for South Bend against Peoria righty Gerardo Salas.
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