TinCaps Strike Early Again in 8-4 Defeat of South Bend

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TinCaps Strike Early Again in 8-4 Defeat of South Bend

May 7, 2025 - Midwest League (MWL)
South Bend Cubs News Release


South Bend, IN - After hanging 14 runs on the South Bend Cubs Tuesday night, the Fort Wayne TinCaps showed no signs of a Wednesday morning slowdown. In game two of the series at Four Winds Field, the TinCaps once again never trailed, capturing an 8-4 victory. Just as they did in the series opener, the TinCaps collected 14 base hits, including five from left fielder Jacob Campbell. Fort Wayne continues to push West Michigan for the Great Lakes East division lead at 17-12, while South Bend now owns a record of 7-22.

For a second consecutive day, the TinCaps opened up a sizable lead early on, scoring in each of the first three innings. Right-hander Kohl Franklin made his 2025 debut on the mound for South Bend, pitching for the first time since April 13, 2024. Fort Wayne made him work throughout his two-inning start, seeing 29 pitches in each of the first two frames.

The TinCaps started the scoring again in the first inning, putting each of their first three hitters on base. Designated hitter Jack Costello delivered the RBI knock, singling to left field for a 1-0 Fort Wayne lead. Fort Wayne plated two more runs in the top of the second inning, getting a pair of runners aboard with nobody out. The lineup card eventually flipped over to second baseman Nerwilian Cedeño, who singled to put the TinCaps ahead 3-0. A fourth run came across in the third inning against South Bend reliever Johzan Oquendo, as Fort Wayne catcher Addison Kopack hooked an RBI double.

Otherwise stymied by Padres No. 26 prospect Clark Candiotti, the Cubs pulled a run back in the bottom of the third inning. Four consecutive Cubs reached with one out, including shortstop Cristian Hernandez, who drilled an RBI double to the gap in right-center field. South Bend eventually loaded the bases with one out for designated hitter Andy Garriola and left fielder Edgar Alvarez, but Candiotti punched them both out. The Fort Wayne starting pitcher ended up covering five innings on the day, striking out five while conceding only one run.

Scheduled to piggyback Franklin's start at some point, left-hander Evan Aschenbeck handled the bulk of South Bend's relief work. He allowed four runs across 4.1 innings, as Fort Wayne padded its lead in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings. In the sixth, the Cubs initially turned a double play to slow down a TinCaps rally with nobody out, but Fort Wayne still scored on a double-steal play. An inning later, the TinCaps turned a leadoff triple into a fifth run on Kopack's sacrifice fly. The eighth inning saw Jacob Campbell finish off his 5-for-5 performance by doubling home another two runs. In addition to scoring three runs, Campbell filled up the box score with a triple, a double, three singles, and a stolen base.

Just like on Tuesday night, the Cubs put together a couple of positive glimpses late in the game. Right-hander Vince Reilly struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings as the last man out of the South Bend bullpen. In between Reilly's innings, left fielder Edgar Alvarez clobbered his first Four Winds Field home run, a solo shot to right-center field. The no-doubter also marked Alvarez's first long ball of the 2025 season and stretched his hit streak to five games. He'd come back up to the plate as the potential tying run with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth, but like Garriola in the at-bat before, Alvarez went down on strikes. South Bend second baseman Jefferson Rojas and third baseman Reginald Preciado pushed their on-base streaks to 10 games and 11 games, respectively, on Wednesday.

For Fort Wayne, top San Diego Padres prospect Leo De Vries moved his on-base streak to 13 games and his hit streak to seven contests. He and the TinCaps will oppose the Cubs in game three of the series at 7:05 PM on Thursday. No. 10 Cubs prospect Jaxon Wiggins is scheduled to pitch for South Bend against Fort Wayne right-hander Jose Reyes.

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