MWL South Bend Cubs

Toyota Road Report June 1-6: Lansing

Published on June 1, 2021 under Midwest League (MWL)
South Bend Cubs News Release


Lansing Lugnuts

Miles from South Bend: 155

Affiliation: Athletics

Stadium: Jackson Field

South Bend vs Lansing...

Last Season: 11-7

Since becoming a Cubs affiliate: 42-42

The South Bend Cubs (11-12) head to the capital of Michigan to take on the Lansing Lugnuts (11-13) for a six-game series this week, it will be the second road series of the 2021 campaign. The Cubs come into the series riding high after a season-high 18 hits on Sunday night in a 12-2 win over Fort Wayne to cap off a 7-5 homestand.

Lansing comes in having dropped four of their last five games, all to the Great Lakes Loons. This will be the seventh game in a 12-game homestand for the Lugnuts, who are opening up Jackson Field to 100% capacity for the series-opener tonight.

Players to watch on Lansing

Austin Beck, OF: Beck enters the 2021 season as the number 18 prospect in the Oakland Athletics farm system. The speedy center fielder is back at the high-a level where he played his whole 2019 season. Since reaching high-a he has struggled at the plate with inconsistent power and a strikeout rate over 34% last season. But the potential is there. Beck was selected as the sixth overall pick in the 2017 draft and said to have some of the best combinations of tools in the draft, mainly his raw power and good speed. But of the top 10 picks in the draft that year, of which six have already made their MLB debuts, he is the only one not to have played at the double-a level yet.

Max Schuemann, SS: Schuemann is off to a scorching start at the plate this season. The 23-year-old who grew up in between South Bend and Lansing in Portage, Mich. is second in the High-A Central in on-base percentage (.426), tied for second in runs scored (20), tied for third in extra-base hits (11), sixth in OPS (.953), and ninth in slugging (.527). Schuemann has been doing his damage from the leadoff spot in the Lugnuts lineup as one of the best table setters in the league.

Jordan Diaz, 3B: Diaz is just 20 years of age and still comes in as the A's number 12 overall prospect, and their only corner infielder among their top 30. He is one of the best contact hitters in the entire organization. The former international free agent signing out of Colombia doesn't strike out much and even though he's considered more of a gap-to-gap hitter, he currently sits tied for seventh in the league with five homers.

Players to watch on South Bend

Burl Carraway, LHP: The Cubs second round pick from 2020 out of Dallas Baptist is coming off a stellar week that finished with him making the MLB Pipeline Prospect Team of the Week. He's now up to eight appearances this season and in 7+ innings he has yet to allow a hit. Carraway struck out the side in order his last time out and has struck out seven of the last eight batters he's faced. The fastball can hit 97 mph and the big curve ball is proving lethal.

Tyler Durna, 1B: Durna is coming off a night to remember. On Sunday night the UCSD product was 4-5 with a home run, three RBI and four runs. The Cubs mainstay at first base this season was spraying the ball all around Four Winds Field to close out the series, with two hits to left, one to center and his homer coming pull side to right. Oh and by the way he's now reached base in 19 of his last 21 games. Durna has been getting on base all season so far, but now he's barreling the ball up too, so watch out.

Derek Casey, RHP: For the first time this season Casey will be the one to bookend a series with starts on Tuesday and Sunday. His last time out he tossed six innings and allowed just one run, and despite walking two batters in the first inning, he didn't allow another free pass over the remainder of his quality start. Casey has already set a new career-high with an eight strikeout outing this season and now he'll play a key role in this upcoming series.

Schedule

Tuesday, June 1 - 7:05 ET: RHP Derek Casey (1-2, 4.34 ERA) vs. RHP Rafael Kelly (0-1, 3.63 ERA)

Wednesday, June 2 - 7:05 ET: RHP Ryan Jensen (1-2, 4.97 ERA) vs. LHP Brady Basso (0-2, 4.61 ERA)/RHP Shohei Tomioka (2-2, 3.00 ERA)

Thursday, June 3 - 7:05 ET: RHP Chris Kachmar (0-2, 4.94 ERA vs. RHP Seth Shuman (0-0, 1.69 ERA)/RHP Richard Guasch (1-1, 0.63 ERA)

Friday, June 4 - 7:05 ET: RHP Brad Deppermann (0-0, 2.70 ERA) vs. RHP Reid Birlingmair (1-3, 3.54 ERA)

Saturday, June 5 - 7:05 ET: RHP Max Bain (2-1, 5.89 ERA) vs. RHP Colin Peluse(1-1, 5.51 ERA)

Sunday, June 6 - 1:05 ET: RHP Derek Casey (1-2, 4.34 ERA) vs. RHP Stevie Emanuels (1-1, 4.32 ERA)

You can listen to Darin Pritchett call every game of the series on the flagship station for the South Bend Cubs WSBT 96.1, online at wsbtradio.com, or at Milb.com.

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