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PCL1 Iowa Cubs

Tucker Powers RedHawks to Series Split with Cubs

July 13, 2014 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Iowa Cubs News Release


Des Moines, IA - Oklahoma City's Preston Tucker had a pair of doubles and home runs to power the RedHawks (50-49) past the Cubs (51-46) 5-2 on Sunday afternoon at Principal Park in the last game before the All-Star break. The RedHawks earned a four-game series split after winning the final two games of the set, and lead the season series 4-3. The Cubs lost for the just the fifth time in 31 day games.

Tucker got the scoring started in the second inning when he launched a solo home run to the back of the bleachers in right field off Tsuyoshi Wada. Iowa responded by scoring twice in the fourth inning to grab its only lead of the contest. RedHawks starter Michael Foltynewicz hit Matt Szczur on a two-strike pitch to spark the rally. A walk and wild pitch followed to put runners in scoring position for Chris Valaika. He drove a sacrifice fly to right field for his 45th RBI of the year. After a strikeout, Josh Vitters hit a blooper over Foltynewicz's head that the pitcher fielded and threw wildly of first allowing a run to score to make it a 2-1 game.

The RedHawks answered by hitting two more home runs off Wada to recapture the lead. Marc Krauss hit a two-out double in the fifth inning and scored on Jonathan Villar's home run over the suites in left field. Tucker struck again in the sixth inning as he blasted his second long ball of the day to center field to give Oklahoma City a two-run lead. The RedHawks hit only three home runs in the first 13 games this month, but matched that total in six innings against the Cubs left-hander.

Wada left after that inning having thrown a season-high 109 pitches. He gave up the four earned runs on nine hits, but only walked one hitter and stuck out five. The three home runs Wada surrendered were a career-high in 38 appearances (37 starts) he's made in the United States. He suffered his sixth loss of the year, but just his first in his last four starts.

The RedHawks tacked on an insurance run off RH Dae-Eun Rhee in the eighth inning. Tucker laced his second two-bagger of the day to center field to get the rally started. He moved over to third base on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a Jio Mier single to right. Tucker tied his season-high with four hits. He registered his third multi-homer game of the season, and has 20 total home runs between double-A Corpus Christi and Oklahoma City this year.

Rhee worked the final three innings in his third relief appearance of the year, and first since coming over from double-A Tennessee on July 8. He struck out two in a perfect seventh inning before giving up his lone run in the eighth. He scattered three hits and two walks in his 44-pitch relief stint.

Hard throwing right-hander Foltynewicz picked up his seventh win of the season in his first career start against Iowa. He set down five of the final six hitters he faced, and held Iowa to three hits in his six innings of work. RH Jorge De Leon and LH Kevin Chapman threw three hitless innings of relief. Chapman earned his sixth save by pitching a clean ninth inning.

Iowa has scored two runs or less in 38-of-97 (39 percent) of its games this year. The Cubs are last in the PCL with a .244 (771-for-3159) batting average and came into Sunday 15th in the league in runs scored.

The Cubs will have the next three days off for the triple-A All-Star break. They had a franchise record four players selected to the PCL All-Star Team this season -- 2B Arismendy Alcantara, starters Kyle Hendricks, Wada, and closer Blake Parker. Alcantara was voted in as a starter for the game on Wednesday night in Durham.

The I-Cubs resume action on Thursday night, and will play four games at Round Rock before returning home on Monday, July 21 for a nine-game home stand against New Orleans and Memphis. Wada (9-6, 2.84) will get the ball for the Cubs in the first game following the break with the first pitch from Dell Diamond scheduled for 7:05. The action will be broadcast live on AM 940 and streamed live at iowacubs.com with the On-Deck Circle Pre-Game Show starting at 6:45 p.m.

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Pacific Coast League Stories from July 13, 2014


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