Wiggins Deals Cubs to 3-1 Takedown of Fort Wayne

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MWL South Bend Cubs

Wiggins Deals Cubs to 3-1 Takedown of Fort Wayne

May 8, 2025 - Midwest League (MWL)
South Bend Cubs News Release


South Bend, IN - During the first two games of their series against the Fort Wayne TinCaps, the South Bend Cubs received a total of 2.1 innings from their starting pitchers. They got a whole lot more out of No. 10 Chicago Cubs prospect Jaxon Wiggins on Thursday night. The right-hander became the first South Bend Cub starter to cover seven innings since 2021, leading the Cubs to their first win of the series, a 3-1 victory. In snapping a four-game overall losing streak and a six-game skid at home, the Cubs improved to 8-22, while the TinCaps fell to 17-13.

Wiggins and Fort Wayne starting pitcher Jose Reyes went blow for blow early on, carrying a scoreless game into the top of the fourth inning. Both opened the night with maximum efficiency, Wiggins going 10-up, 10-down on 35 pitches and Reyes needing only 31 pitches to glide through three scoreless frames. The Cubs would blink first in the top of the fourth inning, as Padres No. 1 prospect Leo De Vries extended his hit streak to seven games and came around to score on third baseman Rosman Verdugo's double. For the third consecutive game to start the series, Fort Wayne was on the board first.

After stranding two runners on in the bottom of that fourth inning, the Cubs began their answer in the fifth. With two outs and nobody on base, the lineup card turned over to shortstop Cristian Hernandez, who pushed his hit streak to five games with a double. The No. 11 Cubs prospect then scored on a single from No. 7 Cubs prospect Jefferson Rojas, tying the game at one.

The Cubs took their decisive lead in the bottom of the sixth, as center fielder Carter Trice skied the first triple of his South Bend career on an 0-2 pitch. He would come home on a Reyes wild pitch two batters later. Reyes still ended up with a quality start, turning in six innings of two-run ball, but he took the loss thanks to the dominance of Wiggins. The South Bend starter returned to the mound nearing 80 pitches in the seventh inning and finished his masterpiece with a two-strikeout frame. In total, Wiggins allowed only one run on three hits in his seven innings while walking none and punching out seven. He now owns an earned run average of 0.53 with 21 strikeouts in 17 career innings against the TinCaps.

Left fielder Rafael Morel provided the Cubs a stroke of insurance in the bottom of the seventh, teeing off on a fastball from Fort Wayne reliever Tyson Neighbors. Morel's first home run of the season sizzled into the left-field seats, expanding South Bend's lead to 3-1.

After needing eight bullpen arms to get through the first two games of the series, the Cubs used only one on Thursday. Right-hander Connor Schultz picked up the six-out save, first dealing a perfect eighth inning with the help of two excellent defensive plays by Hernandez at short. He'd give up two hits in the ninth before fielding a ground ball in front of the mound to end the game.

With their performances in Thursday's game, Hernandez, Rojas, Trice, and third baseman Reginald Preciado all have on-base streaks of seven games or longer for South Bend. Preciado leads the pack with 13 consecutive games on the basepaths, and his Cubs will look to even the series at 7:05 PM on Friday. As scheduled, Fort Wayne right-hander Miguel Mendez will oppose South Bend righty Nick Dean on the mound.

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