Cubs Minor League News: AFL Edition |
Just when you thought the Mesa Solar Sox were the team to beat in the Arizona Fall League, they have hit a rough patch and have now lost three straight to fall to 6-5 on the season. Their most recent loss came on Saturday night against the Peoria Javelinas as the Solar Sox built an early lead only to lose it in a matter of an inning.
After fighting back to tie things up late in the game, the Javelinas got the last laugh as a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the seventh led to the winning run in the walk-off 5-4 victory. With no game today or Monday, Cubs stars Jonathon Long and Moises Ballesteros will get some extra rest, as neither of them was in the lineup on Saturday. However, Ben Cowles was in the lineup as he continued to battle through some early-season struggles. Cowles has really turned it on the past five games and has made people forget about his slow start. Not to mention, the impressive defense he has shown at short gives the Cubs another infield option to consider this season if he continues to develop at the pace the Cubs are hoping he does. Although Cowles went 0-1 with a strikeout, he showed an impressive amount of patience at the plate as his other three plate appearances resulted in walks and one run scored. In an era where teams care about the long ball, it is nice to have a guy show some patience at the plate, as getting on base is the only way you can score in today's game. Patience was the key for the Solar Sox all game, as they took 13 free passes to go with 14 strikeouts. Two of those walks came in the first inning, which helped set things up for the Tre Morgan sacrifice fly, which gave the Solar Sox an early lead with a wild pitch, making things 2-0. Cowles had a chance to deliver a big hit in that inning, but that was the at-bat he ended up striking out in. As was the case in the first inning, walks played a massive role for the Solar Sox in the third. They looked to respond after allowing three runs in the second with a pair of walks, one coming for Cowles to put a pair of runners on and one out. Neither man was able to score, as the lack of execution was an issue throughout. Cowles would work a walk in both the fifth and seventh innings to cap off his day at the plate and wound up scoring on the seventh inning walk as a bases-loaded hit by pitch brought him home and tied things up 4-4. With Cowles being the only hitter to see at-bats in this one, many fans expected to see Luis Rujano on the mound, but for whatever reason, he hasn't pitched since his season debut. Instead, it was Sam Thoresen taking the ball regarding the Cubs prospects as he came on to pitch the seventh inning. Thoreson got off to a great start by striking out the first hitter he faced, but after allowing a pair of singles, the Javelinas had the winning run in scoring position and only one out. Needing to buckle down in a hurry, Thoresen took it upon himself to register his second strikeout of the inning and was on the verge of escaping trouble, only to have an Ethan Susac walk to extend the inning and loaded the bases with two down. All Thoresen needed to do to escape trouble was to get a ground ball or lazy fly ball out. Instead, Thoreson picked the wrong time to lose his command as he walked the final two hitters he faced to push home the winning run in the Javelinas 5-4 walk-off win.
