Mervis, Morel, Bote power I-Cubs to Opening Day win |
DES MOINES - It has been a long time since the Iowa Cubs could say they won their season opener at home, 11 years to be exact, as the 2012 season was the last time it happened. Well, you can cross that off the list of things to do this season, as the Iowa Cubs took care of the Columbus Clippers 11-5.
Since making the postseason in 2019, things have been a struggle for the Chicago Cubs AAA Affiliate, but things could be different this season. This team is not only stacked with top prospects like Matt Mervis, Alexander Canario, Caleb Kilian, and Christopher Morel, but they also have several veterans on this team that not only have MLB experience, but came close to making the opening day roster this year. All that together could translate into a fun season as the Cubs kicked off 2023 with a bang. One of those veterans is starter Adrian Sampson who was in a battle for the No. 5 spot this spring. Sampson did himself little favors as he pitched himself out of the competition to land as the opening-day starter for Iowa. Hoping to get on track, Sampson was roughed up in his season debut, getting through four innings and allowing four runs (three earned). His command was an issue, walking six and striking out four, but the rest of the Cubs pitchers did their job. Sampson not only struggled with his command, but he continued to struggle keeping the ball in the yard, with Bo Naylor taking him deep in the first inning for the 1-0 Columbus lead. Iowa wasted no time responding as Christopher Morel led off the bottom of the first with a triple and then came home to score on the Mervis double to tie things up. Morel triple! pic.twitter.com/jo8kJwWsyi Mervis had a massive day at the plate, reaching base all five times, with three coming as walks. The relentless Iowa offense kept their feet on the gas in the second, with Morel picking up a Two-RBI single to push the lead to 3-1, before a wild pitch gave Iowa a 4-1 lead. Like in the first when Iowa responded to an early deficit, Columbus did the same in the top half of the third as RBI singles from Tyler Freeman and Naylor pulled the Clippers to within 4-3 while a double play tied things up. Those were the final runs allowed by Sampson as he was backed by an offense that couldn't be stopped. As if four runs in two innings wasn't good enough, the Cubs continued to score in the third, using a Jake Slaughter double to take the lead for good, 6-4. They then came out in the fourth inning to put the game away as David Bote and Mervis connected for back-to-back homers to extend the lead to 9-4. Get out the hard hats!! @DavidBote13 and @mmervis12 go back-to-back to grow our lead over Columbus. pic.twitter.com/hS45cm2Ztm Slaughter added a second RBI double later in the frame, with Mike Tauchmann picking up an RBI single as Iowa pushed across five additional runs to take an 11-4 lead. Despite that being the rest of their offense, the Cubs didn't need anymore as their bullpen took care of the rest. Ryan Borucki was the first man on in relief and, despite allowing a run to score in the sixth, was the winning pitcher as he went 1 2/3 innings. He gave way to Anthony Kay, Vinny Nittoli, and Rowan Wick as the three tossed the final 3 1/3 innings and kept the Clippers offense in check. Iowa did have a chance in the seventh inning to push across even more runs as a wild pitch on strike three mixed with a pair of walks loaded the bases, but nothing came from it. Still, it was an impressive showing for an Iowa team that has been inconsistent on offense the past few seasons. If this is what the fans can expect this season, then things will be fun in AAA. The Cubs pounded 14 hits in the win, with every starter picking up at least one. Tauchmann led the way with three hits, while Morel, Mervis, Slaughter, and Nelson Velazquez had two. Mervis reached base five times, picking up right where he left off in 2022. Win number 1 in the books! ✅ pic.twitter.com/tcQwka1Vgx
Iowa scored all 11 of their runs in the first four innings of the game, scoring two or more runs in three of the four innings. Five of Iowa’s nine starters had multi-hit games, accounting for 11 of Iowa’s 14 hits. Four of the top five hitters collected two hits. In five innings of work, Iowa’s bullpen allowed one unearned run on two hits and five walks while striking out five. Oh this is is fun!
POSTGAME NOTES (courtesy I-Cubs):
Today's FREE @MiLB Game of the Day on @MLBTV is the @IowaCubs and the @CLBClippers.
Make sure you tune in starting at 3:08 PM. https://t.co/eDFrFg0ND2
