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Cubs Minor League News: Rios crushes walk-off homer, Wesneski impressive, Beesley raking

Cubs Minor League News: Rios crushes walk-off homer, Wesneski impressive, Beesley raking
by - Senior Writer - Sun Jul 23 09:40:38 GMT-05:00 2023

Friday was a jam-packed night on the diamond for the Cubs organization as all seven teams took the field for the final time this weekend. However, eight games were being played with a doubleheader thrown in as the Cubs held their own to finish with a 5-3 mark.

IOWA CUBS 5 - INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS 3

If you like a flare for the dramatic, this was the place to be as the Cubs trailed 3-2 entering the bottom of the ninth. That was until Edwin Rios connected for his biggest hit as a Cub and launched a walk-off three-run shot for the 5-3 win. Hayden Wesneski was on the mound for Iowa and is starting to look like the guy from last season.

Wesneski scattered four hits across five scoreless frames as he struck out eight.

Wesneski was given the lead in the fourth on the Alexander Canario two-run single before leaving his outing with the lead. Once Jeremiah Estrada and the Cubs entered the game, the momentum shifted as Josh Palacios delivered a solo shot to make things 2-1 in the sixth.

Indianapolis continued to play long ball in the seventh as Grant Koch took Riley Martin deep for the go-ahead homer and a 3-2 lead. The Indians made that score hold until the bottom of the ninth when Rios stole the show and broke the hearts of the Indians in the process with his walk-off three-run blast.

Rios was one of two Cubs to record multiple hits, joining Nick Madrigal.

TENNESSEE SMOKIES 5 - MISSISSIPPI BRAVES 4

All it took was one inning for the Smokies to pick up the win, as a massive five-run second would be all Kohl Franklin and company would need to grab the win. Coming off his best start as a member of the Smokies, Franklin was back on the mound as he gave Tennessee four strong innings. He walked two and struck out two while surrendering just one unearned run.

Franklin was given plenty of early run support as the Smokies offense came out strong. Bradlee Beesley opened the scoring with a two-run single while Andy Weber clubbed a three-run shot to make things 5-0.

The Smokies didn't score the rest of the way but made things hold as a fourth-inning error led to the Brave's first run, while the Tyler Tolve double in the fifth had the Braves within 5-2.

Mississippi continued to battle back in the sixth, with Jesse Franklin V adding a solo shot ahead of a sacrifice fly to pull within 5-4. That was as close as they would get as Porter Hodge recovered to finish the sixth before Danis Correa locked things down in the ninth.

TENNESSEE SMOKIES 4 - MISSISSIPPI BRAVES 1

This is the Smokies team that everyone has been waiting for as they capped off the doubleheader sweep of the Braves in dramatic fashion. After tying things up in the fifth, the Smokies went back to work in the sixth and used a three-run sixth to take the lead and put things away.

Chris Kachmar did his thing on the mound, striking out five and allowing one run in three solid frames. He gave way to a trio of relievers who continued to do their jobs. Despite Kachmar's effort, Hayden Deal and Jake McSteen were strong early as they combined to allow one run in five-plus innings of work.

The game's lone run for the Braves came in the first inning when Luke Waddell used an RBI single to give the Braves the lead. That was the game's only run until the fifth when Beesley picked up another RBI hit and used a double to tie things up.

The next inning is when the Tennessee offense started to go to work as the Scott McKeon triple gave the Smokies the lead for good, 2-1. Tennessee added two more runs later in the inning off of wild pitches as they finished things off 4-1.

SOUTH BEND CUBS 10 - WEST MICHIGAN WHITECAPS 7

Talk about a game filled with twists and turns. The Cubs got off to a great start, fell behind in the middle innings, and then managed to battle back for the win. They provided the fans with all sorts of emotions in the win, but all that matters is they won.

Micahel Arias continues to make strides each time on the mound as he struck out seven in 3 1/3. Arias allowed three runs with only two being earned, as his ERA is now 3.68 since the promotion to High-A. What made things much easier for Arias was a massive five-run second inning for the Cubs as they opened up an early 5-0 lead.

Christian Franklin continued his tear since returning from the IL with a single, but it was the Ezequiel Pagan grand slam that made things 5-0.

Throw in a Felix Stevens double in the third, and the Cubs were off and running 6-0 before West Michigan started to battle back. Down but not out, the Whitecaps cut the Cubs lead in half with a three-run fourth as a bases-loaded walk was followed by the two-run Dillon Paulson double.

South Bend added a run in the bottom of the fourth on the Luis Verdugo double, but that was it for them offensively until late. Already with one three-run inning under their belt, Izaac Pacheco made it two as his three-run shot pulled West Michigan within 7-6. They added another run on the Brady Allen homer in the seventh, but it wasn't even as the Franklin homer in the bottom of the sixth was the winning run, with Moises Ballesteros and James Triantos adding two more RBIs late.

COLUMBIA FIREFLIES 4 - MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 0

Don't look now, but that is four losses in a row for the Pelicans as the Fireflies took the series Saturday. To make matters worse, it was the second straight shutout for the Fireflies, as the Pelicans offense is scuffling right now. Drew Gray was on the mound and lasted just 2 2/3 innings to take the loss. He allowed two runs with three strikeouts, as he didn't pitch poorly.

On the other hand, Ryan Ramsey was dominant as he not only scattered three hits in 6 2/3 shutout innings but struck out eight without a walk. His ERA has been 0.40 since he was promoted to Low-A and looks extremely good. The Fireflies only needed one run in this one, and that run came in the third as a wild pitch led to the game's first run and the winning run, for that matter. Brett Squires added an RBI single later in the third to push the lead to 2-0, which were the final runs until late in the game.

Still holding their two-run lead in the ninth, Levi Usher gave the Fireflies some much-needed insurance as his two-run single capped off the 4-0 win. Jefferson Rojas led the way with two hits.

ACL GIANTS 9 - ACL CUBS 2

DSL CUBS RED 3 - DSL Pirates 2

DSL ROYALS 5 - DSL CUBS BLUE 0

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