Brody McCullough – Picture by Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Sundays are known as getaway days throughout the minor leagues. The umps tend to call a little bit looser strike zone and everybody is ready to get home after playing for six days straight. The same is true for me writing the recaps on Sunday night. I am ready to take some time off for a couple of days. However, there were some big things happening today with 3 weeks left in the first half.
Dinger of the Day
The first time he was up in the majors, Miguel Amaya hit a lot of baseballs hard, but had very little to show for it. Today, he got all of this pitch as he hit his first major league dinger.
Early Action
Fort Wayne got to Manny Espinoza early for two runs and then they tacked on six runs later off Tyler Santana, although three were unearned. It has been hard for South Bend to overcome deficits lately, and today was no exception. The top four hitters in the lineup went 1-for-15 with Kevin Alcântara having the only hit. They did manage to score on a Fabian Pertuz home run and a single by Yohendrick Pinango. Pinango has been struggling mightily lately. After that hit, his average is only up to .195.
Back into First
For the Smokies, they went out and got it done. Pete Crow-Armstrong had another good day. He had a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the first and then he tied the game up at three later on with an RBI. But it was Luis Vazquez, who went 3-for-4 along with two RBI that helped seal the deal for the Smokies. They won 5 to 4 to head back in the first place. Kohl Franklin pitched decently as he gave up two runs in five innings. Hunter Bigge and Riley, Martin both pitched well in the eighth and ninth to get the hold and the save, respectively.
All Hell Broke Loose in Iowa
Starting pitching in Iowa is a bit of a misnomer. Today, the two Thompsons both got lit up again and that’s getting to be a common occurrence. The Cubs lost 10 to 7 and we’re down six runs most of the game before making a comeback. David Bote had three hits. Brennen Davis went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI and a web gem. And the guy a lot of us on Twitter are saying is ready for Chicago, Yonathan Perlaza, added a couple more hits to raise his average to .311. I don’t know what Perlaza or Darius Hill could do to get a chance in Chicago.
Starting Pitcher of the Day
After yesterday’s sweep, Myrtle Beach moved into a dead heat with Columbia for first place in the Carolina league South. Brody McCullough got the bump today and had a rough first inning, but got out of it without giving up any runs. He would go on to throw four more scoreless innings and strike out a total of nine batters on the day while only allowing 1 hit. The Cubs.are going to have a tough choice on whether to promote him now or wait until the pennant race is over.
Parker Chavers had his second good game in a row as did Pedro Ramirez, who is on a roll since coming back from Mesa. However, Moises Ballesteros Moises Ballesteros continues to impress as he went 3-for-4 to bring his average up to .268. In total, the Birds won 5-3 to stay tied with Columbia in first place.
