Brandon Birdsell – Picture by Todd Johnson

I got caught off guard today in a number of ways. First, I slept in after a busy week in Beloit and I awoke to the news that Daniel Palencia was promoted to Chicago. He then pitched in the game and was the winning pitcher throwing 2 scoreless innings. He didn’t strike anybody out though, but that’s a hell of a debut!.

I got so caught up watching Palencia this afternoon that I missed the Myrtle Beach game starting. In fact, I missed the first six innings. Luckily, they were playing nine today.

After the four-day break next week, I am hoping I get to see Parker Chavers in a South Bend gray uniform  in Davenport. Tonight, he hit another home run and he’s been pretty consistent at the plate for about two months now. There’s really no need to keep him in the Carolina League anymore. Unfortunately, the rest of the Pelicans lineup did not do so well. The defense made a couple boo-boos that resulted in two runs being scored off of Grant Kipp. It was just a deficit the Pelicans couldn’t hit their way out of as they lost 4-3. Brailyn Marquez pitched 1 scoreless frame with 2 Ks and a BB.

Hitter of the Day

BJ Murray had himself a day. He hit two HRs and drove in 4, all in the first 3 innings.

The Smokies fell behind early and were losing 4-3 when BJ Murray hit a 3-run homer to give the Smokies a 6-4 lead in the the third. Richard Gallardo struggled again in his second start. Although, two of the first four runs he gave up were unearned. In the fourth, he finally set down the Barons 1-2-3. PCA had a sac fly to make it 7-4 after 4. Birmingham scored 2 more off Gallardo in the fifth before he was replaced and charged with the 2 more runners who were on base. Oof! 8 runs, 5 earned. Birmingham went on to win 9-8 as a Tennessee rally fell short. .

Slo-Mo Video of the Day

This is a beautiful thing as you get to see Caissie’s effortless swing. He went 2-for-4 on the day.

In South Bend and Its Starting Pitcher of the Day

The best thing for the Cubs losing 5 of 6 was to go play the Chiefs. Felix Stevens hit a solo shot to start the scoring as the Cubs used a series of singles and doubles to stake themselves to an early 4-0 lead. Brandon Birdsell might have made his last start in High-A as he went 6 strong and allowed just 1 run on 3 hits. I am thinking it is 50/50 he is in Davenport next weekend.

After Birdsell left, the South Bend bullpen continued with its struggles blowing a 4-1 lead in less than an inning and a half. After the Cubs took a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the inning, the Chiefs scored three in the top of the ninth to take a 7-5 lead. Peoria would finish the Cubs off at 9-5.

Web Gem of the Day

As for the Rest of the Iowa Game…

Adrian Sampson returned from his rehab stint in Iowa and turned in a decent start, He went 4 innings and allowed one run. An Edwin Rios 2-run homer gave the I-Cubs a 3-1 lead after four.

Reliever of the Day

And then the strangeness kicked in as Caleb Kilian entered the game. He did well in relief. He pitched 4.1 innings of shutout ball and struck out 3. He threw 61 pitches, 42 for strikes. He allowed just one hit.

The Cubs won 3-2 over St. Paul. As a result, the Cubs pulled within a game of St. Paul for first place.

Get ready for some serious content the next three days. The first of 11 prospect profiles will be released over the next three days. Every day at 5:30 AM, Noon, 3 PM, and 5 PM CDST, we will be publishing profiles and updates on several players. We will also have some draft content today, Friday, and Saturday. You will have your hands full as a reader catching up on a lot of new players who are flashing in the system along with the draft. Enjoy!!!