Big 7th Propels Cubs Comeback Against Kernels 7-6

South Bend, IN - Heading to the bottom of the 5th inning on Friday night against the Cedar Rapids Kernels, the South Bend Cubs trailed 6-1. In front of a crowd of more than 6600 fans, the Cubs had a comeback on their minds. With a massive rally down the stretch, South Bend came back to defeat Cedar Rapids 7-6.

Drew Gray got the start for the Cubs, and was matched up with right-hander Darren Bowen. Both starters worked three shutout innings. Gray had five strikeouts through that time, Bowen had four. It was the Kernels, though, that broke through first.

After an error, Misael Urbina cracked the game open with a two-run homer off of Gray to give Cedar Rapids their first lead. It later became a 3-0 lead with a sac-fly RBI. The Cubs immediately answered against Bowen when Yohendrick Pinango came up and launched a ball over the right field wall to make it 3-1.

With the bomb, Pinango now has a 16-game hitting streak, and has been on base in 24 straight games. If Pinango gets a hit in his next game, he would tie the best South Bend Cubs mark for a hitting streak, which Jefferson Rojas had earlier this year. Ironically enough, Pinango already is one of four players to ever have a 17-game hit streak with the South Bend Cubs. He did it in 2022, and is joined with Rojas, Eloy Jimenez, and Roberto Caro. Pinango can match his own personal best this weekend.

Right-hander Luis Devers jumped on the hill for piggyback relief in the top of the 5th. Cedar Rapids picked up right where they left off prior, scoring three more runs in the 5th. After that point, Devers locked in.

South Bend got two of those runs right back in the bottom of the 5th, to settle the game at 6-3. Devers then worked a 1-2-3 6th inning, and faced the minimum in the 7th. That set up the rest of the Cubs comeback.

The bottom of the 7th began with a Rafael Morel single, which was followed by two more from Rojas and Pinango. Felix Stevens then walked, loading up the bags. The next batter was Ethan Hearn, who produced a run on a sacrifice fly. Then the Cubs got a break. Parker Chavers chopped a ball out to second base, where a throw was wild from second baseman Jose Salas. The error scored a run, and South Bend had tied it up.

With a 6-6 score, Brian Kalmer pounded a double up the left field line to score the eventual game deciding run. It was the best game yet for Kalmer in South Bend, with the double and two walks,

The bullpen took it from there up 7-6. Lefty Mitchell Tyranski made his Four Winds Field debut, after pitching a combined four shutout innings in two appearances in Lansing last week. Tyranski had a 1-2-3 8th, and stuck out both Keoni Cavaco and Willie Joe Garry Jr. in the 9th, ending the game.

With the victory, it is the largest comeback of the season by the Cubs, coming all the way from five-down to get it done. The series between South Bend and Cedar Rapids is now even at two games apiece, with Saturday afternoon’s game set for 4:05 PM. Right-hander Nick Hull is scheduled to pitch for the Cubs.