May 22 Game Notes at Round Rock

Iowa Cubs (15-27) at Round Rock Express (18-27)
Tuesday, May 22 • 7:05 p.m. CT • Dell Diamond • Round Rock, TX
RHP Luke Farrell (0-2, 4.82) vs. RHP Yovani Gallardo (0-1, 4.44)

TONIGHT'S GAME: RHP Luke Farrell gets the ball tonight as Iowa looks for its fifth road win against the Express this season. Iowa is 5-1 vs Round Rock at Dell Diamond in 2018. At least one more win would give the I-Cubs their best road record against the Express as the current highest mark is 5-3, last matched in 2014. 
FREEMAN'S ON FIRE:Mike Freeman added another 1-for-5 performance last night with one runsand two RBI. Freeman holds a season-best eight-game hitting streak in which he is 12-for-34 (.353) with 10 RBI. Freeman leads the I-Cubs with five doubles and 11 runs in May, and is second to Efren Navarro (17) with 15 RBI in the month. 
IN THE ZONE: Cory Mazzoni gave Iowa another 2.0 perfect innings Sunday. The righty has not allowed an earned run through 11.0 innings and six games in May. He has been flawless through his last four outings, allowing just one baserunner via intentional walk through 7.0 innings. Mazzoni leads PCL relievers, averaging just one walk per 18.2 innings. 
CLOSE THE GAP: Each of Iowa's last three wins has been by one run. Iowa improved to 5-7 in one-run games with a 6-5 win over Round Rock last night. Of Iowa's 42 games this season, 31 have been decided by three or fewer runs with the I-Cubs coming out on the winning end 10 times in close games. 
WHEN STARTERS DELIVER: Iowa starters have combined for 10 quality starts this season between Alec Mills (3), Michael Roth (2), Jen-Ho Tseng (1), Duane Underwood Jr. (2) and Adbert Alzolay (2). The rotation holds a 1.99 ERA (16ER/72.1IP) when lasting 6.0+ innings in a start. The I-Cubs are 8-3 in these games. 
MAY FLOWERS: Jacob Hannemann has done a 180 offensively, bouncing back from batting .149 in April (7-for-47) to hit .302 (16-for-53) in May. His on-base percentage month-by-month went from .200 to .383 and his OPS jumps from .413 to .723. 
AGAINST ROUND ROCK: Last time Iowa visited Texas, the I-Cubs took three of four from the Express. David Bote was 10-for-18 with two home runs and three RBI against Round Rock entering this series, but was quieted with an 0-for-5 game last night. On the flip side, Taylor Davis has struggled against the Express and is just 1-for-12 with a walk. 
TURNING A NEW LEAF: The Iowa Cubs have moved to 1-18 when opposing teams score first on the year, winning their first game in this situation Sunday. The team improved to 2-22 when trailing after six innings and is 3-3 when tied after seven.
CAN'T PASS GO: Iowa continues to flail with bases loaded and is just 5-for-39 (.128) on the season with four walks and 13 strikeouts. This average ranks last in the PCL, while Round Rock paces the bunch with a .390 team average (16-for-41) with bases juiced. 
ROSTER ROTATION: Iowa added outfielder Lane Adams to the roster yesterday. Adams, 28, logged a brief stint with Iowa in 2016, batting .231 (6-for-26) in seven games. In his season debut last night, Adams led the Iowa offense with a 2-for-4 game, two runs and two RBI. 
LATE BREAKDOWN: Iowa's bullpen gave up three earned runs last night, nearly allowing the lead to slip away. It was just the ninth time this season Iowa relievers have allowed three or more earned runs in a game with seven of these occurrences coming in May. Iowa's bullpen was dominant to start the season, posting a 2.75 ERA (25ER/85.0IP) with 84 strikeouts -- a 8.89K/9.0IP rate -- in April. Since flipping the calendar a month, the bullpen holds a 3.85 ERA (30ER/70.0IP) with 59 strikeouts -- an average of 7.59/9.0IP. 
SHORT HOPS: David Bote is 0-for-13 in three games since his return from Chicago...Iowa improved to 4-5 on travel days and 4-9 in the first game of a series...In the month of May, Iowa is 3-8 at home and 7-2 on the road...Chesny Young has a hit in five-straight games.