October 3 Game Notes: Iowa vs. Omaha

IOWA CUBS (51-77) vs. OMAHA STORM CHASERS (72-56)

Sunday, October 3, 2021 • 1:08 PM • Principal Park • Des Moines, IA

RHP Dakota Chalmers (0-0, -.--) vs. RHP Ronald Bolaños (0-3, 6.25)

TODAY’S GAME: Dakota Chalmers is set to make his Triple-A debut in the season finale today, making his 17th overall start this season. The righty pitched five games with Double-A Wichita and 15 with Double-A Tennessee previous to today’s appearance. In those games with the Smokies, Chalmers went 2-5 with a 5.37 ERA, walking 35 batters compared to 63 strikeouts. The Storm Chasers will send righty Ronald Bolaños to the bump, looking to sweep the series. Bolaños is 0-3 on the year in nine starts with Omaha, allowing 25 earned runs on 35 hits over 36.0 innings. 10 of those 35 hits have been deep flies, with 22 walks compared to 32 strikeouts. Two of those losses and four of his starts have come against Iowa, who is hitting .271 with four home runs against the righty. The I-Cubs have taken 12 walks compared to striking out just seven times against Bolaños, scoring 13 earned runs on 13 hits in just 12.1 innings.

CAN’T STOP, WON’T STOP: Levi Jordan extended his hitting streak to a season-long eight games, tying his career long, set with Single-A South Bend in 2019. His streak started back on September 18, when he went 2-for-3. Of the eight games, he has recorded multi-hit efforts in three, including last night’s game. He went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a double last night hitting out of the seven-spot in the lineup. On his eight-game tear, the infielder is hitting .423 (11-for-26) with two doubles and a triple. He has also driven in three runs and walked four times, raising his on-base percentage to .500, reaching in 16 of his 32 plate appearances. Unfortunately for Iowa, none of the eight games he has recorded a hit in have turned into winning efforts for the team, as they have lost all eight games on the streak.

DOWN TO TWO: With Joe Biagini getting his contract selected by the Chicago Cubs last night, there are now just two players on Iowa’s roster that have been with Iowa since opening day on May 4. Those two players are Abiatal Avelino and Ian Miller, combining to play in 211 games this season. The two lead the team in hits, with Avelino recording 101 and Miller 95. They also lead the team in doubles (Avelino 18, Miller 14), triples (Miller 4, Avelino 3), RBI (Avelino 48, Miller 33), walks (Avelino 43, Miller 36), stolen bases (Miller 20, Avelino 16), and multi-hit games (Avelino 31, Miller 25). If Miller plays today, it will mark 106 games for each player, tied for the team lead.

ROUGH STRETCH: Over their last four games, Iowa’s pitching staff has struggled to keep games close for the offense. They are 0-4 in those three games, with losses of 11-1, 10-5, 22-4 and 10-6. In each of the three games, the I-Cubs have allowed double-digit runs and hits, while allowing double-digit walks in two of the four contests and double-digit earned runs in three of the four contests. Combining their last three games, the staff has compiled 35.0 total innings pitched. In those 35.0 innings, Iowa pitchers have surrendered 52 earned runs on 51 hits, 37 walks and 12 home runs. With 13 strikeouts in last night’s game, they brought their strikeout total over the last four games to 35.

DOING IT ALL: Casey Opitz made his Triple-A debut last night as the second member of Chicago’s 2021 Draft class to reach Iowa. Opitz, who was drafted in the eighth round out of Arkansas, logged just one game with the ACL Cubs and 17 with Single-A Myrtle Beach this season before being added to Iowa’s roster on September 30. He made his first game count, going 1-for-2 with two walks and a run scored. He didn’t only make an impact at the plate, however, but also from behind it. Opitz went 2-for-2 in catching Omaha runners stealing, throwing out both Bobby Witt Jr. and Gabriel Cancel. The two throws boosted Opitz to 15-for-28 in throwing out stolen base attempts in his first season of professional ball, good for a 53.6% success rate.

FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING: Hitting out of the leadoff spot for just the second time this season and second time in as many nights, Andrew Romine went 1-for-5 last night with two runs batted in. Last night marked the 60th game with Iowa for the infielder, and it was his first multi-RBI game all season. He now has the same amount of multi-RBI games with Iowa as he did when he was with Chicago, despite playing 34 more games with the I-Cubs. Romine recorded a multi-RBI game with Chicago on August 6, when he hit a three-run home run against Craig Kimbrel, marking his first of the season.

A LONG TIME COMING: Today’s starter for Iowa, Dakota Chalmers, is set to make his Triple-A debut in today’s game, 67 games into his minor league career. Chalmers was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the third round of the 2015 draft out of North Forsyth High School. The righty pitched in parts of four seasons in Oakland’s organization, but never made it past Single-A Beloit before being traded to the Minnesota Twins for reliever Fernando Rodney on August 9, 2018. He made it to Advanced-A Fort Myers in 2019 and Double-A Wichita this season, but was designated for assignment by Minnesota on May 29. A week later, Chalmers was claimed by the Chicago Cubs and optioned to Double-A Tennessee. He made 15 appearances and 14 starts with the Smokies, going 2-5 with a 5.37 ERA overall. In those 15 games, opponents hit just .221 against him, and he walked 35 batters compared to 63 strikeouts in 57.0 innings pitched. The third-round selection will turn 25 in just five days, on October 8.

AGAINST OMAHA: Omaha officially won the series with their victory last night, taking the first three games in the rain-shortened four-game series. The Storm Chasers have taken 14 of the first 21 games played here at Principal Park, winning 23 of the 39 total contests between the two teams. They have now outscored the I-Cubs by 27, 42-15 in the first three games here this series, and by 51; 255-204 on the season.

AN INNING TO REMEMBER: In the second inning of last night’s game, Luis Lugo threw a 1-2-3 inning, marking the first time all series an Iowa pitcher has accomplished that feat. The three-up, three-down inning was not only the first time in this series against Omaha, it was the first time since the first inning in Sunday’s matchup against St. Paul. From that first inning in St. Paul to the second inning last night, the I-Cubs were out-scored by their opponents by 34 runs, 44-10.

SHORT HOPS: Emmanuel Rivera is on a 10-game hitting streak against the I-Cubs, starting back on June 27; he is hitting .269 (28-for-104) with eight home runs and 22 RBI in 25 games this year against Iowa...the last time the I-Cubs won their final game they played was 2016, when they beat Colorado Springs 12-3; they beat Memphis 9-6 in their final regular season game of 2019, but lost their final game of the year in the playoffs.