September 30 Game Notes: Iowa vs. Omaha

IOWA CUBS (51-75) vs. OMAHA STORM CHASERS (70-56)

Thursday, September 30, 2021 • 6:38 PM • Principal Park • Des Moines, IA

RHP Matt Swarmer (3-8, 5.22) vs. RHP Brandon Barker (2-3, 8.05)

TONIGHT’S GAME: Iowa will face off with Omaha tonight in game two of their final series of the season. After dropping game one last night to extend their losing streak to five games, the I-Cubs will send out righty Matt Swarmer to try and right the ship and get back in the win column. Swarmer has been a mainstay in the rotation since June and will be making his 16th start of the season for Iowa tonight in his eighth appearance against Omaha. He holds a 3-8 record and a 5.22 ERA (52ER/89.2IP) overall, but a 2-2 record and a 5.79 ERA (21ER/32.2IP) against the Storm Chasers. On the other side, Omaha will hand the ball to Brandon Barker for his 12th start of the season and his fourth against Iowa. Barker has gone 0-1 in those three starts, but holds an ERA of 6.14 (10ER/14.2IP) against the I-Cubs, which is nearly two runs better than his overall season average. Swarmer and Barker faced off against one another once before on August 24, with Swarmer taking home the win on a six-inning, one-run quality start.

ROTATION BY COMMITTEE: Blake Whitney made the start for Iowa in game one of the series yesterday, becoming the 21st pitcher to start a game for the I-Cubs this season. Of the 21 pitchers, five of them have started more than ten games for Iowa, and those five have accounted for 79 of the team’s 126 starts, or 63%, but nearly 68% of their innings pitched by starters (384.1-of-566.2). The five of them - Joe Biagini, Matt Swarmer, Cory Abbott, Mike Hauschild, and Adrian Sampson - averaged just under 5.0 innings per start and went 14-33 with a 5.62 ERA (240ER/384.1IP) for the I-Cubs. The other 47 starts and 182.1 innings were covered by a combination of 16 pitchers, none of whom made more than seven starts for the I-Cubs. The system has worked out well enough for the I-Cubs, as those starters have averaged under 4.0 innings per start and pitched to a 6-19 record, but earned an ERA of 4.39 (89ER/182.1IP).

TWIN STREAKS: Though the I-Cubs lost, both Levi Jordan and Christopher Morel extended their hitting streaks in yesterday’s game. Jordan’s streak is now at a season-long six games, beginning September 18 in Omaha. The infielder has hit .444 (8-for-18) during that stretch with a double, a triple, four walks and three RBI. It is Jordan’s second six-game hitting streak of the season, as he collected hits in six straight with Double-A Tennessee from July 14 to 22. The streak is also just two games shy of his career-long streak of eight games, set with Single-A South Bend in 2019. Co-infielder Morel stretched his streak to five games with a 2-for-4 performance yesterday. After going 0-for-4 in his Triple-A debut on September 23 in St. Paul, Morel has collected at least one hit in every game he has played since. Yesterday marked his second multi-hit effort for the I-Cubs, helping him to a .368 average (7-for-19) during the five-game streak. Morel’s streak also ties for his longest of the season, which he previously accomplished three times with Double-A Tennessee, and he is also just two games away from tying his career-long hitting streak of seven games - which was also set with Single-A South Bend in 2019.

BIG LEAGUER: Infielder Trent Giambrone got the call to the big leagues on Wednesday and joined the Cubs on the road in Pittsburgh, where he went 1-for-1 with a pinch-hit single in his MLB debut. Giambrone was drafted by the Cubs in the 25th round of the 2016 Draft and worked his way up through four levels over the past five seasons before finally joining the Major League roster. At the time of his call-up, Giambrone had logged 493 Minor League games and 1,715 at-bats in the Cubs’ system. Those numbers include 198 games with Iowa in 2019 and 2021, where Giambrone hit .218 overall (145-for-666). He batted .174 (41-for-235) this year in 72 games with Iowa, but hit .241 with team-leading 23 home runs in 2019. Giambrone is the 13th player to make his Major League debut with the Cubs this year, and the 11th to do so after being promoted from the I-Cubs.

MISTAKES WERE MADE: With Levi Jordan’s missed catch error in yesterday’s game, the I-Cubs have now committed at least one error in 71 of the 126 games they’ve played this season. The error also means the I-Cubs locked in their season-long errorless game streak at five games, which they set from May 9 to 14 in just the second week of the season. With only four games left in 2021, the I-Cubs cannot break that record. Errors have been a consistent problem for the team, and their 98 on the season is fourth in the Triple-A East and first in the Triple-A East Midwest division by a margin of seven. Of their 71 games with at least one error, 19 of them have been multi-error games, including eight games with three I-Cubs errors. The errors haven’t always hurt Iowa, however; the 64 unearned runs they’ve allowed are eighth out of 20 teams in the Triple-A East and second in the division behind the Indianapolis Indians, who have allowed 76.

NO RELIEF: Iowa’s bullpen has certainly been stretched during the Triple-A Final Stretch, as the relievers have been asked to cover the majority of the team’s innings during the past week. Starting with Saturday’s game in St. Paul, the bullpen has pitched 22.2 out of the 25 innings the I-Cubs have played in their last three games. Manager Marty Pevey has called on 11 different relievers in those three games, including Dakota Mekkes and Blake Whitney, who both made spot starts. The work has seemed to catch up to them, as the bullpen has combined for 23 hits, 22 walks, and five hit batters in those matchups. All of that has added up to 20 earned runs for the opponents and an ERA of 7.94 for the bullpen in just the last three days.

AGAINST OMAHA: With their win in yesterday’s series opener, Omaha has officially secured the win in the season series. Their success has come mainly at Principal Park, as the two teams split the games in Omaha at an even nine wins apiece. In Des Moines, the Storm Chasers have taken 12 out of 19 games so far. Tonight marks the 38th meeting between the two teams, meaning they’ve matched up with one another more than any other team this season.

HOME FIELD DISADVANTAGE: The Iowa Cubs dropped game one to the Storm Chasers yesterday, continuing their trend of losing at home. Since August 1, the I-Cubs have gone just 5-17 at Principal Park, compared to a 14-15 mark on the road. In the season overall, Iowa has played to a 21-40 record in Des Moines, good for a winning percentage of just .344. The I-Cubs started off strong, winning both of their first two home series in May, but they’ve gone 0-3-5 in home series since. With their loss to Omaha yesterday, Iowa ensured they would have a .500 or worse record at home against every team in the Triple-A East Midwest division.

SHORT HOPS: With yesterday’s loss, the I-Cubs finished with an 11-13 record on Wednesdays... Brennen Davis walked three times in yesterday’s game, tying his career high...with one game left this month, the I-Cubs have already walked more batters in September than any other month this season.