IOWA CUBS (56-66) vs. ST. PAUL SAINTS (58-62)
Sunday, August 28, 2022 • 1:08 PM • Principal Park • Des Moines, IA
RHP Caleb Kilian (5-2, 3.80) vs. RHP Dereck Rodríguez (6-4, 4.15)
IOWA CUBS (56-66) vs. ST. PAUL SAINTS (58-62)
Sunday, August 28, 2022 • 1:08 PM • Principal Park • Des Moines, IA
RHP Caleb Kilian (5-2, 3.80) vs. RHP Dereck Rodríguez (6-4, 4.15)
TODAY’S GAME: Iowa and St. Paul are set to meet for the sixth and final game of the series today, with Iowa sending Caleb Kilian to the mound. Kilian enters today’s contest with a 5-2 record and a 3.80 ERA, having allowed 36 earned runs on 84 hits over 85.1 innings pitched. The right-hander leads the team and is fourth in the International League with 107 strikeouts entering the game today, walking 39 batters in his 20 starts. On the other side, Dereck Rodríguez will take the ball for St. Paul, set to pitch in his 20th game of the year and make his 14th start for the Saints. He is 6-4 with a 4.15 ERA through his first 19 games, allowing 37 earned runs on 77 hits over 80.1 innings. He has walked 24 batters compared to striking out 80, allowing opponents to hit .252 against him.
PATIENCE AND POWER: John Hicks provided Iowa’s first offense yesterday with his 16th home run of the year, which he launched in the fourth inning. It was his second home run in as many days, good for his third two-game home run streak this season, and it moved him into second place on the active roster behind Narciso Crook (18). The blast also put him one shy of his single-season career high, which he set last year between Texas and Triple-A Round Rock. As one of just four players who have spent all year on Iowa’s active roster, Hicks’s power has been a consistent presence in the I-Cubs’ lineup. On top of the home run numbers, he’s tied for the team lead in doubles (18) and his .511 slugging percentage is third on the active roster behind Crook and Matt Mervis. While the power has been par for the course for Hicks, his recent patience at the plate has been a little more unexpected. On top of three extra-base hits in the past two games, the catcher has also taken three walks in that span. That brought his season total to 16, which ties his season mark from last year.
RUN IT BACK: Caleb Kilian and Dereck Rodríguez will face off again for the second time this series after also squaring off in game one of the series back on Tuesday. Kilian got the better of Rodriguez in that game and the I-Cubs opened the series with a 7-1 victory. Both starters threw five innings and in those five innings, Kilian allowed no runs on just three hits and two walks while striking out seven. He earned his fifth win of the year and his second against St. Paul, moving to 2-0 against the Saints in four games against them this year. Rodriguez didn’t fare as well, allowing four earned runs on seven hits and two walks while also striking out seven batters. It was his second start and third game of the year against Iowa in which he suffered his fourth loss of the season, moving to 6-4.
JUST KEEP RUNNING: St. Paul stole nine bases as a team last night, going 9-for-10 in stolen base attempts overall. Entering last night’s game, the most stolen bases in a single game allowed by Iowa this year was six, dating back to May 28 at Memphis. The Saints set that record and also stole the most bases in a single game against Iowa in franchise history. Before St. Paul stole nine bases last night, the most stolen bases any team had against Iowa in a single game was eight by New Orleans on May 8, 1994. St. Paul was led by Michael Helman who had four by himself, while two other players also recorded two stolen bases. Helman’s four stolen bases are the most by a single player in a game against Iowa dating back to at least 1999.
MASH MERVIS: With his 1-for-4 game in the loss last night, Matt Mervis extended his hitting streak to eight games. Over those eight games, he is hitting .393 (11-for-28) with three doubles, two home runs and four runs batted in. He has walked three times compared to five strikeouts, bumping his on-base percentage to .469. His double yesterday gave him four extra-base hits this series with two doubles and two home runs. He has also driven in all four of his runs over the hitting streak in this current series against the Saints. Mervis’ eight-game streak is tied for the second longest streak of his career. The first baseman has played across three levels in Chicago’s system this year and is among the league leaders in many hitting categories. He has 98 RBI (4), 36 doubles (T-3), a .594 slugging percentage (10), 64 extra-base hits (3) and 246 total bases (4).
A TALE OF TWO SERIES: The first time the St. Paul Saints visited Principal Park this year, they scored 57 runs in six games, knocked out Iowa’s single-game franchise record for home runs allowed, and took the series four games to two. The team hit for a .281 average (65-for-231) that week, which is the second-highest series average Iowa has allowed this season. That six-game set holds Iowa’s opponent season records for doubles in a series (16), home runs in a series (18), extra-base hits in a series (36), slugging percentage in a series (.602) and OPS in a series (.985). The Saints capped off the week with an eight-home run performance on June 5, including three by Spencer Steer alone, which is Iowa’s opponent record this year. This week, however, it has been a different story for St. Paul. Through the first five games, they’ve hit for a .198 team average, which would be the third lowest opponent average Iowa has allowed in a series this year. They’ve collected just seven extra-base hits, five less than Iowa’s opponent series-low this season, and scored 15 runs, which ties the season series-low. Iowa has already won the current series, but with a victory today, it would be their third 5-1 homestand of 2022.
AGAINST ST. PAUL: Iowa and St. Paul are set to play game the sixth and final game of their series today and the last game of 24 between the two teams this season. Iowa already sealed up their first-ever series victory against the Saints with their four straight wins to start the series, but after their loss in game five last night, they are now one game under .500 against St. Paul this year, at 11-12. They are still above even with the Saints at home this year at 6-5, while going 9-14 all-time against St. Paul at Principal Park. The Saints’ win last night put them at 12 games over .500 all-time against Iowa in the two years the two teams have played, going 35-23 over that stretch. St. Paul also grew their lead in the season scoring with their three-run victory last night, now outscoring Iowa this year by 18 runs, at 138-120.
SHORT HOPS: Despite allowing one earned run on one hit and two walks in his two innings of work, Adbert Alzolay struck out all six batters he retired in his Major League rehab start last night…with 15 strikeouts last night, Iowa has now struck out double-digit batters in all five games of the series entering today’s finale…last night’s loss put Iowa at 2-9 in Saturday home games this year.
