Game Notes - 5.8.17 vs. MEM

TONIGHT'S GAME: Iowa and Memphis play game three of a four-game series at Principal Park. The Cubs are looking to break Memphis' momentum as the club has won 10 straight and is second in the PCL with a 20-11 record. Iowa fell to a season-high 6.5 games behind Colorado Springs in the American North division after yesterday's 10-1 loss.

EASY AS 1-2-3: Sunday marked just the second time all season where Iowa's 1-2-3 batters in the lineup all failed to reach base. The other occasion was April 14, when the I-Cubs were no-hit by New Orleans. Yesterday's 1-2-3 hitters John Andreoli, Chesny Young, Jeimer Candelario and pinch-hitter Ali Solis combined to go 0-for-12 with two strikeouts against Memphis pitching.
HAPP OFF THE BENCH:Ian Happ returned from the disabled list yesterday and went 1-for-2, supplying the I-Cubs' lone RBI of the game, a single to center field that scored Stephen Bruno in the eighth inning. Happ entered the game in the sixth inning, playing right field as part of a double-switch. It was the first time he appeared in a game but did not start since August 7, 2016 with Double-A Tennessee. In that game, he hit a game-tying pinch-hit single in the ninth inning to send the game into extra innings.
SOUR SIXTEEN: Memphis totaled 16 hits in Sunday's 10-1 win, the second-highest hit total against Iowa this season. Oklahoma City totaled 19 hits on April 9 in a 12-1 win over Iowa. The Redbirds' 16 hits were the most by an opponent at Principal Park since July 5, 2016, when Omaha had 18 hits in a 12-4 victory over the I-Cubs.
GETTING TO FIRST: In 103 games as an Iowa Cub spanning 2016 and '17, Jeimer Candelario has reached base via hit or walk in 90 contests. Candelario holds a .331 average in his Triple-A career with a .422 on-base percentage. These marks best every stop of Candelario's minor league career, save for rookie ball (.337/.443).
AT THE 30-GAME MARK: Monday night's game against Memphis marks the 30th game of the season for Iowa. With a record of 13-16 coming into play on Monday, the I-Cubs will be below .500 at the 30-game point of the season for the first time since 2013, when they were 12-18. During the past two seasons (2015-16), the I-Cubs were exactly 15-15 after 30 games.
AGAINST MEMPHIS: This is the first series between Memphis and Iowa this season. Memphis leads the all-time series 145-128, while Iowa owns an 81-57 record against the Redbirds at home. The I-Cubs will look to avoid losing three straight games to Memphis at Principal Park for the first time since they dropped six home games in a row to the Redbirds from July 25, 2014 - June 6, 2015. Last season, the two teams went 8-8 against each other, both winning six games at home and two on the road.
PUSH FOR MORE: Jeimer Candelario is tied for 10th in the league in total bases with 58. Of his 30 hits on the season, 18 have been for extra-bases. Those extra-base hits include four home runs, two triples and league-leading 12 doubles. He currently ranks top-five in the PCL in doubles, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and extra-base hits. Candelario was recently named the Chicago Cubs minor league player of the month for April for his dominant performance.
STILL WARM: Despite going 0-for-4 in his most recent game, Chesny Young is batting .478 (11-for-23) in his last six games. His 11 hits are tied for second-most in the PCL in that span, and his 13 times reaching base are second to only Reno's Ketel Marte (15) since May 2. 
CONNECT FOUR: With yesterday's loss, right-hander Williams Pérez falls to 0-4 on the season. He's the first I-Cubs pitcher to start the season with four straight losing decisions since right-hander Frank Batista started 0-4 with Iowa in 2015.
CONSISTENCY TROUBLES: Iowa comes into tonight's game hitting .249 as a team, ranking fourth-to-last in the PCL. They also hold a team ERA of 5.44, ranking third-to-last in the league. The I-Cubs are 11-7 when scoring three or more runs and 2-9 when scoring fewer than three runs. The team's only two wins when scoring fewer than three came in the season opener over Oklahoma City (1-0) and on May 4 over New Orleans (2-1).
SHORT HOPS: Jeimer Candelario paces the Cubs' farm system with 21 RBI and 12 doubles, the latter of which is tied for most in the PCL…Victor Caratini is tied for second in the farm system with 19 RBI...Eddie Butler ranks fourth in the PCL with a 1.17 ERA in five starts…David Rollins has held opponents to a .103 batting average, second-best among qualifying PCL relievers.