Toyota Road Report: July 25-30

Here we go everybody. It’s the true turning point of the season for the South Bend Cubs. 24 games into the second half, South Bend sits with a 9-15 record in the dash to September. Their next stop: Peoria, Illinois.

The Cubs and Peoria Chiefs have already seen each other 12 times this season, with every match-up coming at Four Winds Field. The Cubs will head to Dozer Park in Peoria for the first time.

South Bend may be seven games behind the Cedar Rapids Kernels for ‘first place’ when you lookout the full second half standings. However, Cedar Rapids was the champion of the first half. It doesn’t matter what they do in the second half. Which means, if they win this half too, the second place team in the West Division would get the next playoff spot.

Right now, that’s the situation. Both the Beloit Sky Carp and Peoria Chiefs are 13-11 and tied for that second position. South Bend is four games back of both Beloit and Peoria. The Sky Carp head to Eastlake, Ohio to take on the Lake County Captains, and it’s the rubber series for the Cubs versus the Chiefs.

Both South Bend and Peoria have a series win against each other this season. For the Cubs, that includes the no-hitter back on July 6 at Four Winds Field. If South Bend is able to find success in Central Illinois, they could be right back in the conversation for the top spot in the West.

After last week where the Cubs split their six-game series against West Michigan, South Bend climbed enough in the stands where a series win this week at Peoria means they would leapfrog the Chiefs. Of course, there’s the Sky Carp and the rest of the division to worry about. So the Cubs are going to need some things to roll their way. They’ll look to get the job done against the rivaled Cardinals affiliate

Players to watch on Peoria…

Nathan Church, OF: If not for an incredible diving play at first base by Felix Stevens back on July 6 when South Bend no-hit Peoria, Nathan Church may have had the only hit that night for the Chiefs. He absolutely ripped a ball towards right, but Stevens corralled the line drive and made an amazing play. The former 11th round pick by the Cardinals out of UC Irvine is just 23-years-old and has been one of the better players all year for Peoria. He’s batting .350 in his last five games, along with a .931 OPS. Church also plays a really solid outfield for the Chiefs. It’s going to be a really hot week. In the mid 90’s all week long, Dozer Park is going to be pretty hot, and the ball travels extremely well there. It could be an excellent week to hit, and the Cubs will have to keep an eye on Church who provides a great mix of contact and power.

Inohan Paniagua, RHP: One of the best kept secrets in the Midwest League is Peoria’s hard throwing right-hander Inohan Paniagua. He started the year in the Florida State League, and then came to Peoria. The only thing is he has not pitched a lot at all. Against South Bend on Sunday afternoon of that last series between the two, Paniagua threw two scoreless innings and was done for the day. He showed some really dynamic stuff though. He started twice in the series at Cedar Rapids that the Chiefs just finished. And they’ve lost five straight, not because of their starting pitching. Paniagua went three shutout innings on July 18, then gave up runs for the first time in High-A this weekend on Sunday. He surrendered two runs in 3.1 innings, but still managed to strike out five batters. Listed as a Top-30 prospect for the Cardinals, MLB.com writes, “The 6-foot-1 right-hander works with a four-seamer and a sinker around 91-93 mph, occasionally touching 95, and there’s still the chance more velo could be coming because it looks like he still hasn’t fully grown into his figure. His upper-70s curveball showed great depth and 12-to-6 vertical break, and A-ball hitters -- especially righties -- couldn’t touch it.’

R.J. Yeager, INF: Of any Chief in the last series against the Cubs, R.J. Yeager probably had the best week. He played all six games, had at least one hit in five of them, and was on base every game. That included hitting three total home runs, and two in the game on July 5, each round tripper coming against Cade Horton. Yeager found his power stroke that week, and he’s turning into quite the prospect for the Cardinals. He hits third in their lineup just about everyday, and keep in mind this guy wasn’t even drafted. He signed with St. Louis last year and is already at Peoria after playing his college ball at Mississippi State. Yeager isn’t listed as a top-30 prospect for the Cardinals, but he hits like a machine. He can also play both third and first base efficiently, giving them a little wiggle room as they can DH him anytime as well. Yeager is more than your typical ‘organizational guy’ right now. Especially with the fact that he’s batting .300 in 21 games with four homers and 10 RBI.

Players to watch on South Bend…

Moises Ballesteros, C: What a week it was for 19-year-old Moises Ballesteros. The transition to the Midwest League from Low-A is always a something that every player must go through. Whether you’re Pete Crow-Armstrong or Elly De La Cruz there is a transition period. Ballesteros had his learning experience from the end of June to pretty much the end of the second week of July. Since then, it’s been Ballesteros off and running. This weekend for a stretch, he was on base for seven of eight at-bats. He’s also getting comfortable at a crazy rate. Ballesteros is hitting nearly .280 against lefties in High-A, and had a crucial base hit in the game on Saturday against a southpaw to score a big run. He’s also adjusting to catching High-A pitching at an easy pace. Heck, he caught a no-hitter earlier this month. We also saw our first #BallyBomb in the Midwest League. Ballesteros has been so good at hitting the ball the opposite way, but his first homer with the Cubs was a pulled shot way deep over the right field wall and was majestic. Max Thoma and I were talking this weekend about South Bend catchers over time, and we both agreed that Ballesteros might be the most talented catcher we have ever seen in our time in South Bend pass through Four Winds Field. For me, he’s the best I’ve seen when it comes to power and contact combo since Miguel Amaya. And after all, Miggy is now in the Big Leagues. Pablo Aliendo was amazing last year with the Cubs in the championship run and ranks up their too. But I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a catcher do what Ballesteros has right away with the Cubs.

Brandon Birdsell, RHP: If it was all possible for Brandon Birdsell to match what he did in his first professional month of pitching in April, he may be doing it right now in July. April saw Birdsell, the reigning Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, start four games, and finish with a 0.57 ERA that month. His pro debut was on Easter Sunday in Quad Cities, where he went three no-hit, shutout innings. He made it up to five innings pitched for the first time to end that month on April 27 against the Chiefs. Now in July, Birdsell has gone six full innings twice, including his most recent start on Friday night against West Michigan. That outing, a winning effort, might have been the best we’ve seen Birdsell all year. Six strong innings, just one unearned run allowed, three hits, two walks, and five strikeouts. Birdsell is showing a strong mix of his pitches, and has all year, but he has seemed to lock into a different level over the last number weeks. He has seen the Peoria Chiefs twice this year and got the win on that late April day with five shutout innings. Versus Peoria on July 4, Birdsell went six innings of one-run baseball. All-in-all, Birdsell’s transition to pro ball has been mostly a breeze. He has picked up little things along the way with learning experiences, but overall teams have been left guessing against him. It’s amazing that he is not listed yet as a Cubs top-30 prospect. He should be there very soon, because he’s been one of the most underrated stories this year in the Chicago Cubs system.

Christian Franklin, OF: Ladies and gentleman, Christian Franklin is breaking out. What an end to the weekend it was for the Chicago Cubs 4th-round pick out of Arkansas. After arriving to South Bend early in the year, Franklin found himself on the Development List, but is now back in South Bend following his stint on Dev in Arizona. Franklin’s power of the recent weeks really has been the best thing to watch. He’s got back-to-back games with a home run, as Saturday he drove a ball way out of here, nearly hitting the Tiki Hut. Then on Sunday, that was the shot of all shots. OVER the batter’s eye in center field. The mammoth blast got the Cubs back in the game, and Franklin was the second player I’ve ever seen do that. Griffin Conine accomplished a batter’s eye blast back in 2019 with Lansing, but I have never seen a South Bend Cub do that at home. Franklin provides a ton of power with that right-handed swing, but also has shown that he can be an ultra reliable outfield glove in all three spots. He made an amazing diving play in right in Quad Cities, did the same in left here this week, and played a really sharp center field this weekend. If Franklin’s bat stays as hot as it has been, the Cubs lineup is going to be stacked end to end in this crucial, period of time where they need W’s quickly.

Schedule…

Tuesday, July 25 - 7:35 PM ET: RHP Luis Devers vs. RHP Ian Bedell

Wednesday, July 26 - 7:35 PM ET: RHP Brody McCullough vs. RHP Trent Baker

Thursday, July 27 - 7:35 PM ET: RHP Cade Horton vs. RHP Zane Mills

Friday, July 28 - 7:35 PM ET: RHP Brandon Birdsell vs. RHP Max Rajcic

Saturday, July 29 - 7:35 PM ET: RHP Michael Arias vs. RHP Inohan Paniagua

Sunday, July 30 - 2:05 PM ET: RHP Connor Noland vs RHP Ian Bedell

Catch the entire six-game series in Peoria on Sports Radio 960 AM WSBT, online at wsbtradio.com, or on MiLB.com with Brendan King on the call.