Court, Kalish selected as week's best

ROUND ROCK, Texas - Iowa Cubs infielder Ryan Court and Omaha Storm Chasers left-hander Jake Kalish have been named the Pacific Coast League's Player and Pitcher of the Week for the period of July 16-22, 2018, the League office announced Monday.

Court collected 16 hits in seven games, batting a PCL-best .615 (16-for-26) with two home runs and six RBI. He also registered the highest on-base percentage (.643) and OPS (1.604) in the League. Court totaled 25 bases (2nd), posted a .962 slugging percentage (3rd), stole two bases (t-4th) and scored seven runs (t-6th), totals that all placed among the PCL weekly leaders.
The suburban Chicago native collected at least one hit in all seven games to extend the PCL's third-longest active hitting streak to 17 games. On July 20 against New Orleans, Court became the first Iowa player to hit for the cycle since August 15, 1997, finishing the feat with an eighth-inning triple; he went 4-for-5 with two RBI and a career-high-tying four runs scored in the contest. The 30-year-old had five other multi-hit efforts during the week, including one in each end of a doubleheader on July 19 in Memphis. Court concluded his week with a three-hit, two-RBI performance against the Baby Cakes.
Video: Iowa's Court completes cycle
The eight-year professional is in his first season in Chicago's organization. Through 76 games, Court has hit .282 (74-for-262) with nine homers and a team-best 43 RBI and 117 total bases. Since his hitting streak began on July 4, Court has batted .483 (29-for-60), which has raised his season OPS to .802. Court's career has seen him appear with two other Major League organizations (Arizona, Boston), the former of which drafted him in 2011, and with a non-affiliated Independent League team for a season (Sioux City, 2015). This is the first time in his career the Illinois State product has been honored with a Player of the Week award.
Kalish turned in a dominant start for Omaha, working seven shutout innings with nine strikeouts on July 18 in Nashville. The southpaw faced only four over the minimum, allowing just two hits, one being a bunt single, and two walks. Kalish threw 101 pitches, 64 for strikes, and set down the final six hitters he faced in picking up the win in the Storm Chasers' 2-0 victory.  

The recently-turned 27-year-old has bounced between Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Omaha this season, working to a combined 4.14 ERA in 82.2 innings. 44 of those frames have been with Omaha, where Kalish has gone 4-4 with a 3.27 ERA and a 38:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio in nine appearances (six starts). The lefty has worked at least six innings in each of his last four starts, one of which was a seven-inning complete game shutout on July 2, also against the Sounds. Kalish is in his fourth year in the Royals organization after getting drafted by Kansas City in the 32nd round in 2015 out of George Mason University. This is his first career Pitcher of the Week award.