Big Eighth Inning Lifts South Bend Over Quad Cities in Season Opener, 7-4

SOUTH BEND, IN – For the first time in over 600 days, South Bend Cubs baseball returned to Four Winds Field on Tuesday night. Fittingly in dramatic fashion it was an eighth inning flurry that broke up a tie game and sealed the victory late into the night for the home team.

Peyton Remy started on the hill for South Bend and looked dominant in the early going, striking out the first two batters of the game and piling up five strikeouts in the first three frames. The right-hander from Parker, Colo. didn’t factor in the decision, going 4.2 innings and allowing two runs (one earned), scattering three hits, and striking out six batters.

River Bandits starter Angel Zerpa looked equally as in control. The Royals #29 prospect (per MLB.com) retired the first seven hitters he faced and allowed just one run across his five-inning debut with the club. But the Cubs did got to him to open up the scoring in the fourth.

Chase Strumpf rifled a ball into the left field corner with one out and came around to score on a one-out single off the bat of Cam Balego that was misplayed in left by Tyler Gentry. However, Quad cities offense immediately returned the favor.

The bottom third of the order would set the table for the fifth-inning rally. William Hancock started things off with a walk, followed by a Nathan Eaton single up the middle. A sacrifice bunt turned the lineup over with runners at second and third and only one down. Then Jeison Guzman brought home a run on a groundout and with two outs Cam Balego let a pitch get passed him behind the plate to give the River Bandits a 2-1 lead.

South Bend quickly got the bats alive again. Former second-rounder Cole Roederer singled to right to start the sixth, stole second, and scored on a Bryce Windham sacrifice fly to tie things up. The Cubs would regain the lead in the next inning.

D.J. Wilson launched a double deep to right-center that was misplayed by John Rave, allowing Wilson to get to third. This was just one of a total of four errors committed by Quad Cities defensively. Zinn followed with a sacrifice fly to give the Cubs a 3-2 lead. Then it was the top of the orders turn. Roederer reached via walk and came around to score for the second straight inning, this time on an opposite-field single off the bat of the clean-up hitter Tyler Durna.

And the see-saw battle would continue.

Garrett Kelly came in for South Bend to start the eighth and allowed two runs, including a no-doubter off the bat of Vinnie Pasquantino.

Just like that the game was tied again.

With the game knotted up 4-4, River Bandits Manager Chris Widger turned to Adam Lukas (0-1) out of the bullpen to try to keep things at a deadlock.

South Bend had other ideas.

Windham drew a walk to start the inning and with runners at first and third and the corner infielders drawn in, Delvin Zinn laced a liner passed the third baseman Eaton, scoring two and giving the Cubs a 6-4 advantage.

Luis Vazquez added an insurance run driving in Zinn with an RBI single and Cayne Ueckert picked up the save (1) in his South Bend Cubs debut. The win went to Matteo Bocchi (1-0), despite registering a blown save in the eighth.

The South Bend Cubs still have yet to lose a game since August 31, 2019.

The South Bend Cubs continue their six-game series vs Quad Cities tomorrow at 7:05 p.m. Tickets for tomorrow’s game and every South Bend Cubs home game can be purchased by clicking here.