May 10 Game Notes: Iowa vs. Omaha

IOWA CUBS (14-15) @ OMAHA STORM CHASERS (15-14)

Tuesday, May 10, 2022 • 6:38 • Principal Park • Des Moines, IA

RHP Matt Swarmer (2-0, 1.93) vs. RHP Daniel Mengden (1-3, 10.70)

TONIGHT’S GAME: Iowa and Omaha will meet for the first of 21 games this season after playing 40 against each other last year. Matt Swarmer will toe the rubber for Iowa, looking for his team-leading third win of the year. Swarmer enters tonight with a 2-0 record and a 1.93 ERA over his first six games this year. He has started just two of those games, set to make his third start of the season against the Storm Chasers. On the season, the righty has allowed five earned runs on 17 hits including one home run, while walking nine batters compared to 24 strikeouts over 23.1 innings. Opposite of Swarmer will be righty Daniel Mengden set to make his sixth start of the year. The 29-year-old is 1-3 with a 10.70 ERA this year, allowing 21 earned runs on 26 hits including nine home runs over 17.2 innings pitched. Over parts of five seasons in the Major Leagues, he went 17-20 with a 4.64 ERA, making 48 starts for the Oakland Athletics.

KEEP THEM ALIVE: Jared Young (6) and Ildemaro Vargas (7) extended their hitting streaks on Sunday, each setting new season long streaks. After a four-hit game on Friday and a two-hit performance on Saturday, Young stayed hot on Sunday, going 3-for-4 with a double and a home run. Young now has at least one extra-base hit in four of his last five games, clubbing three doubles and three home runs over that span. Over the six-game streak, the utility player is hitting an even .500 (13-for- 26) with three doubles, three home runs and four runs batted in. He is slugging .962 over the stretch. Vargas went 3-for-6 out of the leadoff spot on Sunday, marking his second straight multi-hit game and fourth overall over the streak. Seven games beat his former season long of six games set back on April 19-24. Over his seven-game hitting streak, the switch hitter is hitting .400 (12-for-30) with five runs scored, two doubles, two runs batted in and three walks compared to four strikeouts.

HOME FIELD DISADVANTAGE: Tonight the I-Cubs begin the first of two straight series at Principal Park where, so far this season, their offense has struggled mightily. The team holds a .237 average overall so far, but have hit just .206 at home. They’ve notched just 11 doubles and seven home runs in Des Moines, leading to a slugging percentage of .299. In comparison, the I-Cubs have hit .255 on the road with 28 doubles, six triples and 16 home runs. Their slugging percentage away from Iowa is a hundred points higher, at .399. In their last home series, Iowa hit just .165 in six games against Indianapolis, collecting a total of five extra base hits and 15 runs. Last week in St. Paul, however, they hit .308 with 14 doubles, four home runs and 29 runs.

FIRST: After pitching five straight no-decisions to begin his Triple-A career, Cubs No. 4 prospect, Caleb Kilian, finally earned his first win on Sunday in St. Paul. The righty went five shutout innings against the Saints, allowing just four hits and two walks while striking out five batters. The outing tied for Kilian’s longest of the season so far and proved enough to qualify him for Triple-A leaderboards, where he now ranks first in ERA with a 1.46 mark. Kilian has yet to allow more than one earned run in an outing at Triple-A, and has completed at least four innings in every start since his first of the season. His six starts are good for the team lead in starts and innings (24.2), and he’s currently tied with Eric Stout for the lead in strikeouts, with 26.

FIVE-FOR-FIVE: P.J. Higgins registered five hits on Sunday, marking the first time an Iowa Cubs player has recorded five hits in a single-game since 2019, when Phillip Evans did so on July 28 against Round Rock. The catcher also recorded a double and drove in a run to cap off his five-hit afternoon.

SEASON HIGHS: The I-Cubs finished the series in St. Paul with a bang on Sunday, scoring ten runs on 17 hits, both of which were season highs. Until that point, the I-Cubs had maxed out at eight runs, which they had done three times on April 6, April 12, and April 24. Like Sunday’s game, all three of those games were played on the road. Their previous high for hits in a game was 15, achieved on April 21 - also a road game. Along with the positive offensive records, however, the I-Cubs also set a new season mark in strikeouts with 17. That beat out their previous record of 16, set on April 6 in Buffalo. The last time the I-Cubs struck out 17 times in a game was September 10, 2021, while the last time they collected 17 hits or more was July 9, 2021, when they notched 22.

SWITCHING PITCHERS: Iowa’s pitching staff underwent some changes between series, as Conner Menez was added to Chicago’s active roster, Wade Miley completed his rehab assignment, and Bryan Hudson and Cam Sanders were promoted from Double-A Tennessee. Menez appeared in seven games for Iowa in the first month of the season, including one start, and threw a total of 16.2 innings. The lefty earned a 2.16 ERA after surrendering just four earned runs, never more than one in a single outing. He struck out 19 men compared to just seven walks and held opponents to a .197 average. Miley made just one appearance for the I-Cubs during his rehab assignment, starting Thursday’s game in St. Paul. He tossed four shutout innings, allowing two hits and striking out three. On the other side of things, Hudson will join Iowa’s roster for his second taste of Triple-A action. His four relief appearances for the I-Cubs in 2021 ended with a 27.00 ERA, but he’s been dominant in Double-A action this season. In his eight appearances for the Smokies, Hudson went 3-1 with a 2.08 ERA (3ER/13.0IP), three saves and 18 strikeouts. Sanders will join the I-Cubs for the first time after posting a 1-1 record and a 3.38 ERA (9ER/24.0IP) in six starts for Tennessee this year. Before his promotion, he led the Smokies’ roster in strikeouts with 36 and had limited opponents to a .151 average.

BUMPING THE NUMBERS: Iowa’s 17 hits on Sunday marked a season high, bringing their team average in the month of May from .259 all the way to .283. With five extra-base hits, they also raised their slugging percentage from .358 to .398. Their 17 hits and seven walks also brought their on-base percentage from .335 to .361 in May.

AGAINST OMAHA: Iowa and Omaha will play in the first of 21 games this year, after playing 40 games against each other last season. The Storm Chasers dominated the series last year, going 24-16. They currently hold a six-game winning streak over the I-Cubs from the final six games of last year, outscoring Iowa 72-24 over those six games. Despite losing 60% of the games between the two teams last year, Iowa still holds an advantage over Omaha, going 309-289 all-time including 168-132 at home.

SHORT HOPS: Sunday’s game against St. Paul marked the first game Iowa has played longer than three hours since the pitch clock was initiated on April 15, a span in which they have played 20 games...despite scoring 10 runs on 17 hits on Sunday, Iowa left a lot of runs on the bases, going 5-for-18 with runners in scoring position, leaving 13 runners on base...Jared Young ranks tied for fourth in the International League with eight home runs, leading the team in both home runs (8) and runs batted in (18).