Cam Sanders (photo by Rikk Carlson)

MLB

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

David Ross reported that Willson Contreras is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. Cubs do not have a 3rd catcher on the 40-man roster so I’m assuming they are hoping to ride Yan Gomes for a few days while they assess his issue and hope it clears up so that they won’t need to make a roster move.

AAA

Iowa 7, St. Paul 3

Game Recap

It has been an offensively challenged season for Iowa, but for one day at least, the bats delivered. The team jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the 1st, then added two more runs in the 2nd, and another in the 3rd. They still aren’t hitting for any power, and there are only a couple of home run hitters in the lineup on a daily basis so that won’t change much, even as the weather warms. There are enough veterans around to expect more guys to hit above the Mendoza line though. So, I do expect some improvement. In some ways, the I-Cubs are facing a lot of the same challenges as the big club.

The two guys who did the most damage yesterday were Dixon Machado and Nelson Maldonado. Machado’s been the teams most consistent bat this season. Maldonado has only recently arrived, and got off to a slow start in his first few games, but he’s hit at every level, so expect more multi-hit games like this one. He’s traditionally been a gap power guy, but he’s gotten stronger this year, and so far a few more of his hits are finding their way over the fence. If that can continue he can provide a huge boost to the Iowa attack.

Nelson Maldonado cashes in two runs on his first double with the I-Cubs! pic.twitter.com/FnmVpRlGn7

May 4, 2022

In additional positive news, Iowa got some good work from a pair of arms who we hope to see in Chicago come the second half of the season. There was some concern regarding some lower velo readings from Caleb Kilian during his last start, but to me it has looked like he is changing his strategy and repertoire depending in different starts. Some days he is relying more on elevated four seamers, so his velo is higher, in others he tries to work his two seamer more. He was firing some pitches in the 96-97 range in the 4th inning yesterday.

Ben Leeper has struggled with his command through several of his early appearances and it led to more walks and harder contact than we got used to seeing last season. His two innings yesterday were more reminiscent of his outings last year.

Top Performers

Dixon Machado: 3-5, 2 R, 2 RBI (.299)Nelson Maldonado: 3-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI (.250)Ildemaro Vargas: 2-4, 2B, R (.247)Trent Giambrone: 1-3, R, HBP, SB (3) (.171)Narcisco Crook: 0-2, R, 2 BB, SB (3) (.116)Caleb Kilian: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, ER, 2 BB, 4 K (1.83)Anueris Rosario: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K (W, 1-1, 2.70)Ben Leeper: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K (4.50)

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

Veteran relievers Kevin McCarthy and Eric Yardley are no longer with the organization. Neither were pitching particularly well and had gotten buried in a fairly deep Iowa bullpen. I imagine the team released them, but it is also possible one or both had a May 1st opt out of their MiLB deal and were anxious for a fresh start.

AA

Tennessee 3, Birmingham 2

Game Recap

Darius Hill led off the game with a homer, and Tennessee would add on two more runs in the 1st. From there, the offense dried up, but it proved just enough thanks to a dominant effort by starter Cam Sanders.

The righty looked as good as he ever has on the mound. Consistency and command have been his main issues through the years, but yesterday everything clicked. He threw a ton of first pitch strikes with more than just his 94-97 mph fastball. His mid-80s changeup and low-80s breaker were weapons throughout the game as well.

⁦@camsanders24⁩ you nasty! K #7 pic.twitter.com/HCNqgeEHoE

May 4, 2022

This was a perfect example of how well Sanders can perform, and why he likely gains a 40-man roster spot, when he works from ahead in the count. He absolutely dominated throughout his five innings, punching out nine, while allowing little hard contact (and no hits).

#Cubs prospect Cam Sanders was nearly untouchable with 9 K’s in five hitless frames for @smokiesbaseball. pic.twitter.com/IsDMb1ZOiF

May 4, 2022

Danis Correa kept the no-hitter going for one more inning. But Birmingham got to him in the 7th for a pair of runs. He stopped the bleeding there, and then Eury Ramos and Bryan Hudson finished off the win with solid 8th and 9th inning performances.

Top Performers

Cam Sanders: 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, BB, 9 K (W, 1-1, 3.26)Bryan Hudson: IP, H, 0 R, 0 BB, K (S, 2, 2.08)Bryce Ball: 2-3, 2B, R, RBI, BB (.266)Darius Hill: 1-5, HR (2), R, RBI (.310)Christopher Morel: 1-3, R, BB, CS (3) (.303)

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

trends

High-A

South Bend 5, Peoria 4 (10 Innings)

Game Recap

D.J. Herz was wild (5 BB) but remained his difficult-to-hit self. His wildness ran up his pitch count and knocked him out of the game after three innings. It forced the pen into a long night. And for a while it looked like it would come back to bite them as the normally reliable Nicholas Padilla and Hunter Bigge were each touched up for two runs in their two innings of work.

Meanwhile, the South Bend offense had no answer for Peoria starter Gordon Graceffo, who is on a fantastic run to begin the year and lowered his ERA to 0.65 with six shutout innings yesterday. It looked grim, but thankfully, the Chiefs pen was not as sharp.

Down four heading into the bottom of the 8th, the Cubs chipped with a run, but they still found themselves faced with a three run deficit when the bottom of the 9th came around. It would take only four batters to erase that deficit. After Fabian Pertuz struck out to open the inning, Yohendrick Pinango doubled, and then Alexander Canario and Matt Mervis delivered with back-to-back blasts to tie it and send the game to extras.

Make it three straight games with a dinger for Alexander Canario.

The No. 18 #Cubs prospect has six homers for the @SBCubs. pic.twitter.com/iGXoQxnHby

May 4, 2022

Not to be outdone Matt Mervis comes up and ties the game with this solo shot! pic.twitter.com/bKdxa8uwkw

May 4, 2022

In the 10th, Eduarniel Nunez came on and kept the inherited runner from scoring. Bradlee Beesley delivered a one out walk off single to score pinch runner Edmond Americaan in the bottom half.

Bradlee Beasley wins it for South Bend! pic.twitter.com/gmwHtyod2J

May 4, 2022

Top Performers

Alexander Canario: 1-4, HR (6), R, 2 RBI (.284)Matt Mervis: 1-4, HR (4), R, RBI (.302)Luis Verdugo: 3-4, 2 2B (.317)Bradlee Beesley: 2-5, RBI (.241)Yohendrick Pinango: 1-4, 2B, R (.243)D.J. Herz: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 5 BB, 4 K (1.06)Bailey Reid: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, BB, 3 K (7.04)Eduarniel Nunez: IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K (6.75)

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

One of the pleasant surprises of the first month has been the breakout at the play by 3B Luis Verdugo. A fairly major signing out of Mexico a few years back, Verdugo has always been a top notch defender, but his bat has been slow to come around. In the complex leagues he tended to get off to slow starts before finishing strong, and then he struggled mightily in Myrtle Beach last year. The bat speed and projectable frame were always apparent, but his swing was a little long and his results rarely impressed. This year he looks to have added good weight to his frame, improved his approach, and cut down his swing a bit. It has translated into a .317/.388/.450 line and solidified his position as a prospect to track.

Luis Verdugo delivers his 3rd hit of the game and 2nd Double of the game. pic.twitter.com/NVRO3anDOd

May 4, 2022

Low-A

Salem 8, Myrtle Beach 4

Top Performers

Kevin Alcantara: 1-4, 2B, 2 R (.242) Cole Roederer: 2-4 (.500)Kevin Made: 1-3, RBI, BB (.600)Johzan Oquendo: 2 IP, H, 0 R, BB, 2 K (6.75)

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

Cole Roederer and Kevin Made were activated from the IL and both delivered solid performances. There wasn’t much of note in this game beyond that. It was nice to see Roederer back on the field after he suffered an elbow injury at the end of May last season.

Shortly after the news broke about the leaked Supreme Court draft decision that may overturn Roe v Wade, I received a call from a friend. He asked that I tell his story. I agreed to do so and present it to you below, in his words.

“It was before 1973 so it was before Roe v Wade. That is as specific as I am prepared to get.

“She had been my girlfriend, then we broke up for a while until for a few months we rekindled. The first time was great but the second time around was different. There were plenty of reasons for that; our circumstances had changed, we had changed, and we no longer felt as close as we had before.

“One fall day, quite out of the blue, she told me she would be going to New York for a few days. She had a girlfriend there that she wanted to visit. It wouldn’t be a long trip and I probably wouldn’t hear from her for a short time.

“I was young and not that great at figuring out what people didn’t want me to figure out. But even I had to wonder. I was aware certain things were legal in New York, things that were only permissible in a handful of states, and Illinois was not one of those.

“We were not sexually active together, but there had been that gap in our relationship, those few months of free fall. She had intimated that it had been a bit of a wild summer for her. The time since then would have been just enough for her to learn she was pregnant, back in those days before home EPT tests.

“I never asked her. I didn’t know how to ask. To this day, I don’t know if her trip to New York was to terminate a pregnancy, a journey of hundreds of miles to get a safe, legal abortion. If that is what her trip was for, I hope at least she did have a friend in New York, someone to hold her hand.“

The country had seemed to move forward since then. Now 50 years later are we right back where we started, lonely women on lonely journeys?

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“Pastor Brooks believes his new $35 million Center will help transform gangbangers into responsible adult members of their community…”

You can watch our Pastor Corey Brooks show, Part 1, 24/7 by clicking here:

Part 1 of our interview with Pastor Brooks airs on cable in Chicago:

Tonight, 10:29 pm Ch  21 (CAN TV), as the 2nd segment  of a 2 hour IL Channel package. The package airs around the state this week on various outlets at various times.Saturday morning, 10:29 am, Ch 21 (as the 2nd segment of the package)Sunday morning, 9:59 am, Ch 19 (as the 2nd segment of the package)

The show focuses on Brooks’ plans for a $35 million Center to give new hope for tens of thousands living in Woodlawn and nearby areas on Chicago’s South Side.   

Brooks believes the new “Leadership and Economic Opportunity Center” will help transform gangbangers into responsible adult members of their community, who will work in legitimate jobs to take care of themselves while developing the character and values needed to take care of their families and themselves.        

These new leaders will learn from the Center not only a trade, a business or how to be an entrepreneur but, as Pastor Brooks said, but also learn values such as “How life will be so much better for their babies if they wait until they have a wife before they start a family.”

Young kids, adolescents and adults in the south side communities will participate in the same ordinary day to day activities of their middle- class peers across the city and state. These activities will include after school sports, clubs, and help with their academic studies, as well as help with getting or continuing jobs and vocational and other careers for the adults.

And, the help will extend to wrap-around services and counseling for ex-offenders who are ready to re-enter society and to take advantage of the “second chance,” being offered them.

Pastor Brooks has raised $11 million toward the Center in the last few months. He has lived out of a tent– no bathroom, no shower– on a make-shift roof top on the vacant site for the New Center across from his Church (at 66th and King Drive) for more than 100 days, getting many CEOs to spend a night or a lunch with him on the roof top. Brooks has vowed to stay on the roof until he has raised the entire $35 million needed to complete the Center.

Will the CEOs and perhaps politicians and office holders pitch in and find 24 million more dollars for Brooks’ Leadership and Economic Opportunity Center?

Watch this coming week’s Part 1 and the following week’s Part 2 of show host Berkowitz’s interview with Pastor Brooks to start answering those questions.          

Brooks, Part 1 also airs this week in:

Aurora: Wed. & Saturday, 6 pm, Ch 10 andRockford: & nearby suburbs, Thursday, 8:30 pm, Ch. 17

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Who Is Bay Ledges, that is the question? Bay Ledges is the musical brainchild of Zach Hurd, now a Los Angeles native who relocated from a small town in coastal Maine, in 2015. The four songs that make up the In Water EP are addicting slices of pop, to say the least. “In Water,” and Waterfalls” both rest on their own bouncy laurels, and are playlist worthy.

The Kooks and German duo Milky Chance team up on “Beautiful World” and it’s a great mix of both…worlds. They have a new album, 10 Tracks To Echo In The Dark, due out any day now.

Born Ruffians just embarked on their 34-city North American tour entitled JUICE, SQUEEZE & PULP, named after the release of their 2020-2021 trilogy series. “Chrysanthemums,” is their latest single that reminds me a bit of Django Django, in a good way of course.

Can you believe it’s the 20th anniversary of Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot?

The band just wrapped up six shows (4 in NY and 2 in the Chi) where they played the whole record, front to back. This version of “Reservations” is from 2002, the same year they released this fan-favorite record. Taken from an anniversary package that will be released sometime in the near future, it serves as a reminder of how good this band is live.

I’m really enjoying “Chain Reaction” by Joy Downer, and Beck? Yep, the midnight vulture has a presence on this track that serves its purpose. Beck definitely has a knack for songwriting, and doesn’t overexpose, but helps Joy do her due diligence.

My daughter loves the Ella Fitzgerald, “Little People, Big Dreams” book and after reading her “All ABout Ella Story” and having Ella show up on my #RADAR this week, I thought it only proper to make her my Jazz Cut Of The Week. From Ella Fitzgerald Meets Irving Berlin, this is “Cheek To Cheek.” Enjoy!

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