IOWA CUBS (5-7, 35-49) vs. ST. PAUL SAINTS (6-5, 47-38)
July 7 • 6:38 PM CT • Principal Park • Des Moines, IA
LHP Jordan Wicks (0-5, 6.64) vs. RHP John Klein (1-3, 6.39)
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Iowa Cubs and the St. Paul Saints are set to play the first game of a six-game series at Principal Park tonight... left-hander Jordan Wicks is slated to make his 12th start with Iowa this season...right-hander John Klein will start for St. Paul.
SUNDAY BLUES: The I-Cubs fell to the Toledo Mud Hens 6-2 on Sunday afternoon at Fifth Third Park...Jonathon Long drove in the lone RBI of the game, as the I-Cubs were held to just five hits and one walk...Toledo jumped in front 3-0 in the first inning and never looked back... Iowa starter Will Sanders suffered his first loss of the season, while striking out five over four innings, while reliever Antoine Kelly continued his dominance with two more scoreless innings.
TRI: Chicago Cubs’ No. 8 prospect James Triantos has hit safely in 17 of his last 19 games and is batting .360 (27-for-75) during that span... Tri ranks among International League leaders in hits (3rd) and batting average (6th) during the stretch...Triantos currently ranks among the International League leaders on the season in hits (2nd, 93) and doubles (2nd, 20)...just two other players match Triantos’ 93 hits and 17 stolen bases this season, Nashville’s Luis Lara and Gwinnett’s Jim Jarvis.
AGAINST ST. PAUL: The I-Cubs and the St. Paul Saints are meeting for the second time this season and first time at Principal Park...they met in at CHS Field in St. Paul on April 28-May 3,where the Saints won the series 4-2.
BATEMAN!: I-Cubs outfielder Brett Bateman has reached base safely in 20 of his last 25 games, including a season high 11-game hitting streak from June 6-19...in the month of June, Bateman batted .316 (24-for-76) with 14 runs scored, four doubles, seven RBI, and 17 walks...Brett currently ranks fourth in the International League in on-base percentage (.419) and sixth in walks (50).
RARE OCCURRENCE: Friday night, BJ Murray had his second game of the season in which he had a triple and a home run...just five players for the I-Cubs have had two such games in a season since 2005, Murray (2026), Jonathon Long (2025), Brett Jackson (2012), Andres Torres (2008) and Scott McClain (2005).
CONGRATS MARTY!: Iowa Cubs Manager Marty Pevey earned his 1500th career win on Friday night against the Toledo Mud Hens... Pevey has won 856 games while at the helm of the I-Cubs and has the fifth-most career wins among active MiLB skippers in his 23 seasons as a manager...Marty joined the Cubs organization in 2009 and has managed Iowa since 2013...he is the winningest manager in franchise history.
BJ BALLIN’: I-Cubs infielder BJ Murray is batting .415 (27-for-65) with four doubles, three triples, four home runs and seven RBI in his last 16 games...BJ has reached base in 21 straight games, which is the ninth-longest active streak in the International League and the second-longest by an I-Cub this season, trailing Kevin Alcántara’s 35-game streak... Murray tallied his sixth triple of the season Friday night, becoming the first Iowa Cub since John Andreoli (8) in 2017 to have at least six triples in a season...Murray currently leads the International League in batting average (.333), triples (6), and hits (26), second in on-base percentage (.431), OPS (.987), third in total bases (160), and fifth in extra base hits (36).
LONG BALL: Saturday night, 2025 Cubs’ Minor League Player of the Year Jonathon Long hit his ninth home run of the season as part of a two-hit night...marked his fifth home run in his last 16 games and his 29th as an I-Cub...over the last two seasons, Long’s 241 hits is the most of any International League player and his .838 OPS ranks third.
CADET KELLY: I-Cubs Reliever Antoine Kelly pitched two scoreless innings of relief on Sunday, lowering his ERA to 0.71 since joining the I-Cubs...Kelly earned his first win as an Iowa Cub Thursday night...in eight appearances with Iowa, he has pitched 12.2 innings, allowing one run on eight hits one home run) and striking out 13 batters against just three walks...Kelly was acquired via trade from the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 7.
MILLER TIME: I-Cubs infielder Owen Miller extended his hitting streak to a season high seven games Sunday after going 1-for-4... Miller reached base five times Thursday night, going 3-for-3 with two walks and two RBI...it marked the second time Miller has reached base five times in a game this season, last doing so on May 29 at Indianapolis...in his last 11 games, Miller is batting .447 (21-for- 47) with 11 runs scored, four doubles, three triples, two home runs and 14 RBI...Miller scored a run in six consecutive games, which ended on Sunday...it is tied for third-longest such streak by an I-Cub this season, trailing Chas McCormick who scored in eight straight games from April 11-22...Miller is currently tied with I-Cubs teammate B.J. Murray for the most triples (6) in the International League.
BALLY BALLY: Since being optioned to Iowa on June 20, Moises Ballesteros is batting .229/.292/.355 across 14 games, with three doubles, 10 RBI and 11 walks.