With the month of August arriving in the Midwest League, this is about the time where the second-half begins to fly by. It’s the dash to September for a reason after all, and the South Bend Cubs are closing in on playoff baseball. The postseason is only about a month away, and with another series win in their pocket from last week in Lake County, South Bend is set to return home to Four Winds Field this week to battle the Cedar Rapids Kernels.
To this point, it has been anyone’s game as to who will represent the West Division and become South Bend’s first-round opponent in the playoffs. Following a doubleheader sweep over West Michigan on Sunday, the Beloit Sky Carp lead the second-half West standings by two games over South Bend. Of course though, with the Cubs already in the playoffs, the next closest second-half eligible team is behind the Cubs. All of Peoria, Quad Cities, and Wisconsin have 19-16 second-half records. They are 3.5 games back of Beloit. Peoria and QC play each other this week, and Wisconsin takes on Beloit, so this week could really lead to some interesting circumstances depending on what happens.
Then there is Cedar Rapids. For the Kernels, simply, it has not been their half. Cedar Rapids has a 7-29 second-half mark, and this will be the second of three series between the Cubs and Kernels since the halfway point. Remember, in the first-half, the Cubs played the Fort Wayne TinCaps 18 times and then do not see the again the rest of the year. It’s the opposite with Cedar Rapids. No first-half battles, but 18 of them in the second-half.
This week will be the first time in 2026 that the Kernels visit South Bend. And last time these two got together in Iowa, the Cubs took four of six games. South Bend has series-after-series this season consistently had great weeks. But they can’t discount what Cedar Rapids brings to the table. You never know who on any given week may get hot. A great example is what happened back in late April and early May at Four Winds Field. The Fort Wayne TinCaps had one of the worst starts in the first-half among any Midwest League team, and shockingly took five of six games away from the Cubs.
Cedar Rapids went to the Midwest League Championship series last season, and although they were beaten by West Michigan, their parent club, the Minnesota Twins, has always flashed a really solid farm system.
The Kernels as a team hit .258 in the month of July, which ranked them for the month top-five in the Midwest League.
Last time these two got together, if a Cedar Rapids player did not have the name Danny De Andrade or Jose Salas, they didn’t have the best time facing South Bend pitching. De Andrade has consistently been a Cubs killer in his years in the Midwest League. In that July series, De Andrade went 8/16 against the Cubs with three triples and three RBI. In 2024, he hit .400 against the Cubs in six games, and in 2025, he had a .288 average versus the Cubs in 16 games, with two home runs, seven RBI, and nine walks.
For Salas, this guy has a long history against the Cubs. He made his Midwest League debut against South Bend as a member of the Beloit Sky Carp way back in 2022 when he was ranked as one of the top prospects in all of baseball. The brother of San Diego Padres star prospect Ethan Salas, Jose is now 23-years-old, and still flashes that same talent even back from those 2022 days. Traded from the Marlins to the Twins in the Luis Arraez deal, who just got dealt from the Giants to the Phillies earlier today, Salas is still plugging along. He hit just .187 in 53 Double-A games earlier this year before being sent back to Cedar Rapids. He hit .300 in six games against the Cubs in July, mashing three home runs.
The Kernels pitching, for the most part, is what has led them to struggles this season. They gave up 48 runs in six games against the Cubs in July, and for the season, have a 6.50 team ERA.
As mentioned earlier, you respect every opponent you face, knowing anything can happen. But when a time like this comes up, where the Cubs have had success and the Kernels have not, you have to take care of business.
Players to watch on South Bend…
Kade Snell, OF: Simple facts of life: Grass is green, the sky is blue, Kade Snell is back. And it’s so good to see. After spending six weeks on the Injured List, it was admirable to watch Kade Snell stick with the process and wait out his injury, knowing he was going to come back and do his thing again. What has been most impressive: Power. It’s almost like the injury didn’t occur, based on how he is swinging it. With four homers in the Lake County series, including his first career multi-homer game, Snell is mashing. And he picked the perfect park to find the power stroke. Lake County is a great place to hit. And if Snell can bottle up what he had their in Eastlake and apply it to this week at Four Winds Field, he’s going to pick up right where he left off without a doubt. Snell gives the Cubs incredible versatility in both the lineup and in the field. Being able to hit Snell in the middle of the order along with Matt Halbach is a luxury that the Cubs must enjoy, knowing at any time guys can be promoted. Snell’s ability to also shift from the corner outfield to center field depending on what is needed is also a huge difference maker. The fact that he is healthy and thriving should give anyone getting set to match up with the Cubs big worry, because this is a guy that does not get talked about enough. If he keeps hitting like this, many, many people will be talking about him soon.
Logan Poteet, C: The depth of this South Bend Cubs lineup just continues to amaze. When you have Logan Poteet, who has hit 18 home runs on the season, batting at the bottom of the order, that is just incredible. Just another example of why this South Bend Cubs lineup is one of the best in all of baseball. Poteet paired with Snell and socked a multi-homer game on July 30 as well, and had three in the series. The one-two punch that South Bend has going with Justin Stransky and Poteet behind the plate is a big weapon. Because no matter what happens, each catcher has an absolute cannon behind the plate, and each guy has been hitting the ball extremely well. Stransky was the hero for the walk-off victory last homestand, and Poteet showed off the power on the road. South Bend had a lineup like this back in 2022 when they won the Midwest League title, and Poteet bating eighth and ninth in the order reminds me most of when BJ Murray was hitting eighth for South Bend when he first came up. Absolutely insane that is the case, but nobody is ever complaining because any part of the order can do damage.
Jose Romero, RHP: A key part of the South Bend bullpen from 2024 is now back in 2026, and it’s another piece for the Cubs that they got back from the Injured List. Jose Romero was part of the South Bend 2026 opening day roster, but it came as he was on the IL. Not ideal. After rehabbing for a long while in Arizona, and grinding back, Romero is back to his usual work in the South Bend bullpen, in an attempt to build off what he did for the team in 2024. Romero was with the Cubs for the entirety of that season, pitching in 37 games and earning seven saves that season. Romero struck out 63 batters that year in 51.2 innings, and was South Bend’s usual late inning guy. What Romero is trying to get back to most is how he looked pitching for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans in 2023, posting a 2.77 ERA in 28 games. He was one of the Carolina League’s best that season, and to this point with the Cubs this summer, has not allowed an earned run in 5.1 innings. Romero went 1.1 shutout frames on July 29, and then on Sunday in Lake County, a game that did not go South Bend’s way to finish due to weather, fired two scoreless frames without a walk. If Romero can limit walks, that is when he is going to be his most dynamic, because that means he is getting chase at his wicked slider, and getting swings and misses on his fastball. If both pitches are on, it’s going to be a good outing. So far, so good back in a Cubs uniform, and we will see if he can help the bullpen down the stretch.
Schedule…
Tuesday, August 4 - 7:05 PM ET: TBA vs TBA
Wednesday, August 5 - 7:05 PM ET: TBA vs TBA
Thursday, August 6 - 7:05 PM ET: TBA vs TBA
Friday, August 7 - 7:05 PM ET: TBA vs TBA
Saturday, August 8 - 7:05 PM ET: TBA vs TBA
Sunday, August 9 - 2:05 PM ET: RHP Mason McGwire vs TBA
Catch the entire six-game series in South Bend on 96.1 FM and 960 AM Sports Radio WSBT, online at wsbtradio.com, or on MiLB.com with Brendan King and Tyler Reidy on the call.