Farm Report: Memphis Sweeps Into First Place Behind Mathews, Mendlinger
The Cardinal Chronicle
Daily Farm Report
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur
Farm Report: Memphis Sweeps Into First Place Behind Mathews, Mendlinger
The Cardinals’ full-season minor league affiliates went 2-3 on Thursday, with Memphis carrying the system behind a doubleheader sweep at Norfolk.
The Redbirds won both ends of the twin bill, beating the Tides 7-0 in game one and 6-2 in game two, pushing Memphis into first place in the International League standings. Springfield dropped another rough one to Amarillo, falling 13-4. Peoria lost 5-3 at South Bend in a rain-shortened seven-inning game. Palm Beach, one night after scoring 17 runs, was shut out 2-0 by St. Lucie.
Memphis Redbirds
Record: 41-25, International League
Standings: 1st place, International League
Results: Memphis 7, Norfolk 0 — Game 1
Memphis 6, Norfolk 2 — Game 2
Memphis did exactly what a first-place club is supposed to do Thursday afternoon.
The Redbirds swept a doubleheader at Norfolk, winning 7-0 in game one and 6-2 in game two, and moved into first place in the International League standings. After the final out of game two, Memphis held a half-game lead over Nashville and Rochester.
That is a good day’s work.
Game one belonged to Quinn Mathews and a lineup that gave him plenty of room to work. Mathews delivered six shutout innings, allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out two. The left-hander has now worked 12.1 consecutive scoreless innings and has allowed one earned run or fewer in three straight starts.
That is the kind of stretch you want to see from a pitcher trying to reassert himself at Triple-A.
Austin Love finished the shutout with a scoreless seventh inning, striking out two in his Triple-A debut.
The offense gave Memphis plenty of support. Victor Scott II, in his first Triple-A game of the season, went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, two RBIs, a walk and a run scored. Noah Mendlinger had the biggest production line of the opener, going 3-for-4 with four RBIs, two runs scored, a double and his first Triple-A home run of the season. Yohel Pozo also added three hits.
In game two, Memphis wasted no time. César Prieto opened the scoring with an RBI double in the first inning, and Blaze Jordan followed three batters later with a two-run homer, his 11th of the season. Ramón Mendoza also drove in a run as Memphis put together another five-run frame, continuing a week in which the Redbirds have been able to flip games quickly with one big inning.
Bruce Zimmermann started game two and gave Memphis 5.2 innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits with three walks and four strikeouts. Luis Gastelum handled the final 1.1 innings, striking out two and earning his third save.
The sweep pushed Memphis to 41 wins, making the Redbirds the first Triple-A club to reach that mark this season.
Springfield Cardinals
Record: 26-33, Texas League North
Standings: 4th place, 13.5 GB, Texas League North
Result: Amarillo 13, Springfield 4
Springfield had another rough night against Amarillo.
One day after taking a 14-4 loss, the Cardinals were beaten 13-4 by the Sod Poodles at Hammons Field. That is back-to-back lopsided losses, and there is not much need to dress it up.
The Cardinals had opened the series with a strong comeback win behind Trey Paige’s grand slam, but Amarillo has controlled the two games since. The Sod Poodles have put up 27 runs over the last two contests, and Springfield has not been able to slow the traffic or keep the games within reach.
For Springfield, the problem is not complicated. When a pitching staff gives up that many runs in consecutive games, the offense has to be nearly perfect to keep up. The Cardinals were not.
This is the kind of stretch Double-A clubs have to flush quickly. Springfield has enough talent to answer back, but the Cardinals need a cleaner night on the mound and a better start early in the game to keep Amarillo from dictating the terms again.
Peoria Chiefs
Record: 30-29, Midwest League West
Standings: 3rd place, 7.0 GB, Midwest League West
Result: South Bend 5, Peoria 3 — seven innings
Peoria started fast, but South Bend had the final say.
The Chiefs fell 5-3 to the first-place Cubs in a rain-shortened seven-inning game at Four Winds Field. The game started after a lengthy rain delay and was trimmed to seven innings, leaving Peoria with less time to answer after South Bend took control in the middle innings.
Jesús Báez opened the game with a solo home run, his 12th of the season, giving Peoria an immediate lead. The Chiefs kept pressure on in the first, with Jack Gurevitch walking, Jalin Flores singling, and Josh Kross driving in Gurevitch with an RBI single to make it 2-0.
That was the start Peoria needed.
But South Bend answered. The Cubs tied the game in the third inning on a two-run homer and then pushed across three more runs in the fifth to take a 5-2 lead. Peoria pulled one run back in the sixth when Báez singled home Cameron Nickens, but the Chiefs could not complete the comeback.
Báez finished 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs. Flores also went 2-for-4.
Nate Dohm gave Peoria four innings, allowing two runs on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Jawilme Ramírez took the loss after allowing three runs in the fifth. José Davila followed with 1.1 scoreless innings.
Peoria has played better baseball lately, but the Chiefs are now running into the club they are chasing. South Bend is in first place for a reason, and Thursday’s loss showed how quickly a game can turn when the big inning goes the other way.
Palm Beach Cardinals
Record: 31-29, Florida State League East
Standings: 2nd place, 3..0 GB, Florida State League East
Result: St. Lucie 2, Palm Beach 0
Palm Beach went from one extreme to the other.
One night after blasting St. Lucie 17-0 with 20 hits and four home runs, the Cardinals were shut out 2-0 by the Mets on Thursday night at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
That is baseball in its strangest form.
On Wednesday, Palm Beach could do almost nothing wrong. The Cardinals scored in bunches, got five hitless innings from Cade Crossland, and turned the night into one of their most complete wins of the season. On Thursday, the bats went quiet again.
St. Lucie’s pitching staff kept Palm Beach off the scoreboard, and the Cardinals could not find the big swing or sustained rally needed to get back into the game.
Palm Beach has now seen the full range of the sport in one series: getting no-hit, winning 17-0, then getting shut out 2-0. That is a pretty good reminder that young hitters are still learning how to carry an approach from one night to the next.
The Cardinals remain in the Florida State League East race, but Thursday was a missed chance to build on the momentum from Wednesday’s blowout.
Player of the Day
Noah Mendlinger, Memphis Redbirds
Noah Mendlinger is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Player of the Day after leading Memphis’ offense in the Redbirds’ 7-0 win over Norfolk in game one of the doubleheader.
Mendlinger went 3-for-4 with four RBIs, two runs scored, a double and his first Triple-A home run of the season.
That is a complete offensive game. He drove in runs, scored runs, added extra-base damage, and helped Memphis take control early in a shutout win.
Victor Scott II deserves strong mention after going 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, two RBIs, a walk and a run scored in his first Triple-A game of the season. Jesús Báez also deserves mention for homering and driving in two runs for Peoria.
But Mendlinger gets the nod for the four-RBI game in a Memphis win that helped push the Redbirds into first place.
Pitcher of the Day
Quinn Mathews, Memphis Redbirds
Quinn Mathews is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Pitcher of the Day after throwing six shutout innings in Memphis’ 7-0 win over Norfolk.
Mathews allowed three hits, walked one and struck out two while earning the win. He has now worked 12.1 consecutive scoreless innings and has allowed one earned run or fewer in three straight starts.
The strikeout total was modest, but the command of the game was not. Mathews gave Memphis length, kept Norfolk off the board, and handed the bullpen a clean path to finish the shutout.
That is the kind of outing Memphis needed in game one of a doubleheader, especially with first place in the International League on the line.
Old School Take
Memphis carried the system Thursday.
The Redbirds swept a doubleheader, got six shutout innings from Quinn Mathews, a big day from Noah Mendlinger, a strong return to Triple-A from Victor Scott II, and moved into first place in the International League.
That is the headline.
Springfield had another night to forget. Peoria started fast but could not finish at South Bend. Palm Beach followed a 17-run outburst by getting shut out.
That is the farm system in one day: first-place baseball in Memphis, frustration elsewhere, and plenty of reminders that development does not move in a straight line.
The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports & MiLB Today
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Photo Credit: Quinn Mathews, Memphis Redbirds | Lighthouse Media