The Farm Report: Big Wins & Losses

 
The Cardinal Chronicle
The Farm Report: Palm Beach Powers Up, Memphis Reclaims First, Peoria Falls in Wild One
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur

The St. Louis Cardinals’ farm system went 2-1 Thursday night, with Memphis winning in extra innings to climb back into first place, Palm Beach riding a 14-hit attack to a comfortable win, Peoria dropping a wild 13-11 game at Wisconsin, and Springfield losing its game to weather.

Memphis Redbirds
Memphis: 33-21, 1st, International League West
Memphis 5, Omaha 4 — 10 innings

Memphis did what good clubs do on the road Thursday night. The Redbirds found a way.

Behind another big night from Joshua Báez and a dominant finish from Luis Gastelum, Memphis beat Omaha 5-4 in 10 innings and moved back into first place in the International League standings, a half-game ahead of Rochester.

Báez continued one of the loudest stretches in the system, homering for the third straight game against Omaha. His fourth-inning solo shot was his fifth home run of the series, and he followed it an inning later with his second triple of the season to drive in another run. Bligh Madris also homered, and five of Memphis’ six hits went for extra bases.

The winning run came in the 10th when Matt Koperniak lifted a sacrifice fly to score Blaze Jordan. From there, Gastelum took care of the rest, striking out the side in the bottom of the 10th with the automatic runner already in scoring position. He worked two perfect innings, struck out five and earned his team-leading fifth win.

Quinn Mathews also gave Memphis a strong start, allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits over five innings. He walked three and struck out eight, matching his season high.

Springfield Cardinals
Springfield: 20-27,  5th Place, 8.5 GB, Texas League North
Springfield vs. Wichita — postponed, rain

Springfield’s Thursday game against Wichita was postponed because of inclement weather and wet field conditions at Route 66 Stadium. The Cardinals and Wind Surge are now scheduled to play a single-admission doubleheader Saturday, May 30, beginning at 4:05 p.m. Gates will open at 3:35 p.m.

Both games are scheduled for seven innings. Game two will begin no earlier than 6:35 p.m., or approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of game one if the opener runs past 6:05 p.m.

Peoria Chiefs
Peoria: 22-26, 6th Place, 8.0 GB, Midwest League West
Wisconsin 13, Peoria 11

Peoria had enough offense to win most nights. Thursday was not most nights.

The Chiefs pounded out 14 hits and got a huge performance from Won-Bin Cho, but Wisconsin used a seven-run seventh inning to hand Peoria a 13-11 loss in Appleton. The game featured 24 combined runs, 25 hits and 20 walks, including 15 walks issued by Chiefs pitchers.

Cho was the offensive story for Peoria, going 3-for-4 with five RBIs. He tied the game in the fifth with a two-run double, then brought the Chiefs back within a run in the eighth with a bases-clearing triple. It was one of the best individual offensive performances of the night anywhere in the system, even in a loss.

Luis Pino also had a strong night, driving in two runs with a second-inning single and later homering in the sixth to give Peoria a 5-4 lead. José Suárez added a two-run single in the seventh, putting the Chiefs ahead 7-5 before the game got away in the bottom half.

Wisconsin’s seventh inning was the difference. The first seven Timber Rattlers reached base, and they pushed across seven runs on four hits and five walks to turn a Peoria lead into a 12-7 deficit. Peoria fought back, but left Cho stranded after his three-run triple in the eighth and never got even again.

Palm Beach Cardinals
Palm Beach: 26-22, 2nd, Florida State League East
Palm Beach 9, Lakeland 3

Palm Beach put together one of its cleaner all-around wins of the week Thursday night, beating Lakeland 9-3 behind 14 hits, two home runs and a strong start from Cade Crossland.

The Cardinals trailed 1-0 early, but the offense answered in the fourth when Michael Dattalo doubled home Jonathan Mejia to tie the game. Trevor Haskins followed an inning later with a solo homer, his fourth of the season, to give Palm Beach the lead. The home run left the bat at 111.3 mph.

Facundo Velasquez added an opposite-field homer in the fifth, and Yordalin Peña delivered the biggest offensive night for Palm Beach. Peña went 4-for-5 with a triple, three RBIs and two runs scored. Dattalo finished 3-for-4 with a double, a run and an RBI, while Mejia scored three times and added two hits.

Crossland gave the Cardinals exactly what they needed. After allowing a solo homer in the second, the left-hander settled in and worked five innings, allowing one run on one walk while striking out a career-high eight. It was his second win of the season and one of his best starts of the year.

Player of the Day
Joshua Báez, Memphis Redbirds

Joshua Báez earns Player of the Day honors after continuing a remarkable power surge for Memphis.

Báez homered for the third straight game against Omaha, giving him five home runs in the series, and added an RBI triple in Memphis’ 5-4 extra-inning win. On a night when Won-Bin Cho drove in five runs for Peoria and Yordalin Peña went 4-for-5 for Palm Beach, Báez gets the nod because his production came in a first-place swing game for Memphis.

That is not just a hot night. That is impact at Triple-A.

Pitcher of the Day
Cade Crossland, Palm Beach Cardinals

Cade Crossland earns Pitcher of the Day honors after throwing five innings of one-run baseball in Palm Beach’s 9-3 win over Lakeland.

Crossland allowed an early solo home run, then settled in and controlled the game. He walked one and struck out a career-high eight, giving Palm Beach the foundation it needed on a night when the offense eventually broke things open.

Honorable mention goes to Luis Gastelum, who struck out five over two perfect innings for Memphis, including a dominant 10th inning with the tying run already at second base.

The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports

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Photo Credit: MiLB Baseball / Cade Crossland, Palm Beach Cardinals, 05/28/26