Brandon Day

3 days ago | blessyouboys.com | Brandon Day

Iowa Cubs 3, Toledo Mud Hens 1 (box)The pitching, in particular another fine outing from Wilkel Hernandez, was good. The bats were ice cold. The only positive in the lineup was Matt Vierling’s return to the outfield. He played right field and got his three plate appearances in before Ryan Kreidler hit for him late in the game. Wilkel Hernandez has been a nice story early on. With a more effective changeup, Hernandez has improved his ability to handle left-handed hitters.

3 days ago | blessyouboys.com | Brandon Day

Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images Sometimes, injuries are opportunities. Baseball abounds with stories of starting players who suffered an injury only to see a younger player seize the opportunity and push them permanently to a part-time role. Such is the dynamic between Jake Rogers and his former understudy. Dillon Dingler has seized the reins, hit the cover off the baseball, and proven himself one of the elite defensive catchers in baseball over the last five weeks.

4 days ago | blessyouboys.com | Brandon Day

Iowa Cubs 7, Toledo Mud Hens 6 (F/10)(box)The Mud Hens got another excellent start from Dietrich Enns on Saturday, but the bullpen and the offense fumbled the bag late. Enns went six scoreless frames with seven strikeouts and no walks in this one. He racked up 14 whiffs against a pretty good Triple-A offense, and his ERA is down to 2.61 on the young season. He didn’t get much help from his teammates.

4 days ago | blessyouboys.com | Brandon Day

Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images Jack Flaherty had a pretty awful outing, while Jacob deGrom looked fairly vintage on Saturday night. The result was a pretty easy victory for the Rangers as they evened the three-game set at a game apiece. Things were not auspicious for a good start for Jack Flaherty early on. He’s actually pitched really well if you only look at what he’s done the first two times through opposing lineups.

4 days ago | blessyouboys.com | Brandon Day

Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images The Detroit Tigers announced on Saturday afternoon that RHP Casey Mize has been placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 9. Mize is dealing with a left hamstring strain. As a result, reliever Chase Lee has been recalled from Triple-A Toledo. While it’s unfortunate to see Mize’s breakout season interrupted, every team has injury issues and at least in the pitching department, the Tigers have been very fortunate early this season.