USATSI_13014000 — Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Chicago Cubs starter prospect Javier Assad spins a gem for Iowa

Javier Assad's stellar season continued after tossing six shutout innings in a 3-0 shutout Iowa Cubs victory.

Author:
Payton Havermann
Publish date:
Aug 19, 2022 1:00 PM EDT

In this story:

Iowa Cubs starter Javier Assad turned in another good outing Wednesday, the latest in what's been a very nice bounce-back year for the righty. The righty was at one point a very hyped international free agent signing for the Chicago Cubs, but it hasn't always been an upward trajectory.

The 25-year-old struggled in Double-A in 2021, finishing with an ERA above 5.00. 2022 has been a resurgent year, however, as Assad has seen his strikeout, and groundball rates improve, earning a promotion to Triple-A in July.

That was all present in Assad's latest outing with Iowa. The Mexico native tossed six shutout outings, punching out six, walking one, lowering his Triple-A ERA to 2.95, and flashing his whole arsenal. The starter has been on a tear as of late and could get a look in the majors sooner rather than later.

Elsewhere on the farm:

Triple-A: Iowa Cubs (52-62) at Indianapolis Indians (55-57): W 3-0

Darius Hill went 1-3 with a double and a walk. The leadoff man is now batting .338 on the season.
John Hicks went 2-4 with a home run and two RBI. The catcher was the only Cub with multiple hits.
Relievers Cam Sanders and Jeremiah Estrada closed the game for Iowa. The pair combined for 2 1/3 innings with four strikeouts, no walks, and just one hit. Estrada also picked up his first save.

Double-A: Tennessee Smokies (59-52) at Birmingham Barons (50-61): L 6-4

Jake Slaughter tallied one hit, a double, in four at-bats with a walk and two stolen bases. The righty has now swiped 22 bags and has an OPS of .958.
Alex Canario went 1-4 with a walk and knocked in his 57th run of the year. The 22-year-old also stole his 17th base of the season.
Bryce Ball went 0-2, but walked twice. The first baseman entered the game walking in 12% of his plate appearances.
Miguel Amaya ripped his first triple of the season and walked twice, reaching base three times for the second game in a row and raising his OPS to .702.

High-A: South Bend Cubs (60-50) vs. Beloit Sky Carp (56-53): W 6-1

Pete Crow-Armstrong went 2-3 with a triple and hit-by-pitch from the leadoff spot. The Cubs top prospect via Pipeline now has six triples on the season.
After losing his 21-game losing streak in South Bend's previous contest, Luis Verdugo rebounded by going 1-2 with two walks.
Pablo Aliendo hit his sixth home run of the season, half of which have come in the month of August. The catcher has an OPS north of 1.000 for the month.
Starter Porter Hodge struggled with command, walking six batters and hitting another, but navigated all of the traffic well, allowing just one hit and still working five shutout innings. The righty also struck out four and holds an ERA of 1.85.

Single-A: Myrtle Beach Pelicans (69-42) at Down East Wood Ducks (57-54): L 12-4

Parker Chavers stayed hot, going 2-4 and hitting his second home run of the season. The Cubs seventh-round pick in 2021 now has a season OPS of .797.
Felix Stevens hit his 11th home run of the season, the second most on the team behind Kevin Alcantara.
Reliever Johzan Oquendo struck out six batters over three innings. The righty has struck out more than 30% of the batters he's faced this season.

Transactions:

The Cubs sent outfielder Michael Hermosillo on a rehab assignment with the ACL Cubs. The 27-year-old went 0-3 with two strikeouts after being out since May 8 with a left quadriceps strain.
Iowa Cubs first baseman Frank Schwindel was placed on the 7-day injured list. Catcher Erick Castillo was also activated.
Ke'Shun Collier was assigned to the ACL Cubs. Collier, the Cubs 2022 20th round pick, went 1-3 with a double in his debut.