Cubs promote top pitching prospect Kilian, who will start Game 2 of Saturday DH
Caleb Kilian, acquired last summer from the San Francisco Giants as part of the Kris Bryant trade, will start for the Cubs in the second game of their doubleheader against St. Louis on Saturday.
Kilian has a 2.06 ERA in nine starts at Triple-A Iowa this season.
"Seems like a hard worker," said manager David Ross. "Good makeup. Real chance to be an everyday big-league starter. I know he wants to grow, wants to learn. Pretty good energy about him. Got a nice fastball and has been pitching really well."
Kilian will be the 11th starter the Cubs have used this season. Wade Miley (shoulder strain), Drew Smyly (oblique strain) and Alec Mills (rehabbing at Iowa) are among those who remain on the injured list.
The 6-foot-4, 180-pound Kilian was selected in the eighth round of the 2019 draft out of Texas Tech. The 25-year-old has 170 strikeouts and just 30 walks in 155⅔ innings in his minor league career.
"He's got a good mix of pitches and I think he'll do really well," said catcher P.J. Higgins. "It's awesome for the organization. Everybody wants to see him - I want to see him too. ... It's gonna be a big day for him. I'm happy for him and I'm expecting him to do pretty well."
Matt Swarmer will pitch Game 1 of the doubleheader. Swarmer made his ML debut against Milwaukee on May 30 and allowed 4 runs (1 earned) on 5 hits in 6 innings.
Almost pitch perfect:
Frank Schwindel pitched for the first time in the major leagues during the Cubs' 14-5 loss to St. Louis on Friday at Wrigley Field. He got the first two batters of the ninth inning to line out before allowing back-to-back home runs to Corey Dickerson and Lars Nootbaar.
The inning ended when Harrison Bader popped out on a 38-mph curveball.
"It was fun," said Schwindel, who went 2-for-3 at the plate to raise his batting average to .239. "Just make the best out of it. Hopefully I don't have to do it again. ... I think I was like 38 to 61 (mph). Good range. But they were all over it."
Bad news:
Brennan Davis, the center fielder who is considered the Cubs' top prospect, had back surgery Thursday and could miss the rest of the season according to a report by The Athletic. Davis hasn't played since May 3 when he was placed on the injured list with lower back soreness.
Davis was 15-for-77 (.195) with 2 home runs and 7 RBI at Triple-A Iowa.
Around the horn:
When the Cubs took a 3-0 lead over St. Louis on Friday they increased their first-inning run total to an NL-best 47. ... Christopher Morel (1-for-5) has reached base in 17 straight games, extending his franchise record to start a career. ... Clint Frazier had reached base in 8 straight plate appearances coming into Friday's game, but went 0-for-2 against the Cardinals. ...
The Cubs had a 12-game stolen base streak broken during their victory over the Cardinals on Thursday. It was their longest run since going 14 straight from September 5-19, 1986.