Thursday was Opening Day across all of Minor League Baseball and it was the first day for Cubs farmhands to showcase their talent at four different levels. Iowa, Tennessee, Myrtle Beach, and South Bend all had games, with Iowa actually playing a day/night doubleheader. Let’s take a look at some notable performances on Thursday. Iowa Cubs

– The first game of the MiLB season started off with a great pitching performance from Jen-Ho Tseng. The 40-man roster occupant went 5 innings, giving up only 2 runs on 7 hits. He struck out 7 while only walking a single batter.

– Jacob Hannemann is looking to impress now that he is back with his original organization. He homered leading off the game for the I-Cubs and had an incredible diving catch in centerfield (ho hum).

-David Bote is clearly looking to continue producing after a successful Spring Training. He went yard to the opposite field in Game 2 of the doubleheader.

– The team and Efren Navarro are now a part of history as Navarro’s RBI single in the first inning of extras in Game 2 plated the walkoff run. The runner had started at second base as a part of the new Minor League extra innings rules where the last out of the previous inning starts at second base to begin the extra frame. Interestingly enough, the game winning run was scored by pitcher Duane Underwood Jr, who was pinch running for pitcher Alberto Baldonado.

Tennessee Smokies

– The Smokies bats were held in check in the opener in Mississippi, as they were shut out by multiple Braves pitchers including top prospect Kyle Wright, who got the start. They scattered 5 hits, with no player having a multi-hit performance.

– Trevor Clifton looked spectacular in his first 5 innings of work. Through 5, he had allowed just 2 hits and no runs, striking out 3 and walking 2. Unfortunately he ran into some trouble in the 6th and was taken out with the bases loaded and one run already scored. His final line reads 5.1 IP, 4 hits, 3 ER, 4 K, 3 BB.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

– There weren’t many fun things to cover for Myrtle Beach either, as they fell 6-2 in their opener.

– Keegan Thompson got roughed up in his first start at this level, going 5 innings and allowing 6 runs (5 ER) on 8 hits. On the bright side, he struck out 4 Keys batters while not allowing any walks.

– Casey Bloomquist and Chad Hockin locked it down in their combined 4 innings of relief. They allowed only 1 hit and shut out the Keys in the final innings.

South Bend Cubs

– I figured Ricky Tyler Thomas would be used as a reliever this season, but surprisingly enough he got the start on opening day for South Bend. He did not disappoint. He got the tough luck loss but went 5 innings and only gave up 1 ER on 4 hits. 2 more runs came in to score off errors during his time on the bump and he also struck out 3 and walked 1.

– Bailey Clark got roughed up a bit in his 2 innings on the mound. Although he only gave up 2 ER during his 2 innings, that included 4 hits and he did not record a strikeout. He gave up lots of hard contact and he will look to bounce back soon, now a member of the bullpen.

– The offense sandwiched a whole bunch of zeros in between one run in the 1st and one in the 9th. Brandon Hughes was the standout performer in this one with 2 hits and 2 walks. Look for him to continue that success in South Bend and potentially Myrtle Beach this year, as I am very high on the former Michigan State star.