The Columbus Clippers tied their game at Iowa in the top of the eighth inning, 1-1. After a scoreless ninth, the festivities went to extra frames. Both the Clippers and I-Cubs scored a run in the tenth, but it was the home team that added another in the eleventh to nab the 3-2 victory. Here are our three takeaways from Wednesday afternoon in Des Moines:

1.    We must continue to talk about Kody Huff. After C.J. Kayfus was placed on the Injured List Monday, Huff started at first base in the series opener in Des Moines and went 3-for-4 while knocking in two runs. On Wednesday, he was back behind the plate and went 2-for-3 with a couple of RBIs. His batting average is up to .307. He is the only Clipper who has played at least 20 of their 35 games that is over the .300 mark. Oh, and he leads the team in RBIs (26) and is tied for tops with six home runs. 

2.   Rorik Maltrud deserved better on Wednesday. The 26-year-old right-hander threw seven innings against the I-Cubs and allow a run on just one hit, while striking out eight. Despite starting in six of his seven appearances so far this season, his record is only 1-0. The telling statistic is that is ERA is 2.08 in his 34.2 innings of work. He’s recorded 26 Ks compared to 10 walks. This is his first year in Triple-A ball and he is making the most of it.

3.   OK, going back to childhood, we’ve always referred to a runner that we imagined to be deserving of being placed on a base as a “ghost” runner. Putting a player on second base in extra innings began in professional baseball in 2020 as a temporary measure and became permanent in 2023, when the pitch clock came into being. Apparently, the moniker “ghost” has become taboo because there actually is a runner there. We’ve now heard “designated” runner, but our new favorite is “magic” runner. Magic indeed.