Esteury Ruiz has been dynamic when he’s made contact. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Albuquerque Isotopes 2 Chihuahuas 1
Key Statistics: SS Luis Urías, 3-for-4, 2B, HR (8), RBI, K; CF Boog Powell, 1-for-2, 2 BB, SB (3); 3B Seth Mejias-Brean, 1-for-4; LHP Dillon Overton (L, 0-1) 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, BB, K; RHP Tyler Higgins, 2 IP, H, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas lost in a rare, low-scoring game at Southwest University Park. … SS Luis Urías was the El Paso offense Friday night, as the 21-year-old infielder had three hits, including his eighth homer of the year. Urías’s eight homers have come in 98 plate appearances after he needed 533 plate appearances to reach the same total in 2018. He continues strike out at a 20.4% clip in 2019, mirroring last year’s 20.5 mark in AAA. The young infielder has also increased his fly ball rate to 45% in 2019 — up significantly from 29% in El Paso a year ago. … On most nights, Dillon Overton would have earned a win for his efforts but the veteran took the loss Friday. The former big leaguer allowed just two runs –both on solo homers — in his seven innings of work. The 27-year-old lefty has a 3.38 ERA in his last three starts after getting throttled in his season debut. Overton has also struck out nearly a batter per inning for El Paso last year. A season ago, Overton averaged just over five strikeouts per nine innings.
Corpus Christi Hooks 9 Sod Poodles 2
Key Statistics: RF Edward Olivares, 1-for-4, R; 2B Owen Miller, 1-for-4, 2B, RBI; 1B Brad Zunica, 1-for-4, HR (6), RBI, R; RHP T.J. Weir (L, 2-2) 4 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 5 BB, K; RHP Kazuhisa Makita, 2.1 IP, 3 H, 5 K.
Prospect Watch: Amarillo lost on the road in Corpus Christi. … Big Brad Zunica homered for the first time since April 9 in the loss. Zunica, 23, homered five times in the first six games but has scuffled since. In 22 games since his last homer, the left-handed first baseman has hit just .126/.247/.208. However, Zunica is striking out at a career-low 27.5% rate and his 12.8% walk rate is highest since 2016 in Fort Wayne. Zunica has been victimized by a .237 BABIP this season so perhaps the slugger will heat up in the near future. … RHP T.J. Weir made the start and struggled to find the strike zone. The 27-year-old walked five batters in just four innings while allowing eight hits. Weir has been a solid arm throughout his tenure in the system but has scuffled to a 7.43 ERA in five starts for the Sod Poodles this year. … RHP Kazuhisa Makita put up 2.1 scoreless innings in relief. Makita, 34, has allowed just one earned in his last seven outings after a brutal start.
Storm 6 San Jose Giants 4
Key Statistics: DH Robbie Podorsky, 1-for-4, R, BB; 3B Allen Córdoba, 2-for-5, 2B, R, SB (2); RF Tirso Ornelas, 3-for-5, R, 2 RBI; CF Jeisson Rosario, 2-for-4, SB (4), 2 RBI; 2B Estuery Ruiz, 1-for-3, HR (3), RBI, R, RBI; RHP Lake Bachar, 6 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K; RHP Steven Wilson (W, 2-0) 2 IP, H, 5 K; RHP Evan Miller (S, 4) IP, 2 BB, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: The Storm won in front of a nice crowd at the Diamond. … Esteury Ruiz homered for the Storm on Friday night. After a brutal April, Ruiz is hitting .333/.382/.633 in May with all three of his homers. The 20-year-old infielder also has struck out just four times in 34 plate appearances this month. Ruiz has been moved to the bottom of the order and the results have been encouraging thus far. … Former big leaguer Allen Córdoba doubled and stole a base as part of a multi-hit game. The former Cardinal prospect grabbed in the 2016 Rule 5 draft, is hitting .219/.286/.375 while bouncing around since joining Lake Elsinore after an injury caused a late start. While Córdoba has dealt with a variety of injuries since last spring, he should be able to find some consistent at-bats in the Cal League going forward. … RHP Lake Bachar pitched fairly well making a spot start in Hi-A to fill Tom Cosgrove’s place in the rotation after the lefty was placed on the 7-day IL. Bachar finished six frames and allowed four runs but only two were earned. The former fifth-round pick had a 3.38 ERA in five games with Amarillo in 2019, which had its rotation scrambled by days off this week. He seems likely to head back to the Texas League in the near future. … Outfielder Tirso Ornelas busted out of a 1-for-19 slump with three hits Friday night. The 19-year-old slugger hasn’t shown his trademark power but his bat-to-ball performance is a step in the right direction.
TinCaps 4 Beloit Snappers 1
Key Statistics: 2B Xavier Edwards, 1-for-4, BB, RBI; SS Tucupita Marcano, 1-for-4, BB; 1B Lee Solomon, 2-for-4, RBI; C Blake Hunt, 1-for-1, R, 3 BB, SB (2); LHP Joey Cantillo, 5.1 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 5 K; RHP Adrian Martinez (W, 1-1) 2.2 IP, BB, 4 K; LHP Cody Tyler (S, 2) IP, BB, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps rallied for three runs in the ninth inning to beat Beloit in a battle in Wisconsin. … Shortstop Tucupita Marcano extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a double. He also drew a walk Friday night. The 19-year-old infielder is hitting .382/.447/.500 in May. He’s paired with fellow middle infielder Xavier Edwards, who sports a .486 OBP for the month, as a dynamic top of the order threat for Fort Wayne. … LHP Joey Cantillo turned his second consecutive good outing but he did not factor in the decision. Cantillo, 19, pitched into the sixth inning for the first time this season and allowed just one earned run. He got through the third, fourth and fifth innings on eight pitches each, tossing only three balls in the process. The southpaw has 32 strikeouts in 22 innings this season. … RHP Adrian Martinez pitched two scoreless frames to notch his first win of the year. After a poor start, the Mexicali native has allowed just a single earned run over his last 12.2 innings, with 14 strikeouts.
