Joey Cantillo has been dominant in his last six starts. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Chihuahuas 6 Iowa Cubs 4
Key Statistics: SS Luis Urías 1-3, R, RBI, BB, SB; C Francisco Mejia 2-4, HR (3), 2B, 2 RBI; 1B Matt Batten 2-4; LHP Logan Allen 6.0 IP 5 H 4 R 3 ER BB 4 K; RHP Trevor Megill W (1-0) 2.0 IP H 4 K; RHP Andres Muñoz S (2), 1.0 IP
Prospect Watch: El Paso was down 4-0 after the first inning on the road, but came back by scoring a run in six different innings for their fourth straight win. The Chihuahuas are now 17 games over .500. …After giving up four runs, three of them earned in the first inning, Logan Allen settled in and threw five innings of shutout ball. After posting an 8.15 ERA in April, he bounced back with a 3.14 in May. … Francisco Mejia, obviously inspired by the darker corners of Padres’ Twitter, has been on fire. In his first eleven games at Triple-A, he has 11 extra-base hits for a .432/.467/.919 slash line in 42 plate appearances. … Centerfielder Franchy Cordero had a tough day with four strikeouts in five plate appearances to go along with an error. … Luis Urías did what he has done all year for the Chihuahuas, contribute. In addition to filling up a box score, he played a flawless shortstop and has a slash line of.371/.488/.714 in 44 plate appearances with runners in scoring position. …Andres Muñoz is off to a good start in his Triple-A career with 10 strikeouts against three walks in his first seven games.
Frisco RoughRiders 6 Sod Poodles 1
Key Statistics: C A.J. Kennedy 2-4, 2B; 1B Brad Zunica 0-2, 2 BB; CF Buddy Reed 1-2, 2 BB; LHP Adrian Morejon 1.0 IP, L (0-4), 1 H, 1 R (0 ER), 1 K; RHP Jesse Scholtens 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 2 HR
Adrian Morejon has only been able to throw 21.2 innings in 2019. Photo: Grant Wickes.
Prospect Watch: The Sod Poodles had a tough series, getting swept by Frisco at home. They came into the three-game series with an opportunity to lay claim to the division lead. Offensively, Amarillo was 0-for-15 with runners in scoring position and are now three games in back of Frisco in the Texas League South first-half standings. … After a two-week layoff with a vaguely-defined shoulder soreness, Adrian Morejon returned to the mound Wednesday. The organization is still treading lightly, as he only threw a single scheduled inning as the Padres and pitcher work to understand what’s going on. … A.J. Kennedy has now played for the Sod Poodles, Chihuahuas and Storm this season. Kennedy has never been able to hit consistently but is one of the best defensive catchers in the organization.
Storm 7 Inland Empire 66ers 2
Key Statistics: DH Luis Campusano 2-4, 2 RBI, BB, 2B; 3B Olivier Basabe 2-4, HR (5) RBI, BB; 2B Esteury Ruiz 3-4, 2 RBI, SB; LHP MacKenzie Gore 2.0 IP H BB 4 K; RHP Elliot Ashbeck (W, 2-0) 4.0 IP 2 H R BB K; LHP Fred Schlichtholz 1.2 Ip 2 H R ER BB 3 K.
Prospect Watch: Working on a scheduled light load, MacKenzie Gore only threw a pair of innings, but still found time to strike out four of the eight batters he faced. The 20-year-old emerging ace leads the Cal League ERA race by more than a run. … At 20, Luis Campusano has emerged as one of the top players in the Cal League on both sides of the ball despite being more than two years younger than his average opponent. He .311 average ranks third in the league and he is one of just two Cal League hitters with an OPS over .900. … Esteury Ruiz, who came over with Matt Strahm from the Kansas City Royals, stole his 21st base in 25 attempts. While there are questions about where he fits in defensively, his bat is looking increasingly real. After struggling in April, he hit .295/.364/.551 in May, significantly cutting down his strikeout rate.
TinCaps 3 Lake County Captains 2
Key Statistics: C Blake Hunt 1-4, RBI; SS Justin Lopez 1-3, 2B, BB; CF Jawuan Harris 1-3, RBI, 2 SB; LHP Joey Cantillo W (3-2), 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 1 HR; Henry Henry (S, 5) 1.0 IP 2 H R ER
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps got another strong start from lefty Joey Cantillo as they won their second straight game after being swept in the preceding series. … Cantillo has been dominant in his last six starts giving up only three earned runs in 32.1 innings. The 6-foot-5 19-year old Hawaiian relies upon a mix of four-seam fastballs, curves, and changeups. Throw out a few bad starts in April, and he has been as good as anyone in the Midwest League. … Cantillo’s roommate, Blake Hunt, has now hit in seven of his past eight games and has a slash line of .361/.425/.611 in his last 10 games. … Jawuan Harris, 22, is struggling to make contact right now, but the former Rutgers star is a premium athlete, he played both offense and defense on the college football team in addition to also playing baseball. He’s also drawing walks at a team-best 17.6% clip. There is a lot to dream on. … The Midwest League announced Wednesday morning that starter Ryan Weathers, infielder Xavier Edwards, and reliever Henry Henry made the All-Star team. Henry celebrated by picking up his fifth save of the year.
Draft Update
MLB teams raced through 30 rounds of selections to wrap up the 2019 draft Wednesday. Kevin has a wrap-up, and we’ll have further coverage for subscribers starting this weekend. So, if you’re not already getting access to all of our premium content, now’s a perfect time to subscribe!
For the box scores of all the games please go to the MiLB.com scoreboards.
