Lake Bachar has turned it on in the second half for Amarillo. (Photo: Grant Wickes)
Sacramento River Cats 9 Chihuahuas 3
Key Statistics: C Austin Allen 1-for-4, R, HR (20), RBI; 3B Jason Vosler 1-for-3, 2B, R, BB, RBI; 2B-P Matthew Batten 2-for-4; RHP Emmanuel Ramirez (L, 2-3) 5 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 9 K; RHP Tom Colletti 2 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, BB, 3 K.
Prospect Watch: El Paso lost to Sacramento at home. They trail first-place Las Vegas by two games with with 11 left to play. … Catcher Austin Allen extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a homer, his 20th of the season. The 25-year-old backstop is 20-for-41 (.488 average) during the hitting streak, with four homers, 16 RBI and only four strikeouts. Overall, Allen is hitting .331/.381/.658 this year, good for the 10th-highest OPS among hitters with 250 plate appearances. … Infielder Matthew Batten had a pair of singles, in addition to throwing a scoreless inning in mop-up duty. Batten has been a versatile cog for the Chihuahuas this year. Batten has appeared in at least one game at every position except catcher, center and right field. … RHP Emmanuel Ramirez struggled again and ultimately took the loss. The righty allowed four runs in five innings, although he did strike out nine batters. The 25-year-old has allowed at least four runs in every outing since he was promoted to El Paso. In 37.2 innings, he’s allowed an unfathomable 18 homers which has contributed to a 10.99 ERA.
Sod Poodles 9 Tulsa Drillers 3 (7 innings)
Key Statistics: SS Ivan Castillo 2-for-4, 2 R; RF Edward Olivares 2-for-3, 2 R; C Luis Torrens 1-for-3, R, BB, 2 RBI; 2B Hudson Potts 1-for-3, R, 2 RBI; RHP Lake Bachar (W, 8-4) 6.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, BB, 5 K.
Prospect Watch: The Sod Poodles got the win in a game that was shortened due to inclement weather. … Edward Olivares had a pair of singles and scored two runs for Amarillo. The talented outfielder has seen his production fall off quite a bit in August. After producing a .991 OPS in July, he has just a .588 OPS this month. The good news is that he’s only struck out in 18% of his plate appearances this month (up from 13% last month) and he has increased his walk rate to an impressive 11.5% in August. The bad news is that Olivares has just two extra-base hits in August. … RHP Lake Bachar earned his eighth win, falling just one out shy of a shortened complete game. The righthander pitched allowed three solo homers to pick up the quality start. Bachar struck out five and walked just one. Overall, Bachar has been quite good in 2019. The 24-year-old has worked at least six innings in seven of his last ten outings. He has thrown 127.2 innings this year and should get at least two more starts down the stretch. He will be Rule 5 eligible after this season and his performance this year could earn him a 40-man roster spot.
Storm 3 Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 2 (10 innings)
Key Statistics: RF Jack Suwinski 1-for-4, R; 2B Lee Solomon, 1-for-3, R, BB; LHP Aaron Leasher 5 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Elliot Ashbeck 2 IP, 4 K; RHP Jordan Guerrero 2 IP, BB, 3 K; RHP Mason Fox (W, 1-0) IP, BB, K.
Prospect Watch: The Storm won in extra innings on a sacrifice fly from Gabriel Arias. The Storm had just two hits but they did draw eight walks. … Second baseman Lee Solomon had a single and drew a walk in the Storm victory. Solomon was promoted recently but hasn’t drawn much playing time. The 23-year-old out of Lipscomb University was a roughly a league-average bat in Fort Wayne. … LHP Aaron Leasher scattered eight hits in five innings but did not factor in the decision. Leasher has now thrown five innings or more in eleven consecutive outings. During that stretch, Leasher has an ERA under two. … RHP Elliot Ashbeck pitched two innings out of the bullpen, striking out four without allowing a baserunner. Ashbeck, 25, has been a bit of an unsung star for the Storm this year, seamlessly bouncing back-and-forth between the bullpen and rotation. The former Bradley star has pitched to an ERA of 1.99 as a reliever in 24 relief appearances. He is four innings away from reaching the 100 innings mark as a professional. … Mason Fox made his Cal League debut in the 10th inning, meaning he started with a man on second. He immediately walked the first batter he faced, then went grounder, strikeout, grounder, to avoid damage and pick up the victory. The 22-year-old day three pick last year has been dominant since finishing extended spring training and getting to short-season ball. Across three levels, he’s allowed just two runs on 14 hits over 28 innings, with an electric 49:11 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Dayton Dragons 7 TinCaps 2
Key Statistics: LF Dwanya Williams-Sutton 2-for-4, R, HR (6), 2 RBI; CF Jawuan Harris 2-for-3, 2B; C Jose Lezama 1-for-2, 2 BB; LHP Cullen Dana (L, 2-3) 5.2 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, BB, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps lost on the road in Dayton. … Left fielder Dwanya Williams-Sutton had a pair of hits, including his sixth homer of the year. Williams-Sutton has been an on-base machine this year although he hasn’t hit for much power. Williams-Sutton is fifth in the Midwest League with a 14.8% walk rate and his 131 wRC+ is third in the league despite having only 18 extra-base hits all year. … Center fielder Jawuan Harris had two hits, including a double. Harris is having his best month all year, hitting .250/.360/.417. The supremely athletic Harris has a mix of tools but has had issues making consistent contact. His 123 strikeouts are the tenth-most in the Midwest League. … Catcher Jose Lezama had a single and two walks in his TinCaps debut. The 21-year-old has shown the ability to get on base throughout his time in the system. He was on the injured list all of this year but was activated when Blake Hunt was sent to the IL Wednesday. For his career, Lezama has a .416 on-base percentage in over 400 plate appearances.
Dust Devils 2 Vancouver Canadians 0
Key Statistics: C Logan Driscoll 1-for-4, R; 1B Jason Pineda 1-for-2, BB, RBI; LHP Ethan Elliott 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 7 K, 0 BB; RHP Jake Sims (W, 2-0) 2 IP, 2 H, 4 K; Felix Minjarez (S, 1) 2 IP, 6 K.
Prospect Watch: Like Lake Elsinore, the Dust Devils won despite an offense that had only two hits. Dust Devils pitching walked just one batter while striking out 17 in the victory. … LHP Ethan Elliott allowed just one hit in four innings while striking out a career-high seven batters. Elliott hasn’t allowed a run over his last three starts (11 innings). A tenth-round pick out of Division II Lincoln Memorial in June, Elliott has struck out 35 batters in 31.2 innings while walking just four. … RHP Felix Minjarez mowed down the Canadians, striking out all six batters he faced to earn the save. The former UC Riverside righty has pitched well for the Dust Devils this season. In 44.1 innings, he has struck out 46 batters while pitching to a 2.23 ERA. He was signed last June as an undrafted free agent.
Both AZL Padres squads had the night off
The Padres-2 club can clinch their division with a win tonight while the Padres-1 need to make up two games on the Dodgers in the final three days of the season.
