Buddy Reed’s walk-off homer gave the Sod Poodles a wild victory Wednesday. (Photo: Olivia Rook)
Chihuahuas 12 Salt Lake Bees 5
Key Stats: LF Rodrigo Orozco 3-for-5, 3B; CF Travis Jankowski 3-for-5; 1B Aderlin Rodgriguez 3-for-5, 2B; RF Michael Gettys 1-for-5, HR (31), 3K; LHP Jerry Keel 6 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 3 K, 2 BB
Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas used a nine-run fourth inning to cruise to victory Wednesday, staying two games behind division-leading Las Vegas. Michael Gettys pulled a three-run homer to cap off the scoring in the monster inning and set a new El Paso franchise record for homers in a season. The blast was Gettys’ 31st of the year and ninth since the all-star break. The 23-year-old struck out in three other trips to the plate, pushing his season total to 163, one off the league high. Gettys has hit in four straight games and is on track for his second month of the season with an OPS over .900. … The top three hitters in the Chihuahuas lineup all went 3-for-5 as Rodrigo Orozco tripled and Aderlin Rodriguez doubled. For Orozco, the big night pushed his OPS in 21 Triple-A games up to .928. The switch-hitter has fared much better against righties on the season, a trend that continued Wednesday. Rodriguez continued his demolition of the PCL this month with four more total bases. His OPS for the month sits at 1.237
Sod Poodles 9 Tulsa Drillers 8
Key Stats: LF Tyler Benson 2-for-4; 3B Hudson Potts 2-for-4, 2B; SS Ruddy Giron 2-for-4, 2B, HR (1); CF Buddy Reed 1-for-3, HR (13); RHP Sam Williams 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 K, 1 BB; RHP David Bednar 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 K, 2 BB
Prospect Watch: Buddy Reed pulled the second pitch of the ninth inning over the right field wall to give the Sod Poodles a walk-off win and cap a wild affair. The blast was the ninth of the day as the ball carried on a gusting wind all morning. Nine of Reed’s 13 homers have come at Hodgetown, where his OPS for the season is 300 points higher than on the road. … Only Edward Olivares, who had a sacrifice fly, failed to collect a hit for Amarillo. Ruddy Giron posted his best game in the Texas League, doubling and hitting his first homer of the season. The 22-year-old infielder has managed just a .528 OPS in limited action across two levels this year, his fourth straight campaign struggling in the system. … Sam Williams, promoted early in the day, worked 1.2 innings of shutout relief. The 23-year-old lefty signed as an undrafted free agent just after the draft and had worked primarily in the AZL before a brief stint with Lake Elsinore. … David Bednar extend his scoreless innings streak to 15.1 and pushed his strikeout total to 84 in 57 innings for Amarillo. The 24-year-old had allowed seven runs by mid-April, but has permitted just 11 earned runs in 36 outings since.
Roster Notes: The Padres recalled Nick Margevicius and officially sent MacKenzie Gore back to the AZL to shut him back down. Only Williams joined the team, so there is one more roster move to come. The organization also announced that Amarillo infielders Hudson Potts and Owen Miller will participate in the Arizona Fall League. They’ll be joined by Luis Campusano and an as-yet undetermined group of four pitchers.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 7 Storm 2
Key Stats: LF Allen Córdoba 1-for-4, 2B; SS Gabriel Arias 1-for-4, 2B; CF Jeisson Rosario 1-for-3, 2B, BB; LHP Osvaldo Hernandez 2.2 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 2 K, 1 BB; RHP Angel Acevedo 4.1 IP, 5H, 3 ER, 1 K, 2 BB
Prospect Watch: Osvaldo Hernandez got dinged for four runs in the second inning and then the Quakes pulled away late as the Dodgers’ High-A affiliate pulled to a three-game lead in the division. Lake Elsinore is still well-positioned to back into a playoff spot since Rancho already claimed the first-half title. Hernandez has given up eight earned runs in his last 7.2 innings after allowing just six in his first 30 frames of the year. Like the higher-profile Cuban hurlers above him in the system, Hernandez hasn’t worked more than three innings in a game after returning to action from injury in May. … Gabriel Arias extended his latest hitting streak to five games and kept his OPS for the second half of the season well over .900 with an RBI double.
Roster Moves: Like Gore, Joey Cantillo‘s stellar campaign has come to an end one trip through the rotation before the end of the season. The lefty was officially transferred to the roster of the now-done AZL Padres-1. Righties Angel Acevedo, who gave up three runs in four innings, and Adrian Martinez were promoted from Tri-City and Fort Wayne respectively.
South Bend Cubs 13 TinCaps 4
Key Stats: LF Michael Curry 2-for-3, 2B, BB; RF Dwanya Williams-Sutton 2-for-4; 2B/SS Justin Lopez 1-for-3, HR (12), BB; RHP Dylan Coleman 1.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 K, 1 BB
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps continue to limp toward the finish line, dropping their seventh in the last 10 and having to, once again, turn to a position player to finish the game on the mound. Cullen Dana was tagged for five earned runs and couldn’t get out of the first inning. Righty Dylan Coleman continued to try to rebuild his lost season, striking out three over 1.1 innings of relief work in the blowout. The big righty, drafted in the fourth round last summer, issued another walk and has now handed out eight in 9.2 innings since joining the TinCaps. … Justin Lopez homered and drew a walk to bring his August OPS to an even .800. The talented switch-hitting shortstop has hit all but one of his round-trippers from the left side. While the start of his July was so brutal that it continues to weigh down his second-half splits, the 19-year-old has shown marked improvement in pitch selection and production over the last six weeks.
Roster Moves: Lefty Jesus Gonzalez, who didn’t turn 18 until this June, joined the TinCaps after solid but unspectacular numbers in the AZL. He’ll become the youngest pitcher to appear in the Midwest League this year when he makes the start for Fort Wayne Thursday.
Vancouver Canadians 8 Dust Devils 7
Key Stats: 2B Jordy Barley 2-for-4, BB; RF Logan Driscoll 1-for-4, HR (2), SF; DH Mason House 2-for-3, HR (2); RHP Ethan Elliott 4 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 K, 0 BB
Prospect Watch: The Dust Devils bullpen gave up six runs and two leads over the final three innings and the club remained winless in seven games at Vancouver. They have one more north of the border before heading home for their final series with division-leading Spokane. Ethan Elliott capped off his strong pro debut by giving up one run in four innings. The 22-year-old lefty posted a strong 38:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 35.2 innings after the Padres drafted him in the 10th round. Northwest League opponents hit just .205 against him. … Mason House is finishing off his nightmare season with a little flourish. The 20-year-old outfielder picked up his second straight multi-hit game and extended his hitting streak to four games. The 2017 third-rounder had been just 5-for-61 on the year prior to the uptick. Even in this stretch, though, he’s struck out seven times and his K rate remains above 50% for the season.
Roster Moves: Pitchers Luarbert Arias, Martin Carrasco and Seth Maberry arrived from Arizona to reinforce the Dust Devils roster for the final week stretch of the season. Even with the influx, the roster is still well below the league limit of 35.
For Subscribers: John has an interview with lefty reliever Dan Dallas, who earned a spot on the Northwest League All-Star roster for the second straight season.
AZL Indians-Blue 12 AZL Padres-2 1
Key Stats: CF Franchy Cordero 0-for-2, BB, K; OF Angel Solarte 2-for-4; C Gilbert Vizcarra 2-for-3, BB, RBI; LHP Alex Vega 1.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 K, 1 BB; RHP Jeferson Garcia 4 IP, 6 H, 3 R (0 ER), 5 K, 1 BB
Prospect Watch: Not with a bang, but a whimper, this is how the season ends for the Padres’ rookie-level club. The Padres, who posted the second-best overall record in the league and ran away with the second half crown, got blown out in the one-game semifinal playoff game. The contest ended when a massive lightning storm moved into the area followed by rain midway through the ninth inning. Catcher Gilberto Vizcarra delivered his fifth straight two-hit game and drove in the only run of the night for the Padres. The 20-year-old from Mexicali made the most of his repeat year in the desert, finishing with a .302/.381/.371 line. He struck out just 17 times in 134 trips to the plate. … Padres outfielder Franchy Cordero got five innings of action in center and drew a walk in three plate appearances. It will be interesting to see where he continues his rehab over the weekend.
