Albuquerque Isotopes 6, Chihuahuas 4
Key Statistics: 1B Patrick Kivlehan, 2-for-5, R, HR (15), 2 RBI; C Luis Campusano, 1-for-3, 2B, R, BB; CF-LF Taylor Kohlwey, 2-for-4, R, HR (1), RBI; RHP Jesse Scholtens (L, 2-6) 4.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 3 BB; RHP Pedro Avila, 1.2 IP, 3 H, BB, 2 K; RHP Alex Powers, 1.1 IP, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas dropped their second straight on the road in New Mexico. … Patrick Kivlehan started at first base and had a pair of hits, including his team-leading 15th homer of the year. The veteran slugger is third in the Triple-A West League in homers, one off the league lead. Earlier in the day, the organization announced that Kivlehan will be part of the 24-man roster that will represent the United States in the Olympic Games. … Outfielder Taylor Kohlwey had a pair of hits including his first Triple-A homer of 2021. The 26-year-old has hit well this season, building on the success he had back in 2019 when he hit over .300 in the upper minors. This season, between El Paso and San Antonio, the Wisconsin-La Crosse product is hitting .289/.375/.405 in 139 plate appearances. … RHP Jesse Scholtens got the nod for El Paso and scuffled through another rough outing. The right-hander allowed six hits and six runs in 4.2 innings. The 27-year-old is amid a stretch in which he has allowed 15 runs in his last 11.2 innings. Scholtens was fantastic in May, pitching to a 3.32 ERA but he has struggled since.
Roster move: Prior to the game, the Chihuahuas activated LHP Luke Westphal. Westphal, 32, had his contract purchased from the High Point Rockers of the Atlantic League. He has not pitched in affiliated ball since 2016 when he was a member of the Twins organization but he has logged time in several independent leagues including the Frontier League, Atlantic League, and the American Association. He had a 1.39 ERA in six starts with High Point in 2021.
Missions 3, Corpus Christi Hooks 1
Key Statistics: RF Jack Suwinski, 1-for-3, BB, RBI; SS Eguy Rosario, 1-for-3, R, BB; DH Michael Curry, 1-for-3, R, HR (1), RBI; RHP Adrian Martinez (W, 3-3) 6 IP, 2 BB, 9 K; LHP Joe Beimel (S, 1) IP, K.
Adrian Martinez is putting it all together in San Antonio this year. (Photo: Joe Alexander)
Prospect Watch: The Missions only had four hits Friday night but it was enough to get past Corpus Christi. … Right fielder Jack Suwinski had a single and drove in a run for San Antonio. The outfielder broke out last month with eight homers but he’s scuffled as of late. He is just 2-for-19 during his last seven games played with nine strikeouts. Despite the slump, he still earned our June player of the month honors and has an OPS of .957 in 2021. … Michael Curry hit his first Double-A homer – his only hit of the evening. Curry, 23, started the year in Fort Wayne but only played four games there before being promoted to San Antonio. He hasn’t received regular playing time for the Missions and is hitting .234/.322/.338 overall. … RHP Adrian Martinez was excellent once again for San Antonio. The right-hander did not allow a hit in his six innings of work. He walked the first batter of the game but after that Corpus Christi could not solve the Mexican-born righty. He showed excellent command of a fastball and a slider that broke down in the lower half of the zone, keeping hitters off-balance all night. Martinez has worked as a piggyback starter at times this season but he has been arguably San Antonio’s best pitcher this season. His six no-hit innings lowered his ERA to 3.04 and opposing batters are hitting just .223 against the 23-year-old. He is eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter and could pitch his way onto the 40-man roster this off-season. … 44-year-old left-hander Joe Beimel pitched a scoreless ninth and earned his first professional save since 2016 in the win. The former big leaguer signed a minor league contract last month, as he attempts to make it back to the majors for the first time since 2015.
Tirso Ornelas is trying to get untracked in Fort Wayne. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Great Lakes Loons 10, TinCaps 9
Key Statistics: C Jonny Homza, 3-for-5, 2 R; LF Tirso Ornelas, 2-for-5, 2 RBI; 2B Justin Lopez, 3-for-5, R, 2 2B; 1B Seamus Curran, 2-for-4, 2 R, BB, HR (1), 2 RBI; LHP Ethan Elliott, 4.1 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K; LHP Mason Feole (L, 1-1) 0.1 IP, H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, L; RHP Carter Loewen, IP, 2 H, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps relinquished a three-run lead in the seventh inning and lost at home to Great Lakes. … Catcher Jonny Homza had three hits – all singles – and scored a pair of runs. Homza raked in June, hitting .305/.412/.488 with a pair of homers. He is 4-for-9 to start July. … First baseman Seamus Curran had a pair of hits, including his first homer as a member of the Padres organization. The 23-year-old was signed earlier this year as a minor league free agent. He hit 17 homers in 2019 at the High-A level. He has a tremendous walk rate (22%) but has struck out in nearly 40% of his plate appearances. … Tirso Ornelas had a pair of singles and drove in a couple of runs. The left-handed outfielder scuffled at the end of June, mainly due to a significant rise in strikeouts. He has been better the last week or so, striking out just twice in his last 17 plate appearances. … LHP Ethan Elliott took the mound Friday and turned in his worst outing of the year. Elliott allowed five earned runs in 4.1 innings, including three homers. As we mentioned in our Player of the Month Series, Elliott has been generally excellent but has had a very hard time limiting the long ball. He has allowed 13 homers this season, which is tied for the most in the High-A Central. Elliott’s rare poor outing increased his ERA to 2.94 which is still the fourth-lowest in the circuit.
Robert Hassell III. (Photo: Mike Wilson)
Storm 11, Inland Empire 66’ers 3
Key Statistics: SS Jordy Barley, 1-for-4, R, BB, SB (30); CF Robert Hassell III, 2-for-5, 2 R, 2B, RBI; 2B Euribiel Angeles, 2-for-5, R, 2B; 1B Carlos Luis, 2-for-5, 2 R; 3B Sean Guilbe, 2-for-2, R; LF Angel Solarte, 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI; RHP Dwayne Matos, 3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K; RHP Carlos Guarate (W, 1-2) 5 IP, 3 H, ER, 2 BB, 5 K.
Prospect Watch: The Storm pounded out 14 hits, winning in their battle for Inland Empire supremacy. … Robert Hassell III had another multi-hit effort, including a double. Hassell had a solid June, hitting .286/.346/.439 and he is 3-for-9 to start July. … Carlos Luis made his Lake Elsinore debut and had a pair of singles. Luis, 21, spent the 2019 season in Tri-City, where he struggled at the plate and in the field before a gruesome broken arm. He played in a couple of games for the complex team in Peoria and he will be part of the Elsinore infield for the time being. … Infielder Euribiel Angeles had a pair of hits Friday, extending his hitting streak to eleven games. The 19-year-old infielder continues to hit at a high level, showing excellent bat control at the plate. His .332 average is seventh in the league. … RHP Carlos Guarate piggybacked starter Dwayne Matos and turned in five excellent innings to earn the win. Guarate, 20, struggled badly in his last outing, allowing 10 earned runs in 3.1 innings. Outside of that outing, Guarate has provided solid work for the Storm this season. He has a 5:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
ACL Rangers 10, ACL Padres 0
Key Statistics: SS Bryan Torres, 2-for-3, 2 BB; C Matias Polanco, 1-for-3, BB; LHP Javier Chacon, 0 IP, 3 H, 6 ER, 3 BB; RHP Steven Wilson, IP, H, 3 K; RHP Jose Luis Reyes, 2 IP, 2 H, K.
Prospect Watch: This one was over early; the ACL Padres allowed nine runs in the first inning. … Shortstop Bryan Torres was the lone bright spot for the ACL Padres, as he reached base four times. Torres, 21, was part of the Padres’ vaunted international class of 2016, signing for $175,000. He spent two seasons in the DSL before making his stateside debut in the former Arizona League in 2019. … RHP Steven Wilson made a rehab appearance in the desert and fired a scoreless inning, striking out three batters while allowing just one hit. Wilson was placed on the injured list on May 17th. … LHP Javier Chacon made his professional debut and it was brief and forgettable. The 18-year-old Cuban didn’t record an out and allowed six runs on three hits. He is part of the current 2020-21 international signing class.
