Robbie Podorsky has been a spark plug for the El Paso offense. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Oklahoma City Dodgers 8, Chihuahuas 5
Key Statistics: 1B Austin Nola 1-for-3; SS Ivan Castillo 3-for-4, R, RBI; CF Robbie Podorsky 1-for-5, 3B (1), K; 2B Gosuke Katoh 1-for-4, 2B (8), 2 K; LF Matt Batten 2-for-5, R, RBI; LHP SP Caleb Boushley 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K; RHP Steven Wilson 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas’ ninth-inning comeback came up short for the second night in a row, as three runs weren’t enough to offset the five allowed by the El Paso bullpen. Starter Caleb Boushley surrendered a homer to Dodgers top 30 prospect Omar Estevez in the 2nd, and after an Austin Nola error (on a slow roller with the pitcher covering that he couldn’t get a handle on) extended the inning, Matt Davidson homered to put OKC up 3-0… Robbie Podorsky kickstarted the offense in the sixth with a leadoff triple, coming around to score on an infield single by Matt Batten. Speed is Podorsky’s loudest tool, and while he has similar career numbers to current Padres bench piece Jorge Mateo (very close in career OPS and walk rate), he strikes out at a much lower clip (9.8% to Mateo’s 23%), and could be an intriguing solution should the Padres lose patience with Mateo. In 11 games with El Paso, Podorsky is slashing .303/.351/.545. … The only runs off Boushley came on longballs, and despite throwing a lot of pitches in the first few innings, he was able to minimize the damage. While this outing lowered his ERA to 5.57, more impressive is that the 27-year-old is striking out almost a batter an inning and has a 1.7 BB/9 rate. … Steven Wilson looked sharp in his first appearance since returning from an eight week stay on the IL. The 26-year-old righty allowed two hits – one of them left the yard – in two innings while striking out five. … More concerning was the pitching that followed him. After Parker Markel allowed a solo homer in the 8th, Chase Johnson allowed three runs on two hits and four walks in the 9th, along with three wild pitches and a passed ball. This prompted El Paso to send Batten to the mound for the third time this season to record the final out in the top of the 9th.
San Antonio Rained Out
Our very own John Conniff and Mark Wilkins are eating well in San Antonio, but were unable to feast their eyes on any baseball as rain continues to fall across Texas.
TinCaps 5, Lake County Captains 4
Key Statistics: SS Chris Givin 1-for-4, HR (1), 2 RBI; 1B Seamus Curran 1-for-4, HR (2), 2 RBI, K; C Jonny Homza 0-for-4, 3 K; LF Tirso Ornelas 0-for-3, BB, R, K; RF Agustin Ruiz 0-for-3, R, BB; 2B Reinaldo Ilarraza 2-for-3; R; SP Gabe Mosser 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K;
Prospect Watch: Ben Davey has all the info from the Summit City on Fort Wayne’s win after a solid start by Gabe Mosser.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 9, Storm 5
Key Statistics: RF Joshua Mears 2-for-4, 3B, K; 2B Jarryd Dale 1-for-4, HR (2), 2 RBI, 2 K; SS Euribiel Angeles 1-for-4, R; DH Brandon Valenzuela 1-for-4, 2B, RBI, K; C Gilberto Vizcarra 1-for-4, HR (1), 2 RBI, K; CF Robert Hassell III 0-for-4, K; SP Noel Vela 2.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K; Connor Lehmann 4.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K
Prospect Watch: The Quakes jumped on Storm starter Noel Vela early, scoring six times to chase him before he could get out of the third inning. The lefty from Texas allowed the first three Rancho batters to reach base, and though he would retire the next three hitters, two RBI groundouts put Lake Elsinore in an early 2-0 hole. … The Storm pulled even in the second on a triple by big Joshua Mears and the first homer of the season for Gilberto Vizcarra. While Mears continues to struggle with contact, 17 of his 33 hits have been for extra bases, keeping his slugging percentage at .432 despite a .213 average. … Vizcarra is now slashing .318/.385/.591 in six games this month. … In the third, an error, a homer, and a pair of walks came back to haunt the visiting squad as they trailed 6-2 when Vela was pulled with two outs in the third. … Top-ten Dodgers prospect Diego Cartaya put the game out of reach with a three-run shot in the fourth – his ninth homer of the season. … Connor Lehmann came on in the fifth inning and worked four scoreless frames. The big righty struck out five and retired the last seven in a row in his longest outing of the year. A 2019 draftee out of Saint Louis, Lehmann spent the first month of the year on the IL and has been stretching out on a slow build-up schedule. … Euribiel Angeles collected a single to lead off the seventh to extend his hitting streak to 18 games. After being named the MadFriars player of the month for Lake Elsinore in June, the 19-year-old infielder is hitting .471/.526/.676 this month.
ACL Mariners 7, Padres 3 (F/7 innings)
Marines 3, Padres 2 (Suspended, T-4)
Key Statistics: 2B Neifi Antunez 1-for-4, R, 2 K; CF Edwin Rojas 2-for-3, RBI, K; C Victor Duarte 1-for-3, HR; OF Willmert Paula 1-for-3, 2B, R; SP Justin Lange 3.0 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K; LHP Bodi Rascon 0.2 IP, 0 3, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K; LHP Alexuan Vega 0.0 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 0 K
Prospect Watch: While the Padres and Mariners managed to complete last Saturday’s suspended contest, they didn’t get through the regularly-scheduled game because of a monsoon season that continues to be active. The clubs picked up in the bottom of the fourth inning with Mariners up 7-2, and combined for just one hit over the final 3.5 innings. That knock belonged to Victor Duarte, who connected on an RBI double following a one-out walk in the sixth. The 20-year-old Venezuelan backstop is 4-for-14 with a pair of extra-base hits in his stateside debut. … The completion of the game means that stat lines for Justin Lange and Bodi Rascon – both of whom pitched on Friday night – are now reflected accurately. Lange, the club’s supplemental first-rounder last year, has struck out 10 while allowing just one run through his first seven professional innings. Rascon, who landed an overslot deal to sign as a 14th-round pick in 2019, got hit hard in the first leg of this contest, but bounced back nicely with a clean inning Friday. … The teams only got to the top of the fourth in the originally-scheduled game. They’ll look to pick it up when they square off again next Saturday.
