With the big club off, the minor league clubs suffered losses from the Scottsdale desert to West Sacramento, lost in an extra-inning thriller at the Wolff, and in regular nine-inning fashion on the Great Lakes. Those are the ones who played games, of course, as the Lake Elsinore Storm saw their game with the rival Quakes scrapped due to COVID-19 protocols and testing.
Brian O’Grady continues to mash for the Chihuahuas. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Sacramento River Cats 9, Chihuahuas 1
Key Stats: CF Brian O’Grady, 2-for-3, 2B, BB; 3B Nick Tanielu, 2-for-3, 2B, R, BB; C Webster Rivas, 1-for-3, 2B, RBI, BB; RHP Nabil Crismatt, 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K; LHP Nick Ramirez, 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, K
Prospect Watch: As the temperatures rise across Triple-A West ballparks, Brian O’Grady heats up as well. The Rutgers product has made himself at home in a league with parks spanning from Texas and Oklahoma to the coast, following up a July with a .382/.475/.794 slash line in between stints with the Padres with a 1.100 OPS so far in August. The lefty-swinging O’Grady offers no quarter to southpaw pitchers, mashing and slashing a .343/.425/.743 line against lefties. … It was a two-hit night for Nick Tanielu, the former Astros farmhand who joined the Padres in the offseason. Tanielu, a native of Huntsville, Alabama, was drafted by Houston in the 14th round in 2014 out of Washington State. … Webster Rivas hit an RBI double, providing the loneliest number on this sad dog night against the River Cats. Rivas, who has three more at-bats with the Padres than Chihuahuas this year, has a .880 OPS for El Paso, and is 4-for-10 so far in August. … If you predicted in March that Nabil Crismatt would make his El Paso debut in August, I would like to retain your services. Crismatt, who had been optioned to El Paso twice before, but almost immediately recalled, threw 1.2 innings of scoreless relief for the Chihuahuas. The native of Barranquilla, Colombia, was signed by the Padres in December of 2020 after making his MLB debut with the Cardinals in the 2020 season. … The first appearance of the month for Nick Ramirez was a gem, with two scoreless innings. Ramirez was also added in December after time in the Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers systems.
Adrian Martinez is in action with the Flying Chanclas. (Photo: Joe Alexander)
Corpus Christi Hooks 7, Missions 5
Key Stats: SS Eguy Rosario, 2-for-5, 2 2B, RBI; 1B Kyle Overstreet, 1-for-1, 2 R, 3 BB; DH Michael Curry, 1-for-4, HR, SF, 4 RBI; RHP Adrian Martinez, 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 6 K; LHP Joe Beimel, 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, BB, K
Michael Curry had four RBI on Thursday night. (Photo: Joe Alexander)
Prospect Watch: It was a 10-inning thriller at Nelson Wolff Stadium in San Antonio, where the San Antonio Flying Chanclas came up just short against the Hooks. After starting August in an 0-for-11 mini-slump, Eguy Rosario followed up last night’s triple with a pair of doubles. Rosario, finding himself as the primary shortstop since early July, is slashing .363/.424/.638 with runners in scoring position. … After the trade deadline sent Jack Suwinski east, your current Missions walks leader is Kyle Overstreet, whose three free passes tonight passed Jose Azocar for the club lead, 36 to 35. Overstreet, drafted in 2015 by the Padres out of the University of Alabama, has reached double digits in walks in each calendar month of the season. … With a three-run home run in the 2nd and a sacrifice fly in the 6th, Michael Curry‘s first 4-RBI outing of the year outproduced his entire June, in which he drove in three runs. Curry, a 16th round pick out of Georgia in 2018, is batting .264 with six home runs and 18 RBI since July 1, good for an OPS of .861. … After racking up the accolades of being the Double-A Central Pitcher of the Month for July (as well as MadFriars Player of the Month for July), Adrian Martinez allowed a three-run home run in the fifth inning, his first earned runs since July 11. Martinez ended July with a 0.32 ERA in 28.1 innings of work, including six no-hit innings on July 2nd. .., Joe Beimel is now scoreless through two appearances in August. Beimel, whose well-publicized return to affiliated baseball at the age of 44 has been one of the stories of the year for the Missions, has a 2.70 ERA in eight appearances at home, and a 1.93 ERA in 11-night games this year.
Adam Kerner had the second multi-hit game of his pro career. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Great Lakes Loons 5, TinCaps 1
Key Stats: RF Tyler Malone, 1-for-4, HR, R, RBI; SS Chris Givin, 2-for-3, 2B, BB; C Adam Kerner, 2-for-3, RHP Wen-Hua Sung, 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Prospect Watch: The lone run of the evening for Fort Wayne was courtesy of Tyler Malone‘s first professional home run. Malone, a 27th round pick in 2019 out of Oregon State, has a .207 average and .757 OPS in 29 at-bats in 2021, with seven of those at-bats coming for El Paso. … A pair of hits, including a double, has helped Chris Givin to a 5-for-13 start to August. Givin, a 19th round selection of Xavier in 2019, has a .255/.350/.412 slash line in away games in 2021, a season in which he’s split time almost evenly between Fort Wayne and San Antonio. … The second multi-hit game of Adam Kerner‘s pro career has him starting off August batting 3-for-7, improving on a July in which Kerner went 4-for-40. Kerner, a former USD Torero, was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Padres in 2020. … A scoreless inning from Wen-Hua Sung was his first clean inning of the young month of August. Sung, a native of Taiwan, has a 5.40 ERA in five innings in away games, while sporting a 1.50 ERA in six innings in home games.
Lake Elsinore Storm (PPD)
The Lake Elsinore Storm’s game against the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes was cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols and testing in the Padres organization. We’ll have more on the situation when it’s available.
Jackson Merrill has hit in eight of the first pro games of his career. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
ACL Giants Black 9, ACL Padres 5
Key Stats: LF Lucas Dunn, 2-for-3, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB; CF James Wood, 2-for-4, 2B, RBI; SS Jackson Merrill, 1-for-4, R, RBI
James Wood had two hits on the day. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Prospect Watch: It was an impressive night filling the box score for Lucas Dunn, the Padres’ eighth-round selection in 2021 out of Louisville. Dunn, who was primarily a second baseman in college, is also now on a five-game hitting streak in the Arizona Complex League. … James Wood had a pair of hits, including an RBI double in the top of the first inning for the first extra-base hit of his professional career. Wood, an 18-year-old outfielder out of IMG Academy in Florida, was drafted in the second round last month. … The streak continues for Jackson Merrill, who has a hit in each of the first eight games of his professional career. The Padres’ top pick in the 2021 draft, Merrill hails from Severna Park High School, in Severna Park, Maryland.
