Albuquerque Isotopes 11, Chihuahuas 8
Key Stats: CF Esteury Ruiz 2-for-5, SB (4); SS C.J. Abrams 3-for-5, SB (7); 2B Eguy Rosario 2-for-5, 2B, SB (11), E; 1B/LF Taylor Kohlwey 2-for-5, HR (4); DH Robinson Canó 2-for-4, 2B, BB; RHP Jesse Scholtens 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, K, BB, HBP; RHP Jose Quezada 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 K

Eguy Rsoario has a .920 OPS in his last 47 at-bats this month. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Prospect Watch: El Paso batters combined for 14 hits on the day, but after scoring eight runs in the first two frames, they couldn’t push another runner across all evening. Esteury Ruiz and C.J. Abrams once again did a stellar job of setting the table, combining to go 5-for-10 and each swiping a base. Abrams, who collected three singles in the game, nudged his average at El Paso up over .300 for the first time since the third day after he joined the Triple-A club in May. The 21-year-old hasn’t struck out in 31 June at-bats. … Ruiz had two more hits and has now reached base multiple times in five of six games since moving up to Triple-A. After reaching base at a stellar .474 rate for San Antonio, the 23-year-old outfielder has improved on that with El Paso, posting a .533 rate in the early going. … Eguy Rosario, batting third behind the dynamic duo, continued to heat up in the early summer, adding a pair of hits of his own. The infielder was slow to get out of the gate in his first pass at the PCL, but has a .920 OPS in 47 at-bats this month. … In his second game, Robinson Canó had a pair of hits, including a double, and struck out twice. The last time he was a non-rehab member of a minor league roster, Abrams was four years old. … Jesse Scholtens, who worked one inning when ye returned from the COVID list on Thursday, tossed two frames Sunday as he works back into shape. … Jose Quezada, who made one rehab appearance in the desert last week, was reinstated from the IL and gave up a run on two hits while striking out a pair. The diminutive righty struck out 66 in 50.2 frames across two levels last year, but issued 23 free passes.
Missions 5, Corpus Christi Hooks 3
Key Stats: 3B Connor Hollis 3-for-4, 2B, BB, SB (12); 2B Kelvin Alarcon 2-for-5, 2B; DH Juan Zabala 2-for-4, 2 SB (2); RHP Reggie Lawson 4.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 9 K, 4 BB; LHP Tom Cosgrove 1.2 IP, 0 H, 4 K

Reggie Lawson at full extension earlier this year with the Flying Chanclas. (Photo: Rey Holguin)
Prospect Watch: Reggie Lawson followed his five-inning, one-run victory over the Hooks on Tuesday with 4.2 innings of one-hit ball on Sunday to help the Missions to a series victory. The righty recorded a season-high nine strikeouts, getting swinging strikes with both of his breaking balls and a fastball that played well when he worked at the top of the zone. The 24-year-old walked four as he continues to fight for control with his arsenal and now has issued 27 free passes in 30.2 innings since coming of the IL in late April. Lawson, once a highly-regarded prospect who has been waylaid by injuries and inconsistent performance, shaved more than two and a half runs off his ERA in the series, but it still sits at 6.75. … Thomas Cosgrove came on in relief of Lawson with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth and got a strikeout to escape without damage. He then struck out the side in the sixth wrapped around a hit batter and got one more out in the seventh to finish his day. The lefty, drafted out of Manhattan College in the 12th round in 2017, lowered his ERA on the year to 2.86 and pushed his strikeout total to 33 in 22 innings of work. Opponents are hitting just .162 against him and right-handed hitters haven’t fared significantly better than same-sided batters. Cosgrove, who turns 26 on Tuesday, was equally effective at San Antonio last year, when he missed two months on the IL. … Connor Hollis continued his stellar campaign, collecting three more hits including a double, and swiping his 12th base. With a walk on the day as well, he raised his OBP to .459, good for fourth on the circuit. The 27-year-old’s fantastic .309/.459/.478 campaign has his OPS tracking about 60 points above his career mark coming into the season.

Robert Hassell III retruned in a big way. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Lake County Captains 5, TinCaps 3
Key Stats: CF Robert Hassell III 2-for-4, 2B, HR (7); DH Brandon Valenzuela 1-for-3, BB; RHP Efrain Contreras 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K, 1 BB; RHP Brandon Komar 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 K

Brandon Komar threw four shutout innings on Sunday. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps carried a no-hitter and a 3-0 lead into the eighth inning, but a bullpen meltdown cost them the chance at a second straight series split. Robert Hassell III connected on a double and his seventh homer of the year in his first game back off the COVID list. The 20-year-old outfielder extended his hitting streak to four games and 16 days thanks to a two week layoff. Six of his seven homers have come against right-handed pitchers, against whom he has a .949 OPS that’s more than 300 points above his mark against lefties. … Efrain Contreras opened with two hitless innings in a planned short outing after missing his last turn through the rotations. The 22-year-old righty hadn’t worked a scoreless appearance in his first five starts.
Storm 6, San Jose Giants 2
Key Stats: 3B Carlos Luis 2-for-4, HR (4); C Victor Duarte 2-for-3, 2B, HR (1), HBP; RF Charlis Aquino 2-for-3, BB, SB (7); LHP Jesus Gonzalez 7 IP, 6 H, 2 R (1 ER), 7 K; RH Yerry Landinez 2 IP, 1 H, 3 K
Prospect Watch: The bottom of the Storm lineup combined to go 6-for-10 with a pair of homers to win their third straight and extend their division lead. Carlos Luis continued his best season since coming stateside in 2018. The big left-handed swinging corner infielder connected on his fourth homer of the year after managing just two in 488 plate appearances over his three previous minor league systems. While he’s always shown raw power and good bat speed at the plate, his pitch recognition and athleticism have improved significantly this year to help him see better results in games. Now 22, the Dominican Republic native has seen his walk rate jump up over 10% this year while keeping his strikeout rate around his career norm at 20%. … Victor Duarte entered the afternoon with three extra-base hits – all doubles – in his first 21 games with the Storm. Sunday he connected for a double and a homer, while driving in three. The 21-year-old raised his OPS 100 points with the strong night. … Charlie Aquino also reached base three times, and swiped his seventh base. In 21 games since joining the Storm, the 20-year-old is producing to the tune of a .295/.380/.455. line. … Jesus Gonzalez turned in a career high seven innings, allowing only one earned run while striking out seven. After walking four his last time out, he didn’t allow a free pass Sunday as he tossed 80 pitches. The 21-year-old lefty had been averaging over 14 pitches per inning coming into the day.
[…] hitter or first base. Cummings is tied for second on the Storm with five homers. … As we wrote in yesterday’s s daily, lefty Jesus Gonzalez turned in the best start of his professional career. The 21-year-old worked a […]