Max Ferguson had four hits Tuesday night. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Chihuahuas 8, Sacramento River Cats 2
Key Statistics: 2B Robinson Cano, 2-for-5, R, 2 RBI; C Luis Campusano, 3-for-5, 2 R, 2B; RF Brent Rooker, 3-for-5, R, 2 2B, 2 RBI; 1B Taylor Kohlwey, 1-for-3, 3 R, HR (7), 3 RBI, 2 BB; LHP Ryan Weathers, 5.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 5 K; RHP Kyle Tyler, 1.1 IP, 4 K; LHP Jose Castillo, IP, 2 K; RHP Dinelson Lamet, IP, 3 K
Prospect Watch: El Paso made their way to Northern California and started the road trip off right with an easy win in Sacramento. … Robinson Cano had his second multi-hit game as a Chihuahua Tuesday night. He started at second base and drove in a pair. Through eight games, Cano has a .677 OPS. … Luis Campusano started behind the dish and had a three-hit night that included a double. The-23-year-old hasn’t hit for much power in June but he still has very good contact rates. He’s slugging just .345 this month. … Lefty Ryan Weathers carried a no-hitter through five innings but the wheels came off a bit in the sixth. After allowing just a walk and a hit batsman through his first five, Weathers allowed a single to the lead-off batter in the sixth frame. After striking out the next batter, Weathers went single, walk, walk to allow a run. A sacrifice fly gave the River Cats a second run before the former first-rounder was pulled. Reliever Kyle Tyler got a strikeout to end the threat. Despite the rough go in the sixth, it was one of Weathers’ best outings of the season. Weathers allowed just two earned runs on two hits in 5.2 innings. The four walks are a concern but the five strikeouts are an encouraging sign. In 26 innings in May, Weathers struck out just 17 batters. When excluding his appearance with the Padres last week, Weathers has 14 strikeouts in his last 17 innings. … After ending the sixth with a strikeout, Tyler came back out in the seventh and vanquished the River Cats in order – all by way of the strikeout. The often-DFA’ed hurler pitched well on the Padres’ road trip last week before being optioned back to the Sun City. As of now, Tyler is on the 40-man roster. … We keep the pitchers with big-league experience theme going with Jose Castillo and Dinelson Lamet. We get asked about a lot of players on Twitter. Well, the vibes were good tonight for Castillo, who threw a scoreless frame, striking out a pair of River Cats to lower his El Paso ERA to 1.29. In 14 innings, Castillo has walked five and struck out 19. The Padres don’t have an immediate need for Castillo’s services but having a depth option who’s had success in the big leagues is a good safety valve to have stashed in the minors. … Lamet finished this one off by striking out the side. Just two years ago, during the COVID-shortened season, Lamet was one of the best pitchers in the National League and the Padres’ undisputed ace. Just two years later, he is trying to rediscover the form he once had. In five innings over three appearances out of the El Paso bullpen, Lamet has allowed just one hit to go with two walks and six strikeouts.
Wichita Wind Surge 9, Missions 2
Connor Hollis has been playing well for the Missions. (Photo: Rey Holguin).
Key Statistics: 3B Connor Hollis, 2-for-5, 2 R, SB (13); CF Korry Howell, 2-for-3, SB (11, 12); 2B Domingo Leyba, 2-for-4, 2 RBI, SB (4); DH Juan Fernandez, 2-for-3; RHP Lake Bachar (L, 0-2) 3 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 K; RHP Kevin Kopps, 2 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, K.
Prospect Watch: It was a historic evening Tuesday night, as the Missions did battle with the Wichita Wind Surge for the first time. San Antonio hasn’t played in Wichita since the 2007 season when the Wichita Wranglers were a part of the Texas League. … On the field, the Missions got excellent production at the top of the order put plated just two runs in the loss. … Third baseman Connor Hollis had two more hits and stole his 13th base of the year. Hollis is fourth in the Texas League with 71 hits and his .440 on-base percentage ranks fifth. … Korry Howell slotted behind Hollis in the batting order and had two singles off his own. The fleet-footed Howell also stole two bases, giving him 12 this season. The former Brewer prospect started slowly in April but he hit well in May and has hit well in June too, despite missing two weeks on the COVID-19 list. In 29 plate appearances this month, Howell is hitting .320/.433/.560. … Right-hander Kevin Kopps took over for Lake Bachar and he was knocked around a bit. Kopps allowed four earned runs in two innings, including a three-run bomb that opened this one up. The 25-year-old reliever got off to a good start in April but May and June have not been kind to the former Arkansas hurler. In five games this month (7.1 innings) Kopps has allowed 16 base runners, including seven walks and just five strikeouts. The former Golden Spikes Award Winner looked like he could be on a fast track to the big leagues coming into 2022, but he will need to rediscover the form he showed in April.
Great Lakes Loons 4, TinCaps 3
Key Statistics: 3B Lucas Dunn, 3-for-4, BB; RF Agustin Ruiz, 2-for-4, R, 2B; DH Brandon Valenzuela, 1-for-4, BB, RBI; RHP Dwayne Matos (L, 0-1) 4.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, BB, 5 K; RHP Ethan Routzahn, 1.1 IP, 2 H, BB, K.
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps made things interesting late in the game but they ended up losing at home to the Dodgers’ High-A squad. … Last Tuesday, TinCaps third baseman Lucas Dunn took an 0-for-4 to drop his High-a batting average to .156. In the subsequent six games, Dunn has thrice had three-hit games, including Tuesday. Dunn had three singles and drew a walk but the TinCaps couldn’t drive him in. The 23-year-old was the driving force behind a good Storm offense and he appears to be figuring things out at the High-A level. Dunn is 11-for-28 over the last six games. .. Agustin Ruiz had a double and scored a run Tuesday night. The 22-year-old Ruiz broke out in the Summit City last year, hitting 15 homers in 72 games before being promoted to San Antonio. Ruiz opened this season in San Antonio and struggled out of the gate, leading to a demotion to Fort Wayne. In 15 games this season with the TinCaps, Ruiz is hitting .184/.305/.429. … RHP Dwayne Matos worked into the fifth inning but ended up taking the loss for Fort Wayne. Matos allowed three runs on five hits, walking one and striking out five. The 21-year-old has been a little too hittable in his stint with the TinCaps but he has an excellent K/BB of 6.33.
Storm 14, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 7
Key Statistics: SS Max Ferguson, 4-for-5, 2 3B, 4 R, 2 RBI, 2 SB (45, 46); CF James Wood, 1-for-5, 2B, R, 3 RBI; DH Carlos Luis, 3-for-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 3B, BB; C Victor Duarte, 2-for-4, R, 3 RBI; LHP Bodi Rascon, 2 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 2 K; RHP Alan Mundo (W, 4-1) 5 IP, H, BB, 4 K
Carlos Luis has big bat-to-ball skills. (Photo: Dinur Blum)
Prospect Watch: On a night when thundershowers were reported in parts of San Diego, the Storm were a mere 70 miles away taking the Quakes to the woodshed. The Storm victory gave them the first-half title and a spot in the Cal League playoffs. … When Max Ferguson delivers at the plate, the Storm offense has been virtually unstoppable. There was no better example than Tuesday night. Ferguson had four hits, including two triples. When he wasn’t getting to third base via a hit, he was stealing more bases. The speedy infielder/outfielder stole two more bags, giving him 46 this season. The biggest development for Ferguson this month has been the addition of some pop to his game. Ferguson isn’t blasting homers over the big wall in right but he’s driving the ball to the gaps and showing he’s much more than a slap hitter with a good eye at the plate. In 84 June plate appearances, Ferguson is hitting .289/.357/.474. His slugging percentage failed to crack .300 in April and May. … Carlos Luis contributed three hits to the parade, including a triple of his own. Luis also extended his hitting streak to seven games. The big lefty is enjoying the best stretch of his professional career, hitting .370/.433/.519 this month. … After Bodi Rascon got roughed up early, right-hander Alan Mundo stabilized things for the Storm and earned the victory for his efforts. Mundo pitched five sparkling innings, allowing just a hit and a walk to go with four strikeouts. The 22-year-old hails from the state of Chihuahua, Mexico. He hasn’t received a lot of buzz this year but he’s been very effective as a multi-inning reliever. In 35 innings for the Storm, Mundo has struck out 49 batters while pitching to a 3.09 ERA.
Roster Move: The Storm received RHP Manuel Castro from the ACL Padres. The 20-year-old Castro hails from Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico. He made a pair of outings for the complex league club, as a piggyback reliever for RHP Jarlin Susana. In a corresponding move, the Storm sent LHP Matt Sparling to the ACL.
Jackson Merrill returned to action Tuesday, as he rehabs a wrist injury. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza).
ACL Padres 3, ACL Giants Black 2
Key Statistics: SS Jackson Merrill, 2-for-2, R, 2B; 3B-SS Rosman Verdugo, 1-for-3, 2B, RBI; RF Eddy Beltre, 2-for-3, R; RHP Jarlin Susana, 3.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Brandon Heiss (W, 2-0) 2 IP, H, 2 K
Prospect Watch: The ACL Padres opened a new week with a win against one of the Giants’ ACLsquads. … The top story in the oppressive heat in Arizona was the return to game action for Jackson Merrill. The 19-year-old has been out of game action for eight weeks after breaking his wrist. Merrill had two hits, including a double. Merrill will probably need at least a week to get back into game shape and re-join the Lake Elsinore roster. … Rosman Verdugo doubled and drove in a run, extending his hitting streak to eight games. The 17-year-old is off to a .353/.378/.676 start. … RHP Jarlin Susana started and worked into the fourth inning. The prize of the Padres’ 2022 international class allowed two runs on five hits, walking two and striking out three. It was the first time in three starts that Susana was scored upon. The early returns on the 18-year-old have been encouraging; he has a 1.69 ERA in 10.2 innings.
