San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: June 23

The Padres farm system had an excellent day, getting big wins with contributions from many top prospects. The Chihuahuas maintained canine dominance over cats in Sacramento, the Missions wrapped up a big win in a suspended game before dropping the nightcap in Wichita, the TinCaps blanked Great Lakes in Fort Wayne, the Storm rolled through a slugfest against Rancho Cucamonga and the Complx squad lost despite important progress.

Chihuahuas 8, Sacramento River Cats 3

Key Stats: RHP Pedro Avila (W, 2-2), 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, BB, 5 K; RHP Dinelson Lamet, 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, BB, 2 K; RF Esteury Ruiz, 1-for-3, 2B, 2 R; 1B Taylor Kohlwey, 2-for-5, RBI; LF Brent Rooker, 1-for-4, HR (12), R, 2 RBI, BB

Prospect Watch: It may feel to some like Pedro Avila is old news, seeing as he made his Padres debut in the pre-pandemic, blue uniform-clad era of 2019. But he’s still only 25 years old, and he came through in a spot start for the Chihuahuas, dealing to the tune of five innings of one-run ball. Avila earned his second win of the season, improving his record to 2-2 with a 6.39 ERA and 1.55 WHIP in the offense-heavy PCL. … Dinelson Lamet threw a scoreless inning in his fourth appearance in El Paso. The 29-year-old righty has now struck out eight and walked three while allowing two hits in six scoreless innings for the Chihuahuas. … The soaring meteor we call Esteury Ruiz continues to produce a 2022 season that defies gravity, as he is now slashing .375/.500/.661 in 56 at-bats in Triple-A after smacking a double and scoring a pair of runs Thursday. … Sometimes it feels like he can be a little lost in the shuffle on a talented El Paso squad in 2022, but Taylor Kohlwey is putting together another solid season with the bat. The 27-year-old, who was drafted in the 21st round in 2016, put together a nice two-hit outing and is batting .337 with a .949 OPS in 205 at-bats for the Chihuahuas while playing first base and the outfield. … My favorite phantom Padre, Brent Rooker, has yet to appear on the field for the big club, but has worn the uniform in two stints while putting together a red hot June for El Paso, slashing .321/.435/.625. The right-handed outfielder hit his third home run of the month as part of a four-run first inning.

Missions 11, Wichita Wind Surge 4

Key Stats: LHP Fred Schlichtholz, 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB; RHP Michel Baez (W, 4-1), 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K; SS Connor Kaiser, 1-for-3, HR (5), R, 3 RBI, 2 BB; RF Thomas Milone, 2-for-5, HR (1), 2 R, 5 RBI

Prospect Watch: What a difference a day makes. The Wind Surge lived up to their name and invited some inclement weather to the park Wednesday, causing the game to be suspended in the fourth inning. When the game resumed Thursday, the Missions were losing 2-1, but they piled on 10 runs for the come-from-behind victory. The game resumed with Fred Schlichtholz on the mound, and the Coronado High product started things off on the right foot by firing a scoreless frame of work. Schlichtholz has not allowed a run in 2.1 innings since being promoted from Fort Wayne on June 14. … Michel Baez improved his record to 4-1 with the Missions, and now sports a 3.29 ERA in 10 appearances for San Antonio, striking out 16 and walking three in 13.2 innings of work. The 26-year-old righty was assigned to the Missions after completing a rehab assignment in Lake Elsinore, continuing his path of building back up to the Padres at some point. … Thomas Milone tied the game in the 8th with a single, then slugged his first Double-A home run of the season, in the process becoming the first Missions player of the 2022 season to drive in five runs. Milone, 27, started the season in El Paso before being moved down to Double-A in a roster crunch. The Monroe, Connecticut native played in the Yankees’ organization last year. … San Antonio took the lead on an inside-the-park home run by Connor Kaiser in the top of the 8th. Kaiser’s sprint around the bags plated three total runs and broke open a 4-4 tie. Kaiser is still batting .175 in 2022, but eight of his 17 hits have gone for extra bases. Kaiser was signed by the Padres as a free agent on May 10, after he was released by the Pittsburgh organization

Wichita Wind Surge 7, Missions 4

Key Stats: RHP Matt Waldron, 4.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K; RF Jorge Ona, 2-for-3, HR (6), R, 3 RBI; LF Tirso Ornelas, 2-for-4, 2B, 2 R; 1B Yorman Rodriguez, 2-for-4, HR (7), R, RBI

Prospect Watch: The Baseball Gods giveth and also taketh away, as the Missions dropped the regularly scheduled end of the evening, despite some real bright spots in the game. Most important was Matt Waldron returning from the injured list to throw four solid innings. He allowed only an unearned run while keeping walks down to a lone free pass. The “throw-in” of the Mike Clevinger trade, Waldron is 2-1 with a 2.84 ERA in 44.1 innings, walking only 10 and striking out 38. Jorge Oña raised his average to .183 with a two-hit evening, slugging his sixth home run of the year as he continues his efforts to get out of the hole he dug by batting .145 in April. Oña, who missed all but five games of the 2021 season, hopes to get back on track in San Antonio after getting a call-up to the Padres in 2020. … Tirso Ornelas doubled and singled to continue a scorching June, slashing .353/.400/.510 after turning the calendar page on a .188/.243/.250 month of May. … Yorman Rodriguez had a pair of hits, including his seventh home run of the season. Splitting time behind the plate with starts at first base and designated hitter, Rodriguez is batting .297 with seven homers and 39 RBI on the season.

TinCaps 3, Great Lakes Loons 0

Key Stats: LHP Noel Vela (W, 4-4), 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 4 K; LHP Gabe Morales (S, 2), 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 4 K; LF Corey Rosier, 2-for-3, 2 R, BB, SB (21); CF Robert Hassell II, 3-for-4, RBI, SB (19)

Prospect Watch: It only took two left-handed pitchers for Fort Wayne to shut out the Loons, with a pair of lefties persevering through four walks each to keep Great Lakes off the scoreboard. The win went to Noel Vela, who appears back on track after a pair of tough starts to begin June. In his last two appearances, Vela has allowed one run in 12 innings while walking five and striking out 10. Still just 23-years-old despite being drafted in 2017, Vela has been one of the best stories in the Padres system in 2022, with a 4-4 record, 3.04 ERA, and 72 strikeouts in 56.1 innings. … Gabe Morales picked up the nine-out save, and has yet to allow a run in seven appearances totaling 14.1 innings for Fort Wayne. In 22 innings split between the TinCaps and San Antonio, Morales has a 3.22 ERA in 15 appearances (five starts, all with the Missions). … With a pair of hits and a walk, Corey Rosier was the ideal leadoff man tonight, scoring two of the three Fort Wayne runs and also stealing his 21st base of the season. … The gap between Rosier and Robert Hassell III remained the same, however, as Hassell swiped his 19th bag of 2022 to cap off a three-hit night. Hassell continues to make a strong case to graduate to San Antonio sooner rather than later with a .341/.375/.679 slash line in 44 June at-bats.

Storm 13, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 8

Key Stats: LF Albert Fabian, 2-for-4, 2 HR (8, 9), 2 R, 3 RBI, BB; C Juan Zabala, 3-for-4, 2B, HR (1), 2 R, 3 RBI, BB; 3B Carlos Luis, 2-for-3, 2B, R, RBI, 2 BB; 1B Nerwilian Cedeno, 2-for-5, R, RBI

Prospect Watch: A combination of big bats and nine stolen bases by the Storm propelled them past the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, continuing a week of nostalgia for a Padres fan of a certain age, with the Storm playing a 1990’s Padres affiliate, and the Missions playing against the new franchise in Wichita, a former Padres outpost of the late 1980s and early 90s. Tonight’s outstanding power performance for Lake Elsinore goes to Albert Fabian, who blasted two balls out of the yard as a part of a three-RBI evening. The 20-year-old from Santiago in the Dominican Republic is bringing an excellent left-handed bat to Lake Elsinore this year, batting .275 with nine home runs and an .881 OPS in 160 at-bats in 2022. … Also sending a shot out of the park to go with a double and a single was Juan Zabala, who looks to be enjoying getting some playing time in the Padres organization after coming over via trade from the Quakes’ parent club, the Dodgers. Revenge for Zabala came in the form of three hits, two runs scored, and three RBIs. Since joining the Storm on June 15, Zabala is 6-for-10 with two doubles and the home run. Zabala initially reported to San Antonio to assist them during their protocols-related roster crunch, and has since found a new home with the Storm. … Carlos Luis was on time to the party, slugging a double as part of a two-hit night, scoring a run, and driving one in. He also walked twice for good measure as the 22-year-old continues to take tremendous strides in his development. Prior to 2022, his highest single-season OPS outside of seven games in 2017 was .661 in 130 at-bats for Tri-City in 2019. In 192 at-bats so far this year, Luis has a .854 OPS to go along with a .313 average and 46 RBIs. … After making his first 20 starts of the season at second base, Nerwilian Cedeño got the nod at first base tonight, and he dialed up the production to match the position, singling twice, driving in a run, and scoring one himself. It was Cedeño’s first professional start at first base, having played everywhere else in the infield in 2021 in the Arizona Complex League, as well as 2019 in the Dominican Summer League.

ACL Rockies 8, ACL Padres 4

Key Stats: RHP Riley Yeatman, 3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K; SS Jackson Merrill, 3-for-3, 2B, R, SB; LF Ruben Salinas, 2-for-4, RBI; C Gilberto Vizcarra, 2-for-4, 2B, R, RBI

Prospect Watch: It was only 88 degrees when the ACL Padres hosted the ACL Rockies at Peoria Sports Complex, and the two clubs overcame such frigid first pitch temperatures to play a seven-inning game. For the Padres, Riley Yeatman made his second appearance since a rocky debut. With 3.2 innings Thursday, the Australian right-hander has thrown six innings of one-run ball since his first outing, allowing three hits, walking three, and striking out eight. Still just 18, Yeatman is one of the younger players in the desert this season. … Looking like a man who’s more than ready to rejoin fellow 2021 draftee James Wood back in California, Jackson Merrill followed up Tuesday’s two-hit performance by smacking three more hits, including a second double, to continue to bat 1.000 on his rehab assignment in the desert. Merrill was batting a blistering .393 in 56 at-bats for the Storm before hitting the IL on April 29. … Ruben Salinas contributed a pair of singles to the cause and drove in a run. A 19-year-old outfielder from Guerrero Negro in Baja California, Salinas is batting .333 in 27 at-bats in 2022, a return to Arizona after playing in two games in the league last season. … Gilberto Vizcarra also made the most of a rehab appearance, adding a pair of base hits, including a double, driving in a run, as well as scoring. The Mexicali native is batting .286 (6-for-21) for the ACL club since joining them on June 10 for a rehab assignment.