Chihuahuas rained out
El Paso waited almost two hours in a rain delay before finally scrubbing Sunday’s series finale against Albuquerque. The game has been cancelled and will not be made up. They’ll continue their homestand Tuesday against Sugar Land.
Fernando Tatis, Jr. got his first look at shortstop this season with the Missions on Sunday. (Photo: Joe Alexander)
Wichita Wind Surge 2, Missions 1
Key Stats: SS Fernando Tatis, Jr. 0-for-3; CF Wyatt Ulrich 2-for-4; C Chandler Seagle 1-for-4, 2B; RHP Nolan Watson 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 5 K, 1 BB; RHP Angel Felipe 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R (0 ER), 2 K
Prospect Watch: Despite Fernando Tatis‘s presence in the lineup, San Antonio’s offense was listless, failing to score until a ninth inning single by Kelvin Melean sent the game to extra innings. After Wichita plated the Manfred Man in the tenth, the Missions couldn’t convert on the opportunity. … Tatis went 0-for-3 with two groundouts and a soft fly ball to center as he played played five innings at shortstop in his second rehab game with the Missions. The organization’s plan when the Missions head to after Frisco after Monday’s off-day is unclear. … Webster Rivas drew a walk to extend his on-base streak that began in his first game for San Antonio to 25 games. The veteran catcher has an .843 OPS in his fourth pass at the Texas League. … The quiet offense squandered a strong start from Nolan Watson, who struck out five over five shutout innings. The 25-year-old righty, signed as a minor league free agent last winter, has allowed just two earned runs over 15 innings in his last three starts, dropping his ERA on the year to 5.08.
TinCaps 7, South Bend Cubs 5 (F/8 Innings)
Key Stats: 3B Lucas Dunn 2-for-4, 2 R, E (6); RF Agustin Ruiz 1-for-2, 2B, BB; LF Matt Acosta 1-for-2, 3B, 2 BB; RHP Jose Espada 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 9 K; LHP Gabriel Morales 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 K, 1 BB
Matthew Acosta in the Sunday brown TinCaps uniforms. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Prospect Watch: An efficient TinCaps offense and well-timed rainstorm carried the home team to victory Sunday as the game ended with the tying run on base after an hour-plus rain delay in the top of the eighth inning. Fort Wayne didn’t get their first hit until Matt Acosta‘s one-out triple in the fourth, but because of a strong start by Jose Espada, Acosta put them ahead when he came across on a sacrifice fly. Espada, 25, turned in his best outing since signing with the Padres organization last month, striking out nine over five one-run innings. The righty, originally drafted out of high school in Puerto Rico by the Blue Jays, struck out 55 in 42.1 innings with the Milwaukee Milkmen in the American Association this summer to get another shot at affiliated ball, and now has 26 in 18.1 frames for the TinCaps. … Fort Wayne strung together two walks and four of their seven hits in a five-run sixth inning, with Agustin Ruiz coming up with a two-out, bases-clearing double to make the difference. Ruiz, 22, has struggled mightily this year after a breakout campaign in 2022. The left-handed hitting outfielder has been limited to a .658 OPS since he was demoted from Double-A in late May.
Storm 4, Visalia Rawhide 3
Key Stats: CF Samuel Zavala 1-for-4, HR (1); 2B Wyatt Hoffman 2-for-4, 2B, SB (5); 1B Nerwilian Cedeño 0-for-2, 2 BB, SB (14), E (7); LHP Bodi Rascon 5.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 K, 2 BB, HBP; LHP Ben Miller 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K, 1 BB
Bodi Rascon in action earlier this year. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
Prospect Watch: The Storm downed Visalia for the third straight game to claim a series victory in the Central Valley. They head home with a Cal League best 61-41 record and tied with Inland Empire for the second half division lead. … Bodi Rascon held the Rawhide scoreless through five, but ran out of gas in the sixth as he topped 80 pitches for the first time. He wound up exiting with the bases loaded and one out and all three runs ultimately scored. The 21-year-old lefty, who earned a six-figure bonus to sign as a 14th-round pick out of high school in 2019, had been limited to just 38 professional innings coming into the year, but has found his footing with Elsinore this season. Rascon has seen his workload increase and results improve every month this season and is coming off a July in which he posted a 3.06 ERA across four starts. … Samuel Zavala provided the big blast on the night, yanking a three-run homer deep over the right field fence on an 0-2 breaking ball in the sixth inning. The 18-year-old lefty, who became the youngest position player in full-season ball when he was promoted to Elsinore earlier in the week, had posted a 1.033 OPS in very limited complex league action after missing time with a hamstring injury. With the system emptied out of much of it’s highest-profile talent at the deadline, Zavala has quickly asserted himself as one of the key names to know going forward.
