San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: August 10

Wednesday was not a great night on the farm as all four teams in action lost, and Fernando Tatis Jr. went 0-for-2 with an error in his rehab assignment with the Missions.

Sugar Land Space Cowboys 14, Chihuahuas 6

Key Statistics: RF Matt Beaty 1-for-4, R, BB; 3B Eguy Rosario 3-for-3, R, BB; C Luis Campusano 1-for-4, R, 2 RBI; SS CJ Hinojosa 2-for-3, 2B, R, RBI, BB; 1B Kyle Martin 3-for-4, HR (11), 3 RBI; RHP Michel Baez 0.1 IP, 4 H, 8 ER, 3 BB, HBP

Prospect Watch:  On Tuesday night, Padre fans witnessed what it is like to agonizingly watch an incredibly talented pitcher not be able to find the plate. Wednesday, El Paso witnessed the same thing as the ultra-talented Michel Baez had trouble locating his fastball. He was still sitting mid-90s with his heater and displayed good movement on all his pitches but he struggled to throw strikes, aside from when he dialed back the velocity and hit the middle of the plate. This resulted in the worst outing of his professional career. Baez allowed eight earned runs while only retiring one batter. The rough outing ballooned his Triple-A ERA to an unsightly 17.05. … Before Baez entered the game, the Chihuahuas had raced out to a quick 6-1 lead.  The big shot came from first baseman Kyle Martin who clubbed his 11^th home run since joining El Paso in June.  Martin’s .887 OPS this year is over 100 points higher than his previous career-high in affiliated ball. … After tearing the cover off the ball in July, infielder Eguy Rosario has somehow had an even better start to his August.  After picking up three more hits, he is now hitting .538/.594/.885 in six games this month. He also reached base via a walk.

Frisco RoughRiders 3, Missions 0

Key Stats: SS Fernando Tatis Jr. 0-for-2, HBP; LF Tirso Ornelas 1-for-4; RHP Edwuin Bencomo 2.1 IP, H, 2 BB, 2 K

Prospect Watch: SS Fernando Tatis Jr. was originally slated to make his first appearance in center field Wednesday night but after a rain delay, he was placed back at shortstop to avoid playing in the slick outfield.  At the plate, he went 0-for-2 and was hit by a pitch.  While he didn’t put forth a  spectacular game, he emerged from the game healthy. At shortstop, Tatis did commit a throwing error.  In the fifth inning with a runner on second, Tatis showed excellent range to get to a ball, but his throw was wild, and everyone advanced. … The Missions managed only two hits (both singles) in the game, so there wasn’t much to write about offensively. … Right-hander Edwuin Bencomo made his Double-A debut and looked good over 2.1 innings. He walked a pair of batters and struck out two.  At the time of his promotion, the 23-year-old Bencomo had a 2.44 ERA with the TinCaps. Bencomo has allowed just two earned runs over his last 14.1 innings.

Lake County Captains 5, TinCaps 4

Key Stats: LF Albert Fabian 2-for-5, HR (2), RBI; CF Joshua Mears 2-for-4, HR (13), 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI; 1B Carlos Luis 2-for-4, R, 2B

Prospect Watch: While the swing-and-miss issues facing center fielder Joshua Mears are real, there is no one in the Padres’ minor league system that can hit a ball quite as far or as hard as Mears.  Mears connected on his 13^th home run of the season with the TinCaps, good enough for the team lead in Fort Wayne and 15^th in the Midwest League.  Unlike the rest of the top 15, Mears missed the better part of two months.  Adjusted to a per plate appearance rate, Mears is leading the league. The 21-year-old from Washington now has five home runs in his last 12 games.  Yes, the strikeouts are a big deal, but Mears is showing why he was a preseason top-10 prospect in the system. … Three innings before Mears’s two-run blast, left fielder Albert Fabian hit his 14^th home run the season and second since his promotion.  Entering this season, Fabian had played all of seven stateside games and did not hit a home run.  Less than a year later he is in High-A hitting his 14^th.  Fabian has struggled to make contact in his week since his promotion (eight strikeouts in six games), but showed a solid hit tool (.278/.362/.502) in Elsinore. … Speaking of solid hit tools, first baseman Carlos Luis has had very few problems moving up to High-A.  After hitting .319/.390/.465 in Lake Elsinore, Luis has reached base safely in every game so far including picking up his first multi-hit High-A game Wednesday.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 9, Storm 7

Key Stats: SS Jackson Merrill 1-for-4, BB; 3B Marcos Castanon 2-for-4, HR (16), 2 R, RBI, BB; 2B Nerwilian Cedeno 2-for-4, R; CF Samuel Zavala 2-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI, R

Prospect Watch: The top two offensive prospects in the system not playing catcher both reached base tonight.  While Jackson Merrill went 1-for-4 with a walk and was caught stealing, it was another great night for center fielder Samuel Zavala.  The 18-year-old had the big hit in a six-run sixth inning when he hit a two-run double down the right field line.  Zavala has reached base in all seven games since his promotion to Lake Elsinore. He has seven hits, five walks, and a home run as the youngest player in the Cal League. … Third baseman Marcos Castañon continues to make a case as the team’s MVP.  Since James Wood was traded a week ago, Castañon has put the team on his shoulders, collecting three home runs, six RBI, and a remarkable nine walks in the seven games.  His 16 home runs rank him fourth in the Cal League, tied with A’s top prospect Max Muncy. … Juan Zabala started at designated hitter and had two singles and scored a run. The 23-year-old has functioned as the Storm’s regular catcher after being acquired in June from the Dodgers. Overall, he is hitting .342/.440/.441 with Lake Elsinore.

The ACL Padres do not play on Wednesdays.  The ACL Padres are 6-1 in August, and has been playing excellent baseball since adding the 2022 draftees to the roster.