Carlos Luis provides immense power in the Fort Wayne lineup. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Chihuahuas 8 Albuquerque Isotopes 5
Key Stats: RF Fernando Tatis Jr. 4-for-5, 2 HR (6); C Brett Sullivan 3-for-4, 2B, SB(3); DH Adam Engel 1-for-4, 2B, BB, SB (1); 2B Tim Lopes 1-for-4, 3B, SB (2); RHP Julio Teheran 5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 6 K, 2 BB; RHP Michel Baez 1 IP; RHP Drew Carlton 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 K
Prospect Watch: The Fernando Tatis Jr. show continued in El Paso as the Chihuahuas cruised to a win Saturday night. John Conniff has all the information from on-site.
Missions 4 Frisco Rough Riders 1
Key Stats: RF Korry Howell 2-for-4, 2B, 3B; C Chandler Seagle 2-for-4, 2B; 2B Brantley Bell 2-for-3, 2 2B; LHP Brian Gonzalez, 4.1 IP, 4 H 1 R (0 ER), 5 K, 1 BB; RHP Nick Hernandez 2 IP, 1 H, 5 K
Prospect Watch: Coming into the game, the Missions had the lowest team OPS in the minors, but Saturday night, they put together six extra-base hits and got solid pitching to claim the victory. Korry Howell, the top position prospect on the roster, who had just one extra-base hit in his first 25 at-bats in the young season, collected a double and triple on the night. The 24-year-old made his second start of the year in right field and has appeared in center in his other five games. … Chandler Seagle, whose defense will always be his calling card, hit an opposite field ground-rule double and an RBI single in four trips to the plate. The 26-year-old, getting the bulk of the action behind the plate, is off to a hot .313/.389/.375 start to the year. … A trio of minor league free agent signees and Edwuin Bencomo combined to allow just one unearned run in the game. Brian Gonzalez, who worked exclusively in relief in the Washington Nationals organization last year, made the start and struck out five over 4.1 innings. Nick Hernandez, signed after six years in the Astros organization, allowed just one hit and has now struck out 13 in five innings without a walk. He posted a 77:30 strikeout-to-walk-ratio in 59.2 Triple-A innings last year.
TinCaps 12 Lake County Captains 11
Key Stats: 3B Carlos Luis 3-for-3, HR (1), 2 BB, 5 RBI; C Colton Bender 4-for-5, LF Justin Farmer 2-for-5, 2B, HR; SS Jackson Merrill 2-for-5, 2B; Marcos Castanon 2-for-5, 2B; 1B Nathan Martorella 1-for-5, HR (1); RHP Adam Mazur 3 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 3 K, 2 BB; RHP Miguel Cienfuegos 3 IP, 3 H, 3 R (1 ER), 2 K, 1 BB
Justin Farmer added two more extra-base hits Saturday. (Photo: John Nagel)
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps offense finally broke out Saturday afternoon, plating 12 runs on 17 hits in a wild walk-off win. Fort Wayne plated seven in the fifth inning, six coming with two outs. The big left-handed hitting Carlos Luis smoked a towering grand slam for his first homer of the year before Justin Farmer added a two-run blast. Luis, 23, reached base five times on the day and is off to a hot start after ending the year at Fort Wayne last year. The corner defender has drawn four walks and struck out just twice in his first 20 trips to the plate. Farmer, who doubled with two outs in the ninth then scrambled home on Jakob Marsee‘s game-winning single, has only five hits on the year, but all have gone for extra bases. The 24-year-old, who signed as an undrafted free agent out of Florida International in 2021, swiped 40 bases and had double-digit totals in doubles and homers for Lake Elsinore last year. … Adam Mazur‘s second start didn’t go as well as the first. Last year, the Padres’ second-round pick cruised through the first two frames with a pair of strikeouts and four ground balls but was charged with three earned runs on five hits – one a pop fly that could have ended the inning but eluded Luis at third base. He tossed 56 pitches, 38 for strikes, as the club brings him along slowly in his first professional season.
Inland Empire 66ers 3, Storm 2
Key Stats: 1B Griffin Doersching 2-for-4, 2B, LF Kai Murphy 1-for-3, HR (1); C Anthony Vilar 0-for-2, 2 BB, SB; LHP Robby Snelling 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 5 K, 2 BB; RHP Ian Koenig 3 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 K, 1 BB; RHP Will Geerdes 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 K, 1 BB
Prospect Watch: The Storm took their first loss of the season, dropping a close one up the road in San Bernardino despite another strong start from Robby Snelling. The lefty, who the Padres selected out of a Reno high school with their second pick in last year’s draft, worked three scoreless frames in his second professional outing, matching the total from his debut last week. The 19-year-old, working with a fastball in the mid-90s, has struck out eight while allowing just two hits in his first six innings of the year. The Padres elected to keep him out of competition last summer and will bring him along slowly in the early going this season. … Will Geerdes was saddled with the loss despite some solid work in relief. The righty, signed as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Virginia last summer, gave up a pair of soft-hit singles around a walk to allow his first run of the year in the eighth inning. … Griffin Doesrching, who had a single and double on the day, was the only Storm batter to collect multiple hits. The big man is still looking for his first homer of the year after connecting for eight in 25 games with Elsinore at the end of last season.
