Chihuahuas 12, Tacoma Rainiers 11
Taylor Kohlwey continues to deliver for the Chihuahuas. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Key Statistics: 2B Tim Lopes, 2-for-5, R, 2B, RBI, SB (18); 1B Alfonso Rivas, 2-for-4, R, RBI, BB; C Brett Sullivan, 2-for-5, R, HR (3), 3 RBI; 3B Jantzen Witte, 2-for-5, R, HR (8), RBI; RF Luis Liberato, 2-for-4, 2 R, HR (6), 2 RBI, BB; LF Taylor Kohlwey, 2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI, BB LHP Ryan Weathers, 4.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 6 BB, 5 K; RHP Domingo Tapia (W, 1-1) 1.2 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 2 K
Prospect Watch: El Paso was on the verge of dropping this one at home until Taylor Kohlwey doubled in a pair to give the hometown nine a walk-off win. … The two-run double capped another solid night at the dish for the left-handed hitting Kohlwey, who finished with two hits and a walk. Over the last 30 days, the 28-year-old Kohlwey is hitting .358/.486/.704 with seven homers, 29 RBI, 22 walks, and just 12 strikeouts. His 1.190 OPS over the last month ranks sixth in the circuit. The Padres added Preston Tucker to the 40-man roster earlier this week, but Kohlwey continues to plead his case for a big league roster spot. … Luis Liberato had a multi-hit effort with a single and another homer. The big fly was his sixth of the season. Coming into June, the former Padre outfielder had just one homer on his ledger. This month, Liberato has homered five times. Despite the increased power, Liberato is hitting just .208 in June. He hit .346 in May. … Catcher Brett Sullivan also had a pair of hits, including his third Triple-A homer of the season. The catcher has taken his demotion from the Padres roster in stride, putting together a .333/.377/.625 slash-line in June. The versatile Sullivan will patiently await his next opportunity but he represents an important depth option with the ability to play multiple positions. … Ryan Weathers made his first outing since being demoted to Triple-A and he battled command issues en route to a no-decision. Weathers worked into the fifth inning and allowed five earned runs on seven hits, walking six batters and striking out five. The 23-year-old southpaw threw 95 pitches, just 48 for strikes. The former first-rounder struggled in his first journey through Triple-A last season; he will need to display better command to get another opportunity in the big leagues.
Midland RockHounds 7, Missions 4
Chandler Seagle gave the Missions a boost with his bat. (Photo: Joe Alexander)
Key Statistics: C Chandler Seagle, 2-for-4, R, 2B, HR (5), 2 RBI; 3B Juan Fernandez, 2-for-3, R, BB; LF Cole Cummings, 1-for-3, R, BB; RHP Jose Espada (L, 0-2) 0.2 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, K; RHP Jose Quezada, 2.1 IP, H, K; RHP Bobby Milacki, 2 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 4 K
Prospect Watch: The Missions returned home and allowed five in the first inning to lose their series-opener against Midland. … Catcher Chandler Seagle was the offensive star for the Missions Tuesday night. The backstop had two of the three Missions’ extra-base hits. Seagle doubled and connected on his first homer of 2023. The light-hitting Seagle got off to a slow start this year but he’s performed better in June. With his big night at the plate, the former Appalachian State catcher is hitting .293/.341/.488 this month. … Juan Fernandez also had a pair of hits and he drew a walk in the loss. Fernandez homered twice last week in Amarillo but his game is typically making solid contact without much power. The 24-year-old currently sports a career-high .823 OPS while being the primary third baseman for the Missions. … The normally reliable Jose Espada struggled in the series opener and failed to make it out of the first inning. Espada faced seven batters and allowed three hits and two walks. All of the baserunners Espada allowed scored to put the Missions in a hole that they could not climb out of. The poor outing raised Espada’s ERA from 2.52 to 3.60. … Right-hander Bobby Milacki made his second outing as a member of the Missions and pitched two innings. Milacki allowed one run, walked one, and struck out four. The 26-year-old Milacki is getting his first taste of Double-A after a successful stint with the TinCaps. In 14 games with Fort Wayne, the former Twins and Nationals farmhand pitched to a 2.32 ERA. He signed with the Padres in the offseason.
TinCaps 8, South Bend Cubs 4
Jared Kollar continues to deal for Fort Wayne. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Key Statistics: SS Jackson Merrill, 3-for-5, R; CF Jakob Marsee, 1-for-4, R; 2B Lucas Dunn, 2-for-3, R, HR (4), 4 RBI; RHP Jared Kollar (W, 5-0) 6 IP, 6 H, ER, 5 K
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps hit the road for an extensive, 12-game road trip that started Tuesday night. Fort Wayne used a pair of big innings to defeat the Cubs in the battle for Northern Indiana supremacy. … After going hitless on Saturday night, shortstop Jackson Merrill has put together two consecutive three-hit games. Merrill singled three times and scored a run in the win over the Cubs. The 20-year-old got off to a slow start this month but he has hit well over the last seven games. In June, the former first-rounder is hitting .301/.342/.438. … Lucas Dunn had a pair of hits, including a three-run homer in the seventh inning. It was the fourth homer of the year for the versatile Dunn. The former Louisville star was a run producer last year with the Storm but he has yet to break out with the TinCaps. Overall, Dunn is hitting .212/.308/.332 this season. … It’s time to put Jared Kollar on the prospect radar. The 24-year-old Kollar pitched six shutout innings and allowed a run on six hits. He struck out five without allowing a walk. The former Rutgers pitcher has peppered the strike zone consistently while limiting hard contact. Over his last 28.2 innings, Kollar has walked just one batter while punching out 29. In nine games (seven starts) Kollar has a 1.67 ERA to go with a perfect 5-0 record.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 3, Storm 1
The Storm continue to rely on Griffin Doersching. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Key Statistics: DH Ethan Salas, 1-for-4; 1B Griffin Doersching, 1-for-3, R, HR (5), RBI; 3B Devin Ortiz, 2-for-4; LHP Austin Krob (L, 0-1) 5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K; RHP Dwayne Matos, 2 IP, BB, 3 K
Prospect Watch: The Storm lost their third straight to drop their record under .500. … The only Storm run came off the bat of first baseman Griffin Doersching who connected on his fifth homer of the season. The 24-year-old hasn’t flashed the same quality of power he did last season but he’s been a steady contributor offensively after a dismal April. The former Oklahoma State slugger had a .921 OPS in May and has a .392 on-base percentage this month. He has done most of his damage this year at home, posting an .859 OPS at the Diamond compared to .631 on the road. Tuesday’s was his first round-tripper outside of Lake Elsinore this season. … Devin Ortiz had a pair of singles while making the start at third base. Over his last five games, the 24-year-old out of Virginia has gone 6-for-19, including his first professional homer. Overall, he is hitting .234/.294/.319 with the Storm this season. … It took 11 outings but Austin Krob received his first decision of 2023. Unfortunately, for him and the Storm, he took the loss. The 23-year-old pitched five innings and allowed three earned runs. Krob retired the first two batters in the fourth inning before a two-out walk. After a Rancho double and a single, the Quakes had all the runs they would need. Krob walked two and struck out five. The outing raised his ERA to 2.34.
ACL White Sox 12, ACL Padres 7
Dylan Lesko continues on track from his 2022 Tommy John surgery. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Key Statistics: 1B Romeo Sanabria, 2-for-4, R, 2B, HR (2), BB, RBI; DH Max Schrock, 1-for-2, R, BB, HR (1), RBI; RF Braedon Karpathios, 1-for-3, R, 2 BB; Yendry Rojas, 1-for-3, 2 RBI; RHP Dylan Lesko (L, 0-1 in professional debut) 2 H, 3 ER, BB, K; LHP Noel Vela, 0.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R (0ER), 2 BB; LHP Luis Gutierrez 3.2 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 4 K, 3 BB
Prospect Watch: Tuesday night’s tilt in the desert had the biggest storyline of the Padres’ minor league system, as right-hander Dylan Lesko made his professional debut. Lesko was the 15th overall pick last season by the Padres after suffering a torn UCL during his high school campaign. On Tuesday, the Georgia native was tagged with his first professional loss. Lesko allowed a leadoff single before striking out Colson Montgomery, the 22nd overall pick in the 2021 draft who is in the middle of a rehab assignment. After that, Lesko allowed a double and a walk that ended his night as he hit his 35 pitch limit. The results surely aren’t what Lesko was looking for but the talented righty will have plenty of time to ramp up this summer in the ACL. If all goes well, it’s possible that Lesko may make an appearance in Lake Elsinore before the season ends. … First baseman Romeo Sanabria had a pair of hits, including his second homer of the year. The 18th-round pick from 2022 is off to a .325/.449/.625 start in the desert after going just 1-for-12 in his pro debut last summer. The 21-year-old was selected out of Indian River State Junior College in Florida. … Left-hander Noel Vela made his first appearance of the season, as he attempts to make his way back from an early season elbow injury. Much like Lesko, Vela showed signs of rust. He recorded a pair out outs but also allowed two hits and two walks. The Texas native should get a few more outings in the desert before heading out to a full-season club, most likely San Antonio.
