Chihuahuas 11, Tacoma Rainiers 9
Key Stats: 3B Eguy Rosario 1-for-2, 2 BB, E (2); CF José Azocar 3-for-5, SB (4); DH Jantzen Witte 2-for-2, HR (11), 3 BB; LF Taylor Kohlwey 2-for-3, BB, SB (9), CS (2); RHP Angel Sánchez 3 IP, 5 H, 5 R (4 ER), 2 K, 4 BB; LHP Jared Koenig 2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 K, 1 BB; RHP Moises Lugo 1 IP, 2 K; LHP Jose Castillo 1 IP, 1 BB
Jantzen Witte hit home run number 11. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Prospect Watch: Jantzen Witte continued his hot streak, connecting on an eighth-inning grand slam to rally El Paso from behind and ensure at least a series split. The blast capped a day in which Witte, 33, reached base five times with a single and three walks. The long-time Red Sox farmhand has had multiple hits in five straight games, extending his overall hitting streak to eight. It’s the second time he’s run a streak that long in just over five weeks. On May 18, his OPS dipped to .710. Since then, his slugging percentage alone sits at .745. … Eguy Rosario returned to the lineup after a scheduled off-day and had a single and two doubles. The 23-year-old infielder, who is working his way back from a broken leg he suffered during the offseason, had been shut down for over two weeks after his first attempt to get a rehab assignment going was waylaid by discomfort he felt. … José Azocar had three hits to extend his latest hitting streak to five games. The fleet outfield also swiped his first base in over two weeks. While he’s hit .301 since his demotion, he’s drawn only two walks in 86 trips to the plate, suppressing his overall production. … Moises Lugo picked up the win with a scoreless inning of relief. The righty spent two weeks on the IL but has worked four innings without giving up a run this month and has walked just one after issuing 14 free passes in his first 15.1 frames on the year.
Midland RockHounds 2, Missions 1
Key Stats: 2B Ripken Reyes 2-for-4, CS (6); DH Pedro Castellano 2-for-3; RHP Jose Espada 4 IP, 2 H, 7 K, 2 BB; RHP Bobby Milacki 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 K; RHP Kevin Kopps 2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 K
Prospect Watch: John Conniff and Mark Wilkens were back in the Alamo City for Saturday’s loss and have the game story.
South Bend Cubs 4, TinCaps 1
Key Stats: CF Jakob Marsee 2-for-4, SB (23); 3B Marcos Castañon 2-for-4; RHP Victor Lizarraga 4.2 IP 6 H, 3 ER, 4 K, 1 BB
Jacob Marsee had a pair of hits. (Photo: Fort Wayne TinCaps)
Prospect Watch: Jakob Marsee and Marcos Castañon had back-to-back singles to get the TinCaps on the board on the first, but the club managed just four more hits in the game and fell in South Bend 4-1. Marsee added a second single later in the game and is now 8-for-19 in the series with three stolen bases. The 21-year-old center fielder has a .308/.426/.436 line for June as he attacks pitches more consistently than he had been earlier in the year. … Castañon is also in the midst of his most productive month for Fort Wayne, hitting .310 with a .814 OPS. The infielder, who led the Cal League with 23 homers last year, has eight just beyond the halfway mark with the TinCaps this year. … Victor Lizarraga needed 89 pitches to labor through 4.2 innings, allowing three runs on six hits. The 19-year-old struck out four against just one walk. After a rough start to the year, Lizarraga has a 3.66 ERA over his last four starts, though his strikeout rates continue to lag as he works to find consistency with his breaking ball.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 4, Storm 1
Key Stats: DH Albert Fabian 2-for-4, 2B; 2B Grant Pauley 0-for-3, 2 BB, SB (13); SS Rosman Verdugo 1-for-3; RHP Henry Williams 4.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 K, 2 BB; RHP Will Gerdees 1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 3 K
Prospect Watch: Four of the first five Storm hitters reached base, but they managed just one run in the inning, and the offense struggled to put much more together through the rest of the game. Batting in the third spot for just the third time this year, Samuel Zavala had a single but struck out two more times. The 18-year-old has punched out at least once in 14 of his last 15 contests. His extreme leg kick at the plate can leave him susceptible to breaking balls even at the Single-A level. It may eventually require an adjustment to give himself more time to see pitches. … Albert Fabian, appearing as the DH, had two more hits, including the team’s only extra-base hit with his 18th double of the year. The 21-year-old is in the midst of his best month since last June, posting a .934 OPS with a walk rate that’s more than doubled from the first two months of the season. The lefthander has a league-best 31 extra-base hits and is tied for fourth with a .504 slugging percentage. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get a second try at the Midwest League soon. … Righty Henry Williams worked into the fifth inning for the first time since his professional debut in May. The 21-year-old righty allowed just one hit in his first trip through the lineup but gave up a two-run homer in the fourth inning. He finished the game having allowed three hits, a pair of walks and hit one batter, and worked up to 65 pitches. The third-rounder has been sitting in the low-90s as he continues his return from Tommy John surgery.
ACL Padres 14, Royals 9
Romeo Sanabria adds some thump in the ACL lineup. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Key Stats: CF Tyler Robertson 2-for-3, 2 2B, SB (2); C Oswaldo Linares 1-for-3, BB, HBP; DH Romeo Sanabria 2-for-4, 2B; RHP Wilton Castillo 3.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 5 K, 3 BB; RHP Alejandro Lugo 2 IP, 2 H, 4 K
Prospect Watch: The Padres pounded out 13 hits and drew 10 walks in a nearly four-hour affair in the West Valley. The club is tied for the league lead with 111 walks and paces the circuit with 181 strikeouts in 16 games. Tyler Robertson, hoping to be nearing the end of his rehab assignment in the desert, had a pair of doubles and stole a base after getting an off-day Thursday. The 23-year-old outfielder was off to a strong start with Lake Elsinore before a pulled hamstring waylaid him on May 6. … Big lefthanded slugger Romeo Sanabria had two more hits and a walk, including an RBI double. The Miami native now shares the league lead with seven doubles through his first 14 games. The solid night pushed his OPS up to 1.014, making him the third Padres regular to get over the 1.000 threshold. … Oswaldo Linares, who reached base three more times, continues to pace the offense. The 19-year-old has a .557 on-base percentage and is one of the few hitters on the club who’s kept his strikeout rate in check. The backstop has drawn 19 walks on the year against just nine strikeouts in 61 plate appearances.
