San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: July 18

Oklahoma City Dodgers 7, Chihuahuas 6

Key Statistics: DH Preston Tucker. 1-for-3. R, HR (11). RBI, 2 BB; LF Oscar Mercado, 3-for-5, R, 3B, 2 RBI; SS Ray-Patrick Didder. 2-for-4, 2 R, SB (2); RHP Nolan Watson, 4.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, BB, 2 K; RHP Robert Suarez. 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, K

Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas saw two different leads slip away and they lost their series opener to the mighty OKC Dodgers, who improved to 61-28. El Paso’s loss dropped them to 36-55 overall. … Designated hitter Preston Tucker drew two walks and connected on his 11th homer in the loss. Tucker was added to the 40-man roster on June 18 then promptly placed on the injured list with plantar fasciitis. The 33-year-old is 1-for-10 in his current rehab assignment. With the departure of Rougned Odor, the Padres could utilize his left-handed bat off the bench once Tucker is good to go. … Oscar Mercado tripled, singled twice, and drove in a pair of runs. The 28-year-old hit .278/.361/.421 in 34 games with the Memphis Redbirds – the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The former Guardian, Phillie, and Cardinal has seen big-league action in each of the last five seasons. His best work came in his rookie season with Cleveland in 2019 when he connected on 15 homers. … Rehabbing righthander Robert Suarez made an appearance and struggled. On the positive side, Suarez threw 15 of his 23 pitches for strikes. However, the results were not great. Suarez only recorded two outs, as he allowed two runs on three hits. His fastball topped out at 98 mph. While the Padres bullpen could use Suarez at the back end of games, he has not looked sharp during his rehab assignment. In six outings – three in the ACL, one with Lake Elsinore, and now two with El Paso, Suarez has allowed 14 baserunners in five innings. Opposing hitters have tagged him for a .409 batting average and he’s walked five and hit a batter. Obviously, results are secondary when a veteran goes through a rehab stint, but his struggles will likely prolong his rehab assignment a bit longer. 

Frisco RoughRiders 6, Missions 2

Key Statistics: SS Jackson Merrill, 1-for-5, RBI; 2B Marcos Castañon, 1-for-3, RBI; C Brandon Valenzuela, 1-for-3, R, BB, SB (1); RHP Ryan Bergert (L, 0-1) 3 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Bobby Milacki, 2 IP, 2 H, ER, 2 BB

Prospect Watch: The Missions dropped their third in a row, losing in Frisco. San Antonio has scored just three runs during their skid. … Jackson Merrill singled and drove in a run in the loss. The 20-year-old shortstop has hit safely in three of four games since being promoted but he has yet to have a multi-hit game. Through four games as a Mission, he is hitting .176. … Marcos Castañon slid over to second base and singled and drove in a run. The 24-year-old infielder has spent most of the last two seasons playing at the hot corner but with Juan Fernandez having a nice year offensively, Castañon could see more time at second. He is off to a 3-for-13 start with the Missions which includes a double and a pair of walks. … Righty Ryan Bergert made his Double-A debut and ended up taking the loss. The former West Virginia hurler threw three innings and allowed four runs and five hits. He walked two and struck out three. After a rough 2022 campaign in Fort Wayne, Bergert pulled a 180 in his second stint in the Summit City and pitched well enough to earn a promotion. The 23-year-old pitched to a 2.63 ERA in 14 games (12 starts) with the TinCaps this season. He’ll need to work more consistently in the zone to match those numbers against more advanced hitters.

Lake County Captains 8, TinCaps 5

Key Statistics: CF Jakob Marsee, 2-for-3, R, 2 BB, 2 SB (33); 3B Graham Pauley, 1-for-5, R, HR (5), RBI, 2 RBI, SB (2); C Anthony Vilar, 2-for-4, HR (1), RBI, 2 RBI; LHP Robby Snelling (L, 1-1) 2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K; RHP Jose Geraldo, 2 IP, 2 H, BB, 2 K

Prospect Watch: A four-run first inning from Lake County was too much for Fort Wayne to overcome, as they lost at home. Fort Wayne showed some fight, but they went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position. … The TinCaps lost a ton of talent to San Antonio last week but Jakob Marsee is still a TinCap and he is still producing. Marsee did it all Tuesday night; he had two hits, scored a run, drew a pair of walks, and stole two bases. The two swipes give him 33 on the season – the second-most in the Midwest League and he now has a share of the league lead with 66 walks. Overall, the 22-year-old has an .808 OPS in his first full professional season. … Graham Pauley connected on his fifth homer as a TinCap in a bit of a stunning development. The former Duke star hit .309/.422/.465 with the Storm but he homered just four times in 62 games. Since joining the ‘Caps, Pauley has connected on five homers in 16 games. Pauley has shown a more aggressive approach in High-A, as his walk rate has plummeted but he is getting the ball in the air more. The most staggering part of his current output is that in Lake Elsinore less than six percent of his fly balls resulted in homers. In Fort Wayne, 22% have gone over the fense. That mark is likely not sustainable but considering the fact he is playing at a higher level in more pitcher-friendly parks his power production increase is a welcome sign for the Padres. … Robby Snelling came into Tuesday’s start having thrown at least five innings in 11 straight outings, including the last two with Fort Wayne. However, Snelling allowed four runs in the first while tossing more than 30 pitches, which resulted in the shortest outing of his professional career. The prized lefthander allowed back-to-back-doubles in the first and nearly escaped with just two runs allowed but a two-run single pushed across two more. Snelling walked the leadoff batter in the second but bounced back with a pair of strikeouts sandwiched around Anthony Vilar throwing out a runner at second. In three starts with Fort Wayne, the 19-year-old has a 4.26 ERA. 

Storm 9, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 8 (10 innings)

Key Statistics: RF Kai Murphy. 2-for-6, R, 2B, SB (10); LF Tyler Robertson, 2-for-4, 3 R, 2 HR (4, 5), 2 RBI, 2 BB, SB (18); C Ethan Salas, 3-for-6, 3B, RBI; DH Nick Vogt, 0-for-2, 2 R, 4 SB (5, 6, 7, 8); RHP Thomas Balboni Jr., 2 IP, BB, 5 K; RHP Luke Boyd (W, 1-0) 3 IP, H, R

Prospect Watch: It was an exciting game at The Diamond, as the Storm used a walk-off single from Ethan Salas to win in front of a crowd of 1,223. … For Salas, it capped another brilliant night as the young catcher tripled and singled twice – though his walk-off hit should come with an asterisk. Salas, in a lefty-lefty matchup, slammed a fastball off the base of the wall in dead-center. It surely would have been a booming double under any other circumstance but it was good enough to give the Storm the win. The 17-year-old has played like a superstar in July. In his last six starts, he has had three three-hit games. Overall he is hitting .395/.469/.791 this month. … While Salas will get the headlines from this game, one must not forget about Tyler Robertson. As we have written, Robertson has typically been the driving force behind the Storm offense this season. The former Louisiana-Lafayette outfielder connected on two homers, scored three runs, stole his 18th base of the year, and drew two walks for good measure. Robertson is hitting .328/.425/.525 in 31 games with the Storm. After missing nearly two months with a hamstring issue, the Montgomery, Alabama native has shown that his combination of speed and power makes him a name to watch down the stretch. … Thomas Balboni, Jr. and Luke Boyd gave up just one unearned run over the final five frames to give the offense time for an impressive comeback. Balboni covered the sixth and seven innings and threw two scoreless frames. He walked one and struck out five of the seven batters he faced. The 23-year-old was the Padres’ 15th-rounder last year out of Northeastern. The Naples, Florida native had a disastrous outing on July 8, when he allowed six runs while recording just two outs, but has had back-to-back scoreless appearances since. … Righty Luke Boyd finished things up and earned his first win since 2021 when he was a member of the TinCaps. Boyd allowed the ghost runner to score in the top of the 10th but was otherwise quite sharp. Over three innings, Boyd didn’t allow a baserunner despite not notching a single strikeout. The 25-year-old was drafted in the 17th round by the Padres in 2021 out of Baylor. He has a 3.15 ERA in 12 games for the Storm since joining the club on the last day of May. 

ACL Giants Black 11, ACL Padres 6

Key Statistics: RF Juan Murillo, 2-for-5, 2 R; DH Carlos Rodriguez, 2-for-4, 2 RBI; C Lamar King Jr., 1-for-4, SB (5); LHP Zack Qin (L, 0-1) 3 IP, H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K; RHP Seth Mayberry, IP, H ER, 2 K; RHP Jordan Guerrero, 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K; LHP Javier Chacon, 2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K

Prospect Watch: The ACL Giants Black scored in seven of the nine innings and overpowered the ACL Padres on a horrendously hot evening in Peoria. At the 6pm start, the temperature was 113 with 13 mph winds. … Despite the loss, Juan Murillo continues to feast on ACL pitching. Murillo singled twice and scored a pair of runs. Murillo has hit safely in eight straight games and has multi-hit efforts in four straight. After a slow start, Murillo is hitting .389/.476/.611 in July. … Zack Qin started and earned the first decision of his career. Unfortunately, the lefty took the loss giving up two runs on a two-run homer over three innings. Outside of that, he limited the damage and walked just one batter. The 18-year-old Qin has a 5.31 ERA in 20.1 innings. … Three pitchers made rehab appearances, starting with Seth Mayberry. The righthander pitched one inning and allowed a run, striking out two. He’s made two appearances in the desert and seems poised to join the Missions’ bullpen in the near future. … Lefty Javier Chacon threw two innings and allowed a pair of runs on two hits. He also walked two but did strike out four batters. The Cuban-born southpaw began the year in the Storm bullpen but he was placed on the injured list at the end of April. … Big Jordan Guerrero recorded two outs but allowed two runs on three hits. The 26-year-old has battled arm injuries but showed big-time velocity before his latest surgery this spring. Guerrero was drafted by the Padres in the sixth round back in 2015. He is the last player from his draft class still in the organization.