Chihuahuas 8, Sacramento River Cats 7
Key Stats: CF Daniel Johnson 1-for-4, HR (2), BB; SS Ray-Patrick Didder 2-for-3, HR (4), 2 BB; LF Tirso Ornelas 2-for-5, 2 2B; RF Taylor Kohlwey 3-for-4, 2B; 2B Max Schrock 3-for-4, 3B; RHP Nolan Watson 5 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 2 K, 6 BB; RHP Kevin Kopps 1 IP, 0 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, HBP; LHP Adrian Morejon 1 IP, K; LHP Ray Kerr (S, 10) 1 IP, K
Tirso Ornelas had a pair of doubles to extend his hitting streak to 17 games. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Prospect Watch: El Paso and Sacramento traded six lead changes, but the Chihuahuas held on to end their series with two straight wins. … Shortstop Ray-Patrick Didder drove in the Chihuahuas’ first run with a homer in the first, locked up the win with an RBI single in the eighth, and in between drew a pair of walks. The 10-year minor league veteran hit just .197 for San Antonio through the first three-and-a-half months of the season but has a .293/.435/.533 line and 11 stolen bases in his first 30 games in the PCL. … Tirso Ornelas had a pair of doubles to extend his hitting streak – which included a week in San Antonio – to 17 games. The 22-year-old left fielder has 10 multi-hit contests across that stretch. After struggling in his first stint with the Chihuahuas, he’s hitting .409 over the last two weeks. … Lefty Adrian Morejon worked a scoreless frame with one strikeout as he tries to rebound from a rough rehab assignment. The oft-injured hurler sports a 7.50 ERA across 12 innings in two different stints with El Paso this year. His fastball sat 95-97 during Sunday’s outing.
Missions 11, Amarillo Sod Poodles 10
Key Stats: 3B Juan Fernandez 3-for-4, 2 HR (7); CF Jakob Marsee 1-for-4, HR (1), BB; SS Ripken Reyes 2-for-3, 2B, BB, HBP (46), SB (28); 2B Jackson Merrill 1-for-4, BB; RHP Bobby Milacki 3.2 IP, 1 K; Justin Lopez 0.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 K, 2 BB
Jakob Marsee has been an on-base machine in his first full season. (Photo: San Antonio Missions)
Prospect Watch: After falling behind 4-0 early, the Missions scored 11 unanswered runs to take a commanding lead into the ninth. However, Amarillo rallied for five and had the bases loaded before Justin Lopez got a full-count strikeout to help the Missions escape with a series victory. Third baseman Juan Fernandez had the first two-homer game of his career to pace the San Antonio offense. Coming into the game, the 24-year-old’s slugging percentage had been hovering just above .300 since a strong July. He’s now one off the career-high eight homers he had for San Antonio in 2021. … Jakob Marsee connected on his first Double-A home run and also collected a walk as he continues a torrid August. The left-handed outfielder has reached base at least twice in each of the five games he’s started since joining San Antonio, keeping his on-base percentage across two levels this month above .500. The Padres’ sixth-round draft pick last year is one of just four players in minor league baseball with at least 160 total bases and 90 walks on the year as he continues to show a balance of patience and loud contact at the plate. … Jackson Merrill reached base twice at the plate. Making his second professional start at second base, the 20-year-old was charged with an error on a ball he briefly bobbled after it kicked off the mound. … Bobby Milacki once again provided needed innings out of the bullpen for San Antonio, working 3.2 hitless frames to give the club an opportunity to rally. The 26-year-old, who subscribers can read about here, has gone at least three innings out of the bullpen in each of his last five appearances, backstopping a staff that has had a number of pitchers on significant pitch and innings limits. In his first season in the organization, the righty has thrown a career-high 72 innings. … Brought in after Amarillo had already put five runs on the board in the ninth, Lopez labored but was able to close out the victory. The 23-year-old righty gave up a pair of soft-contact singles and two walks – one made intentional after he fell behind 3-1 in the count – but struck out a pair.
Great Lakes Loons 6, TinCaps 1
Victor Lizarraga has had an up-and-down campaign in Fort Wayne. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Key Stats: LF Tyler Robertson 2-for-4, SB (2); 1B Carlos Luis 2-for-4; SS Jarryd Dale 1-for-3, 2B; RHP Victor Lizarraga 5 IP, 5 H, 4 R (3 ER), 6 K,3 BB
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps missed an opportunity to close within a half-game of the division lead as they fell to the Dodgers’ High-A affiliate to drop their series. Fort Wayne is 1.5 games back with 12 to play. Tyler Robertson picked up a pair of hits and swiped his second base in six games since coming up from Lake Elsinore. The 23-year-old speedster, who struck out in 24% of his plate appearances in Low-A, has K’ed 10 times in his first 24 trips to the plate with the TinCaps. … Jarryd Dale picked up the team’s only extra-base hit with a double in the eighth inning. The Australian utility player has a .934 OPS in nine games since spending the first four-plus months of the season on the IL. … Coming off his best start of the year, righty Victor Lizarraga had mixed results Sunday. The 19-year-old matched his season high with six strikeouts but continued to struggle with his command and walked three as he allowed three earned runs over five innings. After missing two turns through the rotation at the end of last month with a virus, the Tijuana native has allowed 11 runs in 15 innings across four outings in August.
Storm 6, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 5
Key Stats: LF Homer Bush, Jr. 2-for-4, BB; CF Dillon Head 1-for-4, BB, SB (1); 1B Romeo Sanabria 1-for-3, 2B, 2 BB; C Victor Duarte 2-for-3 3B, 2 BB; RHP Henry Martinez 2.1 IP, 2 H, 4 ER, 1 K, 6 BB; RHP Alejandro Lugo 2.2 IP, 2 H, 5 K, 1 BB; RHP Xavier Ruiz (W, 2-0) 3 IP, 1 H, 2 K, 1 BB; RHP Will Varmette (S, 1) 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R (0 ER), 3 K, BB
Prospect Watch: In a sloppy game, the clubs combined to issue 17 walks and commit five errors, but for the second straight night, Elsinore defeated the Dodgers affiliate to claim a series split. After a rough full-season debut for Henry Martinez, three Storm relievers combined to give up just one unearned run over 6.2 innings while striking out 10. Righties Alejandro Lugo and Xavier Ruiz, who both opened the year in the desert, allowed only three hits combined, continuing strong runs for both. Lugo, 21, missed all of last year following surgery and came into the year with just 43.1 professional innings since signing out of Venezuela in 2019. After walking 20 in 27 innings with the ACL squad this summer, he’s posted an 11:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first 8.2 innings with Lake Elsinore. Ruiz, who signed as a 19-year-old before last season, has struck out 35 in 31.2 innings across both levels this year. … Undrafted free agent Will Varmette struck out the side while earning his first professional save. The 20-year-old from Alabama has struck out 13 in 5.2 innings but has also given up seven hits and four walks. … First baseman Romeo Sanabria had his fifth double in his sixth game with Elsinore and drew two walks as he continues a stellar campaign. His .989 OPS from the left side builds on the 1.060 mark he had in the desert. … Outfielder Homer Bush, Jr. had a pair of hard-hit lineouts in his first two at-bats before converting soft contact into hits in his next two appearances and drawing a walk to end his night. The Padres’ fourth-rounder had three straight two-hit games to end the series.
