2024 El Paso Chihuahuas Season Preview

Synopsis: The Chihuahuas will feature a handful of players like Adrian Morejon, Tirso Ornelas, and Matthew Batten, who are quite familiar to followers of the San Diego Padres minor league system, along with a large group of minor league free agent signees. Keep an eye on newcomer Randy Vásquez and sidewinder Alek Jacob, who could also spend some time on the big league roster this season.

Three Strikes with Mike Daly, the Padres Assistant Director of Minor League Development

Adrian Morejon has been in the system since 2016 and has struggled with various injuries. What role does the organization see for him in the future?

Mike Daly: Being on the 40-man roster is more of a question for Josh [Stein] and A.J. [Preller]. Lately, we have used Adrian out of the bullpen. He has weapons and stuff and is lefthanded. Adrian has a track record of getting hitters out at all levels when he’s been healthy, which is our focus.  

He’s a pretty effective pitcher with his four- and two-seam fastballs and slider.

Brett Sullivan was one of the last cuts of the big league team this spring. What role does the organization see for him this year in Triple-A?

Mike Daly: Brett is just a pro, and he’s always shown that with us. Starting the season 5-for-5 was a nice start, too. He has a lot of versatility and can swing the bat. He has played different positions in the past, which should continue again this year at El Paso. This is mainly to increase Brett’s versatility, but catcher is Brett’s primary position.

You have a ton of new players in the organization this year. Who stood out to you in camp?

Mike Daly: Two guys we acquired this offseason come to mind first. Jeremiah Estrada is a righthanded pitcher from Indio, California, who came over from the Cubs. He spent a lot of time in the offseason working out at PETCO. He has a nice delivery and throws a lot of strikes.

Randy Vásquez, who came over in the Juan Soto trade, also fills up the strike zone with multiple pitches and can throw his secondary pitches for a strike. He will also be someone to watch. 

Although they are both in Triple-A, we think they will be in San Diego sometime this year to help us.

2023 Projected Lineup:

1B Nate Mondou*         OF Tirso Ornelas*   

2B Clay Dungan*          OF Óscar Mercado

3B Matthew Batten      OF Tim Locastro

SS Mason McCoy         DH/OF Cal Mitchell*

C Brett Sullivan* / Kevin Plawecki

* indicates left-handed or switch-hitter

LHSP Jay Groome             LHRP Adrian Morejon

RHSP Randy Vásquez       RHRP Alek Jacob

RHSP Matt Festa                RHRP Jeremiah Estrada  

RHSP Nolan Watson          RHRP Sean Reynolds

LHSP Jackson Wolf           RHRP Lake Bachar

MadFriars’ Top 20 Prospects in El Paso: RHP Randy Vásquez (#13)

Catch a Rising Star: Randy Vásquez was one of the four pitchers who came over in the Juan Soto trade after he made his big league debut last year with the New York Yankees. He had a 2.87 ERA in 37.1 innings with them as a swingman and should be the first pitcher on the shuttle to San Diego if there is an injury on the big league staff. Vasquez’s best pitch is a high-spin curveball, but he will cut, sink, and spin his fastball with a sweeper.  

Starting Pitching: After Vásquez, the most familiar face is 6-foot-6 lefty Jay Groome, who came over in the Eric Hosmer trade and was immediately impressive in the second half of 2022. Groome’s two-seam fastball and sweepy slider were impressive as he posted a 3.16 ERA in 50 innings. Last season, he couldn’t find the plate on the way to an 8.55 ERA in 134.2 innings. He allowed 112 walks, and when he did find the plate, he gave up 171 hits. If he can return to what he was in 2022, he will get back in the conversation about getting his first big league opportunity this summer. He hit the I.L. after two innings in his first start of the year. In his third season with the organization, Nolan Watson will look to build after throwing 126 innings last year between San Antonio and El Paso with a 5.21 ERA. The 27-year-old, who has thrown over 600 professional innings since the Royals made him a first-round pick in 2015, will be asked to eat innings this year with the Chihuahuas. … Jackson Wolf returns to the organization less than half a season after being the main component in a trade with the Pirates. The 6-foot-7 West Virginia University product relies on deception, with batters having trouble picking up the ball. His slider and changeup have improved as a pro, and he will pound the zone. … Matt Festa signed as a minor league free agent after eight seasons in the Seattle organization, including parts of four of them with the big club. Last season, he had a 0.53 ERA in 34 innings with Tacoma and threw nine innings in the majors, recording 13 strikeouts and 12 walks.

Bullpen: Alek Jacob is an excellent example of how velocity is not everything. Throwing from a true sidearm slot with a mid-80s fastball that starts behind their hips, he is a very uncomfortable at-bat for righthanded hitters. According to catcher Chandler Seagle, Jacob can put his fastball, change, and slider in any of the four quadrants of the strike zone. This year, one of the big keys will be improving his effectiveness against lefties, who get a much longer look than righties. … Sean Reynolds, a converted first baseman, came over from the Marlins as part of the Ryan Weathers trade at the deadline. After solid stints in Double-A and Triple-A for the Marlins, the 6-foot-8 Californian could not find the plate in the Sun City as he seemingly lost his release point. He issued 27 walks in 16 innings despite having 19 punchouts. This spring, he was impressive when he saw him, consistently sitting in the upper 90s. … Jeremiah Estrada has already had a brief stint with the big club, tossing an inning on the team’s trip to Korea. He comes over from the Chicago Cubs organization, where he posted a 3.19 ERA across six seasons. He struggled in a brief stint in the major leagues in 2023 with a 6.75 ERA in 10.2 innings, issuing 12 walks and 12 hits against 13 strikeouts. … Righty Lake Bachar re-signed with the Padres after reaching minor league free agency on the heels of his best professional campaign in the San Antonio bullpen in 2023. One of two members of the 2016 draft class still in the organization, the Chicago-area native with a high-spin slider and mid-90s fastball, could get his first chance at the big leagues this year.

Catching: This may be the strongest position on the club, with three solid options that have all reached the big leagues: Brett Sullivan, Kevin Plawecki, and Chandler Seagle. Sullivan, 30, the University of Pacific product, posted a .918 OPS last year with the Chihuahuas and got to the major leagues for the first time for 33 games. His lefthanded bat has improved every season since coming to the Padres from Milwaukee at the start of the 2022 season. … Seagle is the best defensive catcher in the system, and he made his major league debut last season. His offense has improved, but he needs to hit more for regular playing time. Plawecki returned to El Paso after spending time at two other organizations’ Triple-A affiliates last year. He had a .772 OPS in 135 plate appearances for the Chihuahuas the previous year.

Infield: Matthew Batten returns – somewhat surprisingly – for his sixth year in El Paso. Last year, he got a more extended taste of the big leagues when Manny Machado was limited to D.H. and hit .275/.373/.385. In his career, Batten has appeared in every position except catcher and will continue to play all over the field. … Clay Dungan came over from the Kansas City Royals organization in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft. In two years with their Omaha Triple-A team, he posted a .785 OPS. He played all over the infield as well as center and left field. … Mason McCoy comes over from the Seattle Mariner and Toronto Blue Jays organizations with a .257 career average in seven minor league seasons. As with Batten, he’s best known for his ability to play all over the field. … Nate Moundou is a left-handed hitting former Wake Forrest Deamon Deacon who signed after hitting .270./379/.434 with 13 home runs in his one season in the White Sox organization. Defensively, he saw most of his time at first base but also played second and third.

Outfield: The Padres will send out three veteran outfielders and one of the last remaining players from the 2016 international signing class to the Sun City. Óscar Mercado had a strong spring, hitting .320 with a pair of home runs in 30 plate appearances, and made a solid case for a big league opportunity. He can play all three outfield positions and has five years of big league experience. He hit very well in 31 games with the Chihuahuas in 2023, with 18 extra-base hits and a.339 average between stints in the Cardinals and Dodgers organizations. … Calvin Mitchell grew up in San Diego and came to El Paso from the Pirates organization. He had a big 2022 season for Triple-A Indianapolis, hitting .339/.391/.547, before falling off a little last season with a .748 OPS. … Tim Locastro signed a minor league deal late in the spring and then had six hits in 14 Cactus League plate appearances. He has seven years of big league experience, bouncing between the big leagues and the minors. The ability to play all three outfield positions. … Tirso Ornelas returns to El Paso coming off a 2023 that was his best season since rookie ball, with 15 home runs and a .823 OPS between the Chihuahuas and Double-A San Antonio.

On the Spot: Adrian Morejon: It seems like a lifetime ago when the Padres gave the then 16-year-old Cuban $11 million – $22 million with penalties. While his stuff has always been elite, multiple injuries later, Morejon is now trying to establish himself as a big league relief option. The velocity is still in the upper 90s, but coming out of the bullpen, he needs help locating his slider, and his changeup is different than the weapon that the knuckle-curve was as a starter.

While Morejon’s key will always be his health, he will need to be able to locate a breaking pitch off a very straight fastball.

Under the Radar: Tirso Ornelas, 25, had his best season last year, but with El Paso, he was still slightly below league average. He came into spring training in great shape, and the organization has been working on getting him to try to get to the ball out front more consistently and get it into the air more. He’s 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, a decent athlete with a good eye at the plate. If – and it’s always a big if – he can get the ball in the air more, he has a chance.