Reno Aces 6, Chihuahuas 0
Key Statistics: SS Matthew Batten 0-for-2, 2 BB; 3B Eguy Rosario 1-for-4; CF Bryce Johnson 1-for-4; DH Brett Sullivan 1-for-3; LF Tirso Ornelas 1-for-4; C Brandon Valenzuela 1-for-3; LHP Omar Cruz (L, 1-2) 3 IP 7 H, 4 R, 4 BB, 3 K; RHP Francis Pena 1 IP, 2 H, K; RHP Sean Reynolds 1 IP, BB, K
Francis Pena has a big arm. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Prospect Watch: The Aces held the visiting Chihuahuas to five singles, as only Matthew Batten reached base more than once. El Paso will try to split the series in the Sunday finale. … Omar Cruz, 25, allowed four runs for his second straight outing, this time in three innings. While his changeup was effective when Reno batters swung at it, inducing a 43% whiff rate, he wasn’t in the zone enough to get them to chase it often. The lefty, who was dominant in posting a 1.42 ERA with 20 strikeouts across 19 innings in August as he blew past his workloads in the last two seasons, has allowed 12 hits and five walks in five innings over his last two appearances. Overall, it’s been a strong year for the left-hander from Hermosillo, Mexico, who returned to the Padres in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft. He’s posted a 3.71 ERA between El Paso and San Antonio in 85 innings. … Francis Pena, who started the year in Fort Wayne, worked around a pair of hits to record a scoreless inning. The 23-year-old has been up and down since being promoted from Double-A in early August. When he’s on, the lithe Dominican can bring it with a fastball that can reach triple digits, though he topped out at 96.8 mph Saturday. After overwhelming hitters at the lower levels, he’s posted a 6:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 10 inning for the Chihuahuas. … Sean Reynolds, 26, made his second appearance with El Paso since being sent down from San Diego, throwing a clean inning. He punched out the last batter he faced, landing his slider for a called strike two before finishing him off chasing another slider. If Reynolds can get called strikes with his slider, he will pitch in the big leagues for a long time.
Robbie Tenerowicz had four hits on Saturday. (Photo: San Antonio Missions)
Tulsa Drillers 5, Missions 4 (11 innings)
Key Statistics: LF Cole Cummings 1-for-3, 3 BB, SB (10); 1B Robbie Tenerowicz 4-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI; RF Robert Perez, Jr. 4-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI, BB; RHP Ryan Bergert 5 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 4 K; LHP Ryan Och 2.0 IP 2 H, 2 BB, 3 K; LHP Daniel Camarena (L, 0-2) 0.1 IP H, 1 R (0 ER)
Ryan Bergert had another solid night. (Photo: Rey Holguin)
Prospect Watch: The Missions were down 4-3 in the ninth when Robbie Tenerowicz singled for his fourth hit to even the game. San Antonio had their chances in the tenth and eleventh, but the Dodgers’ affiliate won it in the bottom of the eleventh with a single to left to bring in the deciding run. … It was the second four-hit night of the year for Tenerowicz, who leads all Missions hitters with more than 100 at-bats this year with a .754 OPS. … Robert Perez Jr. also had four hits on the night, including his 20th double. He also walked and drove in two runs. The 24-year-old minor league free agent signee has hit in six straight, posting a 1.208 OPS in that stretch. … Ryan Bergert, 24, continued to pitch well in the second half, only allowing one run in five innings of work. He’s now gone at least five innings in five straight starts and owns a 3.24 ERA and a solid 41:17 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 40.1 innings since returning to action in mid-July. With only one more start left during the regular season, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him continue to get work in the Arizona Fall League. … San Antonio has won three out of the first five in Tulsa and will try to take the series on Sunday.
South Bend Cubs 5, TinCaps 2
Key Statistics: 2B Nerwilian Cedeño 1-for-4; 1B Devin Ortiz 1-for-1, 3 BB, SB (10) ; 3B Rosman Verdugo 1-for-4, RBI; RHP Jose Luis Reyes 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Eric Yost 4 IP, 5 H, 3 R (2 ER), BB, 3 K
Devin Ortiz reached base three times. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
Prospect Watch: In their penultimate game of the year, the TinCaps nearly tied it in front of a sold-out crowd at Parkview Field in the eighth inning when Rosman Verdugo‘s deep fly to left field with two runners on was caught against the wall. While the Storm were playing in triple-digit heat, the game-time temperature in Fort Wayne was a brisk 62 degrees. … It was a tough night at the plate for Fort Wayne, as the offense was held to only three singles. Devin Ortiz, 25, reached base four times, walking three times. The University of Virginia alum leads the team with 99 hits and is second in walks with 56 on his way to a .701 OPS. … Nerwilian Cedeño singled to extend his hitting streak to 13 games, though he snapped a five game stretch with an extra-base hit… Mexicali native Jose Luis Reyes, 22, continued to get significantly better results in the Midwest League than he did in Lake Elsinore, though his underlying numbers have been pretty consistent. While his 2.74 ERA in 23 innings with the TinCaps sparkles next to the 7.84 mark he had in 70 frames with the Storm, most of that gap is because of a drop from a .369 average on balls in play in the Cal League to just .269 in the Midwest League. … Heading into the last game of the season, the Cubs and TinCaps are tied for the worst record on the circuit.
Storm 3, Inland Empire 66ers 2
Key Statistics: LF Braedon Karpathios 1-for-3, RBI; RHP Miguel Mendez 4 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 2 K; RHP Yovannki Pascual (W, 1-0) 3 IP, 2H, ER, 2 K; RHP Tyson Neighbors 1 IP, 2 H, 2 K; RHP Luis German (S) 1 IP, 2 BB
Prospect Watch: The Storm scored three runs on only one hit to win their third game of the five against Inland Empire. Lake Elsinore won the first half and are once again atop the Cal League South division in the second half, with a group of position players that has nearly completely turned over. The one common piece in most daily lineups in both halves has been Braedon Karpathios. The 21-year-old has been much better in the second half. After carrying a .676 OPS into the all-star break, he’s reached base as a .432 clip and is slugging .525 since. He’s cut his strikeout rate, which was above 30% through the first two months of the year to just 17% since the break. The left-hander is another of the Padres’ many successful 2022 undrafted free agents. … Tyson Neighbors, 21, came in for an inning and recorded a pair of strikeouts. In four appearances with the Storm since being drafted out of Kansas State in the fourth round, Neighbors has struck out at least two batters in every appearance, only one going for more than an inning. He landed 12 of his 16 pitches for strikes on Saturday, though he did surrender a pair of hits. He’s allowed five hits and four walks in 4.1 innings as he figures out how to deploy his three-pitch mix most effectively against professional hitters.
