2024 El Paso Player and Pitcher of the Year

Summary: It was another so-so year in Sun City, as the Padres’ top affiliate finished 64-86. However, they did finish strong, winning 11 out of their last 12 and coming within three outs of winning all 12. For most of the season, the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate fielded their usual mix of minor league free agents with a few potential prospects sprinkled in.

As always, there were some highlights from the season. This year, maybe more than any other, the Chihuahuas were able to bolster the edges of San Diego’s big league team as both veteran major leaguers Donovan Solano and David Peralta began their tenure in the Padres’ organization in Sun City. The biggest help El Paso may have provided was a steady stream of bullpen arms that started with Adrian Morejon and Jeremy Estrada, with Sean Reynolds and Alek Jacob also contributing.

Overview: We use a simple formula for the awards. The player is eligible for the team for which he appeared the most. For the top prospect, we consider not just what the player did this year but also his age and potential impact in the major leagues.

We lean toward more of a middle-of-the-road evaluation, relying on a couple of questions to filter through it:

How old is the prospect compared to the competition?

How raw or developed is the prospect heading into a full-season ball?

Is he making the necessary adjustments in terms of mechanics and approach?

Level: Triple-A is a unique crossroads in professional baseball, with rosters often featuring as many players looking to get one last shot as those hoping to get their first shot.

The two most significant position prospects in El Paso for most of the year were Outfielder/first baseman Tirso Ornelas and infielder Eguy Rosario, who graduated this season.

Player of the Year: OF/1BTirso Ornelas(unanimous)  .297/367/.497  24 2Bs, 23, HRs, 89 RBI 

The knock on Tirso Ornelas, 24, throughout his career in the Padres’ organization is that he hit too many balls on the ground and not enough in the air to fully unleash the power in his 6-foot-3, 235-pound frame.

This season was different as he set career highs in home runs with 23, eight better than his previous high of 15 in 2023 between San Antonio and El Paso, and slugging percentage at .497. Additionally, he was solid against both left-handed (.846 OPS) and right-handed pitching (.870), and while his home spits were better .933 OPS, he wasn’t bad on the road with nine of his 23 home runs coming there and a .846 OPS. He led the team in hits (144), total bases (144), and RBI (89) while playing the majority of his time in left field, although he also logged time in right and center field, along with first base.

Others of Note: OFCalvin Mitchell, INFEguy Rosario, & OFTim Locastro & OF Brandon Lockridge

Calvin Mitchell, 25, finished a homer short of Ornelas but posted a better OPS (.871) and slugging percentage (.512) than Tirso, in addition to stealing 12 bases in 18 attempts and had one more extra-base hit with 50. The left-hander crushed right-handed pitching with a .993 OPS but struggled against lefties with a .508 OPS. Despite growing up in San Diego, he will be a minor league free agent in the offseason and may be looking for a better opportunity with a big league club. He can play all three outfield positions defensively. … Eguy Rosario, 24, had another – and hopefully his last- solid year with the Chihuahuas as he tied Cody Decker for the all-time team home run record with 48; he has 79 in his minor league career. This season, he hit 21 home runs, stole 19 bases, posted a .892 OPS, and got significant time all over the infield. As his manager, Pete Zamora, stated, Rosario can be the best player on the field on both sides of the ball. As in the majors, Rosario particularly pounded left-handed pitching in the PCL with a .290/.327/.696 in 147 plate appearances. He also finished playing more shortstop at the end of the year, and with Ha-Seong Kim’s expected departure, Rosario could get a real opportunity in the big leagues. …Outfielders Tim Locastro, 31,  and Brandon Lockridge, 27, impacted the team despite playing a little over 30 games. Locastro had a .928 OPS and played all three outfield positions, along with second and first base, before going down to a season-ending shoulder surgery. Lockridge was acquired from the New York Yankees at the trade deadline and made his way to the big league club after hitting .325/.420/.423 with 12 stolen bases in 14 attempts in 143 plate appearances.

Pitcher of the Year: RHPGabe Mosser(John, David, Ben, and Mark) RHPLake Bachar(Kevin)

This season for the El Paso Chihuahuas, Gabe Mosser, 28, led the team in starts with 26, innings pitched with 133.1, and strikeouts with 103 despite possessing a fastball that rarely rose to the mid-90s. Mosser, a 27th-round pick in 2018 out of Shippensburg University, a Division II school in Central Pennsylvania, did it by focusing on movement and location to survive and even thrive in one of baseball’s most demanding professional leagues. This season, he had the most innings in his sixth season with the Padres, finishing with a 7-7 record and a 5.40 ERA, leading all Chihuahuas starters who made 10 or more starts this year.

Lake Bachar, 29, was the last man standing from the 2016 draft class and nearly made a storybook major league debut when he was called up to San Diego but was sent down before he got a chance to get in the game. The story did end well, as he ended up getting a chance with the Miami Marlins when the Padres had to make room on their 40-man roster, and he ended up getting in 10 games with Miami with a 3.86 ERA. With El Paso, he was fourth on the team in innings pitched with 71.2 and a 3.89 ERA in altitude.

Others of Note:  RHP Sean Reynolds, RHPAlek Jacob, and LHP Tom Cosgrove

Sean Reynolds, 26, was seen by some as the player returning in the Ryan Weathers trade in 2023. He was a 6-foot-8 converted position player with a fastball that regularly sat in the upper 90s. The one big problem was his near-complete inability to throw strikes, as he posted a 13.50 ERA in 16 innings with a whopping 27 walks against only 19 strikeouts. In 2024, he struck out 67 in 54 innings against only 33 walks and earned a call-up to the big league squad. … Alek Jacob, 26, was also effective in 53.2 innings as the sidewinder went 3-1 with a 5.53 ERA. He had a rough first half but was much better in the last three months as he held the PCL to a .188/.269/.375 slash line. As with Reynolds, he was better in San Diego with a 2.45 ERA in 14.2 innings. … Finally, lefty Tom Cosgrove, 28, returned from a tough start in the big leagues, where he posted an a11.66 ERA to striking out 34 batters in 29.2 innings against 14 walks for a 4.85 ERA. As with Jacob, he has much better at the end of the season, where he held the opposition to a .215 batting average and only gave up four runs in his last three months after allowing five in July. 

Top Position Prospect: Tirso Ornelas (unanimous)

As the season went on, Chihuahua’s manager, Pete Zamora, tried to give Tirso more opportunities in right field, first, and even center to increase his chances of cracking the major league team. How well he can demonstrate in the Spring could go a long way in helping him make the major league club. His bat and the ability to consistently get the ball in the air will keep him in the major leagues. With the team set in center and right field for the foreseeable future, his ability to stick on a major league roster might come down to how willing the team is to mix and match him in left field, first, and designated hitter. He will only be 25 next year, so a return to the Sun City to at least start the year isn’t out of the question.

Top Pitching Prospect: Sean Reynolds (unanimous) 

Despite what the overall numbers in El Paso say, Reynolds turned it around this year as his fastball command returned, along with a slider that he could throw for strikes and to chase. Although he had a 6.17 ERA in 54 innings, he was dominant with the big league club with a 0.82 ERA in 11 innings with 21 strikeouts against only five walks. If Reynolds can continue to land his slider in the zone and chase, along with his improved fastball command, he will be a weapon out of the bullpen.