Chihuahuas Rained Out
El Paso had their series opener against Oklahoma City postponed due to rain. The two teams will play a doubleheader on Thursday, with the first game scheduled for 9:05 a.m. San Diego time.
Missions 2, Corpus Christi Hooks 0
Key Statistics: 1B Devin Ortiz 1-for-3; C Brandon Valenzuela 1-for-4, HR (3), 2 RBI; LF Moises Gómez 1-for-2; RHP Henry Baez 7 IP, 2 H, BB, 8 K; RHP Jose Geraldo IP, H, 2 K; LHP Jake Higginbotham (W, 2-1) IP, 2 K, BB
Henry Baez is finding his stride in San Antonio. (Photo: Rey Holguin)
Prospect Watch: Tuesday’s tilt was scoreless until the ninth inning when catcher Brandon Valenzuela connected on a walk-off homer to give the Missions the victory at Wolff Stadium. The victory improved San Antonio’s record to 12-10. … The Missions’ offense only managed three hits, but Valenzuela’s was the biggest. The blast was Valenzuela’s third homer of the season and extended his hitting streak to five games. The switch-hitting catcher has yet to record a multi-hit game during the streak, so he is only 5-for-20 (.250 average). Because of a very slow start, the 24-year-old is hitting .213/.304/.393. … On the mound, Henry Baez had one of the best starts of his career, but the lack of run support left him with the no-decision. The 22-year-old right-hander allowed just two hits over seven innings while walking one and striking out eight. Baez had shown a tick more on his fastball this season, as he was sitting at 95 mph. Tuesday marked the first start Baez pitched at least seven innings since last July 12 when he went seven no-hit innings for the TinCaps against Great Lakes. The young righty has gotten stronger in each start. Over his last four starts, spanning 20.2 innings, Baez has walked just two batters while punching out 24. His start Tuesday lowered his ERA to 3.16, and his 0.84 WHIP is the fourth-lowest in the league. … Righty Jose Geraldo, 26, pitched a scoreless eighth inning, allowing a hit and punching out two Hooks. Even with the promotion of David Morgan, the Missions bullpen is full of pitchers with big-league potential, and Geraldo has been as effective as any of them. Tuesday’s scoreless inning preserved his ERA at a perfect 0.00. In seven games, spanning 8.2 innings, Geraldo has walked just two and struck out 13. His WHIP stands at a sparkling 0.92. After struggling through the start of last year in a third pass at Fort Wayne, Geraldo has found another gear since reaching Double-A last August.
Roster Moves: With David Morgan in the Padres’ bullpen, lefty Fernando Sanchez was promoted from Fort Wayne to take his place.
TinCaps 12, Dayton Dragons 6
Key Statistics: C Brendan Durfee 4-for-4, 3 R, 3 2B, BB, 2 RBI; SS Leo De Vries 3-for-3, 3 R, 2B, HR (4), 3 RBI, BB; 2B Brandon Butterworth 2-for-4, R, BB, 2 2B; 3B Rosman Verdugo 2-for-4, BB, RBI; RHP Ian Koenig IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 K; RHP Tyler Morgan (W, 2-0) 3 IP, 5 K
Leo De Vries celebrates a homer. (Photo: Fort Wayne TinCaps)
Prospect Watch: After falling behind 4-0 in the first inning, the TinCaps bounced back for three in the bottom of the frame and then took the lead for good with four in the sixth. The victory improved the TinCaps to .500 (11-11). … Tuesdays are for cheap tacos, beer, and ridiculous performances by Leo De Vries. De Vries, 18, went 5-for-5 last Tuesday in Lansing, hitting for the cycle. He didn’t quite repeat the feat on Tuesday, finishing a triple shy. He still had a single, a double, and his fourth homer, and also laid down a sacrifice bunt. He drew a walk in his final plate appearance, preventing a shot at history. Over his last two Tuesday games, De Vries is 8-for-8 with two doubles, a triple, two homers, and a whopping 11 RBI. Thanks to his prolific output on Tuesdays, De Vries ranks second in the Midwest League with a .968 OPS, and his .609 slugging percentage leads the circuit. … Lost in another De Vries masterclass was the performance of 23-year-old catcher Brendan Durfee. The former UC Santa Barbara backstop set a new career-high with four hits, including three doubles to raise his average from .246 to .290 in one night. Durfee impressed last season with the Storm and runs very well for a catcher. He has also shown grit and toughness behind the plate. In 37 games as a professional, he has a very strong .834 OPS. … Thanks to the presence of De Vries, Brandon Butterworth has played quite a bit of second this season. He chipped in with two more hits – both doubles. Over his last three games, Butterworth has gone 6-for-13, raising his batting average from .265 to .303. The former North Carolina State shortstop is now hitting .308/.395/.431 on the year.
Tyler Morgan delivers for the TinCaps. (Photo: Fort Wayne TinCaps)
After Ian Koenig struggled in the first and hard-throwing Luis Germán yielded two more runs, 24-year-old Tyler Morgan stabilized things, earning his second win for the effort. The Abilene Christian product tossed three perfect innings, striking out five batters. Morgan (no relation to David) has been terrific for the TinCaps this season, typically pitching the middle innings after a starter got knocked out early. Morgan has not allowed a run over his last three outings, spanning 7.2 innings. During his recent stretch, he’s allowed just two hits and three walks while striking out 10. Midwest League batters are hitting just .151 against Morgan so far in 2025.
Inland Empire 66ers 5, Storm 0
Key Statistics: C Lamar King Jr. 2-for-4, 2 B; 3B Zach Evans 2-for-3, BB; DH Victor Duarte 1-for-3; LHP Kash Mayfield (L, 0-2) 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K; LHP Javier Chacon 3 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 2 K
Kash Mayfield threw a career-high five innings Tuesday night.
Prospect Watch: After losing a series at home last week to the Rawhide, the Storm lost their series opener to Inland Empire at The Diamond. … The Storm offense mustered just six hits but two of them came off the bat of Lamar King Jr., who tallied a single and a double. King, 21, is 5-for-10 during a modest three-game hitting streak. The 21-year-old catcher is off to an excellent .304/.390/.464 start this season. … Lefty Kash Mayfield struggled early, as the 66ers put up three runs in the first, but pitched better as he worked deeper into the game. Mayfield put up zeroes in his final four frames to keep the Storm in the game. Tuesday marked the first time that Mayfield threw five innings. He allowed three runs on four hits, walking two and striking out two. The 20-year-old will finish his first month of professional baseball with a 5.02 ERA in 14.1 innings. Opposing hitters are batting .208 against Mayfield, but eight walks and two hit batters have led to extra traffic on the basepaths. The overall numbers look underwhelming, but Mayfield gutting out four innings after a rough start gives some insight into his resiliency. … Lefty Javier Chacon took over for Mayfield and struggled with command. The Cuban-born lefty tossed three innings, allowing an earned run on three hits. He walked three and struck out a pair of hitters. Chacon started the year in extended spring training and is working his way back into form after ending last season in the Storm rotation. Chacon has a 3.18 ERA in 5.2 innings in two appearances for the Storm.
Roster Moves: Right-handers Sam Whiting and former top prospect and big leaguer Luis Patiño were added to the Storm roster to start rehab assignments. Patiño is coming off Tommy John surgery last spring while Whiting had an abdominal injury that shut him down through the spring.
