San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: May 15

Chihuahuas 8, Las Vegas Aviators 5

Key Stats: LHP Jackson Wolf 4.2 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 Ks; RHP David Morgan 0.1 IP, K; RP Reiss Kneher IP, 3 K, BB; LF Tirso Ornelas 2-for-5, 3 RBI; DH Luis Campusano 3-for-5, HR (9), 3 RBI

Prospect Watch: For just the second time this year, Jackson Wolf failed to complete five innings in a start. Still, the left-hander was solid at Las Vegas, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk while punching out eight in 4.2 innings. Wolf’s six different offerings generated a 31.8% whiff rate and a very strong 45.5% chase rate. The sinker displayed solid shape, getting 14.3″ of horizontal break, holding La Vegas hitters to a 0.160 xwOBA. The 26-year-old’s slider earned a 57.1% whiff rate and 37.5 chase rate, getting 5.0″ iVB and -9.2″ horizontal break… David Morgan emerged from the bullpen to finish the fifth inning, getting Las Vegas catcher Willie MacIver to whiff on the slider three times for a punchout on a full count. Even at elevation, Morgan’s slider shape was good, averaging 0.6″  iVB and -4.4″ horizontal break. He tossed a pair of 97 mph fastballs as well. … Reiss Knehr closed out the game and earned his eighth save of the season. While pitch models don’t love the shape of his fastball or cutter, that didn’t stop either of them from being effective. Knehr’s fastball sat at 96.3 mph with a below-average 12.1″ iVB and 8.9″ arm side run. It generated a 50% whiff rate and 50% chase rate. Knehr has made a few noticeable adjustments coming back from Tommy John surgery and moving into a relief role. He has dropped his arm angle from 32 degrees in 2023 to 29 and has moved from the first base side of the rubber to the third, dramatically changing his horizontal release angle. That change can help help a pitcher become more deceptive. …Tirso Ornelas collected his third straight multi-hit game for El Paso as the left-fielder went 3-for-5. Only one of the five balls he hit was on the ground. … Luis Campusano continues to terrorize PCL pitchers, going 2-for-5 with a three-run home run in the top of the fourth inning that came off the bat at 103.4 mph. In 131 AAA plate appearances, Campusano still owns a 14.9% barrel rate and 109.1 90th percentile exit velocity, both in the 98th percentile among AAA batters. Given that, it’s not surprising he leads the PCL with a 1.079 OPS.

Midland RockHounds 9, Missions 6

Key Stats: LHP Jagger Haynes 5.2 IP, 8 H, 5 R (4 ER), 3 BB, 7 Ks; Manuel Castro IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 K; 3B Devin Ortiz 2-for-5, R; Cody Roberts 3-for-5, 3B, HR (1), 4 RBI; Moisés Gómez 2-for-4, BB, R

Prospect Watch: Jagger Haynes had a mixed bag of an outing, working 5.2 innings. The left-hander yielded five runs, four earned, on eight hits, three walks, while striking out seven. Haynes allowed two home runs in a five-pitch stretch in the fifth. The raw stuff wasn’t as dominant as it had been in his prior two starts, but he still generated 10 whiffs and a 23.2% whiff rate while settling for a no-decision. Haynes’ fastball sat 93-95 most of the night, clipping 96 a few times on the evening. While he sometimes struggled to command his slider, the pitch again flashed solid depth. … After posting a 0.84 ERA and holding opponents to a .030 batting average through April, Missions reliever Manuel Castro has seen more difficulties in May. In his lone inning of work against Midland, Castro allowed two runs on three hits while punching out two. In his last four outings, he has allowed six earned runs and has a 13.50 ERA in May. … San Antonio’s offense collected 12 hits, but left 10 runners on base in the loss. Devin Ortiz’s respectable bounce-back 2025 season continued with a 2-for-5 night to raise his average to .307 with a .781 OPS on the season. … Cody Roberts gave Brandon Valenzuela the night off behind the dish and produced, going 3-for-5 with four RBIs, a triple, and his first home run. Since moving down from El Paso, the journeyman catcher has posted a .906 OPS in 18 at-bats. … Moisés Gómez also produced a multi-hit night, going 2-for-4 with a walk and run scored. While the 26-year-old has cooled off considerably this month, he still owns a .810 OPS.

TinCaps 9, West Michigan Whitecaps 8

Key Stats: 3B Rosman Verdugo 3-for-3, 2 HR (8), 2B, BB, 3 RBI, 4 R; CF Braedon Karpathios, 1-for-3 HR (6), 3 RBI, BB; 2B Brandon Butterworth 2-for-4, 2 2B, 2 R; RHP Jose Reyes 3 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 2 BB; LHP Harry Gustin 3.1 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 5 K; Garrett Hawkins (S, 1) 1.1 IP, 1 H, 3 K

Prospects Watch: Rosman Verdugo left the yard not once but twice as part of a 3-for-3 night with a walk that featured three RBIs and four runs scored. Verdugo’s second multi-home run game of the season allowed him to reclaim the Midwest League lead with both eight homers and a .278 isolated power (IsoP). … While Braedon Karpathios went just 1-for-3 with a walk, his lone hit was a big one, as the 21-year-old collected his sixth home run of the year. Karpathios continues to flash plus power with a .459 slugging percentage and a strong .204 ISO. His plate discipline remains outstanding, as he owns a 17.6% walk rate and just a 10.8% chase rate after 111 at-bats in High-A. … The organization’s top prospect, Leo De Vries, put together a 1-for-4 showing with a single to center in the bottom of the third. After a red-hot first month-plus of the season, De Vries has gone a bit cold as of late. He is now 7-for-35 with 13 strikeouts and two walks in his last eight games. … Brandon Butterworth had himself a 2-for-4 night that featured two doubles and two runs scored. While Butterworth holds only a .756 OPS this season, he has made quality decisions at the plate; posting a 21.1% whiff rate and 85.5% in-zone contact rate. …  Starting pitcher Jose Luis Reyes struggled, allowing seven runs on eight hits and a pair of walks over three innings. The 22-year-old from Mexicali has allowed a .330 average. …  Harry Gustin delivered 3.1 exceptional scoreless innings of relief, allowing three hits and a walk while totaling five punchouts. Gustin generated a 33.3% whiff rate on the night, lowering his ERA to 1.80 in 25 innings this year. … Garrett Hawkins was once again exceptional in a high-leverage role. He entered the game with two on in the top of the eighth. While one of the runners came in, he protected the TinCaps’ lead, then came back out for a clean ninth. The 25-year-old allowed one hit and struck out three more as his fastball topped out at 97. He generated four whiffs, good for a 36.3% whiff rate, as he recorded his first professional save. He’s struck out 37.5% of the batters he has faced this year.

Storm 1, Fresno Grizzlies 0

Key Stats: DH Kavares Tears 1-for-4, BB; LF Kaden Hollow 2-for-4, RBI; SS Cobb Hightower 0-for-3, BB, 1 R; RHP Kleiber Olmedo 4 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 6 K; RHP Adam Conrad 3 IP, H, 2 BB; RHP Vicarte Domingo 2 IP, 5 K

Prospects Watch: One day after being shut out by the Grizzlies, Lake Elsinore and their pitching staff returned the favor with a 1-0 shutout victory of their own on Thursday Night. Boston Bateman was originally slated to start, but after running a fever yesterday, the organization opted to push his start out of an abundance of caution. … In his place, Kleiber Olmedo got the start and responded by working four shutout innings while allowing only two hits and one walk. . The right-hander struck out six, generating 12 whiffs and 46.1% whiff rate on the night. He’s racked up 21 strikeouts against six in 17.2 innings this year. …  Adam Conrad followed Olmedo’s work with three cleaning innings, allowing just two walks and one hit. Conrad has yet to surrender an earned run through 15.1 innings for the Storm this season. While the 22-year-old owns a 26.9% strikeout rate and 3.34 FIP, walks do remain a concern as the right-hander has posted an unsightly 19% walk rate. … Vicarte Domingo closed out the exceptional night of Lake Elsinore pitching with a fastball that topped out at 96 on the night and continued to show noticeable ride. Domingo paired it with a changeup that, like the fastball, flashed solid shape thanks to its ample arm-side run. He generated a 33% whiff rate over his two hitless innings of work to strike out five. He owns a 36.3% K-rate in his first 19 professional innings. … Offensively, the Storm collected just five hits. Kaden Hollow led the way with a 2-for-4 night and knocked in the night’s lone run on a single to right in the bottom of the first inning. … Kavares Tears went 1-for-4 with a walk in the win to extend his on-base streak to sevenn. The Padres’ fourth-round selection has heated up lately, hitting .318 with a .400 wOBA and .892 OPS in his last 11 games. … Cobb Hightower went hitless, but still reached base with a walk. Hightower has displayed some impressive plate discipline in his first nine games, posting a 19.5% walk rate while making contact on 88.6% of his swings at balls in the zone and a whiff rate under 22%.

ACL Padres 5, ACL Guardians 3

Key Stats: 1B Victor Figueroa, 2-for-3, HR (4), 3B, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 R; CF Kai Roberts 1-for-3, 2B, 2 BB, 3 SB (5); SS Yimi Tovar 2-for-4, 2B; RHP Matt Waldron, 1.2 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 3 K; RHP Jimmy Reyes 2 IP, 3 K, 2 BB; LHP Ruben Salinas 2 IP, 3 H, 3 K, BB

Prospect Watch: Nobody in baseball is hotter at the dish than Victor Figueroa. The 2024 18th-round selection had yet another multi-hit day, going 2-for-3, with a home run, triple, and walk with three RBIs. In 33 ACL at-bats, the Florida SouthWestern State JC baseball alum is hitting .576 with an 1.874 OPS that is good for a wRC+ north of 330. … Center fielder Kai Roberts continued to work back from his hamstring injury, going 1-for-3 with a double, a pair of walks, and three stolen bases. He’s now played the field the full game twice and is approaching the end of his stint in the ACL, where he has hit .538 with a 1.453 OPS. … Kale Fountain went 0-for-4, but walked and reached on an error. The six-foot-five Fountain took advantage, stealing second and third base back-to-back both times he got on base. He hadn’t swiped a base in his first seven games. … Matt Waldron made his first rehab start working back from an oblique injury he suffered late in the spring. The right-hander tossed 1.2 innings, allowing one run on two hits and a walk. He struck out three.