San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: May 31

Sacramento River Cats 8, Chihuahuas 1

Key Statistics: 1B Trenton Brooks 2-for-4; CF Forrest Wall 2-for-3; SS Clay Dungan 1-for-4, HR (3), RBI; LHP Omar Cruz 4 IP, 2 H, BB, 6 K; LHP Miguel Cienfuegos (L, 0-1) 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB; RHP Jared Kollar 2.2 IP, 4 H, 6 R (4ER), 2 BB, K, 3 HR; RHP Francis Peña IP

Prospect Watch: After winning their first three games in Sacramento, the Chihuahuas dropped their second straight as El Paso wasted a solid start by Omar Cruz. The River Cats put two runs on the board in the fifth and sixth innings and then four runs in the seventh as Clay Dungan’s lead-off home run was the only run that the visitors could put on the board. … Cruz, the 26-year-old from Hermosillo, Mexico, worked four scoreless innings, allowing just a pair of hits and one walk while striking out six. The left-hander has been stellar as a starter for El Paso, posting  with a 1.13 ERA in five starts and 16 innings, with opponents hitting just .098 against him. Coming out of the bullpen, he’s struggled to a 5.56 ERA in 11.1 innings. Until Saturday, he had struggled mightily on the road, but the opposition has yet to score on him in 14 innings in El Paso. Cruz pitches off his changeup, which helps his four-seam fastball, which topped out at 93.6, play up. He got six whiffs from the 13 swings River Cats hitters took at the fastball Saturday. … With a pair of hits, Trenton Brooks, 29, extended his team lead to 53. The left-hander from Granite Hills High School in El Cajon briefly appeared with the Giants last year. While primarily seeing time at first base in his first season in the Padres organization, he has also logged six games in left field. On the season, he has a .294/.397/.539 slash line.

Arkansas Travelers 3, Missions 2

Key Statistics: 3B Devin Ortiz 1-for-1, 2 BB; 2B Marcos Castañon 1-for-4, HR (6), RBI; 1B Romeo Sanabria 1-for-4; LF Moisés Gómez 1-for-4, RBI; CF Kai Murphy 1-for-4; RHP Braden Nett 2.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, HR; RHP Eduarniel Nunez 2 IP, H, 5 K; LHP Jake Higginbotham 2 IP, H, BB, 3 K; RHP Manuel Castro (L, 2-1) 0.1 IP, H, 1 R (0 ER), K

Prospect Watch: The Missions lost a tough one in extra innings on the road, but still have a chance to take the series on Sunday. After being down 2-0, San Antonio got one back in the fourth on Moisés Gómez’s RBI single and tied it on Marcos Castañon’s majestic shot to center field in the sixth.  In the top of the tenth, reliever Manuel Castro struck out the first batter before giving up a walk-off single to plate the Manfred Man. Despite the loss, Castro has been one of the better relievers for the Missions this season.  The diminutive righty has struck out 33 batters in 19.1 innings against only seven walks while posting a 3.72 ERA. He relies on a mid-90s sinker, slider, and changeup mix. He’ll be in line for a 40-player roster spot in the winter. … Castañon’s homer was his sixth of the year, putting him one off the team lead held by Brandon Valenzuela.  The UC Santa Barbara Gaucho has been particularly effective on the road this year with a .366/.386/.561, giving him an .846 OPS overall on the season. He’s seen time at first, second, and third base in the field.

TinCaps 6, Great Lakes Loons 2

Key Statistics: 2B Brandon Butterworth 1-for-3, 2 BB, SB (8); 3B Rosman Verdugo 0-for-2, 3 BB; RF Braedon Karpathios 1-for-4, BB; C Oswaldo Linares 1-for-2, BB, 3 RBI; LF Jake Snider 1-for-3,  2B, BB; RHP Isaiah Lowe 4.2 IP 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, HR, RHP Josh Mallitz (W, 3-1) 2.1 IP, 2 BB, 2 K; RHP Garrett Hawkins IP, BB; RHP Tyson Neighbors IP, K

Prospect Watch: The TinCaps were down early, but put up four runs in the top of the sixth and added two more in the seventh. They will try to split the series Sunday. … Isaiah Lowe got the start as he continues to get back on track following a rough start to the season. After posting a 10.38 ERA in just 8.2 innings across four starts in April, he’s been much better in May with a 4.29 ERA in five starts and 21 innings. The primary focus for Lowe has been to get him into the game more quickly, as many of his struggles have occurred in the first inning. Saturday, he gave up a two-out solo homer in the first, but allowed just two more hits into the fifth inning. He issued two of his three walks in the fifth as he reached a season-high 88 pitches. … Josh Mallitz, who got the win with 2.1 innings of scoreless relief, has also shown significant improvement in May. He now sports a 1.23 ERA in 14.2 innings this month after posting a 9.42 ERA in April in 14.1 innings. Mallitz, 23, signed as an undrafted free agent from the University of Mississippi last summer. He has 35 strikeouts against 11 walks in 29 innings on the season. Along with lefty Harry Gustin, he has provided the TinCaps bullpen with much-needed length. … Tyson Neighbors closed out the game for Fort Wayne, retiring the three batters he faced in order, ending the game on a strikeout. In 10.1 innings in May, the Midwest League is hitting .162 against the former Kansas State star.

Storm 6, Stockton Ports 1

Key Statistics: DH Kavares Tears 2-for-4, BB; 1B Lamar King, Jr.  3-for-4, 2B, SB (4); 2B Yendry Rojas 2-for-4, 2B, SB (7), RBI; RF B.Y. Choi 2-for-4, 2 RBI;  RHP Abraham Parra (W, 1-1) 5 IP, H, ER, BB, 2 K; RHP Bernard Jose 3 IP, 3 K; LHP Ruben Salinas IP, 2 BB, K

Prospect Watch: The Storm won their third game in a row and fourth out of five against the visiting Stockton Ports, plating three runs each in the fourth and sixth innings. On the mound, Lake Elsinore got a strong performance from Abraham Parra, who made a spot start for Bryan Balzer, who is only expected to miss one turn in the rotation. In his second start of the season, the 19-year-old righty from Venezuela allowed just one run on a double and two walks over five innings. Of the 66 pitches he threw, 43 went for strikes. … Lamar King Jr. had a big game, collecting three hits and a stolen base. After posting an .800 OPS in April, he has slumped to a .652 mark this month, even after back-to-back three-hit games. Still, the big thing for King has been staying healthy and being able to get at-bats and receive time behind the dish after two injury-filled seasons. He’s on track to more than double the career at-bat totals he amassed in the first three years after the Padres drafted him out of high school in 2022. … With a pair of hits, Kavares Tears finished a strong May with a .310/.383/.510 slash line. After punching out in a third of his plate appearances in April, he cut that rate to 24.3% this month. Defensively, he has still only gotten into the field once this year. 

The patient approach of Ryan Jackson at the top of the lineup has been a key part of the Storm offense this year. Kevin Charity has this interview with the Cal League’s on-base percentage leader.

ACL Royals 13, ACL Padres 4

Key Statistics: 2B Luis De Leon 2-for-5, RBI; LF Eguy Rosario 1-for-4, 2B; 1B Kevin Hacen 2-for-4; 3B Ismael Javier 1-for-3, BB;  RF Jesmaylin Arias 0-for-2, 2 BB; Ss Emil Turbi 2-for-4; RHP Ruben Galindo (L, 0-1) 0.1 IP 4 H, 3 R, 3 BB; RHP Luis Maracara 3.1 IP 3 H, 3 R, BB, 7 K; RHP Erick Batista 1 IP, BB, 2 K

Prospect Watch: It was another rough game for the ACL Padres club, which was down 7-0 after the second inning and trailed 10-0 before scoring a few runs late. The club is just 5-17 on the year. … Ruben Galindo, who pitched last year for the TinCaps, made his second rehab appearance in the desert, but had a nightmare outing. The first seven batters all reached base before he was removed from the game.  The only out he recorded came on when Eguy Rosario threw out a runner at the plate from left field.  Last year, the 24-year-old from Colombia posted a 3.09 ERA in 23.1 innings of work in the Midwest League before a shoulder injury shut him down at the end of May. … Kale Foundtain’s health and how long Rosario remains in the complex are the most interesting storylines left in the desert. Rosario, who was once one of the top prospects in the system, had a double in four trips to the plate. He has a .564 OPS in 48 plate appearances as he attempts to escape a season-long funk while learning left field on the fly. … Luis De Leon, a switch-hitting Dominican, has played all over the field. The 19-year-old had a pair of hits today, with most of his starts coming in left field and second base. On the year, he has a .728 OPS, which leads the team’s players with more than 50 plate appearances.