San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: July 13

Chihuahuas 6, Las Vegas Aviators 3

Key Stats: LF Yonathan Perlaza 3-for-4, HR (9), 2 RBI; 2B Nate Mondou 1-for-4, 3B, 2 RBI; 1B Tim Locastro 0-for-3, 2 BB, SB (16), 2 R; RHP Matt Waldron 6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 3 K, 3 BB; RHP Eduarniel Núñez IP, K, BB

Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas offense jumped out to an early lead and Matt Waldron turned in his second straight quality start as the club claimed a series split to head into the break. Waldron, coming off seven scoreless innings in the series opener, gave up two runs over six innings Sunday, striking out three. Waldron again relied heavily on his knuckleball, throwing it 57 times in 90 total pitches. He was able to land the pitch the pitch for 10 called strikes as he kept Vegas hitters off balance all afternoon. … El Paso put up three runs in the first when Clay Dungan singled in a run and then Yonathan Perlaza followed with a two-run homer. The blast was part of a three-hit game for Perlaza, who made just his sixth start of the year in left field. The 26-year-old switch-hitter has reached base in 19 straight games and is hitting .375 over that stretch. He’s raised his line for the year to .298/.382/.486 and is producing slightly above Pacific Coast League average.

Missions 7, Wichita Wind Jammers 3

Key Stats: DH Ripken Reyes 3-for-4, 2B, HBP; 3B Devin Ortiz 2-for-4, 2 HR (4), 3 RBI; 1B Romeo Sanabria 2-for-5, 2B; LF Albert Fabian 2-for-4, HR (2); RHP Victor Lizarraga 3 IP, 2 H, ER, 4 K, 4 BB; RHP Jose Geraldo (W, 2-1), IP, H, 2 K; RHP Jared Kollar 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 K; RHP Tyson Neighbors IP, H, BB

Prospect Watch: Devin Ortiz connected on a pair of home runs as the Missions piled up six extra-base hits to claim their sixth victory in a row. Ortiz, who only had two homers on the year coming into the contest, had a two-run shot as part of a four-run fourth inning, then capped the scoring with a solo blast in the eighth. The corner infielder, who signed out of the University of Virginia in 2022, started the year strong, but struggled badly in June, hitting .202 with just one extra-base hit in 84 at-bats. Sunday was his third two-hit game in his last six starts. … Romeo Sanabria extended his own multi-hit game streak to four, collecting a single and double in five trips to the plate. The 23-year-old still hasn’t drawn a walk in 65 plate appearances, but does seem to have snapped out of his extended cold stretch. He’s hitting .318 with a .500 slugging percentage for the month. … Albert Fabian hasn’t missed a beat as he comes off losing an entire year to injury. The left-handed slugger connected on his second homer in six games since joining the Missions. He’s hitting a cool .429/.500/.810 in 23 plate appearances. The 23-year-old is back chasing balls down in left field. Watch for him to take a more prominent role in the middle of the San Antonio lineup over the final eight weeks of the season. … Righty Victor Lizarraga continued his slow build-up, going three innings and 64 pitches for the first time in four outings since leaving a start in mid-June. The 21-year-old from South County San Diego gave up one run on two hits and four walks. Lizarraga has struggled much more with command this year than in the past, walking 35 batters in 52 frames. He’ll look to get fully built up after the break and try to make a run at 100 innings for the first time in his career. … Tyson Neighbors finished out the game with a scoreless frame despite allowing a hit and a walk. After blowing away batters in Fort Wayne, he’s had mixed results since reaching the Texas League. While he’s maintained a strong 31% strikeout rate, his walk rate has crept into double digits and he’s had a bit of luck keeping opponents’ average on balls in play under .200. While hitters at the lower level gladly chased after his nasty slider, the more advanced hitters at Double-A are laying off the pitch a bit more consistently, forcing him to try to land it in the zone more often.

Quad Cities River Bandits 6, TinCaps 2

Key Stats: CF Kai Roberts 3-for-5; DH Brendan Durfee 1-for-3, 2B; LHP Luis Gutierrez 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 8 K, 2 BB, HBP; RHP Luis Germán 2 IP, H, 1 R (0 ER), 2 K, BB; RHP Sean Barnett IP, 2 H, 3 ER, BB, K, HBP

Prospect Watch: Luis Gutierrez turned in another strong outing, but the TinCaps offense and bullpen couldn’t make it hold up as the club had to settle for a series split at home heading into the break. Gutierrez, 21, punched out eight batters over five innings of two-run ball to put an exclamation point on a strong start to the season. The lefty, originally signed way back in 2019, hasn’t missed a beat since his promotion from Lake Elsinore. In five appearances, he’s posted a 2.45 ERA, though his walk total has crept up a bit against more advanced hitters. After struggling badly through his first three professional campaigns, he began to turn the corner last year as he began to trust his changeup more consistently. Across two levels this year, he sports a 2.75 ERA. He should reach a career high in innings in his next start. … Kai Roberts reached base three times out of the leadoff spot. He’s posted a .408 on-base percentage through 11 July games while cutting down his strikeout rate to just 10.2%. … Catcher Brendan Durfee had an RBI double and a walk as he continues to heat up. The left-handed slugger really limped through May and June, slugging just .214 in 117 at-bats, but he’s turned the corner this month. The 23-year-old is batting .286/.381/.514 through 35 trips to the plate in July with only six strikeouts against five walks.

Storm 3, Visalia Rawhide 2

Key Stats: 3B Chase Valentine 2-for-4, 2B, 2 R; RF Victor Figueroa 4-for-4, BB; SS Cobb Hightower 1-for-3, 2 BB, 2 RBI; RHP Abraham Parra 5 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 6 K, 2 BB; RHP Vic Domingo 3 IP, 2 K, BB; LHP Igor Gil (S, 2) IP, H, K, BB

Prospect Watch: The Storm opened the fifth inning with three straight singles and a walk, getting two runs and take a lead that they held onto over the final four frames to get a split of the series in the Central Valley. Victor Figueroa once again led the offense, going 4-for-4 with a walk. The big man, playing in right field for the second consecutive game and ninth time overall, had one double, but has seen his power production ebb over the last three weeks. He’s reached base at a stellar .431 clip this month, but is slugging just .404. Last year’s 18th-rounder has been one of the offensive breakouts of the year in the organization, hitting .333/.438/.651 across two levels. … Chase Valentine capped a stellar series in Visalia with another two-hit game that included a double. The 23-year-old utility man finished the week 8-for-22 with four walks and four doubles. He’s in the midst of his best stretch since signing as an undrafted free agent in 2022. … Shortstop Cobb Hightower made his first start batting in the three hole and had a single and two walks in the effort. The 20-year-old, a third-round pick last year, reached base 10 times in 26 plate appearances in the series and has his OPS up to .364 since joining Lake Elsinore. … Behind a strong start by Abraham Parra and three hitless frames from Vic Domingo, lefty Igor Gil came on and picked up his second save of the month. The 24-year-old lefty, who didn’t sign out of Venezuela until late in 2023, has shown some of the nastiest stuff on the Storm staff this year. Since rejoining the club from a brief stint in the desert in May, Gil has pitched to a 2.51 ERA. He’s moved into higher leverage roles as the season has moved on.