San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: July 22

Chihuahuas 5, Sugar Land Space Cowboys 4

Key Statistics: CF Brandon Lockridge 0-for-1, 3 BB, 2 R, SB (5); RF Yonathan Perlaza 1-for-4, R, 2B; C Luis Campusano 1-for-3, HR (15), 2 RBI; 3B Mike Brosseau 1-for-4, HR (9), 2 RBI; RHP Ryan Bergert 4 IP, 2 H, 2 R (1 ER), 3 BB, 4 K; LHP Miguel Cienfuegos (W, 1-2) 2 IP, 2 H, ER, 3 K; RHP Sean Reynolds 1.1 IP, BB, K; RHP Eduarniel Núñez (S, 5) IP, 2 K

Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas jumped out to a lead in the second and held on to defeat the Space Cowboys at home. … Catcher Luis Campusano connected on a two-run homer over right-center at the wall. Amazingly, the blast was only the fifth-hardest hit ball by an El Paso hitter, leaving the bat at 100 mph. Forrest Wall had two balls measured at 105 mph, but both were caught on an unlucky night for the outfielder. Campusano continues to obliterate Triple-A pitching as he waits for another opportunity in the big leagues. The catcher and sometimes first baseman ranks third in the PCL with a 1.008 OPS. … Yonathan Perlaza doubled to extend his hitting streak to nine games. Perlaza has 33 doubles this year, which leads all of minor league baseball. In fact, Perlaza is tied with Royals’ star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. for the professional lead. The former KBO slugger and Cubs farmhand has improved his contact rates over the last month, and he brings some versatility at the plate with his ability to switch-hit. Overall, he is hitting .302/.386/.512. … Righty Ryan Bergert struggled a bit with command but was able to finish four innings. Bergert allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits, walking three and striking out four. The former West Virginia star has split the year between the El Paso rotation and San Diego. In El Paso, he actually has a much higher WHIP (1.50) than he does in San Diego (1.14). … Hard-throwing Eduarniel Núñez brought the heat in the ninth en route to his fifth save. Núñez topped out at 99 mph and struck out two Space Cowboys to preserve the win. The former Cubs farmhand has eviscerated Triple-A batters this season. In 10.2 innings, opposing batters have notched just two hits for a .065 average. He has also struck out 14 batters while walking just four. 

Midland RockHounds 1, Missions 0

Key Statistics: DH Albert Fabian 3-for-4; 1B Romeo Sanabria 1-for-4; 3B Devin Ortiz 1-for-4; RHP Henry Baez 5 IP, H, BB, 4 K; LHP Ryan Och (L, 1-2) 0.2 IP, H, ER, 2 BB; RHP Kevin Kopps 1.1 IP, K

Prospect Watch: The Missions were shut out for the third time in four games and the squad has scored just two runs since the All-Star break. … San Antonio managed six singles, and Albert Fabian had three of them. The 23-year-old began his Double-A journey by hitting safely in his first six games before going hitless in his next two. Since joining the Missions, the outfielder is hitting .387/.441/.645. … The lack of offense by the Missions wasted another stellar performance from Henry Baez. The 22-year-old tossed five shutout innings, allowing just one walk and one hit. He struck out four. He sat 93-95 mph with his fastball, touching 96 several times while showing excellent depth on his low-80s curveball. Baez has been the most effective starting pitcher in the entire system this year. Since May 1, Baez has a 1.59 ERA in 69 innings. Overall, Baez ranks at or near the top of the Texas League in most pitching statistics, leading the circuit with both a 1.02 WHIP and .192 opponent’s batting average and ranking second with a 1.95 ERA. He has also thrown an organization-high 91.2 innings, good for fourth in the Texas League 

TinCaps 4, Cedar Rapids Kernels 2

Key Statistics: Braedon Karpathios 2-for-5, 2B; 3B Rosman Verdugo 1-for-3, HR (11), BB; DH Sean Barnett 1-for-4, HR (2), 2 RBI; LF Ryan Jackson 2-for-4; RHP Ian Koenig (W, 4-4) 5 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 2 K; RHP Misael Tamarez 1.1 IP, H, 2 K; RHP Garrett Hawkins (S, 7) IP, 2 K

Prospect Watch: The TinCaps used a pair of homers to defeat the Kernels on the road in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. … Designated hitter Sean Barnett connected on his second homer of the season in the win. Over the last two months, Barnett has DH’ed a few days a week while pitching twice per week as well. At the plate, he’s delivered a below-average OPS of .655 while allowing a staggering 23 runs in 10.2 innings as a pitcher. Still, a day like today is a reminder of why the Padres are interested in seeing if the two-way approach can stick. The former Wingate University star hit 26 homers in college last year and has consistently posted some of the top exit velocities on fly balls in the organization. … Rosman Verdugo had just one hit Tuesday, but he made it count by smacking his team-leading 11th homer of the season to set a new career-high. The 20-year-old Ensanada native has been very streaky this season – he came into Tuesday’s game mired in a 4-for-36 slump since going 3-for-4 on Independence Day. He is hitting .220/.339/.320 in July, but has a .772 OPS overall. … Ian Koenig put together his third straight excellent start and earned his fourth win for his effort. The Northern California native tossed five shutout innings, allowing just three hits. He walked two and struck out two. After scuffling to a 7.20 ERA through a rough June, the 24-year-old has looked sharp in July. Including Tuesday’s outing, Koenig has allowed just two runs in 17.1 innings (1.04 ERA) this month. The young righty doesn’t miss many bats, but he’s been able to eat innings. He’s tossed at least five innings in four consecutive starts. … Righty Garrett Hawkins’ insane heater continued Tuesday with another scoreless inning of relief. He picked up his seventh save, dispatching the Kernels easily, notching a pair of strikeouts. The 25-year-old’s scoreless streak has reached an astonishing 30 innings. He has not allowed a run since April 23, and he’s allowed more than one hit just one during the streak when he tossed two innings. Hawkins lowered his ERA to 1.56 in the process. Opposing hitters are batting just .126 against the former University of British Columbia starter. One would figure the Padres will promote Hawkins after the trade deadline and 2025 draft signings pass in the next week since he has clearly been toying with the Midwest League hitters for three months. 

Stockton Ports 7, Storm 5

Key Statistics: DH Victor Figueroa 1-for-3, 2 R, BB; LF Alex McCoy 2-for-3, R; CF Kasen Wells 1-for-4, R, 2 RBI; RHP Humberto Cruz (L, 0-1) 4 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, BB, K; RHP Tanner Smith 2 IP, R, 3 BB, 3 K

Prospect Watch: The Ports took advantage of the wind blowing out to center field, hitting three homers to defeat the Storm. Lake Elsinore plated four in the ninth inning to make things a little more interesting. … Outfielder Alex McCoy returned to the Storm lineup after a two-month stint on the IL with a quad strain and celebrated the occasion with a pair of hits. The 6-foot-6 outfielder is hitting .277/.351/.431 in 17 games for Lake Elsinore this season. … Humberto Cruz was roughed up and took his first Cal League loss. He allowed five earned runs while getting tagged for three homers before departing after four innings. After impressing in his full-season debut, the prized teenage righty has struggled for the Storm. In three starts, spanning 10.1 innings, Cruz has a 6.10 ERA. While Tuesday’s outing was forgettable, the 18-year-old is battling against much older competition. Despite the rough outing, he’s still showing off the velocity and quality stuff that has led to optimism around the Monterrey, Mexico native. … Tanner Smith had a bit of an uneven appearance that included three walks, a balk, and a disengagement violation. Despite the unforced errors, Smith still allowed just one unearned run in a pair of frames while striking out three Ports. The 22-year-old out of Harvard has a 0.79 ERA in seven games for the Storm. He has racked up 14 strikeouts in 11.1 innings this season. 

ACL Rockies 4, ACL Padres 1 (7 innings)

Key Statistics: SS Jose Sanabria 1-for-3, R; LF Emil Turbi 2-for-3; RHP Josh Mallitz 2 IP, 3 K; RHP Dane Lais 2 IP, BB, K; RHP Elvis Reyes (L, 0-1) 0.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R (1 ER), 2 BB

Prospect Watch: The ACL Padres couldn’t get much offense going and lost to the ACL Rockies in a seven-inning tilt in the desert. … Jose Sanabria had a single at the plate and scored the lone run in the loss. However, he had a brutal game in field, making four errors in the loss. The defensive meltdown is completely out of character for the 22-year-old. Coming into Tuesday’s action, Sanabria had played over 500 innings on the dirt this season and made just three errors collectively. … Josh Mallitz made his third rehab appearance since being activated last week and pitched a pair of scoreless innings, notching three strikeouts in the process. The 23-year-old had an impressive 35:11 strikeout-to-walk ratio in in 29 innings for Fort Wayne before hitting the IL in mid-June, but the righty from Mississippi had a 5.28 ERA in the process. … Righty Dane Lais followed Mallitz and notched a pair of scoreless innings himself in the loss. The 20-year-old has a 3.86 in three ACL appearances as he makes his way back from Tommy John surgery. The 2023 draftee out of high school should make his way to Lake Elsinore for the final month of the season.