San Diego Padres Week in Review: May 19-25

El Paso Chihuahuas (lost series to Round Rock Express 2-4)

Players of the Week: For the second straight week, minor league free agent signee Evan Fitterer delivered the best pitching performance for the Chihuahuas. The 25-year-old from Orange County followed up a siix-inning, one-run outing in Salt Lake with 5.1 scoreless innings to pick up his first victory of the year. Fitterer struck out a season-best five Express hitters while getting them to pound the ball into the ground when they did make contact. He has never finished a season with a ground ball rate below 54% since the Marlins agreed to a major overslot deal with him out of high school in 2019. … Will Wagner missed the first six weeks of the season with an oblique strain he suffered in spring training, but the left-handed utility began making up for lost time last week. Wagner went 8-for-19 with a pair of homers and more walks than strikeouts to produce a .421/.522/.842 line. Wagner had solid results in the big leagues when he debuted in Toronto in 2024, but was exposed in longer exposure last season, both before and after the Padres acquired him. He’ll look to sustain his production in El Paso while awaiting another opportunity at the big league level.

Top Prospects and Others of Note: As he has through most of the first two months of the year, Jase Bowen contributed heavily to the El Paso offense. The 25-year-old outfielder reached base 14 times in 28 trips to the plate, with a double and two homers among his eight hits. On the year, his .600 slugging percentage ranks second in the PCL, though his overall offensive production is actually down from his overall performance last year in the Pirates system when he struck out less often and walked more. … Mason McCoy, the only El Paso position player other than Wagner on the 40-player roster, went 7-for-21 in the series, but a double was his only extra-base hit. The 31-year-old, whose added power production this year was called out by his manager, Pete Zamora, is in line to reach double-digits in both home runs and stolen bases in the PCL for the fourth time in his career. … Logan Gillaspie made a pair of scoreless appearances out of the Chihuahuas bullpen, striking out four in 4.1 innings. The veteran swingman has given up 29 total runs on the year; 17 of them have come in three games. … Reliever Garrett Hawkins only allowed one run across three relief outings, but he had to work around four walks in three innings. Hawkins’ trademark riding fastball continues to come in with less velocity and less carry than he showed last year. (David Jay)

San Antonio Missions (Split series at Frisco RoughRiders)

Players of the Week: Lefty Ian Koenig signed with the Padres as an undrafted free agent nearly four years ago. Since then, he has been a solid, if unspectacular, innings eater. This week, he had the best outing of his career. Koenig pitched seven scoreless innings for the first time in his career. It’s the third time the righty has gone seven innings. The 25-year-old has never been a strikeout pitcher, and his six strikeouts this week were one off his career high. In 21.1 innings across four starts in May, Koenig has struck out 16 batters while only walking two. … Romeo Sanabria went hitless on Wednesday to break a season-best 11-game hitting streak. He then proceeded to go 8-for-15 over the last four games with eight runs scored, a double, a home run, three walks, and two stolen bases. After hitting .176 in April, the first baseman is hitting .352/.459/.521 this month. With his stolen base on Sunday, Sanabria has already tied his career high, with four.

Top Performers: With a week until the Padres’ top prospect is no longer a teenager, Ethan Salas had another strong week offensively. Salas went 7-for-23, with a double, three runs scored, and three RBI. He has cooled off a bit from the blistering four-week stretch he had between mid-April and early May, but is still hitting .289 in May with an .810 OPS.  The second-youngest player in the Texas League (behind Leo De Vries) is hitting .298 this season with an .843 OPS. … After breezing through his first rehab start without allowing a run, Jhony Brito ran into more problems in his second outing with the Missions. The righty allowed nine batters to reach base over 3.1 innings, allowing three earned runs.  Brito needed 68 pitches to get 10 outs this week after needing 53 to get through four innings in his first start. Brito’s velocity has been there, sitting 95 mph on his sinker, but he has struggled with location. He is likely ticketed for El Paso when he finishes his rehab and will provide more depth to the back end of the Padres’ rotation. … While Koenig was the top pitcher this week, Victor Lizarraga was not far behind. The Imperial Beach native allowed one run over six innings for the second consecutive start. He walked one and struck out five. After a very difficult start to the year, the 22-year-old has a 1.35 ERA in May. … Top pitching prospect Miguel Mendez made two starts as he slowly rebuilds his innings after coming back from a neck strain. He would like to forget them both. In the two starts, Mendez went a total of three innings. He allowed six runs on six hits, walking four and striking out seven. The righty is still pumping upper-90s gas, but continues to struggle landing his off-speed pitches for strikes, allowing hitters to sit on his heater. … For the first time all season, Albert Fabian is in a hot stretch. The outfielder suffered a brutal leg injury in 2024 after posting an .830 OPS with the Storm in 2023. Since coming back at the Double-A level midway through last season, Fabian hasn’t looked like the same pre-injury player. This week, however, Fabian went 6-for-21 with a double, a home run, and four RBIs. On the season, Fabian is hitting .232 with a .628 OPS. … Buoyed by a 4-for-5 game, Tirso Ornelas hit .280 on the week with two doubles and a walk. In May, the system veteran is hitting .329/.392/.529. … After an incredibly slow start to the season, Kai Roberts has been on a tear in May. The 2024 seventh-round pick went 5-for-13 with a double, home run, four walks, and four stolen bases. He has more than doubled his April OPS, batting .308/.413/.436 in May, and leads the club with 14 stolen bases. (Ben Davey)

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Split Series against Dayton Dragons 3-3)

Players of the Week: Alex McCoy’s seven-game hitless streak two weeks ago seems like a distant memory. The 6-foot-7 outfielder was red hot this past week, going 9-for-24 against Dayton pitching. The Baltimore product smashed two homers and eight extra-base hits en route to posting a 1.215 OPS. Not only do McCoy’s 16 doubles and 26 extra base hits rank first and second on the circuit, his .967 OPS and nine homers each rank second in the San Diego system… Kash Mayfield was once again masterful in his lone start of the week. The lefty worked five shutout innings, allowing just two hits, walking one, and punching out eight, generating 14 whiffs and needed only 78 pitches to complete his outing. Friday marked the fourth time in eight starts that Mayfield has tossed at least five innings of shutout ball while allowing two hits or fewer. For the season, opposing hitters own just a .360 OPS and .103 average against him. His ERA sits at 1.30 with an impressive 34.7 percent strikeout rate. Subscribers can read our interview with the talented prospect here.

Top Prospects and Others of Note: Jake Cunningham continues to be a pleasant surprise for Fort Wayne to start the season. The toolsy outfielder went 4-for-14 with a homer, double, and walked three times. In 132 plate appearances this season, the Orioles’ 2023 fifth-rounder, owns a 136 wRC+ and .417 wOBA. Still, swing-and-miss has been a concern as he owns a 30.3% strikeout rate against just a 9.8% walk rate … Rosman Verdugo tallied just three hits on the week, but reached base a combined 11 times thanks to working eight walks against Dayton pitching. The plate discipline has been much better in his second season at the High-A level, as the 21-year-old is walking at an impressive 13.5% clip against a 22.1% strikeout rate, down notably from his 32.1% rate a year ago. … After a solid string of series, Lamar King Jr. went cold this past week, going just 2-for-21 at the dish with six strikeouts. While he’s looked better at the High-A level this season, the 22-year-old is still struggling a bit to make consistent, impactful contact, as evidenced by his .375 slugging percentage and a 53.1% ground ball rate. … Carson Montgomery was once again excellent in his Thursday start as he turned in his fourth straight five-inning appearance, giving up his first run during that stretch while striking out a career-high seven batters. The 23-year-old righty is starting to see the sharpness and depth return to his breaking ball with his sweeper seeing between 16 and 19 inches of horizontal break. Meanwhile, his fastball sat in the mid-90s and saw up to 19 inches of ride. For the season, he owns a 1.41 ERA. … Clay Edmondson‘s dominant 2026 rolled along this week, as the sidearmer pushed his save total to 10. He’s given up only one earned run in 19 innings this year and opposing batters are hitting just .118 against him. In tandem with his ability to miss barrels and keep hitters on the ground at a 51.4% clip, the sidearmer also gets plenty of swing-and-miss, resulting in strong 36.6% strikeout and 29.5% whiff rates. … Tucker Musgrove made a pair of scoreless appearances. After a rough start upon his arrival in the Midwest League, he owns a 1.29 ERA with a K rate north of 30% since April 29. While command and walks remain an issue, he still boasts a 37.8% whiff rate and 68.2% ground ball rate.

Lake Elsinore Storm (lost series at Visalia Rawhide, 2-4)

Players of the Week: A month after sweeping Visalia at home, the Storm lost four of six in the Central Valley. The Storm will head home with a 25-20 record and a share of the Cal League South Division lead. … Kerrington Cross continued his assault on Cal League pitching with another big week. The 24-year-old hit .400/.625/.867 with a double and a pair of homers. He also drew eight walks while punching out just three times. Cross, thanks in part to his last two weeks of production, leads the California League with a wRC+ of 172. He also boasts a league-high 23.8% walk rate and his 1.064 OPS leads the circuit. Given his advanced age, Cross should be in the Midwest League in the not-too-distant future. … Reliever Nick Falter had another great week out of the Storm bullpen, firing five shutout innings in a pair of appearances. He allowed just one hit and hit a pair of batters. He struck out seven and opposing batters hit just .063 against him. His scoreless week lowered his season ERA to 1.52. Falter has had some good luck with balls in play (opponents’ BABIP is just .225), but he’s been the most reliable arm in the Storm bullpen. He signed with the Padres last summer as an undrafted free agent. 

Top Prospects and Others of Note: Infielder Jose Verdugo had his best week of the year, delivering a 1.055 OPS and his second homer of the season. The 18-year-old has posted solid contact rates this season but his overall lack of power limits his offensive production. Despite the homer last week, he’s slugging just .333. … Truitt Madonna had another good week at the plate notching a 1.051 OPS. Perhaps more importantly, he drew six walks and struck out just three times. Over the last two weeks, Madonna has been one of the hottest hitters in the league. In his last ten games, he has a 1.152 OPS with four doubles and an RBI. … Third catcher Yoiber Ocopio had a pair of homers and a 1.020 OPS. He has three homers in 60 plate appearances. … The two top position player prospects on the Storm struggled against the Rawhide. Ryan Wideman did not draw a walk in 30 plate appearances, struck out nine times and produced a .400 OPS. Despite the poor week at the plate, he owns an .840 OPS in 2026. … Shortstop Jorge Quintana had a .411 OPS for the week, as the young infielder continues to struggle. He also punched out nine times, raising his K-rate to a concerning 32%. … Bryan Balzer earned a win Thursday, firing five innings of two-run ball. He walked two and struck out six. Through 37.2 innings, Balzer has a 4.78 ERA on the year. … Kruz Schoolcraft pitched well for three innings Friday, before falling apart in the fourth inning. The young lefty has pitched better in May but still carries an ERA north of eight this season. … Teenage righty Jesus Castro continued his impressive debut campaign, working four scoreless innings. In his first stateside season, Castro sports a 3.07 ERA with 31 strikeouts across 29.1 innings. (Kevin Charity)

ACL Athletics 7, ACL Padres 1 (3-2 on the week)

Key Stats: CF Moises Valdez 1-for-3; 3B Dawson Willis 2-for-3, 3B, BB, SB (1); RHP Luis Maracara 3 IP, 5 K, BB; LHP Ryan Och 1.1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, K, WP; RHP Landry Jurecka 1.2 IP, 2 H, ER, 2 K; RHP Jordan Valenzuela 0.2 IP, H, 2 ER, 2 K, 2 BB, HBP

Top Prospects and Others of Note: The A’s came across the Valley of the Sun and beat the Padres rookie level squad on the holiday. Luis Maracara tossed three hitless innings in his best outing of the year, striking out five. The 18-year-old, repeating in the desert after struggling badly with both command and control last year, is off to a much more encouraging start this year, striking out nine against one walk in his first 5.2 innings. … After missing the first few weeks of the ACL season, Dawson Willis got underway impressively this week. The 22-year-old infielder had a triple as part of a two-hit game Monday and is now 6-for-14 with three extra-base hits. Renowned for his defense at the University of Oklahoma, the athletic 6-foot-4 right-handed hitter has the tools to contribute at the plate as well. … Other key pitching contributors on the week included big righty Cameron Nohos, who struck out five over three scoreless frames, and Taiwanese righty Lan-Hong Su, who tossed two innings in his start of the week. Both are getting stretched out after delayed starts to the season