Chihuahuas 8, Oklahoma City Comets 5
Key Statistics: 2B Luis Rengifo 2-for-4, R, BB, RBI, SB (2); 3B Marcos Castañon 2-for-5, R, 2 RBI; CF Carlos Rodriguez 1-for-4, R, RBI, BB, 2 SB (10); RF Bryce Johnson 1-for-4, BB, RBI, SB (3); RHP Matt Waldron 3 IP, 3 K; LHP Miguel Cienfuegos (W, 2-3) IP, K; RHP Logan Gillaspie IP, H
Matt Waldron pitched three scoreless innings. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Prospect Watch: El Paso scored seven runs in the second inning and survived a near-meltdown from their bullpen to defeat the Comets in Oklahoma City. … Veteran infielder Luis Rengifo had a pair of singles and drew a walk. He added a stolen base as well – his second since joining the Padres’ organization. The 29-year-old is playing in the minors for the first time since 2022, when he played in Triple-A in the Angels’ organization. Rengifo signed with the Brewers in the off-season but was released a few weeks ago after a miserable start to the season. He’s hitting .320/.370/.560 in six games for El Paso. … Marcos Castañon had a pair of singles and drove in a pair of runs. The 27-year-old has flashed plenty of home run power this season, with 13 homers in 272 plate appearances, but a paltry walk rate hovering around 6% has led to production 14 points below the league average. The Rialto native has a chance to top the career-high 23 homers he socked in 2022 while with the Storm. … Matt Waldron continued his rehab assignment Tuesday, and he pitched flawlessly. The veteran pitched three scoreless innings, needing just 30 pitches to blow through the Comets’ batting order. He featured his usual mix of low-90s fastballs and knuckleballs, several of which topped out in the mid-80s. Waldron, 29, began his rehab assignment on June 14, so he should be able to make one more outing before the organization faces a dilemma: Waldron is out of minor league options, so he will need to be activated and placed on the big league roster or designated for assignment. … Southpaw Miguel Cienfuegos took over for Waldron and pitched a scoreless frame to earn his second win of the season. The Canadian-born lefty got off to an abysmal start this season, pitching to an ERA north of 10 in April and May. Since June 1, he’s allowed just two runs over 12.2 innings (1.42 ERA) while striking out 14 against just four walks. The 29-year-old signed his first affiliated deal with the Padres as a minor league free agent in 2023 out of the independent Frontier League.
Roster Moves: The Chihuahuas activated righty Logan Gillaspie from the injured list before the game. He saw action on Tuesday night. In addition, righty Eric Yost was sent back to Double-A, Jhony Brito was promoted to San Diego, and Alek Jacob was optioned back to El Paso. Righty Johan Moreno was promoted to El Paso from San Antonio. Finally, the organization released former big leaguer Triston McKenzie, who walked 37% of batters faced this season. The hard-throwing righty will attempt to latch on elsewhere.
Midland RockHounds 11, Missions 1
Key Statistics: DH Carson Tucker 2-for-4, 2B; C Ethan Salas 1-for-5, R; CF Jake Cunningham 1-for-3, RBI; RHP Ian Koenig (L, 3-7) 2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, K; RHP Bernard Jose 2.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 3 K; RHP Clay Edmondson 1.1 IP, 2 H, ER, 2 BB, K
Carson Tucker has made the most of his second chance in San Antonio. (Photo: Rey Holguin)
Prospect Watch: Midland jumped all over Ian Koenig in the first, scoring four runs in a blowout win against the Missions. … Koenig, 25, lasted just two innings, allowing five runs on seven hits. He struck out one and did not issue a walk. The former undrafted free agent has shown flashes this year, but struggles to miss bats, making him very susceptible to poor outings. While Koenig went five shutout innings last week, he’s sandwiched that outing by allowing 11 earned runs in four innings. Overall, Koenig has pitched to a 4.52 ERA this season. … Carson Tucker started at designated hitter and had a pair of hits, including a double – the only extra-base hit of the evening for San Antonio. The 24-year-old is hitting .290 for the Missions – his first season of affiliated ball in three seasons. Tucker does not possess much power – he hasn’t connected on a homer in 2026, and he’s hit just three in 124 career games. Overall, Tucker has produced a .719 OPS. … Ethan Salas had a single in five at-bats in the loss. The prized 20-year-old catcher is hitting .294 in July, but he’s yet to connect on an extra-base hit since coming off the injured list on June 30. Overall, he is hitting .278/.348/.417.
Roster Moves: Lefties Ryan Och and Jamie Hitt were promoted from Fort Wayne to San Antonio, with Clark Candiotti heading back to the Summit City and Landry Jurecka, who filled in with the Missions for the weekend, heading back to the ACL.
West Michigan Whitecaps 3, TinCaps 0
Key Statistics: SS Justin DeCriscio 2-for-4; 2B Rosman Verdugo 1-for-3; RHP Kannon Kemp (L, 0-1) 3 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K; RHP Clark Candiotti IP, H; RHP Matthew Watson 4 IP, 3 H, ER, 2 BB, 3 K
Kannon Kemp. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps managed just four singles and were shut out in a day game that was played in just one hour and 58 minutes. … Justin DeCriscio had a pair of singles in the loss. The Fort Wayne infielder has a .774 OPS in July thus far with just three strikeouts in 29 plate appearances. … Kannon Kemp officially returned from the injured list on Tuesday and pitched three innings for Fort Wayne. The hard-throwing righty allowed a pair of runs on two hits. He walked two and struck out two. The 21-year-old hit the injured list in spring training after suffering an oblique injury. The former eighth-round pick has intriguing stuff, but he’s thrown just 86.1 innings since being drafted in 2023. … Matthew Watson, the TinCaps’ normal Tuesday starter, finished the final four innings. He allowed a run on three hits, walking two and striking out three. The 24-year-old has pitched well overall with the TinCaps outside of a nine-run implosion on June 9. If you take away that outing, Watson has pitched to a 3.97 ERA in 47.2 innings. Including that one, Watson has a 5.33 ERA in 13 games (nine starts).
Roster Moves: Lefty C.J. Widger was released from the TinCaps’ roster. His final appearance in the Padres system came Saturday, when he was the winning pitcher in the TinCaps’ 14-inning win on Independence Day.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 6, Storm 2
Key Statistics: SS Jorge Quintana 3-for-4, 2B, SB (16); 2B Jose Verdugo 1-for-4, 2 SB (23, 24); 1B Dawson Willis 1-for-3, SB (6); RHP Miguel Castro (L, 1-3) 5 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 3 K; RHP Carson Swilling 2 IP, H, 3 K
Jorge Quintana has picked up his production in July. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Prospect Watch: The Quakes scored four in the second inning and held off the Storm in Rancho Cucamonga. … Despite the loss, Jorge Quintana had another nice night at the plate. The switch-hitting shortstop singled twice, doubled, and swiped his 16th bag of the year. The 19-year-old has swung the bat well in a small sample so far in July. Through four games this month, Quintana is 6-for-13 with a double, a triple, and a homer. He’s struck out just twice in 17 plate appearances. … Righty Jesus Castro allowed a season-high five runs, earning his third loss of the year. On a positive note, the 18-year-old completed five innings, allowing eight hits. He struck out three and did not walk a batter. The young righty has shown swing-and-miss stuff this year, but after a hot start to the season, he’s struggled over the last month or so. Over his last four starts, spanning 15.2 innings, he’s allowed 13 earned runs, for a 7.47 ERA. … Carson Swilling pitched a pair of scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while notching three strikeouts. The 24-year-old got off to a good start with the Storm this season but struggled through a brutal month of June. The former South Alabama righty allowed 10 runs in 10.2 innings and then imploded last week, allowing six earned runs in 0.2 innings. Swilling walked just three batters in 13.2 innings last season in Lake Elsinore, but this season he’s issued 28 free passes in 32.1 innings, resulting in a 5.85 ERA.
ACL Giants 7, ACL Padres 2
Key Statistics: 2B Luis De Leon 1-for-3, R, BB; RF Jesmaylin Arias 1-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI; CF Moises Valdez 1-for-3, R; RHP Jose Leclerc IP; LHP Ryan Reed IP, 2 H, 2 R, ER, BB, K; RHP Miguel Alvarez (L, 0-1) 0.2 IP, H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
Luis De Leon has sparked the offense for the ACL Padres. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Prospect Watch: The ACL Giants defeated the ACL Padres on a 112-degree night in Scottsdale. The ACL Padres had eight hits from eight different batters. … Luis De Leon singled and drew a walk in the loss. The 20-year-old has spent three seasons in the ACL, where he’s routinely posted solid offensive results. While he doesn’t possess much power, he has a .386 on-base percentage in the desert this season. With the ACL season winding down in a few weeks, he could get an opportunity in Lake Elsinore down the stretch. … Veteran righty Jose Leclerc pitched a scoreless inning in the loss. The veteran righty has appeared in a pair of games in the desert in his rehab assignment. Leclerc suffered a shoulder injury last year with the Athletics and had surgery last August. … Lefty Ryan Reed allowed two runs (one earned) in his lone inning of work. He walked one and struck out a batter. The former Pitt southpaw made his pro debut late last season with the Storm after the Padres drafted him in the 15th round. He was on the injured list until July. He could be a candidate to join the Storm bullpen soon.
