San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: September 1

Las Vegas Aviators 6, Chihuahuas 0

Key Statistics: 1B Nick Pratto 3-for-3, 2B; SS Gage Workman 1-for-2, BB; CF Mason McCoy 1-for-3, BB; RHP Evan Fitterer (L, 3-8) 3 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, BB, 3 K; RHP José Leclerc 2 IP, H, 2 BB, 2 K; RHP Ty Adcock IP, H, K

Prospect Watch: The Aviators scored four runs in the first inning to take a commanding lead they would not relinquish. The El Paso offense mustered just six hits in the loss. … Half of those six hits came off the bat of one-time first-rounder Nick Pratto. Pratto, 26, had a double and two singles in the loss. The former Royals and Rangers farmhand finished up August hitting .203/.351/.373. The Padres signed him in June after the Rangers released him from their Triple-A roster. … Mason McCoy played center field for just the fifth time this year and singled and drew a walk in four plate appearances. The 31-year-old veteran has scarcely seen playing time in the outfield during his playing career, but with injuries to Luis Rengifo and Gavin Sheets, the Padres could use more outfield depth. McCoy won’t provide a lot of value with the bat, but his ability to run and play multiple positions could make him the next man up if the Padres need another position player. … Evan Fitterer bounced back after allowing the four first-inning runs, but still took the loss. He allowed four hits, walking one and striking out three. The Mission Viejo native has battled a few injuries this season, and while a 4.59 ERA in the PCL isn’t bad, he’s walked 51 batters in just 84 innings. Coming into Tuesday’s outing, his swinging strike rate of 7.7% was the seventh-lowest in the circuit (minimum 70 innings). Unless added to the 40-man roster this off-season, the former Marlins draft pick will return to minor league free agency. 

Roster Moves: With Ethan Salas with the Padres, Victor Duarte was promoted from the complex to keep three catchers on the Chihuahuas roster. Righty Ty Adcock came off his second IL stint of the year and threw a scoreless inning.

Missions 7, Midland RockHounds 1

Key Statistics: CF Braedon Karpathios 2-for-5, HR (16), 5 RBI; RF Tirso Ornelas 2-for-5, R, 2B; DH Romeo Sanabria 2-for-5; 1B Albert Fabian 3-for-4, 2 R, HR (12), 2 RBI; 3B Luis Verdugo 2-for-3, 2 R, BB; LHP Jamie Hitt 3 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 4 K; RHP Francis Peña (W, 4-3) IP, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Josh Mallitz IP, 2 K

Prospect Watch: The Missions offense notched 14 hits and a pair of homers in a 0blowout of Midland to kick off their final homestand of 2026. … Braedon Karpathios had the big hit of the night with a no-doubt grand slam in the second off of former Padres prospect Braden Nett. It was part of a five-RBI night for Karpathios, who also set a new career high with his 16th homer. The 23-year-old finished August with a .946 OPS, despite striking out in a ridiculous 37% of his plate appearances. The production was fueled by a completely unsustainable .500 average on balls in play. Despite his contact issues, Karpathios has developed power during his time in the organization and can work the count. He hit just nine home runs in his first 625 professional plate appearances over parts of three seasons, but the left-handed hitter has homered 31 times over the last two seasons. The former undrafted free agent has developed into a legitimate prospect, albeit one who will need to make more contact to succeed at the highest level. … Tirso Ornelas had a pair of hits, including his 30th double of the season. Ornelas’ career-high in doubles is 31, a mark he reached in 2021 with Fort Wayne and again in 2023 when he split time between the Missions and Chihuahuas. The former big leaguer has been in the Padres’ system since 2016, when he signed as a 16-year-old. A decade later, this could be the swansong for the Tijuana native. He is eligible for free agency, and he’s posted roughly league-average offense as a 26-year-old in the Texas League. … Albert Fabian continued his hot stretch with three more hits, including his 12th homer of the season. The 24-year-old got off to a slow start, but he’s been highly productive over the last two months. Since July 1, the Missions’ primary first baseman is hitting .300/.339/.469 – good for production 13 points above the league average. Fabian is drawing walks at just a five percent clip during his hot stretch while striking out in 22% of his plate appearances. Fabian is headed towards minor league free agency again this winter, but he’s shown enough he could earn another opportunity to play affiliated baseball. It would not be surprising to see the organization attempt to retain him this winter. … Jamie Hitt kept the RockHounds off the scoreboard Tuesday despite allowing six baserunners in three innings. The former Oklahoma Sooner needed 71 pitches to record nine outs. He allowed three hits and walked three as well, striking out four. The 24-year-old began the year in the Storm bullpen and has shown flashes since moving into the rotation, but consistency has alluded the southpaw. Hitt has posted an ERA over six for three consecutive months. 

Roster Moves: Catcher Oswaldo Linares was sent back to the development list and righty reliever Bernard Jose returned for his second stint in the Missions bullpen. 

TinCaps 6, Lansing Lugnuts 4 (11 innings)

Key Statistics: CF Kasen Wells 2-for-6, 2 R, 2 SB (25); SS Rosman Verdugo 3-for-4, 2 R, 2 BB; 3B Kerrington Cross 1-for-5, HR (6), 3 RBI; DH Lamar King Jr. 2-for-5; RHP Carson Montgomery 4 IP, 2 H, ER, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Will Varmette (W, 4-2) 2 IP, BB, K

Prospect Watch: It took 11 innings, but the TinCaps won Tuesday, with Robbie Lavey’s two-run double being the difference in extra innings. … Rosman Verdugo reached base five times Tuesday with three singles and a pair of walks. He also scored a pair of runs. The 21-year-old Verdugo has a .732 OPS this year – the best mark he’s posted since his professional debut in the ACL back in 2022. The middle infielder has reduced his strikeout rate this season while setting a new career-high with 14 homers. Despite the flaws in his game, Verdugo possesses intriguing power for a player who best profiles as a second baseman. … Kerrington Cross socked his sixth homer as a TinCap in the victory. Cross, 24, was the best performing hitter in the Cal League during the first half of the season. He struggled out of the gate after being promoted to Fort Wayne; however, he’s looked more comfortable lately. He finished August with a .246/.358/.377 slash-line. Overall, the former Cincinnati Bearcat has a .909 OPS with 17 homers in his first full professional season. … Carson Montgomery tossed four innings in what is scheduled to be his penultimate start of the season. The former Florida State righty allowed a run on two hits, walking two and striking out three. Montgomery had Tommy John surgery shortly after making his pro debut in Lake Elsinore in 2024. After missing most of the last two seasons, the 24-year-old has tossed 92 innings in 22 appearances this year for the TinCaps, pitching to a 4.70 ERA. … Will Varmette tossed the final two innings, earning his fourth win of the season. He walked one and struck out one. The righty has had a weird season, generally pitching well with an absolute implosion mixed in every so often. Varmette has had four meltdowns, in which he has allowed a combined 22 earned runs in just 2.1 innings – an unbelievable 84.86 ERA. In his other 37 outings, spanning 51.1 innings, he’s pitched to a respectable 3.33 ERA. The horrendous outings count towards the stat line, but most of the time, Varmette has pitched better than the 6.88 ERA he’s posted. 

Roster Moves: The TinCaps received righties Florangel Vasquez and Miguel Alvarez to reinforce the bullpen for their final series. Infielder Bradley Frye was placed on the injured list several days after Ryan Wideman hit the shelf as well. 

Storm 11, Inland Empire 66ers 7 

Key Statistics: DH Elliot Lascelles, 4-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 2 RBI; LF Alex Conover, 2-for-4, R, RBI; SS Jorge Quintana, 2-for-4, R, RBI; CF Qrey Lott, 3-for-3, 4 R, HR (8), 2 RBI; C Ty Harvey, 1-for-4, R, HR (3), 2 RBI; RHP Jesus Castro (W, 3-5) 5 IP, 4 H, ER, 3 K

Prospect Watch: After losing 11 of their last 12, the Storm won the opener of their final regular-season homestand, defeating Inland Empire. … Elliot Lascelles started at designated hitter and had a great night at the plate, setting a career-high with four hits, including a double. He also drove in a pair of runs. The 18-year-old was just 3-for-25 in his previous eight games. The second-rounder raised his batting average from .263 to .326 in one night. The left-handed hitting infielder has impressed in a small sample in the Cal League in his pro debut. … Qrey Lott had a perfect night at the plate, reaching base in all four of his plate appearances. Lott singled twice, connected on his eighth homer of the year, and was yet again plunked by a pitch. He has been hit an astonishing 25 times in 330 plate appearances. The 21-year-old has an .807 OPS in his pro debut with the Storm in 2026. … Jesus Castro ended a run of poor starts by tossing five solid innings in the Storm victory. Castro allowed a run on four hits, striking out three without issuing a walk. The 19-year-old limped to a 9.20 ERA in August after a very successful domestic debut. Castro has shown promise this year, including a seven-inning outing against Stockton at the end of July, in which he allowed just one hit. Castro tossed 90.1 innings for the Storm this season. As things stand, he’s likely going to start next Tuesday’s playoff game against Ontario. 

Roster Moves: Righty Cameron Nohos was placed on the injured list, while right-handed pitchers James Guyette (5th round) and Tyler Pitzer (UDFA), and lefty Rob Evans (12th round) were added to the Storm roster.