The Lake Elsinore Storm are the 2026 Cal League Champions
Trey Lott had plenty to celebrate down the stretch in Elsinore. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
Storm 13, San Jose Giants 2
Key Stats: RHP Coleman Borthwick 2 IP, 2 H, 2 K; RHP Lan-Hong Su 3 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 8 K; 2B Elliot Lascelles 2-for-5, 2 R, BB; 1B Joe Tiroly 2-for-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB, SB; DH Nu’u Contrades 2-for-4, HR, 2B, 3 RBI, BB; CF Dawson Willis 2-for-4, 2 R, BB; RF Qrey Lott 3-for-4, 2 2B, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI, HBP, SB, CS
Prospect Watch: After being no-hit Tuesday night, the Storm eliminated any doubt as to who would claim the championship Wednesday, putting up 13 runs on six extra-base hits. Nu’u Contrades got the scoring started with his first playoff home run, then blew the game open with a two-RBI double in the sixth. The sixth-round pick hit .786 over the final month with the Storm, but really turned it on during the playoffs. Contrades hit .389 with a 1.167 OPS in the playoffs, helping lead the Storm to their first championship since 2022. … Not to be outdone, Qrey Lott reached base four times, including two doubles and a triple. The 21-year-old hit .444 in the playoffs after hitting .272 with a .805 OPS in his first season of professional baseball. It helped that Lott ended on a heater, going 12-for-28 with three doubles, a triple, and a home run over his final eight regular-season games. Subscribers just got an interview with Lott, who talked about the importance of the energy he brings to his squad. …
Lan-Hong Su punched out eight while picking up the win. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
While the offense provided the firepower, it was the pitching that held a potent Giants offense in check. Coleman Borthwick drew his first professional start in the pivotal game and the first-round pick tossed two scoreless innings, striking out two. The 18-year-old’s fastball topped out at 97 mph and showed good movement. Borthwick debuted in relief in the clinching game against Ontario last week when he also tossed two scoreless innings. … Not to be outdone, Lan-Hong Su was once again electric on the mound, striking out eight over three innings. The 19-year-old from Taiwan cruised through his first two frames before struggling a bit as he allowed a run in the fifth. He came back with two huge strikeouts to leave the bases loaded. The 19-year-old from Taiwan finished his first professional season with a somewhat underwhelming 5.63 ERA, but his feel for the strike zone with a four-pitch mix impressed all year. While he only worked past four innings once all year, Su impressed after mid-July, posting a 2.76 ERA with a stellar 46:7 strikeout-to-walk ratio over his final 29.1 innings of the season.
Oklahoma City Comets 12, Chihuahuas 0
Key Stats: LHP Jagger Haynes 6 IP, 5 H, ER, BB, 3 K; RHP Jason Adam 0 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, BB; DH Miguel Andujar 2-for-4, 2B
Jagger Haynes finished with an impressive outing for El Paso. (Photo: Deanna Almaguer
Prospect Watch: From extreme joy in the Cal League to pain in the Pacific Coast League. The Chihuahuas recorded just two hits in the game, both by rehabbing big leaguer Miguel Andujar. Andujar, who has been on the IL since July 20 with a fractured wrist, added his fifth double over seven games on his rehab assignment, and is now 9-for-30. He has not walked but has struck out just twice. Andujar will almost certainly join the Padres this weekend when they return home. … Jagger Haynes pitched incredibly well, especially considering he was pitching in El Paso on a hot afternoon. The lefty allowed one run over six innings for a much-needed strong end to the season after getting knocked out in the third inning in each of his previous two starts. Haynes finishes the season with a career-high 135 innings and 116 strikeouts between San Antonio and El Paso. He will be eligible for minor league free agency if he is not added to the 40-man roster at the end of the season. His work was bolstered in the fourth inning, when Marcos Castañon caught a Hyeseong Kim line drive, immediately stepped on first base, and then threw down to second for the first triple play in Chihuahuas franchise history. … What was expected to be Jason Adam‘s final rehab tune-up before rejoining the big league club instead left a number of open questions. Adam came on in relief and gave up double, single, double, single, walk before giving way without recording an out. If you want to look optimistically, the hardest-hit ball Adam allowed was 95.2 mph, with the rest being weak line drives that found holes. His velocity on all three primary offerings was down one to two mph from normal, but the break and spin he got on the ball were more in line with his normal averages.
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