Summary
The Lake Elsinore Storm won the first-half title, cruising to a league-best 39-27 record. After much of the position-player core was promoted to Fort Wayne, the Storm limped to a second-half record of 27-38, including an 11-game losing streak in August. However, the team got hot at exactly the right time in September and ran through the playoffs 4-1 to secure their fifth California League championship.
Overview
Our approach to eligibility remains straightforward. Players are considered at whichever affiliate they logged the most service time. Kerrington Cross ended the year in Double-A, but he’s eligible in Lake Elsinore, as he played more games for the Storm than at any other level. We recognize the top contributor to this year’s team as the top player, while the top prospect is based on our expectations based on his production, age, projectability, and potential impact in the major leagues.
Kerrington Cross has gotten underway with the Storm. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
Level
Low-A is the first level out of the complex leagues and is the bottom rung of full-season ball, so it can be challenging to gauge how meaningful a prospect’s performance is. Some pundits focus primarily on the raw ability and potential demonstrated, while others focus on the consistency of performance.
We lean toward more of a middle-of-the-road evaluation relying on a couple of questions to filter through it: (1) how old is a player compared to the competition; (2) how raw or developed was the player heading into full-season ball, and (3) is he making the necessary adjustments during the course of the season.
2026 Lake Elsinore Storm Player of the Year
Kerrington Cross, 1B (unanimous) 58 G, .313/.467/.608, 15 2B, 2 3B, 11 HR, 43 RBI, 17 SB
Cross, 24, got off to a slow start in April but turned things on in May, posting an OPS approaching 1.200 for the Month.By the time he was promoted at the end of the first half, he was the best hitter in the California League. Cross had an OPS approaching 1.200 in May. Among Cal League hitters with at least 200 plate appearances, Cross led the circuit with a wRC+ of 169, walk rate of 20.2% and an OPS of 1.075. The Storm offense struggled after his promotion, but they picked things up in the playoffs. The former Cincinnati Bearcat, who turned 24 two weeks into the season, was old for the level but his offensive production was a big reason the Storm cruised to a first-half title.
Elliot Lascelles’ plate discipline has been impressive. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
Top Hitting Prospect
SS Elliot Lascelles (unanimous) 15 G, .321/.406/.429 15.6% K rate,10% BB rate, 6 SB, 0 CS
Lascelles, 18, joined the Storm in late August and made quite an impression. The Padres’ second-round pick out of high school in Toronto, played posted an .835 OPS in 15 late regular-season games for the Storm, before adding a pair of multi-hit games to help the Storm’s playoff run. The 18-year-old showed elite feel for getting the bat on the ball, making contact on 94% of his swings. He has a nice stroke from the left side of the plate, hitting the ball hard the other way frequently. The teenager will need to add strength to a frame that seems built for it, but his approach looked advanced for a player his age. He should return to Lake Elsinore next season to headline the position player group in Riverside County. He made eight of his starts at shortstop, but could ultimately slide over to second base.
Others of Note: Outfielder Ryan Wideman was the spark plug of the Storm roster in the first half. In 65 games, the athletic center fielder hit .314/.389/.504 with six homers and 43 stolen bases before his promotion to Fort Wayne. Wideman took extra bases with ease as he simply out-athleted Low-A competition and used his speed to make some highlight reel plays in center field, especially he began to improve his routes. The former third-rounder ran into a buzzsaw once he reached the Midwest League, but he was the engine that made the Storm offense go. … Backstop Ty Harvey earned the second-highest signing bonus in the Padres’ 2025 draft class based on an intriguing blend of power-of-hit offense and catching tools. The 19-year-old’s first season was interrupted by two significant stretches on the injured list, but before he broke his left hand in late May, he was showing out with a .340/.466/.447 line. After he returned in late July, things got ugly as he hit just .171 over the final six weeks and was 1-for-15 – albeit with five walks – in the playoffs. He’ll be among the most important storylines to watch in the 2027 season. … Outfielder Qrey Lott was promoted from the desert in early April and delivered an OPS north of .800 with eight homers and a wRC+ of 110 in 95 games. The 21-year-old undrafted free agent was also hit by a pitch 26 times, the most in the California League. He showed an intriguing blend of tools and skills in his first professional season. … Shortstop Jorge Quintana played in 103 games as a 19-year-old, showing flashes, especially in July when he delivered an .874 OPS. But as a whole, he underwhelmed with a .234/.328/.367 line and a strikeout rate north of 30%. The young switch-hitter struggled mightily against left-handed pitching, managing just a .450 OPS. … 18-year-old Jose Verdugo led the Storm with 105 games played and showed good bat-to-ball skills, hitting .277 in his stateside debut. The diminutive infielder -listed at 5-foot-7 and 150 pounds that only slightly undersells his actual size – predictably showed little power playing as the second-youngest everyday player on the circuit. Without much physical projection, he will need to continue to make frequent contact. … Dawson Willis showed intriguing power, posting an .850 OPS and six homers despite a K-rate approaching 40%. Another in a growing list of undrafted free agent players worth keeping an eye on in the organization, the 22-year-old Louisiana native has a long 6-foot-5 frame that encouraged the Padres to try him at both first base and center field despite his entire playing history being on the left side of the infield. … Mercer University product Bradley Frye, who also went undrafted in 2025 before joining the Padres system, had an up-and-down campaign, bookending a dreadful May with a .962 OPS in April and an .879 mark in June. A right-handed hitter who fits best defensively at third base, the 24-year-old will need to make the results show all year in 2027 to put himself on the map. … Kale Fountain only made it into 14 games and struggled badly before his season when he crashed into an outfield wall and tore his left shoulder labrum on April 17. Now 21, the big right-hander who the Padres punted five draft picks to sign in 2024 has only managed a .647 OPS across 343 professional at-bats. There had been hope that he would be back to action in the instructional league, but it now appears he’ll try to reboot again next spring.
Alex Conover had a few big moments for Lake Elsinore. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
The 2026 Draft Class: The Storm benefited from the contributions from this year’s draft class on the offensive side of things. In addition to Lascelles, seventh-rounder Joe Tiroly impressed, delivering an OPS north of 1.000 with seven homers in just 17 games. The 21-year-old right-handed hitter added on in the playoffs, and while he played second base at Virginia, he slid over to first base for the Storm. … Sixth-rounder Nu’u Contrades homered three times in 25 games and delivered a solid .785 OPS while auditioning around the infield. He’ll come into spring training next year at 23 years old looking at a likely first-half stint in Elsinore. … Fourth-rounder Alex Conover homered twice in 20 games and once more in the playoffs. The left-handed hitting outfielder made some loud contact, but pounded the ball into the ground at a 66.7% rate that will need to improve.
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