Padres affiliates went 1-4 on Thursday.

Here is our daily recap of games played. 

El Paso Chihuahuas (Won 5-4 vs Oklahoma City) (53-76 on the season)

Ethan Salas – 3-for-4, Triple, RBI

Marcos Castanon – 3-for-4, Home Run, Double, Two RBI

Joe Musgrove – 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K (60 pitches – 42 strikes)

Right-hander Joe Musgrove made what could be his final rehab start on Thursday, pitching five innings of one-run baseball against the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate. The right-hander struck out three batters, throwing 70% of his pitches for strikes. Musgrove saw two of his three strikeouts come as called strikes, and he only gave up three barrels (only one barreled ball was a base hit). The right-hander could have pitched deeper into the game, but he has now pitched 75 pitches and five innings in separate rehab starts, indicating he is close to his MLB return. JP Sears threw three innings in relief, allowing no runs. Sears struck out two, allowing just one hit in the contest. Hans Crouse entered for the ninth inning, but gave up a three-run home run to bring OKC within one. Alek Jacob was called on to close out the game, and the right-hander did just that, striking out one in two-thirds of an inning to earn the save. 

The Chihuahuas offense was highlighted by a pair of three-hit performances. Padres No. 1 prospect Ethan Salas had three hits, including his second triple since coming up to El Paso. Salas’ triple came off the bat at 105.3 mph, and he raised his OPS to .956. Marcos Castanon had three hits as well, driving in two runs. Castanon drove in two runs against OKC starter Cole Irvin, crushing an RBI double in the third inning (105.3 mph exit velocity). Rodolfo Duran and Bryce Johnson each had a double in the game, with Johnson reaching base twice in the win. 

San Antonio Missions (Lost 7-2 vs Springfield) (54-69 on the season)

Romeo Sanabria – 2-for-4, Two Singles, RBI

Tirso Ornelas – 2-for-3, Double, Run Scored

Victor Lizarraga – 3.1 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 5 K (78 pitches – 42 strikes)

San Antonio’s Opening Day starter, Victor Lizarraga, pitched into the fourth inning, allowing five runs against Springfield. Lizarraga allowed seven hits in the game, with three going for extra bases. The right-hander also struggled at navigating the running game, with three successful stolen bases allowed. Josh Mallitz allowed one run in 1.2 innings of relief, striking out three batters. Garrett Hawkins allowed a solo home run but otherwise struck out three in two innings of relief. Johan Moreno pitched a scoreless eighth inning in the loss. 

Romeo Sanabria picked up two hits in the loss, driving in one of two Missions runs. The Missions’ first baseman drove in Tirso Ornelas in the first inning, scoring him on an RBI single. Ornelas went 2-for-3 with a double, single, and walk in the game. Ornelas’ third-inning single gave the Missions their second run of the game, scoring Anthony Vilar. Justin DeCriscio had a double in the game, and he is now hitting .296 since joining the Missions. Jack Costello and Albert Fabian also hit singles in the game, with Anthony Vilar picking up their only stolen base. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Lost 9-3 in 10 innings vs Dayton) (50-71 on the season)

Lamar King Jr – 2-for-3, Double, Two RBI

Kerrington Cross – 2-for-5, Home Run, RBI, Two Runs Scored

Matthew Watson – 3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 4 K (66 pitches – 37 strikes)

In a back-and-forth affair on Wizards Night, Dayton escalated things quickly in the tenth inning to take a 9-3 win in ten innings. Fort Wayne saw starter Matthew Watson allow three runs in three innings. Watson struck out four batters, walking three. The TinCaps rode their bullpen heavy in the game. Javier Chacon threw three innings of scoreless relief, striking out four batters. Chacon’s effort bridged the team into the late innings. Jack Pineau made his Fort Wayne debut, striking out three in two scoreless innings. The newly-promoted right-hander threw 20 of 30 pitches for strikes, not allowing a hit. Will Koger threw a scoreless ninth inning, striking out two. Koger was sent back out for the tenth, but the inning quickly snowballed. Two RBI singles with one out saw Dayton lead 5-3, but Koger was left out there. Justin Lebron singled to load the bases, and Ty Doucette golfed a 79 mph curveball just over the right field wall for a grand slam. Nick Falter recorded the final two outs of the game for the TinCaps. 

The TinCaps came back through eight innings, but were held scoreless afterwards. Lamar King Jr drove in two of the team’s three runs. King’s double in the second inning scored Kerrington Cross from first base. Cross was responsible for the team’s next run, hitting a 94 mph fastball to the right field berm for a solo home run in the sixth inning. Luke Cantwell led off the eighth inning with a single, moving to second on a ground ball out. Lamar King Jr cashed in again, hitting an RBI single to score the tying run. Rosman Verdugo reached base twice in the game, and Yoiber Ocopio had another single in the loss. 

Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 3-2 vs Inland Empire) (61-62 on the season)

Joe Tiroly – 1-for-4, Home Run, RBI

Qrey Lott – 2-for-4, Triple, Run Scored

Lan-Hong Su – 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K (58 pitches – 34 strikes)

Right-hander Lan-Hong Su struck out seven batters over three innings in his latest start. Su has been limited to 60 pitches in his time in the Storm’s rotation for load management, but he made the most of his pitch count on Thursday. Su generated 13 swings and misses from the 66ers, a total which ranked second in all of Single-A baseball for the night. Su only gave up two singles and a walk. Albert Roblez threw two scoreless innings with three strikeouts, despite walking three. The high-slot right-hander and his high-backspin fastball generated seven whiffs, second on the Storm for the night. Jordan Valenzuela threw a scoreless sixth inning before Zack Qin was called on from the bullpen. Qin allowed one run in the seventh and two in the eighth. A passed ball by Ty Harvey scored the tying run, and a Jack Linares RBI single gave the 66ers a 3-2 lead. Andrew Wright got out of the eighth with no further damage. 

Joe Tiroly hit his third home run of the season in the fourth inning to break a scoreless tie. Tiroly turned on a hanging breaking ball from Derek Clark out to left field. Qrey Lott hit a triple as part of a multi-hit game, scoring a run on Jose Verdugo’s sac fly. Jesmaylin Arias had a double in four at-bats, and while he did not start, Elliot Lascelles picked up a pinch-hit single in the ninth inning. Lascelles and Jorge Quintana picked up stolen bases in the game, with Quintana going 0-for-3 with a walk. 

DSL Padres Gold (Lost 9-5 vs DSL Reds) (0-1 in DSL Cup Finals) 

Dayquer Alfonzo – 1-for-4, Single, Sac Fly, Four RBI

Sebastian Nadales – 1-for-4, Home Run, RBI

Carlos Alvarez – 3.1 IP, 1 H, 3 R (2 ER), 4 BB, 6 K 

The Padres Gold pitching staff was worked for 10 walks in a series-opening loss. Carlos Alvarez allowed four walks and a hit in 3.1 innings, striking out six. Alvarez did not allow a run on a hit, as all three runs against him scored on a walk, a sac fly, and a hit batter. Guillermo Romero allowed three runs in 2.1 innings, striking out three. Albert Perez allowed a grand slam in one inning of work, and the tandem of Yojansy & Valentin Perez (no relation) threw 2.1 scoreless innings. Dayquer Alfonzo drove in four of the Padres Gold’s five runs, hitting a single, a sacrifice fly, and reaching on an error to score another run. Endy Rios and Cristian Benavides each hit a double in the game, with Rios having two hits. Sebastian Nadales hit a solo home run in the loss. To win back-to-back DSL Cups, the Padres Gold will now need to win two in a row. 

Friday’s Projected Pitchers

El Paso – RHP Ian Koenig (Triple-A Debut)
San Antonio – LHP Fernando Sanchez (1-3, 5.09 ERA)
Fort Wayne – RHP Bryan Balzer (1-2, 4.78 ERA)
Lake Elsinore – LHP Kruz Schoolcraft (2-6, 5.80 ERA)

Diego Garcia

A born and raised San Diegan, Diego Garcia is a lifetime Padres fan and self-proclaimed baseball nerd. Diego wrote about baseball on his own site between 2021-22 before joining the East Village Times team in 2024. He also posts baseball content on his YouTube channel “Stat Nerd Baseball”, creating content around trades, hypotheticals, player analyses, the San Diego Padres, and MLB as a whole.

A 2024 graduate of San Diego State, Diego aims to grow as a writer and content creator in the baseball community.