Down on the Farm: April 5 – San Diego Padres’ Affiliates Kick Off 2018 Season

El Paso Chihuahuas Win 4-2

Travis Jankowski doesn’t seem to be happy that he started the year in Triple-A. While it’s apparent that Jankowski doesn’t “need” to be in the minor leagues, everyday at-bats in Triple-A are probably the best thing for him. Jankowski led off and led the Chihuahuas’ offense on Thursday, collecting three hits and scoring two of the four Chihuahua runs. The Chihuahuas struck first in the top of the first inning after back-to-back singles by Jankowski and Luis Urias followed by a wild pitch. In the bottom of the second, the Las Vegas 51s responded with a one out double and single that scored the tying run. Jankowski was once again the table setter in the top of third, singling to lead off the inning followed by a Urias walk, and two-run double by Franmil Reyes. The 51s were able to push across another run on two doubles in the bottom of the fourth. The game stayed quiet until a solo home run by Javier Guerra in the top of the sixth. The last three innings were quiet as the Missions held on to their 4-2 lead behind scoreless innings by Buddy Baumann, Kyle Lloyd, and Jonathan Aro.

San Antonio Missions Lost 3-1

While Eric Lauer began his season in Triple-A and Joey Lucchesi began his season in the major leagues, right-hander Cal Qauntrill remained in Double-A with the Missions for the start of the 2018 season. With four top-30 prospects in the opening night lineup and another top-30 prospect on the hill, the Missions appeared ready for success. However, the offense stagnated in a 3-1 loss. Catcher Austin Allen kicked off scoring with a hard hit solo home run in the top of the second inning. The game was relatively quiet until the fourth inning, when Cal Quantrill struck out the first two batters before giving up a double, a walk, and another walk before being removed from the game after just three and two-thirds innings pitched. Leftie Dillon Overton threw a wild pitch, plating the first run for Arkansas before he got out of the jam. The Missions’ offense stagnated for the rest of the game, and the Travelers were able to plate two runs to take the lead in the bottom of the seventh. Final score: 3-1 Arkansas. With only three hits and 11 strikeouts, it was clear the Missions’ offense was overmatched on opening night.

Lake Elsinore Storm Win 4-0

It was a quiet first four innings in Stockton on Thursday night, as the Lake Elsinore Storm and Stockton Ports combined for only three hits through the first four innings. The Storm were able to break through first in the top of the fifth after two strikeouts, a double by Eguy Rosario, and an RBI single by Nate Easley. The Storm added another run in the top of the sixth on doubles by Luis Torrens and Hudson Potts, followed by two more runs in the seventh on an error, another double by Rosario, and a pair of singles by Easley and Edward Olivares. Lake Bachar threw six shutout innings for the Storm and the bullpen was able to close the door on a 4-0 victory, although Dauris Valdez made it interesting with three walks in the ninth inning. However, David Bednar was able to close the door and seal the shutout victory.

Fort Wayne TinCaps Lost 3-2

The Fort Wayne TinCaps may have lost their opener, but it was through no fault of left-hander Nick Margevicius. He set the tone in the first inning, striking out three of the four batters he faced. The game was relatively quiet until the top of the fourth inning, when Jeisson Rosario led off the inning with a single. Second baseman Esteury Ruiz followed by reaching on an error. Following a strikeout by Tirso Ornelas, Luis Campusano grounded into a force-out, scoring Rosario for the first run of the game. Margevicius was removed after his 74th pitch in the sixth inning, but the Lake County Captains were unable to score against reliever Ben Sheckler. The game stayed 1-0 into the ninth, when the TinCaps pushed across another run after two walks and a wild pitch. However, the Captains ended up scoring three runs in the bottom of the ninth after Joe Galindo walked the bases loaded and Jordan Guerrero threw a wild pitch and gave up a two-run, game-winning single.

Players of Note

Jeisson Rosario – CF, Low-A, Fort Wayne TinCaps
2-4, 1 R, 1 K

Fort Wayne TinCaps games are rarely televised, which makes it hard to get a good read on player’s performances. However, there is no mistaking Jeisson Rosario’s success in game number one. After being signed internationally as part of the Padres’ big 2016-2017 signing class, Rosario impressed with a .400 on-base percentage in Rookie ball in 2017. He didn’t show much power in that small sample, but with a walk rate that nearly matched his strikeout rate, there were a lot of good signs worth taking note of. Not only did Rosario collect two hits on Thursday night, but he also made strong contact on one of the outs he made, with the other being a strikeout. It was an aggressive promotion to Low-A for the 18-year-old, but Rosario is poised to have a big season at the top of the TinCaps’ lineup.

Nick Margevicius- LHP, Low-A, Fort Wayne TinCaps
5.2 IP, 1 H, 9 K

Speaking of impressing last year, 2017 draft pick Nick Margevicius was very impressive in 48 innings last year. With 62 strikeouts to just eight walks, as well as a 1.31 ERA, Margevicius put his name on the map. Given that he is 21, Margevicius might not stay in Fort Wayne for long if he continues to pitch like he did last night. His delivery was effortless and his mechanics were nearly spotless for a majority of the game. He did start to slow down a bit into the fifth and sixth innings, but all-in-all it was a great first start for Margevicus. With an easy, repeatable delivery and good pitch mix, he could be a fast riser in the prospect ranks.

.@NMarge25 was ??? on opening night for the @TinCaps…. he took a NO-NO into the 6th inning (5.2 IP, 1 hit, 9 Ks) pic.twitter.com/h7h2yKP8ge

— Andy McDonnell (@Andy_McDonnell) April 6, 2018

Edward Olivares – RF, High-A, Lake Elsinore Storm
2-3, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 2 BB

When you give up a fan favorite like Yangervis Solarte, fans are going to expect a lot from the guy coming back in that trade. That may be unfair to Edward Olivares, but expectations are going to be high for him this season. He didn’t disappoint in his first taste of minor league action in the Padres’ organization, collecting two hits, including an RBI double, and making some solid contact all-around.

Lake Bachar – RHP, High-A, Lake Elsinore Storm
6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 K

Austin Allen – C, Double-A, San Antonio Missions
1-2, 1 HR, 1 BB

On what was a quiet night for the Missions’ offense, catcher Austin Allen hit the first minor league home run for any Padres’ affiliate. It turned out to be the only run of the game, as the Missions fell 3-1. There have never been any doubts about Allen’s bat, but there have been doubts about his glove. Although he will be worth watching at the plate, his development behind it will be even more critical.

Michael Gettys – CF, Double-A, San Antonio Missions
0-3, 3 K

It’s hard to find a more toolsy player in the minor leagues than Michael Gettys. With that being said, it’s also hard to find a more frustrating player than Gettys. That story continued on day one of the Missions’ season, as a new league led to the same result for the strikeout-happy center fielder. In other news, fellow outfielder Rod Boykin was also 0-3 with three strikeouts.

Cal Quantrill – RHP, Double-A, San Antonio Missions
3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 4 K

Ouch, that was a rough landing for Cal Quantrill. Quantrill was held back in Double-A for a reason, and it seems like it was a logical call. Quantrill was out of sorts on Thursday, walking five batters in total on his way to being pulled in the fourth inning after throwing 91 pitches through 19 batters. There is hope among Padre fans that Quantrill makes it to the big leagues, but it seems he still has quite a bit of work to do in order to get there. It can only go up from here.

Luis Urias – 2B, Triple-A, El Paso Chihuahuas
1-3, 1 R, 2 BB

Luis Urias just looks so good at the plate. I have run out of superlatives to describe what he can do at the plate. He is immensely fun to watch hit as he looks to make his way to the big leagues sometime in 2018.

Eric Lauer – LHP, Triple-A, El Paso Chihuahuas
6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

This looks like a pretty pedestrian line, but this has become a pretty consistent output from Eric Lauer. He’s never going to be overpowering, but considering this is a Pacific Coast League line, it’s actually a pretty solid performance. With Lucchesi already in the big leagues, Lauer will probably follow at some point in 2018 if he can maintain his consistency in Triple-A.

Patrick Brewer

Editorial and Prospect Writer for East Village Times. Twenty-five years young, Patrick has lived in San Diego for his entire life and has been a Padres fan nearly as long. Patrick lives for baseball and is always looking to learn new things about the game he loves through advanced stats.