Down on the Farm: May 1
Credit: Padres
El Paso Chihuahuas
Dinelson Lamet 5 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 5 BB, 4 K
For the first time this season, right-hander Dinelson Lamet did not have a good night for the El Paso Chihuahuas. After opening the season with only one earned run over his first 20 innings pitching, things fell apart a bit for Lamet on Monday night. Inefficiency once again reared its ugly head, as Lamet struggled with control and command of his pitches.
After getting out of the first inning unscathed, despite a two out walk, Lamet gave up a single to lead off the second inning, another single after he had gotten two outs, and another two out walk followed by a two out double, quickly putting Lamet in a 2-0 hole. The third inning ended up being more of the same for Lamet, with a single followed by two walks and a grand slam, putting the Chihuahuas in a 6-0 hole early. Lamet got through the fourth and fifth innings mostly unscathed, despite another walk and one more single. In sum, Lamet didn’t look bad outright, but a few big mistakes, including the grand slam, and many little ones, including the walks, did him in. Five walks just isn’t going to get it done at the next level. But after an impressive start to the season, this may just be a blip on the radar.
Christian Bethancourt 1.2 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 1 BB
The early season Christian Bethancourt experiment was a clear failure. But the good news is that Bethancourt agreed to continue pitching and he has been sent down to Triple-A to try to work out the kinks. After a scoreless debut in his first two-thirds of an inning with the Chihuahuas, Bethancourt saw his first taste of earned runs with El Paso last night, although it wasn’t entirely on him. After getting through his first inning without incident, Bethancourt gave up a leadoff single in his second inning, followed by two quick outs and a two out walk. Now Bethancourt probably would have liked to get a chance to get out of the jam, but he was removed in favor of right-hander Jason Jester, who promptly gave up a three run home run, giving Bethancourt two earned runs through little fault of his own. Bethancourt looked good last night and is working in the right direction, earned runs or not.
San Antonio Missions
Brett Kennedy 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
Brett Kennedy was absolutely dealing for the Missions last night. Kennedy actually set down the first 12 batters he faced, getting four strikeouts, six groundouts, and two fly outs. After giving up a leadoff single to start the fifth inning, Kennedy got a pop out and a ground ball double play to get out of the inning. Kennedy saw his first real trouble in the sixth inning after giving up two two-out singles. Kennedy got a fly out to end the inning, and followed with a leadoff walk in the seventh but then three quick outs to end his night. Following two poor starts after two strong starts to start the season, Kennedy showed what he can be when he has all his pitches working. It’s not flashy, but it gets the job done.
Jose Rondon 1-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 3 R
After a quiet return from injury over the weekend, Rondon made some noise on Monday night with his first home run of the year. Rondon has never shown much power throughout his career, but it was a welcome sign for a player who has already spent much of this season off the field with injury. In his absence, Luis Urias took over at shortstop, something Padre fans have been clamoring for as the team continues to look for a long term answer at shortstop. Rondon has so far played two games at short, one game at third, and one at second since returning, and it will be interesting to watch who plays where going forward.
Lake Elsinore Storm
Joey Lucchesi 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K
Another night and another strong start for Joey Lucchesi, who is quickly becoming one of my favorite prospects. After an easy first two innings, in which Lucchesi got four quick strikeouts, Lucchesi gave up a leadoff single and double, followed by a groundout for the first earned run of the game. That was pretty much the entirety of Lucchesi’s struggles on the night, as he finished the night with four strikeouts in his last four innings while giving up only one hit in the process. Lucchesi continues to impress in Lake Elsinore and it may not be long before he moves up to San Antonio.
Austin Allen 2-4, 1 2B, 1 K
This is just the kind of line you come to expect from Austin Allen. He’s going to get his share of extra base hits, but he is also going to get his share of strikeouts. With that being said, Allen has shown his patient eye at the plate so far this season with a walk rate just shy of 13 percent. Allen has been even better over his last ten games after a somewhat slow start, slashing .375/.487/.594 with seven walks and eight strikeouts, showing what he can be at the plate with consistency. Austin Hedges is the guy for the Padres at catcher now, but maybe Allen can be there too at some point.
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.