San Diego Padres affiliates went 3-4 on Friday.

Here is a recap of the day’s games.

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 6-4 vs Oklahoma City) (39-52 on the season)
Matthew Batten – 2 for 4, Two-Run Home Run
Clay Dungan – 2 for 3, RBI Single
Alek Jacob – 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K (39 pitches, 22 strikes)

Starter Luke Westphal allowed five runs in 2.2 innings, with a four-run rally by Oklahoma City knocking him from the game with two outs in the third. Jayvien Sandridge pitched 1.1 innings of relief, but his command continued to be enigmatic, as he walked three of seven batters faced. The young left-hander has struggled to start his Chihuahuas tenure, allowing 11 runs in 10.1 innings, walking 11 against 17 strikeouts. The Chihuahuas’ offense showed some bite in their comeback effort, with Matthew Batten hitting his fourth home run of the season, and each of Jose Azocar and Clay Dungan drove in a run on an RBI single. The team went a combined 3-for-7 with runners in scoring position in the loss.

San Antonio Missions (Won 1-0 vs Amarillo) (42-41 on the season)
Marcos Castanon – 1 for 3, Single
Robert Perez Jr – 1 for 2, Single
Jared Kollar – 7 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K (97 pitches, 62 strikes)

The San Antonio Missions won in shutout fashion under the Friday night lights, beating the Amarillo Sod Poodles by a score of 1-0. Missions starter Jared Kollar has been on an absolute tear as of late, posting a 2.59 ERA in his last eight starts. While his 21.2% strikeout rate this season is below the MLB average, his 1.92 BB/9 is comparable to Ranger Suarez and Corbin Burnes at the major league level. Kollar has been a fast riser in the Padres’ farm system and could be on the verge of a AAA call-up if his performances continue as such.

The Missions recorded only three singles on the night, with one from Padres’ No. 13 prospect Marcos Castanon. Juan Zabala drove home the lone run of the game on a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning, and though the team stranded eight baserunners, the duo of Jared Kollar and Francis Pena retired seven of the last eight batters in a row to seal the win, with Pena inducing a double play to end the game.

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Won 9-1 vs Great Lakes) (36-49 on the season)
Nick Vogt – 3 for 5, Two Doubles, Five RBI
Homer Bush Jr – 2 for 6, Run Scored
Henry Baez – 7 IP, 0 H, 1 R (Unearned), 1 BB, 4 K (79 pitches, 48 strikes)

For the second consecutive year, the TinCaps’ pitching staff tossed a combined no-hitter. Henry Baez, Will Geerdes, and Jose Geraldo combined to allow one run on no hits and one walk over the nine-inning game. Baez, the most recent addition to the Padres’ Top 30 (at the No. 30 ranking), was efficient across seven innings, allowing one run on a walk and throwing error. Baez was efficient with his pitches, averaging 11.2 pitches an inning in his effort. The right-hander has been on a heater this summer, posting a 1.05 ERA since June 1, averaging 5.2 innings per start. While he was eligible for the Rule 5 draft this past offseason, his improvement at High-A could present a dilemma for the Padres, come the offseason.

The no-hitter was backed by an offensive explosion by the TinCaps, with Nick Vogt driving in five runs. Since being promoted to High-A on June 28, Vogt has been looking for a breakout game, and this game looks to ideally be a sign of things to come. Romeo Sanabria continues to reach base at an elite clip, bringing his on-base percentage up to .394 at High-A this season. Homer Bush Jr and Jay Beshears reached base twice on two singles apiece, and Anthony Vilar walked four times in the win.

Lake Elsinore Storm (Won 4-0 vs Fresno) (42-41 on the season)
Leodalis De Vries – 1 for 4, RBI Double
Rosman Verdugo – 1 for 4, Two-Run Home Run
Will Varmette – 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K (44 pitches, 28 strikes)

Another affiliate, another shutout win! The Lake Elsinore Storm had three pitchers combine for a three-hitter on Friday night, with Ian Koenig, Will Varmette, and Daniel Camarena striking out eight in a winning effort. Varmette earned the win with three innings of shutout relief, striking out two and walking one. The offense continued to be the story for the Storm, as Leodalis De Vries extended his hitting streak to ten games with a third-inning RBI double. “El Mutante” has been on fire this month, with a slash line of .382/.475/.794 in July. Rosman Verdugo hit his ninth home run of the season in the game and is hitting an astonishing .516 in 31 at-bats in July.

ACL Padres (Lost 2-1 vs ACL Dodgers) (21-30 on the season)
L.J. Jones – 1 for 3, Single
Colton Vincent – 1 for 3, RBI
Langston Burkett – 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

Mitch Miller struck out three in two innings of one-run baseball, making his third rehab appearance at the Complex League level. The 6’ 6” left-hander has pitched well in his three rehab outings, but it remains to be seen when he will return to Fort Wayne’s active roster. Right-hander Langston Burkett had an efficient outing, tossing 2.1 scoreless innings in relief. The Padres had minimal opportunities with runners in scoring position, going 0-for-4 in those situations, with their lone run scoring on an RBI groundout by Colton Vincent.

DSL Padres Gold (Lost 4-3 vs ACL Athletics) 12-16 on the season)
Yimy Tovar – 2 for 3, Double
Yoiber Ocopio – 3 for 4, Double
Winyer Chourio – 4 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 6 BB, 4 K

Starter Winyer Chourio battled through six walks to deliver four innings of one-run baseball, striking out four in the process. Chourio has pitched very well in his two starts and five relief appearances this season, allowing only three earned runs in that span. Reliever Angel Sanchez allowed two unearned runs in the seventh inning to be saddled with the loss. The Gold offense earned nine hits and four walks in the game, with catcher Yoiber Ocopio having a three-hit day. The team went 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position in the game, stranding seven baserunners.

DSL Padres Brown (Lost 4-1 vs DSL Red Sox Red) (6-20 on the season)
Estiven Giron – 1 for 3, Single
Dayquer Alfonzo – 1 for 2, Two Walks
Jose De La Rosa – 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K

Starter Jose De La Rosa delivered the best start of his very young professional career, tossing a dominant four innings of shutout baseball. It was a major bounceback for the right-hander, as he was coming off a three-game stretch where he allowed ten runs in nine innings. Left-hander Edwyn Hernandez took the loss, allowing a two-run home run in two innings of work. The offense managed ten baserunners in nine innings, but struck out nine times and failed to record a hit with runners in scoring position Dayquer Alfonzo walked twice in the game, and Johendry Javier had the team’s lone RBI with a bases-loaded walk.

Saturday’s Probable Pitchers:
El Paso – Jackson Wolf (3-9, 7.42 ERA)
San Antonio – Miguel Cienfuegos (1-0, 1.80 ERA)
Fort Wayne – Dylan Lesko (1-7, 6.08 ERA)
Lake Elsinore – TBD
ACL – TBD
DSL Gold – TBD
DSL Brown – TBD

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.