Padres Down on the Farm: April 10 (Mears 2 HRs for FW/Dixon 3 Hits for SA/Batten 3 Hits for EP)
Credit: MiLB
The San Diego Padres affiliates went 2-3 as the Fort Wayne TinCaps played a doubleheader.
El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 3-2 vs. Round Rock) (3-3 on the season)
Reiss Knehr: 4.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, BB, 3 K (74 pitches, 44 strikes)
Matt Batten: (3-for-4), 2 2B, RBI
Brett Sullivan: (2-for-4), 2B, 2 R
Luis Campusano: (1-for-4)
The Chihuahuas offense struggled all day long, as six of the nine players in their starting lineup failed to pick up a hit. Matt Batten did have three hits, including two doubles, and he drove in Brett Sullivan for the Chihuahuas’ first run of the game. Sullivan, who had two hits, was the only El Paso player to score, as he also came in on Domingo Leyba’s sacrifice fly. The Chihuahuas had plenty of chances to add on, as they left five runners stranded on third base, but they weren’t able to bring them home.
Reiss Knehr, who pitched in 12 games for the Padres last season, made his first start of 2022. His season got off to a terrible start, as he allowed a single and then a home run to the first two batters he faced. He only allowed two hits over his next four innings of work, but the Chihuahuas couldn’t get back into the game. Ian Krol and Jesse Scholtens didn’t allow a run for the final 3.2 innings of the game, but it wasn’t enough as El Paso lost their third straight game.
San Antonio Missions (Won 16-3 vs. Corpus Christi ) (2-1 on the season)
Thomas Eshelman: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K (64 pitches, 44 strikes)
Yorman Rodriguez: (2-for-5), HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, SB, BB
Brandon Dixon: (3-for-6), 2B, 4 RBI, R, 2 SB, BB, K
Chris Givin: (3-for-6), 2B, RBI, 3 R
Everything went right for the Missions offense, as they posted 20 hits, saw every single player in the starting lineup reach base, and scored 16 runs. Esteury Ruiz led the game off with a triple, and Connor Hollis brought him home to put the Missions ahead after just two batters. They blew the game open with five runs in the second, including a steal of home by Brandon Dixon. San Antonio kept adding on, posting three more runs in the fifth and four more in the sixth. Yorman Rodriguez finished his day with a two-run home run, bringing home Jorge Oña to bring the Missions up to 16 runs for the afternoon.
San Antonio’s pitching was also solid. Thomas Eshelman pitched five innings of one-run ball, striking out three Corpus Christi players in the process. Tom Cosgrove and Henry Henry each surrendered one run out of the bullpen, but Carlos Belen finished the game strongly. He allowed just one hit and struck out four of the six batters he faced.
Fort Wayne TinCaps (Won 13-2 vs. Dayton, Lost 5-1 vs. Dayton) (1-2 on the season)
Game 1:
Alek Jacob: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K (46 pitches, 31 strikes)
Joshua Mears: (3-for-4), 2 HR, 2B, 4 RBI, 2 R, K
Robert Hassell III: (2-for-4), HR, 3 RBI, 2 R, K
Jarryd Dale: (1-for-3), HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, BB
Sunday two-step.
Tenth-ranked #Padres prospect Joshua Mears blasted off twice to lead a big doubleheader opener at the dish for the High-A @TinCaps. pic.twitter.com/k0VBnQF0zR
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) April 10, 2022
Fort Wayne’s offense erupted in the first game of the doubleheader. Robert Hassell III and Joshua Mears went back to back in the first inning, putting the TinCaps on top early. Fort Wayne added four more in the top of the third, as Hassell singled home Ripken Reyes and Corey Rosier. Jarryd Dale left the yard to score two more runs, giving the TinCaps a six-run lead. TinCaps starter Ryan Bergert gave up just one hit, but it was a two-run shot in the bottom of the third, chasing him from the game. Edwuin Bencomo and Alek Jacob allowed just one hit in the final 4.2 innings of the doubleheader, and the TinCaps’ offense put the nail in the coffin in the sixth. Fort Wayne brought six runners across in the frame, including three on Mears’ second home run of the day.
Game 2:
Jackson Wolf: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 3 K (46 pitches, 25 strikes)
Jarryd Dale: (1-for-2), 2B, R, BB
Joshua Mears: (1-for-4), 2B, 3 K
Seth Mayberry: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K (13 pitches, 12 strikes)
The stellar offense that Fort Wayne had in the first game of the doubleheader completely disappeared in the second game. They picked up just six hits all day long and scored just one run. Fort Wayne went 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position. They did strike first, as Jarryd Dale led off the inning with a double before coming on a bunt and a wild pitch. The TinCaps lead didn’t last long, though, as Dayton chased starter Jackson Wolf from the game with two runs in the second inning. The Dragons tripled their advantage with a two-run shot by Alex McGarry in the third, and with the TinCaps’ offensive struggles, that was plenty. Dayton added an insurance run in the sixth, making it a four-run deficit, which Fort Wayne never came close to overcoming.
Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 1-5 vs. Inland Empire) (1-2 on the season)
Jesus Gonzalez: 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R (0 ER), 1 BB, 2 K (61 pitches, 39 strikes)
Pierce Jones: (2-for-4), 2 2B, R, K
Jackson Merrill: (1-for-3), BB, SB, CS
Kervin Pichardo: (1-for-4), RBI, K
It was a tough afternoon for the Storm, who wasted a terrific start from Jesus Gonzalez. Gonzalez started his season off with five innings of two-hit ball, and the only run he allowed was unearned. However, Ben Miller struggled out of the bullpen, allowing two runs in two innings, picking up the loss in the process. Lake Elsinore’s bats went quiet, picking up just five hits and only seven total bases in the game. Pierce Jones was the only bright spot, as he did score Lake Elsinore’s only run, as well as a pair of doubles. Lake Elsinore hit poorly all night long, and they went just 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position, failing to take advantage of their opportunities.
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Monday’s Probables
El Paso: Off Day
San Antonio: Off Day
Fort Wayne: Off Day
Lake Elsinore: Off Day
Sam is a Senior in High School. He has been writing for three years, and started at EVT in June of 2021. He’s headed to Syracuse’s Newhouse School of Communications in the fall of 2023.