The San Diego Padres’ minor league affiliates continued their regular seasons on Friday, going 2-1 in regular season games. 

Here is a recap of the evening’s events.

El Paso Chihuahuas (Won 7-3 vs Las Vegas) (6-7 on the season)

Trenton Brooks – 1-for-4, Home Run

Eguy Rosario – 2-for-4, Two RBI

Stephen Kolek – 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 4 K (77 pitches – 48 strikes)

El Paso rattled off a second consecutive win behind string pitching and a balanced offensive approach. Stephen Kolek made his third start with the Chihuahuas and had yet another strong outing, tossing five innings of two-run baseball. Kolek struck out four in his outing, getting whiffs on 18% of swings while averaging 94 mph on his sinker (the four-seamer averaged 94.8 mph, topping out at 96.5 mph. Kolek’s conversion to starting full-time is bearing fruit early for the Padres, who could see their depth tested in the dog days of summer. Reliever Ron Marinaccio tossed two scoreless innings in the win, striking out one and recording four ground ball outs. Marinaccio has faced an up-and-down nature to his season’s start, but the Padres have faith that the former Yankee can rediscover his 2022 form. 

Trenton Brooks continued his incredible start to the season, hitting his team-leading fifth home run of the season in the fourth inning. The bottom of the Chihuahuas’ lineup was particularly strong in the ballgame, with Eguy Rosario and Mason McCoy each registering two hits, while Clay Dungan recorded three. Rosario drove in the go-ahead runs in the seventh inning, lining a changeup up the middle for a single, with a botched relay to home allowing Rosario to advance to second base. Mason McCoy’s second base hit of the night scores Rosario, and a 101.6 mph single off the bat of Brett Sullivan scored McCoy. Luis Campusano tacked on another run in the eighth inning with a solo home run to right-center field. Campusano’s 436-foot blast showed the life that remains in the bat, and defensively, he was passable in the win. Yonathan Perlaza barrelled up every baseball he put in play, with his seventh-inning double registering 108.2 mph off the bat. 

Trenton Brooks goes yard for the second time in as many games to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth! pic.twitter.com/crkNecCQNV

— El Paso Chihuahuas (@epchihuahuas) April 12, 2025

Campusano leads off the bottom of the 8th with a home run to the Big Dog House! Take a 7-3 lead over the Aviators! pic.twitter.com/JEZmEwPuAl

— El Paso Chihuahuas (@epchihuahuas) April 12, 2025

The Chihuahuas return to play Saturday vs Las Vegas, with left-hander Wes Benjamin scheduled to start. 

San Antonio Missions (Lost 4-3 vs Corpus Christi) (5-2 on the season)

Kai Murphy – 2-for-4, Double, Run Scored

Anthony Vilar – 2-for-5, Two RBI

Henry Baez – 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 6 K (60 pitches – 40 strikes)

Right-hander Henry Baez had his strongest start of the young season, tossing four innings of two-run baseball. Baez showed off his impressive arsenal against the hosting Corpus Christi Hooks, striking out six of the 17 batters he faced. While Baez allowed a home run in his outing, nine of his 12 outs came via the strikeout or the ground ball, with two of the remaining three coming on pop-ups. Location and soft contact are key for Baez, and this start (while short in terms of pitch count) is exactly the sort of outing San Diego’s front office wants to see from the right-hander. 

Five Missions batters finished the day with two hits, and while Ethan Salas was not one of them, the Missions’ catcher reached base twice via the walk. Salas started the season slow but has reached base in six of 20 at-bats this series thus far. Marcos Castanon and Anthony Vilar each drove in a run, with Vilar driving in two of the Missions’ three runs. Elsewhere in the lineup, Kai Murphy and Tyler Robertson had productive days at the bottom of the batting order, each scoring a run in the game. 

After Baez’s four innings, Jose Geraldo fired off two scoreless innings before turning the ball over to southpaw Jake Higginbotham. The former Tigers farmhand was in some hot water right away, as he walked Ryan Wrobleski and Austin Deming with no outs in the seventh. A deep flyout moved the runners up 90 feet before Higginbotham was relieved by fireballer David Morgan. Morgan allowed a single to left fielder Luis Castro to give Corpus Christi a 4-3 lead, with both runs charged to Higginbotham (who ultimately took the loss). Morgan struck out the next two batters, and Spencer Jones tossed a scoreless eighth inning. Ultimately, there would be no go-ahead rally, as the final three Missions batters went down in order, with Marcos Castanon lining out to end the game. 

San Antonio returns to action Saturday at 5:05 pm Pacific with right-hander Braden Nett starting. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Won 5-1 vs Dayton) (4-3 on the season)

Brendan Durfee – 2-for-4, RBI Double

Brandon Butterworth – 1-for-4, Double, Two Runs

Enmanuel Pinales – 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K (61 pitches – 38 strikes)

Facing Reds top prospect Chase Burns, it would be TinCaps starter Enmanuel Pinales stealing the headlines. Much like former Rockie Josh Fogg, Pinales was (for a night) the Dragon Slayer, as the right-hander tossed five shutout innings on 61 pitches, striking out seven batters. Pinales used his entire arsenal to keep Dragons hitters guessing, which held the potent Dragons offense to one hit against him. Reliever Eiker Huizi tossed two scoreless innings, flashing a plus sweeper with impressive horizontal break. Tyson Neighbors struck out three batters in the ninth inning to weld the door shut, getting whiffs on 83% of opposing swings. 

23-year old righty Enmanuel Pinales of @TinCaps outduels Reds no. 1 prospect Chase Burns Friday in Dayton! Pinales with 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, K’s. In line for the win as Caps lead 4-0 heading to the 7th inning. @EVT_News @Padres @madfriars @billcenter @PadresProspects pic.twitter.com/kf2MVEybc5

— Glenn Marini (@GlennMariniWANE) April 12, 2025

The TinCaps’ offense, which had been in a brief slumber over the past two games, awoke with some pop. Brendan Durfee was at the center of the scoring again, driving in the team’s first run with an RBI double, his fifth RBI of the season. Brandon Butterworth scored two runs in the ballgame, raising his season OBP to .417. The sixth inning saw the team rally for four runs to put the game away, as Durfee and Rosman Verdugo reached to open the frame. Ethan Long singled on a fly ball to right, and an error from Dragons’ right fielder Yerlin Confidan allowed Durfee to score. Verdugo scored on a single from Caps center fielder Nerwilian Cedeno, and Long scored on a base hit from Jacob Campbell. The team finished 3-for-8 with runners in scoring position, a strong mark in such opportunities. 

The TinCaps continue their season with a Saturday morning ballgame. Isaiah Lowe takes the mound for Fort Wayne at 10:05 am. Pacific time.

Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 13-9 vs Modesto) (0-7 on the season)

Ryan Wilson – 3-for-5, Three Singles, RBI

B.Y. Choi – 1-for-3, Two-RBI Triple

Maikel Miralles – 1.2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 2 K (38 pitches – 19 strikes)

This game… this game had everything. Lead changes, bizarre baseball plays, and offense aplenty welcomed those who visited The Diamond on a warm April night. Maikel Miralles started for Lake Elsinore, and his outing was an eventful one. In short, Miralles allowed four runs, all scoring on the same play. In the second inning, Curtis Washington Jr hit a sharp grounder to Miralles, who missed the snag and threw low to first. The ball rolled into right field, and right fielder Ryan Wilson threw home to get an out, but the ball got past Victor Duarte and into the dugout, leading to the very rare bases-clearing single. 

Lake Elsinore actually got offensive production again, as Ryan Wilson atoned for his error with a three-hit day. Sean Barnett and Zach Evans each had two hits, and B.Y. Choi drove in two runs on a triple. The Storm were able to get base hits on four of eight chances with runners in scoring position. Both Choi and Wilson scored two runs in the game, with Yendry Rojas scoring and driving in a run of his own as well. Bernard Jose gave Lake Elsinore the chance to lead, as he fired off 2.1 innings of shutout relief. Yovannki Pascual surrendered a run in the eighth, but still up by one run, the left-hander remained in the game for the ninth. The decision backfired, as a leadoff walk and wild pitch moved the tying run the second before a strikeout got Lake Elsinore within two outs of a win. The momentum vanished in one fell swoop, as outfielder Cesar Quintas doubled to tie the game at nine runs, chasing Pascual. Johan Moreno was summoned with an inherited runner on, and bequeathed the go-ahead run on a single by Curtis Washington Jr. Ricardo Cova tripled, scored on a wild pitch, and DH Carlos Jimenez homered to put Modesto up 13-9 by the end of the frame. Nuts pitcher and former USD Torero Calvin Schapira entered for the ninth, and despite walking two, he was able to retire the side to win the game for Modesto, snatching victory from the Storm’s hands. 

Lake Elsinore returns to play Saturday; starters have yet to be announced.

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.