Padres affiliates went winless in their Sunday slate.

Let’s jump right into the games’ happenings. 

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 13-7 vs Salt Lake) (49-70 on the season)

Ethan Salas – 2-for-4, Home Run, Double, Four RBI

Nick Pratto – 1-for-3, Home Run, Two RBI

Andrew Thurman – 3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 2 K (69 pitches – 35 strikes)

El Paso’s pitching tandem of Andrew Thurman and JP Sears struggled in the series finale. Thurman was charged with three runs in three innings, striking out two. The right-hander labored in his three innings, allowing eight baserunners and averaging 23 pitches per inning. JP Sears took the loss, allowing five runs while recording seven outs. Having Sears pitch in shorter stints has not allowed his pitches to play up, and he only threw 30% of his pitches in the zone. JP France allowed three earned runs (five total runs) in 1.2 innings. Hunter Stratton was the lone Chihuahuas reliever to not allow a run, pitching two scoreless innings. Stratton leaned on his cutter 38.5% of the time, and the pitch graded out as a plus pitch even in the altitude. 

Ethan Salas continued to crush Triple-A pitching, finishing with two extra-base hits in the loss. Salas hit a two-run double in the first inning to put El Paso on the board, barrelling a hanging slider from Bees starter Caden Dana. Salas would have another big swing that produced Chihuahuas runs, as he later took a cutter from left-hander Mitch Harris to the left field Peter Piper Pizza porch. It was Salas’ third home run since joining the Chihuahuas, and his 10th home run of the season as a whole. That set a career-best mark for the 20-year old. Nick Pratto launched his fifth home run with the Chihuahuas, a two-run home run in the first. Marcos Castanon had two hits, including an RBI double. 

San Antonio Missions (Lost 8-5 vs Frisco) (51-63 on the season)

Jack Costello – 2-for-4, Two Singles, Two RBI

Alex McCoy – 2-for-4, Two Singles, Two RBI

Ian Koenig – 6 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 5 K (84 pitches – 61 strikes)

San Antonio rallied back from a 5-2 deficit, but a three-run Frisco rally turned the tables. Right-hander Ian Koenig threw six innings, allowing five runs. The final line is deceiving, as the right-hander pitched five innings of two-run baseball before a three-run Frisco surge. Koenig fanned five batters while walking just one. Koenig has now pitched six or more innings in five of his last six starts, and his ERA sits at 3.32 in three August starts. Jose Leclerc threw a scoreless seventh inning with a strikeout. Igor Gil took the loss, allowing three runs in one-third of an inning. Bernard Jose did not allow a run to score, picking up the final two outs. 

The Missions lineup kept the ball in the yard, but within those walls, did plenty of damage. Ryan Jackson drew two walks, which set up the second baseman to score two runs. Romeo Sanabria hit a double, reaching base in all but one of his plate appearances. Sanabria went on to score two runs as well. Alex McCoy hit two separate RBI singles in the game, also scoring a run. McCoy picked up a stolen base on the basepaths, also spending some time out in center field. Braedon Karpathios had two hits, driving in one run on an RBI single. Karpathios has posted a 1.266 OPS in 14 games in August, turning his season around just like that. Jack Costello had two separate RBI singles, driving in two runs. Costello has hit .250 since joining San Antonio. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps – Lost Partial Doubleheader vs West Michigan

TinCaps lost 5-2 in Game 1

Bryan Balzer dominated the River Bandits through five innings of work, setting a career-high for strikeouts in a single game. The right-hander struck out ten batters in five innings, allowing just one base hit. Balzer walked four, generating three ground ball outs. None of the outs Balzer recorded came on hard-hit fly balls. Will Koger pitched two innings, throwing a scoreless sixth before allowing a game-tying two-run home run with two outs in the seventh inning. Fort Wayne took their 2-0 lead in the fifth inning, as with runners on the corners, Dylan Grego singled to right field to score Carlos Rodriguez. Kasen Wells hit a sacrifice fly later in the inning, scoring Bradley Frye. Nick Falter took the loss, allowing a walk-off three-run home run to Derlin Figueroa. 

TinCaps lost 4-3 in Game 2

Justin DeCriscio – 1-for-2, Single, Two RBI

Kasen Wells – 1-for-3, RBI Single

Abraham Parra – 6.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R (2 ER), 5 BB, 2 K (94 pitches – 51 strikes)

Abraham Parra pitched into the seventh inning, but walked five batters in his start. Parra allowed four hits, striking out two batters. Two of four runs were unearned, and it was Parra’s deepest start of the season. Part of the right-hander’s struggles was his inability to manage the running game; six of eight stolen base attempts were successful. Jeferson Villabona walked in the go-ahead run, but allowed nothing more in two-thirds of an inning. Isaiah Lowe pitched a scoreless eighth inning, striking out one. The TinCaps saw nine baserunners all game for themselves, but scored just three runs. Justin DeCriscio was responsible for tying the game on two separate occasions, hitting an RBI single in the third inning and a sac bunt to score a run in the fifth. Kasen Wells hit an RBI single in the third as well, scoring Carlos Rodriguez. Dylan Grego reached base twice in the game, scoring two runs. 

Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 11-7 vs Inland Empire) (61-53 on the season)

Nu’u Contrades – 3-for-5, Home Run, Two RBI

Joe Tiroly – 3-for-5, Double, Two RBI

Luis Maracara – 4 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 8 K (65 pitches – 42 strikes)

Luis Maracara struck out a career-high eight batters in four innings against Inland Empire. The right-hander’s 16 whiffs generated led all of Single-A baseball, and he did not issue a walk in his four innings of work. Ryan Reed allowed two runs in one inning of relief, striking out one. Florangel Vasquez took the loss, allowing five runs (four earned) in 1.1 innings of relief. Jordan Valenzuela and Rordy Mejia combined to throw the final 1.2 innings, allowing two runs. 

Nu’u Contrades and Joe Tiroly combined to drive in four of the Storm’s seven runs, both finishing with three hits. Contrades launched his second home run of the season, a two-run home run in the eighth inning. Tiroly had a double as part of his three-hit performance, driving in two runs in the first inning. Ty Harvey had an RBI single in the first inning, and Jesmaylin Arias hit his first Storm double to score Chris McHugh. Arias had a big game defensively, throwing out two runners on the bases from right field. Jose Verdugo had two hits, and Jake Bold drove in one run, reaching base twice in the contest.

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.