Padres Down on the Farm: August 23 (Maracara dominant in LE)

Padres affiliates went 0-4 on Sunday to close out the week.

Here is our daily recap of games played. 

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 8-0 vs Round Rock) (50-75 on the season)

Bryce Johnson – 1-for-3, Double

Gage Workman – 2-for-4, Two Singles, Stolen Base

Jagger Haynes – 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K (87 pitches – 54 strikes)

Left-hander Jagger Haynes lowered his El Paso ERA to 7.13 (with a more encouraging 5.01 FIP) with five innings of one-run baseball. Haynes struck out four batters in his start, walking three. The left-hander’s fastball got as high as 94.4 mph on the radar gun (that came in the fifth inning), and he leaned on his slider for 34.5% of his offerings. The slider-first approach did aid the left-hander, as half the swings against his slider came up empty. His sinker also saw a 50% chase rate on sinkers outside the zone. While there isn’t much difference between the fastball and sinker in the vertical break department, the 4.8 inches of added horizontal break made a difference (especially at altitude). Despite Haynes’ strong start, the El Paso bullpen coughed up seven runs in four innings.

Daison Acosta threw two innings, allowing three runs. The former Nationals farmhand has pitched to a 3.00 ERA in August, albeit with a 1.44 WHIP. Jose Leclerc’s third appearance of the series was disastrous, as the former Ranger allowed four earned runs on five hits and a walk. Leclerc picked up just two outs, and while his velocity was closer to his 2025 averages, he now has a 33.75 ERA in El Paso. Hunter Stratton made yet another scoreless appearance, throwing 1.1 innings with two strikeouts. The El Paso offense tallied seven hits, but failed to take advantage of early opportunities in the loss. Gage Workman had two base hits, both singles, while adding on a stolen base. Both his singles came off the bat over 100 mph, and three of his four batted balls were barrels. Bryce Johnson doubled and walked in the contest. Samad Taylor wrapped up his first week on rehab assignment by reaching base twice in the game, hitting a single and drawing a walk. Taylor slashed .294/.368/.471 for an .839 OPS in 17 at-bats this week. 

In a roster move, the Chihuahuas released right-hander Andrew Thurman. Thurman, 35, spent most of the 2026 season in Double-A, pitching to a 12.08 ERA in 12.2 innings at Triple-A. We wish Andrew all the best in any future endeavors, be it on the diamond or outside of it. 

San Antonio Missions (Lost 7-2 vs Northwest Arkansas) (54-66 on the season)

Romeo Sanabria – 2-for-4, Double, Run Scored

Albert Fabian – 1-for-4, Home Run, Two RBI

Fernando Sanchez – 3.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 5 K (70 pitches – 45 strikes)

San Antonio’s third straight loss pushed them to five games out of a playoff spot with 18 games to play. The Missions’ offense has stagnated in their recent three-game skid, and those struggles continued again tonight. Albert Fabian and Romeo Sanabria accounted for three of the team’s four hits. Sanabria hit a double and a single in four at-bats, and Albert Fabian broke the shutout with a two-run home run in the ninth inning. Fabian is now hitting .338 in August with an .877 OPS despite a 17-to-4 K-to-BB ratio. Luis Verdugo hit a single and stole a base in the loss. San Antonio’s lineup struck out 15 times in the loss. 

Fernando Sanchez pitched into the fourth inning, allowing two runs (one earned). The left-hander from Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, threw 3.2 innings, striking out five batters. Sanchez only issued two walks, with one run scoring after he departed the game. Clay Edmondson threw 1.1 innings, allowing one run on two hits. Edmondson also threw a wild pitch to score an inherited runner and struck out two. Sadrac Franco struck out three batters in two scoreless innings. Johan Moreno allowed a two-run home run to Jorge Alfaro (yes, the one who said the line) in his lone inning. Garrett Hawkins allowed two runs in one inning, striking out three batters. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Lost 2-0 in 10 innings vs Great Lakes) (50-68 on the season)

Conner Westenburg – 1-for-4, Double

Luke Cantwell – 1-for-3, Single, Walk

Kannon Kemp – 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K (68 pitches – 42 strikes)

Fort Wayne and Great Lakes tied at zero for nine innings before Bernard Jose allowed two runs in the tenth inning. For the TinCaps, starting pitcher Kannon Kemp pitched on four days’ rest for the first time all season, throwing five scoreless innings. The right-hander struck out four while walking two, recording just one out on the ground. In two starts against Great Lakes, Kemp has pitched to a 1.80 ERA in 10 innings. Will Koger threw two scoreless innings, striking out one in his relief appearance. Koger now has 21 strikeouts in 21 innings as a TinCap, despite 24 walks. 6-foot-6 right-hander Brandon Langley made his High-A debut, as he was assigned to the team on Saturday. Langley struck out four in two innings. Bernard Jose allowed a two-run home run to Samuel Munoz in the tenth inning for the only runs of the game. 

Bradley Frye reached base twice for Fort Wayne, picking up a stolen base as well. Frye has opened his TinCaps tenure with a .942 OPS over his first two weeks as a ‘Cap, and has yet to be caught on five stolen base attempts. Ryan Wideman was held hitless in the game, but went 2-for-3 on successful stolen bases. Yimy Tovar drew three walks in the game, taking over at second base after an early departure from Rosman Verdugo. Luke Cantwell singled and walked, and Conner Westenburg’s seventh-inning double was the team’s only extra-base hit. 

Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 5-0 vs San Jose) (61-59 on the season)

Truitt Madonna – 1-for-3, Double

Joe Tiroly – 1-for-3, Single, Walk

Luis Maracara – 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K (78 pitches – 51 strikes)

Right-hander Luis Maracara flashed his ceiling in the Storm’s series-ending loss to San Jose. The right-hander struck out seven batters in four innings, with five of his strikeouts coming of the backwards-K variety. Maracara recorded just four whiffs, keeping the ball in the yard. From the eye test, the right-hander looked like a young Jose Berrios out at the Diamond. Florangel Vasquez threw two scoreless innings in relief, striking out two. Left-hander Andrew Wright threw a scoreless seventh, but departed the game with one out in the eighth and the bases loaded.

Storm manager Brallan Perez called on Jordan Valenzuela, but the right-hander’s control was not its sharpest. Valenzuela issued a bases-loaded walk to his first batter faced, giving the Giants a 1-0 lead. After recording a flyout to right field, which did not advance any runners, Valenzuela’s 2-1 pitch to Oliver Tejeda was crushed for a grand slam. Behind in the count, Valenzuela threw a 97 mph fastball down the heart of the plate, pointing to the sky upon contact. The ball cleared the left field wall and the clubhouse behind the wall. The right-hander allowed two baserunners to open the ninth, and Jack Pineau was called on for his professional debut. The right-hander struck out Peyton Bonds before retiring his final two batters faced, culminating in a scoreless inning. Truitt Madonna’s 23rd double of the season was the Storm’s lone extra-base hit of the game. Qrey Lott drew a walk, also picking up his 24th stolen base of the season in 86 games. Joe Tiroly reached base on a single and a walk as the Storm DH and was one of five runners left on base in the loss. 

DSL Padres Gold – Off Day

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.