Padres Down on the Farm: July 22 (Miller walks it off for Amarillo/Cantillo continues dominance in FW/Abrams three hits in AZL)
Credit: TinCaps
The San Diego Padres had each affiliate, except the El Paso Chihuahuas, in play on Monday night. A trio of intriguing left-handed pitchers toed the rubber for the Padres affiliates, including Joey Cantillo and Osvaldo Hernandez, whose names have been tossed around in trade rumors as of late.
Across six different levels, the Padres affiliates combined to go 5-2. Here is a recap of the day’s actions.
El Paso Chihuahuas (61-40 on the season)
OFF
Amarillo Sod Poodles defeat Northwest Arkansas Naturals 9-8 (11 in.) (51-48 on the season)
Former Padre starter Nick Margevicius started for the Sod Poodles on Monday night against Northwest Arkansas, while Royals’ top prospect Brady Singer opposed him.
The Naturals drew first blood on an Anderson Miller two-run shot in the top of the second inning. They would score again in the top of the fourth inning on a Taylor Featherston double to left field and on an RBI groundout by D.J. Burt in the seventh inning.
That would be all for Margevicius, who scattered nine hits and four runs over a seven-inning span. The young left-hander will likely spend the remainder of 2019 in Amarillo as he looks to right the ship on a tough start to his major league career.
Luis Torrens drilled his ninth home run of the season in the sixth inning to score two and get the Sod Poodles on the board. Down by two in the bottom of the ninth inning, Ivan Castillo tied the game with a two-run single to left field.
Ivan Castillo extends his hitting streak to 19 games in dramatic fashion with a two-out base hit to tie the game in the 9th. #Padres @SammyLev with the call pic.twitter.com/dQjqmJJvd0
— James E. Clark 3 (@EVT_JClark) July 23, 2019
An error in the top of the tenth inning would eventually result in an RBI single by D.J. Burt and give the Naturals a 5-4 lead heading to the bottom of the tenth. That lead would not last long, as Peter Van Gansen‘s pinch-hit sacrifice fly to right field scored Edward Olivares to tie the game.
Northwest Arkansas would not go away without a fight, scoring three runs in the top of the 11th inning off David Bednar. In what has been a crazy inaugural season in Amarillo, the Sod Poodles did not give up. Rodrigo Orozco singled in Taylor Kohlwey to make it a two-run game and Owen Miller drilled a three-run home run down the left-field line to walk it off for the Sod Poodles.
Owen Miller on the teams never say attitude and his walk off:
“We’re pretty dangerous when we put at-bats together. It would be great to get some momentum going into the playoff. I knew I hit it well. Definitely a cool moment.” @EVT_News pic.twitter.com/jcIC6tbGWb
— Austin Hartsfield (@HartsfieldMLB) July 23, 2019
Key Performers:
Nick Margevicius: 7 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, BB, 4 K
Luis Torrens: 1-for-4, 2 RBI, BB, K, RS, HR
Edward Olivares: 2-for-5, K, RS, 3 1B
Owen Miller: 1-for-5, 3 RBI, K, 2 RS, HR
Lake Elsinore Storm defeat Visalia Rawhide 9-5 (52-48 on the season)
Osvaldo Hernandez, the Padres number 23 overall prospect, started for the Storm against the Visalia Rawhide on Monday night in Lake Elsinore. Coming off a recent injury, the Padres have been smart with Hernandez, using him an opener-type role since his reactivation.
The 21-year-old left-hander only went 2 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on six hits with only one strikeout. Lucas Herbert‘s double in the second put the Rawhide on the board, and Max Murphy‘s double in the top of the third was enough to end Hernadez’s outing.
Eguy Rosario singled in two in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game. Visalia regained the lead on a sacrifice fly by Anfernee Grier in the fifth, but an inside-the-park home run by Aledmar Burgos and an RBI single by Gabriel Arias gave Lake Elsinore a 5-3 lead after five innings of play.
Lake Elsinore scored three more in the sixth inning. Jack Suwinski crossed home on a wild pitch by Franklyn Soriano, and catcher Luis Campusano drove in two on a single to left field. Jalen Washington‘s triple in the bottom of the seventh made it a 9-3 game in Lake Elsinore’s favor.
Visalia tacked on two more runs on a Joe Gillette home run in the top of the eighth inning, but that was all as the Storm held on to win by a score of 9-5.
Key Performers:
Luis Campusano: 3-for-4, 2 RBI, BB, RS, 3 1B
Gabrial Arias: 2-for-5, RBI, 2 K, RS, 2B
Eguy Rosario: 3-for-4, 2 RBI, K, RS, 2B, 2 1B
Gabe Mosser: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, BB, K
Fort Wayne TinCaps defeat Cedar Rapids Kernels 10-2 (44-54 on the season)
There may not be a prospect within the Padres organization that has climbed up prospect lists in 2019 like Joey Cantillo. A virtual unknown going into 2019, the former 16th round pick is having a breakout season with the TinCaps.
Cantillo toed the rubber against Cedar Rapids on Monday night and was masterful yet again. The young left-hander tossed six innings of two-run ball, striking out a season-high 10 batters and only walking one. His fastball sat between 90-92 mph, top 94 mph, and was located well while playing down in the zone. His primary off-speed pitch was a curveball that he showed a clear feel for, being able to flip it in at any point throughout his outing. His performance in 2019 has seen his stock as a prospect rise tremendously.
Offensively, the TinCaps jumped on Cedar Rapids starter Dylan Palm from the beginning, chasing him after just three innings. Tucupita Marcano doubled in the second inning to bring in one run and registered another RBI after working a bases-loaded walk. Designated Hitter Michael Curry singled to left field and drove in Justin Lopez. Tyler Benson‘s RBI groundout and Dwanya Williams-Sutton‘s hit by pitch also contributed to the scoring, giving Fort Wayne a 5-2 lead after just three innings of play.
Fort Wayne tacked on five more runs as the game went on and would end up winning by a score of 10-2. Tucupita Marcano singled in two more runs in both the fifth and eighth inning, while Dwanya Williams-Sutton’s hit by a pitch and Ethan Skender‘s walk also resulted in two runs crossing the scoreboard. Jawuan Harris continued his hot-streak by singling in Tyler Benson in the bottom of the eighth as well.
Key Performers:
Joey Cantillo: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, BB, 10 K
Tucupita Marcano: 3-for-5, 4 RBI, BB, RS, 2B, 2 1B, SB
Henry Henry: 2 IP, H, 3 K
Michael Curry: 3-for-5, RBI, K, 3 RS, 3 1B
Tyler Benson: 3-for-5, 3 RS, 3 1B
Tri-City Dust Devils lose to Vancouver Canadians 4-3
As the Class A short-season continues, the Tri-City Dust Devils entered the series finale with the Vancouver Canadians with the hopes of avoiding a sweep at the hands of their divisional rivals. Right-handed pitcher Ignacio Feliz started for Tri-City, while William Gaston took the ball for Vancouver.
It was the Dust Devils who scratched a run across the board first, as Carlos Luis‘ doubled in Reinaldo Illarraza in the top of the fourth inning. Tri-City would tack on two more runs on a Mason House single in the top of the eighth inning.
The Canadians would finally score in the bottom half of the eighth inning after Adrian Ramos was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Vancouver would not let up from there, adding two more runs on a Jesus Lopez single and a Luis De Los Santos fielder’s choice double play.
Key Performers:
Ignacio Feliz: 6 IP, 5 H, 3 K
Carlos Luis: 1-for-3, RBI, BB, 2B
Mason House: 1-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 K
Mason Fox: 2 IP, 2 H, BB, 4 K
AZL Padres 1 defeat AZL Dodgers Lasorda 7-4 (17-11 on the season)
San Diego’s first Arizona Rookie League team squared off against the Dodgers’ squad in a night game. 18-year-old Edgar Martinez started for the Padres and had a strong outing, tossing five innings of scoreless baseball and striking out seven.
Tirso Ornelas drove in Joshua Mears on a groundout in the bottom half of the first inning, putting the Padres’ squad on the board early on. Chet Allison singled in a run for the Dodgers team, but Yordi Francisco‘s sacrifice fly to centerfield scored C.J. Abrams to make it a 2-1 game after three.
Aldo Espinoza‘s sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh tied the game up at two apiece, but C.J. Abrams worked a bases-loaded walk to give the Padres a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning. Shortly after Abrams’ worked that walk, Joshua Mears crushed a grand slam over the left-field fence to give the Padres team a 7-2 lead.
The Dodgers squad scored two more runs in the top of the ninth, but that would not be enough as San Diego’s team held on to secure the victory.
C.J. Abrams, the team’s first-round pick in 2019, has been absolutely on fire in his first taste of professional baseball. The left-handed-hitting Abrams is currently slashing .425/.477/.661 with nine walks and 11 strikeouts. Abrams is having one of the strongest starts to a professional career from any player in the 2019 draft class, hitting safely in 24 of the 25 games he has appeared in. The sixth overall pick in the recent draft is slowly solidifying himself as a legit prospect in the Padres system.
Key Performers:
C.J. Abrams: 3-for-4, RBI, BB, K, RS, 3 1B
Joshua Mears: 2-for-4, 4 RBI, K, 2 RS, Grand Slam
Edgar Martinez: 5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 7 K
AZL Padres 2 fall to AZL Indians Red 8-1 (8 in, wind delay)
More Arizona Rookie League action took place for the Padres on Monday, with the second-team taking on the Cleveland Indians Red squad. Things did not go well for the Padres team, as the Indians scored eight runs in the first four innings to take a commanding 8-0 lead.
San Diego’s squad finally scratched a run across the board in the top of the seventh inning on a Junior Perez sacrifice fly. That would be all the offense for the Padres team, and the game was called in the eighth inning due to inclement weather.
Key Performers:
Robert Briley: 3 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K
DSL Padres lose to DSL Blue Jays 4-1 (18-25 on the season)
Scoring was at a premium for the DSL Padres on Monday morning, with the team only managing to scratch across one run through nine innings against the DSL Blue Jays. Victor Duarte‘s single to left field was the lone run for the Padres squad in a 4-1 loss to the Blue Jays team.
Abismael Paulino started on the mound for the Padres and turned in yet another strong performance. The 22-year-old right-hander tossed six innings of scoreless baseball, striking out two and only allowing three hits. Paulino has a 2.87 ERA in six starts with the DSL squad in 2019, and at 6-foot-7, is an ultra projectible prospect to note in a talented crop of Dominican prospects.
Key Performers:
Abismael Paulino: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 2 K
Victor Duarte: 1-for-4, RBI
Albert Fabian: 1-for-4, 2 K, 2B
Tuesday’s Probables
El Paso- Bryan Mitchell (0-1 13.50 ERA) vs. Tanner Anderson (6-4 5.54 ERA)
Amarillo- OFF
Lake Elsinore- Reiss Knehr (3-2 2.82 ERA) vs. TBD
Fort Wayne- OFF
Tri-City- Reynolds (1-1 4.35 ERA) vs. Matthews (0-2 7.50 ERA)
AZL Padres 1- OFF
AZL Padres 2- OFF
DSL Padres- TBD vs. DSL Blue Jays
Diego works at Prep Baseball Report as an Area Scout in Illinois and Missouri. He graduated this spring with a Bachelor Degree in Communications and played four years of college baseball, logging nearly 50 innings of work in a relief role. Diego hopes to work in an MLB front office one day and has been a Padres fan since he was six years old.