Padres Down on the Farm: July 27 (Kollar, Baez strong debut/Mendez sharp)
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Credit: P.J. Panebianco/ EVT Sports
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San Diego Padres affiliates went 2-4 on Saturday.
Here is a recap of the day’s events.
El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 11-6 vs Salt Lake) (40-61 on the season)
Tirso Ornelas – 4 for 5, Two Doubles
Brett Sullivan – 2 for 4, Home Run
Jared Kollar – 4.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K (93 pitches, 59 strikes)
Right-hander Jared Kollar made his debut for the Chihuahuas and showed flashes of his performance at Double-A. The right-hander struck out five and walked one in 4.1 innings. Kollar battled through some long at-bats and leaned heavily on his four-seam and cutter, using his curveball to generate whiffs when batters sat on the fastballs. Six of the 13 outs recorded by Kollar came on fly balls, although only two of those registered as hard hits. Kollar left the game tied, but the Chihuahuas’ bullpen faltered, allowing eight runs of their own in 3.2 innings. Paul Fry was tagged with the loss, and Josh Roberson allowed five runs in 1.1 innings of relief.
Brett Sullivan homered in the first inning, his 13th of the season. Tirso Ornelas continued to show out, as the Chihuahuas’ center fielder doubled twice, scoring once and driving in one run. Eguy Rosario drove in two runs, and Cal Mitchell reached base twice and scored a run in the loss.
San Antonio Missions (Lost 8-2 vs Midland) (45-48 on the season)
Brandon Valenzuela – 1 for 4, Single
Cole Cummings – 2 for 3, RBI Triple
Henry Baez – 5.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 3 K (80 pitches, 54 strikes)
Padres No. 30 prospect Henry Baez made his Double-A debut, tossing 5.1 innings of two-run baseball. The right-hander struck out three and walked one, scattering five hits. Baez was given a two-run lead courtesy of an RBI triple from Cole Cummings and Jarryd Dale scoring on a wild pitch. Brandon Valenzuela reached base on a single, and the team went 2 for 9 with runners in scoring position. Reliever Jason Blanchard was tagged with the loss, allowing four runs in 0.2 innings.
Fort Wayne TinCaps (Won 13-4 vs Dayton) (39-56 on the season)
Homer Bush Jr – 1 for 5, Two-Run Home Run
Ethan Salas – 3 for 5, Home Run, Double
Sam Whiting – 4 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 K (45 pitches, 27 strikes)
Fort Wayne’s offense delivered quite the light show on Saturday evening. Ethan Salas brought the spark early with a second-inning opposite-field home run. Salas doubled in his next at-bat to score Jay Beshears, which started a seven-run fourth inning. The fourth featured a two-run homer from Homer Bush Jr, his fourth of the season. Salas finished the day with three hits, and Kai Murphy tripled in the game. Sam Whiting started for the TinCaps, tossing four quality innings of two-run baseball. Whiting was aided by his ability to generate ground balls, as two double-play balls got him out of trouble. Jose Geraldo tossed two scoreless innings of relief, and Bradgley Rodriguez tossed a scoreless ninth in the win.
Lake Elsinore Storm (Won 12-2 vs Visalia) (49-44 on the season)
Jose Sanabria – 3 for 5, RBI
Braedon Karpathios – 3 for 4, Double
Miguel Mendez – 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 6 BB, 5 K (82 pitches, 49 strikes)
Lake Elsinore’s offense came alive with a four-run fourth inning. Jose Sanabria and Braedon Karpathios each recorded three hits in the game, and five members of the starting lineup recorded two or more hits. Making his Single-A debut, shortstop B.Y. Choi recorded his first two hits at the level, scoring two runs. Leodalis De Vries reached base twice and scored a run. Starter Miguel Mendez went five innings despite inconsistent command. Mendez walked six batters but also struck out five in his outing. In the month of July, Mendez has posted a 0.50 ERA, having allowed only one run this month in four starts. Thomas Balboni Jr struck out one in a scoreless ninth to seal the win, his sixth scoreless appearance of July.
ACL Padres: No Game
DSL Padres Gold (Lost 7-3 vs DSL Brewers 1) (18-21 on the season)
Gustavo Marquez – 2 for 4, Home Run
Estiven Giron – 1 for 2, Two-RBI Single
Ronaldys Jimenez – 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K
Estiven Giron delivered an early two-RBI single in the first inning, giving the Padres Gold a two-run lead. Gustavo Marquez hit his first homer of the DSL season to make it a 3-1 game in the top of the sixth. Padres Gold starter Ronaldys Jimenez tossed three strong innings, striking out a season-high four batters. Reliever Elvis Reyes was tagged with the loss, allowing four runs in 2.2 innings.
DSL Padres Brown (Lost 6-2 vs DSL White Sox) (8-29 on the season)
Joan Sierra – 1 for 2, Two RBI
Juan Martinez – 1 for 1, Two Walks
Javier Salomon – 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K
Starter Javier Salomon delivered three shutout innings in his start for the Padres Brown. While the left-hander walked three, he also punched out four batters. The offense was led by a two-RBI base hit by Joan Sierra in the first inning. Juan Marinez reached base three times, twice via the walk. The Padres Brown walked five times in the seven-inning affair. The bullpen for the Padres Brown allowed six unanswered runs, with left-hander Edwyn Hernandez allowing three runs in two innings, getting dealt the loss.
Sunday’s Probable Pitchers:
El Paso – TBD
San Antonio – Ryan Bergert (1-7, 6.49 ERA)
Fort Wayne – Dylan Lesko (1-9, 6.46 ERA)
Lake Elsinore – TBD
ACL – No Game
DSL Gold – No Game
DSL Brown – No Game
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.