Padres affiliates went 2-2 on Wednesday.

Let’s dive right into the games played. 

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 9-7 vs Albuquerque in 10 innings) (44-59 on the season)

Ethan Salas – 3-for-4, Triple, Double, Two RBI

Romeo Sanabria – 2-for-4, Two Singles, RBI

Jhony Brito – 4 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 4 K (58 pitches – 43 strikes)

It was an important day at the ballpark, as the Chihuahuas welcomed the No. 1 prospect in the Padres organization into the fold. Ethan Salas made his Chihuahuas debut in the game, and he did not make a quiet first impression. Salas finished with three hits in his Triple-A debut, two of which went for extra bases. Salas doubled in his first at-bat, taking a high slider to the opposite field. His sixth-inning triple came off the bat at 104.9 mph, one of his hardest-hit balls of the season. Romeo Sanabria had two hits and an RBI, and now has a five-game hitting streak going. Marcos Castanon hit two singles in the game, driving in two runs and also scoring two runs of his own. Blake Hunt hit two singles, driving in two runs. Hunt and Salas will likely split DH/catching duties from this point forward, as Hunt is hitting .315 with a 1.011 OPS in 110 at-bats. 

Jhony Brito threw four innings of two-run baseball, pounding the zone throughout his outing. Brito threw 43 of 58 pitches for strikes and did not issue a walk. While Brito has not reached a pitch count over 60 since being optioned, this appears to be by design. Miguel Cienfuegos allowed two runs in 2.2 innings, walking three and striking out one batter. Ethan Routzahn allowed a game-tying home run in the seventh inning, pitching 1.1 innings and striking out three. Alek Jacob took the loss, allowing four runs (three earned) in the tenth inning. 

San Antonio Missions (Lost 7-6 vs Amarillo) (44-54 on the season)

Braedon Karpathios – 1-for-4, Home Run, Two RBI

Albert Fabian – 1-for-3, Home Run, Two RBI

Matthew Watson – 3.2 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 0 K (81 pitches – 45 strikes)

San Antonio’s back-and-forth Wednesday contest ended in a loss to Amarillo on the road. Braedon Karpathios opened the scoring for San Antonio with a two-run home run in the first inning, his tenth home run of the season. Albert Fabian homered for a second consecutive game in the second inning, his eighth home run of the season. Fabian drove in two runs in the ball game, also hitting a game-tying sac fly in the eighth inning. Luis Verdugo hit two doubles in the contest, while second baseman Ryan Jackson hit a double and scored a run. Jackson also finished with a multi-hit effort. Brendan Durfee reached base twice in the game, as did Jake Cunningham. 

Matthew Watson pitched into the fourth inning, allowing five runs on eight hits. The right-hander out of Texas A&M did not record a strikeout in the contest, walking three. His sinker-heavy approach induced four ground ball outs, but he missed belt-high too much to generate grounders en masse. Sadrac Franco pitched 1.1 scoreless innings in relief, scattering two hits. Jose Leclerc, whose rehab assignment was transferred to the Missions earlier in the week, took the loss. Leclerc allowed two runs on three hits in one inning of work. Josh Mallitz struck out three batters in two innings of relief; the right-hander has struck out 14 in 14.2 innings in July. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Won 5-4 in 10 innings vs Great Lakes) (43-54 on the season)

Lamar King Jr – 2-for-5, Two Singles, Two RBI

Kasen Wells – 2-for-4, Two Singles, Two RBI

Luis Gutierrez – 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K (37 pitches – 20 strikes)

Winyer Chourio – 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R (3 ER), 1 BB, 8 K (89 pitches – 52 strikes)

The TinCaps rode a late-inning surge and the strength of their pitching depth to a 5-4 extra-inning win. Luis Gutierrez made his third rehab start and first with the TinCaps, striking out three batters in two innings. Gutierrez threw 20 pitches for strikes, picking up two outs on fly balls. Carlos Medina pitched three innings in relief, allowing three hits and two walks, also striking out three batters. Medina has been a solid swingman for the TinCaps and Storm this season, and he now has a 4.35 ERA on the season. Winyer Chourio, the team’s scheduled starter, pitched five innings in relief, striking out a High-A best eight batters. Chourio also issued just one batter, an improvement from his first two starts of the month. Chourio allowed just one extra-base hit in his outing, allowing three earned runs. 

The TinCaps’ offense picked up the slack late, scoring first in the sixth on an RBI single by Kasen Wells. Lamar King Jr then singled in a run in the seventh inning, bringing the team’s lead to 2-0. King Jr gave the team a lead in the 10th inning with an RBI single into left field. Wells singled to right field on a line to score the second run of the tenth inning, and Justin DeCriscio drove in Zach Evans on an RBI single as well. Evans went 1-for-3 with a single and two walks, reaching base three times. Alex McCoy went 1-for-3 with a single and two walks as well. With the win, the TinCaps closed in two games out of a playoff spot!

Lake Elsinore Storm (Won 4-0 vs Stockton) (52-46 on the season)

George Bilecki – 3-for-4, Home Run, RBI

Bradley Frye – 3-for-4, Three Singles, Run Scored

Adler Cecil – 4.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K (74 pitches – 43 strikes)

Left-hander Adler Cecil, the pride of Temecula Valley, made his Single-A debut on Wednesday. Cecil pitched 4.1 innings of scoreless baseball, striking out five batters. Cecil allowed just one hit and walked three, picking up five outs in the air and just one out on the ground. Cecil also picked up a pickoff in the contest. Cal Riehl retired the two batters he faced in the fifth inning, stranding two inherited runners. Cameron Nohos threw four innings in relief, striking out six batters. The 6-foot-8 right-hander allowed just one hit and one walk, dominating the rest of the way. Nohos threw 63 pitches, 43 for strikes, and was getting ahead of opposing batters consistently. 

George Bilecki and Bradley Frye led the Storm’s offense, with each posting a three-hit performance. Bilecki tallied up six total bases, launching a solo home run in the seventh inning. Bradley Frye hit three singles in the game, swiping two bases and scoring a run. Conner Westenburg went 1-for-4 as the leadoff man with an RBI single. Westenburg also stole his 41st stolen base of the season, and trails only Ryan Wideman in the system’s stolen base leaderboard. 

ACL Padres – No Game

DSL Padres – Both Teams on 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.