Padres affiliates went 1-5 on Saturday.

Here is our daily recap of games played.

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 5-2 vs Sugar Land) (36-44 on the season)

Jake Cronenworth – 1-for-4, Single, Run Scored

Mason McCoy – 2-for-4, Double

Jhony Brito – 5 IP, 2 H, 3 R (0 ER), 2 BB, 6 K (72 pitches – 45 strikes)

El Paso saw a strong outing from Jhony Brito, as the right-hander threw five innings of three-run baseball. The right-hander allowed just two hits, and none of the three runs allowed were of the earned variety. Brito struck out six batters in the game, walking just two. Pitching at sea level, he saw his fastball average 93.3 mph, leaning instead on his changeup and slider 73% of the time. Evan Fitterer pitched two innings of two-run baseball, striking out two batters. Fitterer threw 54 pitches in two innings, battling a tough Sugar Land lineup. Justin Yeager struck out two in a scoreless eighth inning. 

Jake Cronenworth returned to the lineup as the DH, picking up a single and scoring a run in the loss. Mason McCoy hit a double in the game, finishing with a multi-hit performance. Pablo Reyes had one hit in the game, an RBI single in the ninth inning. Nick Pratto hit a single in four at-bats, and Romeo Sanabria reached base twice in the loss. 

San Antonio Missions (Lost 9-1 vs Arkansas) (32-42 on the season)

Tirso Ornelas – 2-for-4, Home Run

Kai Roberts – 1-for-2, Double, Walk

Omar Cruz – 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 K (11 pitches – 9 strikes)

With Miguel Mendez landing on the seven-day injured list, Omar Cruz opened for the Missions, allowing one run in one inning. Clay Edmondson pitched in the second inning for the first time this season and allowed four runs in 1.1 innings of work. Francis Pena pitched 1.2 scoreless frames in relief, striking out three batters. Tucker Musgrove also struck out three batters, pitching two hitless innings despite two walks. Sadrac Franco fired off two innings in relief, allowing four runs on five hits. Two homers from Hunter Fitz-Gerald off of Franco accounted for the four runs he allowed. Tirso Ornelas hit his 11th home run of the season against top Mariners prospect Ryan Sloan in the sixth inning, putting the Missions on the board. Kai Roberts picked up the team’s lone double of the game, a double against Sloan. San Antonio struck out nine times against the Travelers’ starter, fanning 14 times in the game. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Lost 8-6 vs Lake County) (32-42 on the season)

Justin DeCriscio – 2-for-5, Home Run, Two RBI

Ryan Wideman – 1-for-2, Single, RBI

Bryan Balzer – 3.2 IP, 4 H, 6 H, 5 BB, 2 K (70 pitches – 35 strikes)

Right-hander Bryan Balzer made his TinCaps debut, pitching into the fourth inning but struggling with locating his offerings. Balzer saw only 50% of his pitches land for strikes, and not being able to control the count made it easier for opposing hitters to lay off his splitter. Balzer struck out two but walked five batters, allowing at least one run in each frame pitched. Maikel Miralles allowed two runs in three innings of relief, with the Captains picking up six hits against him. Miralles will likely work in relief of Balzer now that the Padres’ No. 22 prospect has joined the TinCaps. Will Varmette struck out three of four batters faced, throwing 11 of 14 pitches for strikes. 

The TinCaps lineup came to life for six runs in a valiant comeback effort. Ryan Wideman reached base three times as the leadoff man, hitting an RBI single and a sacrifice fly in the contest. Justin DeCriscio homered for a second consecutive game and has reached base in nine consecutive games. Kerrington Cross had an RBI single in the first inning, giving the TinCaps a lead. Kasen Wells reached base twice in the loss, scoring two runs. 

Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 10-5 vs Fresno) (40-35 on the season)

Dawson Willis – 1-for-3, Single, Two RBI

Bradley Frye – 1-for-3, Single, Two Walks

Tyler Schmitt – 1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 0 K (37 pitches – 20 strikes)

Right-hander Tyler Schmitt pitched just one inning in his start on Saturday, allowing three runs to the visiting Fresno Grizzlies. Schmitt was tagged for four hits, with the first five batters he faced reaching base against. While Schmitt retired the final three batters of the inning, his pitch count climbed to 37, which did not allow him to return to the game. Jordan Valenzuela threw two scoreless innings in relief, striking out one. Brandon Langley struck out four in two innings, but was scored against four times. Sean Barnett allowed two runs on three hits in two innings, while Rordy Mejia allowed one run in two innings. The Storm, as a pitching staff, threw 211 pitches in the loss. 

The Storm’s lineup was held scoreless until the sixth inning, when Dawson Willis hit into a run-scoring out. Yoiber Ocopio hit a triple in the loss, scoring one of five runs. Bradley Frye was back atop the lineup and reached base three times. Frye scored one run, as did Dylan Grego. Alcides Hernandez drew two walks, scoring one run. Despite a four-run seventh-inning rally, the Storm were unable to complete the comeback. 

ACL Padres – Off Day

DSL Padres – Intrasquad Game

DSL Padres Gold (16-4) won 12-8 vs DSL Padres Brown (4-15)

Johanneiker Leon (Padres Gold) – 1-for-4, Grand Slam

Sebastian Nadales (Padres Brown) – 1-for-3, Triple, Three RBI

Diego Serna (Padres Gold) – 1 IP, 3 H, 5 R (4 ER), 3 BB, 1 K
Rickelby Ramos (Padres Brown) – 1.2 IP, 4 H, 5 BB, 2 BB, 1 K

In a case of intrasquad action, the Padres Gold won 12-8 over the Padres Brown on Saturday. Johanneiker Leon had the biggest hit of the game for either side, launching a grand slam for the Padres Gold. Timothy Mogen went 2-for-2 in the kind of stat line that would make Tim Robinson smile: two at-bats, two runs, two hits, two walks, two RBI. Cristian Benavides also drove in two runs for the Padres Gold, going 2-for-3. On the mound, Diego Serna struggled in his second career start, allowing five runs (four earned) in one-plus innings of work. Jose Blanco earned the win, pitching 2.2 innings of one-run baseball. Julio Dilone pitched the final 2.1 innings for the Padres Gold, picking up a save. 

On the other side, Sebastian Nadales drove in three runs in the loss. Nadales opened the scoring for the Padres Brown with a two-run triple. Yonnaiker Hernandez hit an RBI double, and Ronnier Heras hit an RBI single against Serna as well. Osmy Osorio drew two walks, scoring two runs. Endy Rios had three hits, including a double, driving in two runs. Rickelby Ramos allowed five runs in 1.2 innings as the Padres Brown’s starter, striking out just one. Kelvin Marte allowed five runs in 1.2 innings, taking the loss. Yohn Melendez allowed two runs (one earned) over the final 2.2 innings of the game.

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.