Padres Down on the Farm: June 27 (Eguy Rosario homers twice for SA/Melean 3 hits in FW doubleheader)
Credit: Joe Alexander
San Diego Padres affiliates were 1-3 on Sunday as the TinCaps finished the suspended game from Saturday night while also playing their scheduled Sunday game, while El Paso’s game was suspended due to weather.
Here is a recap of the day’s events.
El Paso Chihuahuas (SSPD-RAIN)
Play suspended in the top of the fifth inning with the Chihuahuas trailing 3-2.
Will resume at 5:05 PM MST, with the second game to follow.
San Antonio Missions (Lost 4-3 to Frisco) (23-25 on the season)
Osvaldo Hernandez: 5 IP, 4 H, 4 R (3 ER), 3 BB, 5 K
Eguy Rosario: (3 for 4) 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R
CJ Abrams: (1 for 2) R, 2 BB, CS
Henry Henry: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
The Missions were on a six-game losing streak coming in, and they played like they wanted to change that, scoring two runs off Eguy Rosario’s first-inning home run. He’d drive in the other Missions run with his second home run in the fifth, but it wasn’t enough as the Missions lost their seventh straight. Top prospect and potential trade piece CJ Abrams showed his discipline, walking twice in his four plate appearances.
Osvaldo Hernandez didn’t allow a run in his first two innings of work, but things went south quickly, allowing runs in each of his final three innings. One of the runs was unearned due to a throwing error by catcher Juan Fernandez while attempting a pick-off. The bullpen pitched well, with James Reeves and Henry Henry combining for three innings of one-hit baseball. However, there wasn’t enough offense for the Missions, and they were swept in the six-game series with Frisco.
Fort Wayne Tin Caps (Won 3-2 over South Bend, Lost 4-11 to South Bend) (22-25 on the season)
Game One:
Ramon Perez: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (32 pitches, 18 strikes)
Agustin Ruiz: (3 for 5) HR, 2B, Run, 3 RBIs, SO
Ethan Elliott 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K (33 pitches, 21 strikes)
Kelvin Melean: (1 for 3) Run, 2 BB
The TinCaps played two games on Sunday, winning the first game and the series, with a 3-2 bullpen day win. All three runs were driven in by Agustin Ruiz, who doubled home Jonny Homza in the first inning before homering in the fifth, which also plated Kelvin Melean. Ruiz is hitting .240, with a .834 OPS over the first 39 games of the 2021 season. He’s shown a lot of power, having hit ten home runs, and he’s also slugging .493.
It was a bullpen day for the TinCaps, as six pitchers took the mound for Fort Wayne without any of them pitching more than two innings. Ethan Elliott got the start, giving up a run on a first-inning double to Nelson Vazquez. Elliott has had a very strong start to the 2021 season, having a 2.27 ERA and a WHIP that is below one. Once the game resumed, Ramon Perez pitched two hitless innings while striking out three Cubs batters. Perez struggled in 2019, though he seems to be finding his footing this season. He was promoted to Fort Wayne recently, and he’s yet to allow a hit in his first four innings of work. While Austin Smith allowed a run in two innings of work, Carter Loewen and Jose Geraldo each pitched scoreless innings, which secured the win for the TinCaps.
Game Two:
Matt Waldron: 2.2 IP, 5 H, 9 R (3 ER), 7 BB, 2 K (93 pitches, 49 strikes)
Kelvin Melean: (2 for 4) Run, 2B
Justin Lopez: (2 for 2) 2 RBIs, 1 BB
Tirso Ornelas: (1 for 3) Run, K
In the second game, which was only a seven-inning affair, the TinCaps jumped out to a three-run lead after Augustin Ruiz singled home Kelvin Melean, followed by a Justin Lopez single that drove in a pair. Unfortunately for the TinCaps, they were only able to push across one more run over the next six innings, which occurred on a fifth-inning wild pitch.
Matt Waldron got the start, and he struggled with control the entire way through. He gave up three earned runs in the second inning, which was mainly due to walking three straight batters after getting to two outs. The game fell apart for the TinCaps after allowing six runs to score in the third inning, all of which were unearned. Ethan Skender, who got the start at third base, allowed Jake Slaughter to reach on an error to lead off the inning. Yonathan Peralza hit a grand slam, blowing the game open and chasing Waldron from the game. Cody Tyler allowed another two runs over an inning and a third. That’d be all for the game, as the TinCaps were unavailable to get much going offensively.
Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 1-5 to Modesto) (23-25 on the season)
Ruben Galindo: 4 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K (66 pitches, 43 strikes)
Jose Garcia: 3 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (34 pitches, 19 strikes)
Euribiel Angeles: (1 for 3) Run, 1 BB
Brandon Valenzuela: (1 for 3) RBI, 2B, 1 BB, 1 K
The Storm got off to a quick start when Brandon Valenzuela doubled home Euribiel Angeles, but that was all offensively for the Storm. They would just get one more hit over the rest of the game, a second-inning single for Gilberto Vizcarra. The Storm did get base runners due to five walks but went 0-7 with runners in scoring position, which led to just the one run coming across the plate.
Brandon Valenzuela rips one just inside the line to collect his 30th RBI of the season
Good Guys: 1
Sunflower Seeds: 1 pic.twitter.com/yFjoUEYyPE— Lake Elsinore Storm Baseball (@Storm_Baseball) June 27, 2021
Ruben Galindo got the ball to start the game and pitched well to start but allowed a pair of runs in the fourth. Jason Reynolds allowed a run in his only inning of work, walking two batters during the inning. Jose Garcia put together a solid performance, allowing just one hit and one run in three innings of work. He’s struggled this season, but this performance helped to lower his ERA to 6.26. Keegan Collett finished the game by striking out a pair in his only inning of relief.
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Monday’s Probable Pitchers
El Paso- TBD
San Antonio- Off
Fort Wayne- Off
Lake Elsinore- Off
Sam is a Senior in High School. He has been writing for three years, and started at EVT in June of 2021. He’s headed to Syracuse’s Newhouse School of Communications in the fall of 2023.