Padres Down on the Farm: May 12 (Figueroa homers, Kemp fans three in ACL)
Credit: Phrake Photography
All but the Padres’ ACL affiliate had off-days on Monday, with the Arizona Complex League Padres going 0-1 in regular season action.
Here is a recap of the night’s events.
El Paso Chihuahuas – Off-Day
San Antonio Missions – Off-Day
Fort Wayne TinCaps – Off-Day
Lake Elsinore Storm – Off-Day
ACL Padres (Lost 19-9 vs ACL Brewers) (1-6 on the season)
Victor Figueroa – 3-for-5, Home Run, Three Runs Scored
Jesmaylin Arias – 3-for-5, Two RBI
Kannon Kemp – 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 3 K
The Padres’ pitching staff faltered in the late innings, as five relievers combined to allow fifteen runs in four innings of work. Right-hander Kannon Kemp made his second professional start, allowing four runs in five innings. Kemp was able to strike out three batters in his outing, and seeing the tall right-hander on the mound is promising. Kemp looks to keep building up his arm strength and stamina in his first season back from injury, and while he is still a project of a prospect, he has plenty of untapped upside yet to be calculated.
The ACL Padres’ resident big man kept hitting the ball hard, as first baseman Victor Figueroa homered for the third time in the young season. The former 2024 18th-rounder continues to hit well, raising his average to .556 with a 1.748 OPS. DSL breakout Jesmaylin Arias had a multi-hit game as well, driving in two runs on three hits. Kevin Hacen had two hits, both singles, and both Kale Fountain and Yimy Tovar scored two runs. Tovar hit his first home run of the season in the game as well.
Southpaw Ruben Salinas was torched for five runs in 1.1 innings of work, and the former outfielder has now struggled to a 16.20 ERA this season after a 6.75 ERA in 24 innings last season. Dariel Polanco allowed four runs in one inning of work, and Erick Batista allowed three runs on a hit and three walks while recording just one out.
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.