Padres Down on the Farm: May 26 (Paplham rehabs, Kemp shines in ACL)
Credit: Phrake Photography
Padres minor league affiliates played a lone game on Memorial Day, going 0-1 in said game.
Here is a recap of the day’s events, along with footnotes for other Padres’ affiliates.
El Paso Chihuahuas – Off Day
The Chihuahuas kick off a series in Sacramento against the River Cats. The team has not yet announced a starter.
San Antonio Missions – Off Day
The Missions open a road series against Arkansas on Tuesday. No starter has been announced, although Jagger Haynes and Braden Nett are candidates to start.
Fort Wayne TinCaps – Off Day
Fort Wayne opens a series on the road against Great Lakes, with Jose Reyes likely to start.
Lake Elsinore Storm – Off Day
The Storm open a homestand against Stockton, with Will Varmette confirmed to start the game.
ACL Padres (Lost 4-1 vs ACL Mariners) (5-13 on the season)
Yoiber Ocopio – 1-for-4, Single
Jesmaylin Arias – 0-for-2, Sac Fly
Cole Paplham – 1.2 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 0 K
Kannon Kemp – 5.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 K
The ACL Padres saw a tie game dissolve along with their relievers’ command in the eighth inning, surrendering three runs to lose 4-1. Cole Paplham started for the Padres, making his third rehab appearance, and pitched 1.2 innings. Paplham walked two batters and allowed one run to score in his appearance, but has pitched to a 2.45 ERA in three outings. Kannon Kemp came on in relief and had his best professional outing, striking out six batters in 5.1 innings of work. Kemp flashed the potential that got him drafted back in 2023, and if he performs more like this, he could be on his way to Lake Elsinore late in the season.
The offense was mostly held at bay by Mariners pitchers, as the team mustered one run on three hits. Yoiber Ocopio, Jesus Castro, and Emil Turbi had the lone hits for the Padres, with Eguy Rosario reaching base on an error. Rosario reaching was significant, as he would go on to advance to third base. Jesmaylin Arias drove in Rosario on a sacrifice fly to tie the game.
Darlin Mendez came on for the eighth inning, but a fielding error by Ocopio and a walk put two on with no outs. Mendez struck out Martin Gonzalez, but Kelvin Alcantara doubled to put the ACL Mariners up 2-1. Mendez then hit Sebastian De Andrade, signaling the end of his night. Miguel Valdez was called upon to exit the inning, but walked the next two batters to extend the Mariners’ lead to 4-1. While the Padres got the tying run on deck, Jesus Castro grounded into a double play to end the 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.