The Padres’ minor league affiliates went 1-4 on Thursday night.

Here is a recap of the night’s action:

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 6-3 vs Round Rock) (21-33 on the season)

Brett Sullivan – (2-for-4) Triple, RBI

Eguy Rosario – (2-for-4) Double, 2 RBI

Adam Mazur – 2 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (49 pitches, 26 strikes)

The Chihuahuas dropped their game against the Round Rock Express, finding themselves stymied by Express starter Johnny Cueto. Adam Mazur had a difficult outing, going only 2+ innings. Mazur did not necessarily pitch as bad as his line might indicate, as he only allowed five baserunners. However, Mazur’s command was not on point, as only 53% of his pitches went for strikes. Mazur departed the game with a 2-0 deficit, and reliever Sean Reynolds would walk the next three batters to score two runners left on base by Mazur. Reynolds would allow two runs of his own across three innings but would strike out six batters. 2021 third-rounder Kevin Kopps would toss two scoreless innings of his own, getting half of his outs on the ground.

The offense struggled in the game until the ninth inning, recording three hits across the first eight innings of the game. The offense would finally push across three runs in the ninth inning off Express reliever Blake Taylor, led by extra-base hits by Brett Sullivan and Eguy Rosario. Unfortunately, the offense came alive far too late, and the Chihuahuas lost 6-3.

San Antonio Missions (Lost 5-2 vs Frisco) (22-25 on the season)

Brandon Valenzuela – (1-for-3) RBI, Walk

Juan Zabala – (2-for-4) Double

Victor Lizarraga – 4.2 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (84 pitches, 56 strikes)

The Missions dropped their fourth straight game tonight, losing 5-2 vs the Frisco RoughRiders. Starter Victor Lizarraga had a difficult start, allowing two runs in the first frame. The deficit would be cut in half by an RBI single by Brandon Valenzuela, and they would tie the game thanks to a sacrifice fly by Clay Dungan.

Unfortunately for the Missions, Lizarraga’s strong outing would collapse in the fifth inning, as a single and two hit batsmen would load the bases before Lizarraga walked in the go-ahead run. He would get a double play ball to record two outs, but a double after the double play would end his night with five runs surrendered. It marked the third rough start in five starts this month for the young right-hander, who has posted a 5,40 ERA in 21.2 innings this month.

The Missions would be unable to come back in the game, leaving seven runners on base and being held to two hits across the final four frames of the game to drop their fourth consecutive ballgame.

For more on the action, here is our East Village Times staff writer Rylan Renteria’s detailed account, live from San Antonio. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Lost 6-3 vs Wisconsin)

Ethan Salas – (1-for-4) RBI Double

Colton Bender – (2-for-3)

Miguel Cienfuegos – 7 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K (81 pitches, 59 strikes)

Despite a 3-2 lead going into the eighth inning going into the eighth inning, the TinCaps were unfortunately unable to fend off a late-inning comeback, ultimately losing 6-3. Miguel Cienfuegos was able to bounce back from a rough start last time out, throwing seven innings of two-run ball. Cienfuegos did not quite have the swing-and-miss stuff he’s had before, as he didn’t record a strikeout in his outing. However, he didn’t allow a single walk, averaging 11.5 pitches per inning and producing two double plays. Cienfuegos departed with the lead, but a difficult outing by reliever Ryan Och would leave Cienfuegos out of the decision. Och would allow four runs in the eighth inning, breaking a string of three consecutive scoreless outings. It really skews Och’s numbers for the month, as he leaves May with an 8.38 ERA this month.

The offense for Fort Wayne featured heavy contributions from top prospects Ethan Salas and Homer Bush Jr, with both hitting RBI doubles in the sixth inning. It continues an upward trajectory for Salas, who has hits in nine of his last twelve games. Joshua Mears, in his second game back at High-A, recorded an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the game, while the rest of the offense went 4-for-21.

Lake Elsinore Storm (Won 4-2 vs Rancho Cucamonga) (23-23 on the season)

Leodalis De Vries – (1-for-2) Double, 2 Walks

Chase Valentine – (2-for-3) RBI

Sam Whiting – 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 10 K (83 pitches, 52 strikes)

Lake Elsinore’s pitching staff paved the way to a victory against Rancho Cucamonga, highlighted by a gem twirled by Sam Whiting. The 2023 16th-rounder hurled five quality innings, punching out a season-high 10 batters. Whiting did not allow many baserunners, with only two walks and three hits in his outing. With a 63% strike rate, Whiting was able to keep the Quakes batters off balance in his five frames. The Storm’s relief corps kept that tone, with the pitching staff totaling 14 strikeouts on the night.

The offense was led by a strong game by top prospect Leodalis De Vries. The 17-year-old recorded two walks and a run scored. De Vries has been on fire since coming back from a shoulder injury, with hits in eight of his last ten games. Romeo Sanabria continued his hot start to the season with a 2-RBI single, and infielder Chase Valentine recorded his first multi-hit effort in his fifteenth game of the season.

ACL Padres (Lost 7-1 vs ACL Mariners) (13-7 on the season)

Lamar King Jr – (2-for-3)

Spence Coffman – (1-for-3) RBI

Gabe Morales – 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

The ACL Padres lost their game against the ACL Mariners by a 7-1 final score. The Padres had a strong day on the mound for the most part, with six of their seven pitchers recording scoreless outings. Gabe Morales, on a rehab assignment from AA, recorded a scoreless inning to start the game. The Mariners would get their seven runs in the fifth inning off reliever Jesus Lopez, who would allow five hits (including a homer) and two walks in a third of an inning.

The lone run for the Padres came on an RBI groundout by Spence Coffman in the sixth inning. The rest of the offense was unable to break through, going 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranding nine runners on base.

Friday’s Probable Pitchers

El Paso – Randy Vasquez (0-3, 7.45 ERA)

San Antonio – Austin Krob (2-1, 4.00 ERA)

Fort Wayne – Henry Baez (0-2, 4.46 ERA)

Lake Elsinore – TBD

ACL – No 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.