Padres minor league affiliates went 2-2 on Wednesday. 

Here is a recap of the day’s events. 

El Paso Chihuahuas (Won 12-4 vs Round Rock) (17-18 on the season)

Tirso Ornelas – 3-for-5, Two Doubles, RBI

Rodolfo Duran – Double, Four RBI

Omar Cruz – 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K (46 pitches – 27 strikes)

With a newly replenished pitching staff, Chihuahuas starter Omar Cruz cruised through three innings on 46 pitches, allowing no hits. Cruz was effective while averaging 15.33 pitches per inning, striking out four and getting whiffs on 40% of whiffs on his changeup. The left-hander averaged 92.3 mph on his fastball with 15.6 inches of induced vertical break, which helped to generate a 42.1% chase rate on the pitch.

Miguel Cienfuegos made his season debut at Triple-A after a cup of coffee with the Chihuahuas last season, and allowed three runs in two innings of work. His pitch shapes did not particularly grade out well per the Stuff+ models, and the left-hander will likely see time out of the Chihuahuas’ bullpen.

Tirso Ornelas had a strong performance in his second day back at Triple-A, hitting two doubles and driving in a run. Ornelas’ return to the Chihuahuas will likely see him continue to have everyday playing time after a limited amount of MLB playing time. Clay Dungan had an inside-the-park three-run home run in the fourth inning, his second home run of the season. Dungan has played all over the middle infield with Mason McCoy on the injured list. Rodolfo Duran had two base hits in the game, including a late-inning two-RBI double. The Chihuahuas catcher is hitting .364 with a .988 OPS in May after an atrocious start to the season in April (.276 OPS in 31 at-bats). Nate Mondou finished with another multi-hit effort, going 2-for-4 with an RBI in the win. Jake Cronenworth, playing the game at DH, went 1-for-2 with a single and a run scored, drawing one walk in the process. 

?INSIDE THE PARK HOME RUN ALERT?

Update: the sun is bright during day games pic.twitter.com/yBOwFCV4VX

— El Paso Chihuahuas (@epchihuahuas) May 7, 2025

Jackson Wolf makes his Chihuahuas season debut on Thursday. First pitch is scheduled for 5:35 pm Pacific.

San Antonio Missions (Lost 6-1 vs Frisco) (15-14 on the season)

Jack Mathey – 0-for-1, Two Walks

Kai Murphy – 0-for-2, Run Scored

Enmanuel Pinales – 3.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 5 K (70 pitches – 43 strikes)

After a flurry of roster moves on Tuesday, one newly promoted Padres farmhand made his debut at a new level. Right-hander Enmanuel Pinales, coming off 25 innings of a 1.40 ERA with High-A Fort Wayne, made his first career start at the Double-A level. Pinales’ performance was not the dominant sort of outing he has seen over the last five games, as the right-hander labored through a 25-pitch first inning, which saw him walk two and throw a wild pitch. Pinales wound up tossing 3.1 innings, allowing four runs. Pinales’ velocity topped out at 95 mph, sitting in the same range as his time in Fort Wayne. While it wasn’t the best debut, the right-hander has another accomplishment off the board. Right-hander Sam Whiting made his season debut with the Missions after a rehab assignment with Single-A Lake Elsinore and tossed 3.1 innings, allowing two runs. Whiting struck out three in his innings of work, walking none. Bradgley Rodriguez and Ryan Och tossed the final 1.2 innings of the game, with Och striking out two batters. 

The Missions’ offense was no-hit by the RoughRiders’ pitching staff in the game, drawing six walks and scoring a run on a bases-loaded hit batter. Despite this, the team was unable to capitalize on the opportunity. Ripken Reyes and Jack Mathey drew two walks apiece, while Moises Gomez and Kai Murphy each had one walk. Francisco Acuna was hit with a pitch with the bases loaded, scoring the team’s lone run in the loss. 

The Missions return to play on Thursday at 5:05 pm Pacific, with right-hander Victor Lizarraga making the start. 

Fort Wayne TinCaps (Won 8-4 vs South Bend) (17-12 on the season)

Jacob Campbell – 5-for-5, Triple, Double, Two RBI

Leo De Vries – 2-for-5, Two Singles, Run Scored

Clark Candiotti – 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 K (79 pitches – 45 strikes)

Right-hander Clark Candiotti earned his first career win as a professional, tossing five innings of one-run baseball. The former Arizona starter mixed his pitches effectively, striking out six batters and escaping a bases-loaded jam in the third inning, as with one out and the bags juiced, Candiotti struck out the next two batters to keep the score at 4-1. The right-hander has shown impressive numbers in regards to his pitches and efficacy, as well as the intangible traits that generate surface-level attention. Candiotti could be an arm who climbs into the back-end of a Top 30 Prospect list at season’s end, if his secondaries continue to stifle batters at the High-A level and beyond. Garrett Hawkins struck out the side in a clean inning of relief, touching 98 mph on his fastball. It seems as though Hawkins has found his home in the bullpen, keeping his velocity while improving in his command with every passing outing. 

Jacob Campbell had a 5-for-5 day against the organization that drafted him back in 2018. The former Cubs 36th-rounder finished with a triple, a double, and two RBI as part of his superb offensive effort. Leo De Vries was one of four TinCaps players with multi-hit efforts, a list which included DH Jack Costello and second baseman Nerwilian Cedeno. Costello has been on a roll through the first week of May, posting a .353 average and 1.097 OPS this month. Cedeno, meanwhile, drove in two runs on a second-inning two-RBI single. Fort Wayne’s offense is performing as advertised, even with some of their starters not playing. 

The TinCaps continue their series on the road on Thursday, with right-hander Jose Luis Reyes on the mound. 

Lake Elsinore Storm (Lost 8-3 vs San Jose) (12-17 on the season)

Cobb Hightower – 1-for-2, Run Scored

Ryan Jackson – 1-for-4, Single, RBI

Maikel Miralles – 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K (37 pitches – 21 strikes)

Lake Elsinore’s offense scored two runs in the first eight innings of the ballgame while the Storm’s bullpen surrendered eight runs. Ryan Jackson and Kasen Wells drove in a run each, with Jackson’s RBI single giving Lake Elsinore a 2-0 lead after Wells’ groundout. Shortstop Cobb Hightower reached base three times, twice via the walk, and scored a run. Kaden Hollow had two base hits, both singles, as part of the team’s eight base hit output. Kavares Tears had a nine-inning sac fly, but his RBI was not enough to overcome the deficit. 

Starter Maikel Miralles pitched two dominant innings, striking out two batters. However, he would not last too long into the game, departing after three pitches in the third inning with what appeared to be a lower-body injury. 

@Storm_Baseball starter Maikel Miralles exited his start on Wednesday with a lower-body injury.

Miralles appeared to point to his ankle or leg when speaking to the training staff.@EVT_News pic.twitter.com/9KJeqUYd25

— Diego Garcia (@StatNerd_Base) May 8, 2025

The Lake Elsinore bullpen had to carry the load, but it was a rock too heavy to handle. Braian Salazar allowed two runs and walked four in an inning of relief, and right-hander Jimmy Reyes allowed four runs in an inning of work, ultimately taking the loss. Vicarte Domingo had a strong outing in long relief, tossing three innings of one-earned-run baseball. Domingo struck out five batters he faced, and has the highest strikeout rate in the Storm bullpen thus far in the season. 

Lake Elsinore looks for a rebound on Thursday, with Boston Bateman on the mound. 

ACL Padres – OFF-DAY

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.