Padres Down on the Farm: September 6 (Katoh Little League HR in EP/ Merrill triple in ACL/Pitching dominates in DSL)

The San Diego Padres affiliates had a light day on Labor Day. They went 1-2 as the Chihuahuas, DSL, and ACL teams were in action.

Here is a recap of the day’s events.

El Paso Chihuahuas (Lost 6-3 to Round Rock) (42-64 on the season) 

Reiss Knehr– 2.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BBs, 4 Ks

Taylor Kowhley- (3-4) 3 singles, run scores

Gosuke Katoh– (1-4) double, run, RBI

Jose Azocar– (1-3) single, RBI

The Chihuahuas went down early as the Express plated a pair of runs before El Paso even got to hit. Reiss Knehr, who spent some time with the Padres, got roughed up and couldn’t make it out of the third inning as the Express dropped an ugly four-spot in the top of the third.

Nick Ramirez came in to relieve Knehr, and he didn’t do much better. Ramirez went just 1.1 innings, giving up four runs on three hits and putting the Chihuahuas in a big hole early.

But, there was a notable highlight. Gosule Katoh, who was credited with a double, hit a little league home run and shot some life into the crowd and the team.

Little League Home Run ALERT @GosukeKatoh | @MiLB pic.twitter.com/ZYcgL8KqtX

— El Paso Chihuahuas (@epchihuahuas) September 7, 2021

Oddly enough, El Paso had more hits than Round Rock but just couldn’t find ways to drive home runs. They did score a pair in the fourth and one in the fifth, but that was all as they dropped their fourth straight game against the Express.

San Antonio Missions OFF (51-57 on the season)

The Missions will face the RoughRiders starting on Tuesday night.

Fort Wayne TinCaps OFF (51-57 on the season) 

The TinCaps will face the Lugnuts on Tuesday.

Lake Elsinore Storm OFF  (47-61 on the season) 

The Storm will play the Visalia Rawhide starting on Tuesday night.

ACL Padres- (Lost 7-2 to ACL Royals) (22-27 on the season) 

Jackson Merrill– (1-4) triple, run

Adam Smith– 2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 Ks

James Wood– (1-3) single, RBI, run

The ACL Padres lost against the Royals on Monday in a seven-inning game. Adam Smith started the game pretty well for the Padres, giving up just one run.

However, Jose Luis Reyes followed him and gave up four runs (two earned) on three hits across two innings. Unfortunately, it didn’t matter as Smith wound up being tagged with the loss.

Jackson Merrill, the Padres prized draft pick, tripled on the night, but the Padres had only five hits on the evening.

DSL Padres- (Won 6-1 vs Orioles) (28-10 on the season) 

Daniel Montesino– (2-3) single, triple, RBI, run

Brayan Medina– 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BBs, 7 Ks

Samuel Zavala– (2-2) 2 singles, RBI, run

Manuel Castro– 3 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 9 Ks

The DSL Padres concluded the night as the only Padres farm team to snag a victory. They did so behind stellar pitching, too. Brayan Media pitched three innings and gave up just one run. More importantly, seven of the nine outs were recorded via strikeout.

If that weren’t impressive enough, Manuel Castro followed suit and tossed three scoreless innings. Castro struck out every batter he faced and walked away with the victory, his second of the season. Daniel Montesino had a pair of hits and drove in a run, and six Padres batters recorded a hit in the victory over the Orioles.

Tuesday’s Probable Pitchers 

El Paso- TBD

San Antoni0- TBD

Fort Wayne- Connor Lehmann (3-2, 5.93 ERA)

Lake Elsinore- TBD

Matthew Wadleigh

Matthew Wadleigh, born in Oceanside and currently lives in Fresno. He lives with his wife and 2 dogs and is a sports enthusiast. Retired drummer and member of the Fresno State Marching Band. He has been a Padres fan since childhood and has suffered during the struggles just like everybody else.