Padres Minor League Report: Jake Cunningham Goes Deep 3 Times In TinCaps' Loss

[Steve Drumwright]

 

The San Diego Padres' affiliates went 2-2 on Friday. The Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas dropped a 9-6 decision to Sugar Land, while the Double-A San Antonio Missions blanked Wichita 2-0, the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps fell to Lake County 11-8 and the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm rolled past Fresno 9-4.

Padres Minor-League Transactions

• Padres recalled RHP David Morgan from El Paso Chihuahuas.
• Padres activated RHP Jhony Brito from the 60-day IL and optioned him to El Paso Chihuahuas.

Chihuahuas Can't Keep Pace With Space Cowboys

In a game in which all the scoring happened in the first five innings, the host Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas didn't have enough to overcome the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, who won 9-6.

Nick Schnell and Carlos Rodriguez each had two RBIs, while Nick Solak and Clay Dungan each had a pair of hits for the Chihuahuas.

Each team scored three times in the third inning, with Schnell squeezing home Will Wagner and Rodriguez drove in a pair with a single. Sugar Land put up a run in the third and three in the fourth and two in the fifth for a 9-3 advantage. Solak led off the bottom of the fifth with a single, then Castanon drove him in with a double. Two outs later, Dungan singled him home, then stole second and scored on Schnell's double.

Chihuahuas left-handed starter JP Sears was tagged for seven runs in 3⅔ innings, giving up seven hits and two runs while fanning five. Right-hander Ty Adcock gave up the other two runs while only getting one out. But right-handers Garrett Hawkins (1⅔ innings), Alek Jacob (one inning) and Logan Gillaspie (two innings) didn't allow a hit the rest of the way.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Pablo Reyes	3	0	1	0	2	1
Carlos Rodríguez	5	0	1	2	0	1
Nick Solak	5	1	2	0	0	1
Marcos Castañon	5	1	1	1	0	1
Will Wagner	3	1	0	0	2	1
Mason McCoy	5	0	0	0	0	2
Clay Dungan	4	2	2	1	1	0
Nick Schnell	3	1	1	2	1	0
Anthony Vilar	4	0	1	0	0	2

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
JP Sears	3 2/3	7	7	7	2	5	1
Michael Flynn	1/3	1	0	0	0	0	0
Ty Adcock	1/3	1	2	2	3	1	1
Garrett Hawkins	1 2/3	0	0	0	2	1	0
Alek Jacob	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Logan Gillaspie	2	0	0	0	0	1	0

Miguel Mendez Spearheads Missions' 3-Hit Shutout

Right-handed starter Miguel Mendez and two relievers combined on a three-hit shutout as the Double-A San Antonio Missions edged the host Wichita Wind Surge 2-0.

Mendez, Padres Mission's No. 3 prospect, allowed two hits with a pair of walks and four strikeouts over those five innings, lowering his ERA to 3.90. He faced the minimum through four innings, but allowed a baserunner each of the first three. In the first, the leadoff hitter tried stretching a single into a double, but right fielder Braedon Karpathios threw him out. In the second, a leadoff walk was erased when the next batter hit into a double play. In the third, a one-out double by Jose Salas, Ethan Salas' brother, was eliminated when Mendez picked him off second. Mendez, who went three scoreless innings in his previous start, then retired the side in order in the fourth.

Right-hander Eric Yost struck out two in two hitless innings, but he did walk five while matching his season best for innings. Right-hander Johan Moreno finished off the shutout with two innings and three punchouts. It was the third shutout for the Missions this year.

Karpathios and Francisco Acuna each had a pair of hits, while Romeo Sanabria drove in one run and a balk brought in another. That came in the fourth inning when Tirso Ornelas doubled, Karpathios singled him to third and, after Karpathios stole second, a balk brought in Ornelas. It stayed 1-0 until the eighth. Carson Tucker drew a leadoff walk, stole second and went to third on an Ethan Salas groundout before Sanabria grounded an RBI single up the middle for a 2-0 lead.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Carson Tucker	3	1	1	0	2	2
Ethan Salas	5	0	0	0	0	0
Romeo Sanabria	4	0	1	1	0	1
Kai Roberts	0	0	0	0	0	0
Tirso Ornelas	4	1	1	0	0	0
Braedon Karpathios	4	0	2	0	0	1
Ryan Jackson	4	0	1	0	0	2
Francisco Acuna	3	0	2	0	1	0
Albert Fabian	3	0	1	0	1	0
Luis Verdugo	4	0	1	0	0	1

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Miguel Mendez	5	2	0	0	2	4	0
Eric Yost	2	0	0	0	5	2	0
Johan Moreno	2	1	0	0	0	3	0

Jake Cunningham Blasts 3 Homers, But TinCaps Let Lead Slip Away

Jake Cunningham had a three-homer game and drove in six, but for the second night in a row, the host High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps' bullpen couldn't protect a lead, giving up eight runs over the final three innings in an 11-8 loss to the Lake County Captains. Cunningham is the fourth player in TinCaps history to hit three homers in a single game.

TinCaps left-handed starter Kash Mayfield, Padres Mission's No. 2 prospect, had a solid five innings, allowing three runs on seven hits with a pair of walks and four strikeouts. This came after he only got two outs and allowed six runs last week against South Bend.

Cunningham hit a three-run homer in the first inning, a two-run homer in the third inning and a solo shot in the fifth for his third multi-homer game of the year. He took over sole possession of the team lead with 13 homers and moved into second place in the Midwest League. Justin DeCriscio also had three hits, all singles, with an RBI and a run scored, while Kavares Tears 

Cunningham's solo homer put the TinCaps up 6-2, but the Captains scored three in the seventh, four in the eighth to take the lead and another in the ninth. Cunningham had a chance at a fourth homer in the ninth inning. Kasen Wells was hit by a pitch with one out and went to third on DeCriscio's single. Rosman Verdugo singled home Wells to pull within 11-8. After a flyout, Cunningham came up with a chance to make it a one-run game, but he popped out to the first baseman to end the game.

TinCaps right-hander Clay Edmondson, who had given up four earned runs all season in 22 innings, was touched for three runs in the eighth and ninth while getting just two outs. He leads the minors with 10 saves and had a 0.41 ERA entering the game, which rose to 1.59.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Justin DeCriscio	5	1	3	1	0	1
Rosman Verdugo	4	1	1	1	1	0
Carlos Rodriguez	4	1	1	0	1	0
Jake Cunningham	5	3	3	6	0	1
Jack Costello	4	0	1	0	0	1
Kavares Tears	4	0	0	0	0	3
Zach Evans	4	0	0	0	0	3
Jonathan Vastine	3	1	1	0	0	2
Lamar King Jr.	1	0	0	0	0	1
Kasen Wells	3	1	0	0	0	2

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Kash Mayfield	5	7	3	3	2	4	3
Ryan Och	1 1/3	2	3	1	1	0	0
Jeferson Villabona	2/3	0	0	0	2	0	0
Igor Gil	2/3	1	2	2	1	1	0
Clay Edmondson	2/3	3	3	3	2	0	2
C.J. Widger	2/3	1	0	0	0	1	0

Top Of The Order, 7-Run Fifth Fuel Storm Triumph

Ryan Wideman, Kerrington Cross and Luis Verdugo, the top three hitters in the lineup, combined for seven hits and six RBIs as the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm used a seven-run fifth inning to topple the host Fresno Grizzlies 9-4.

Wideman, Padres Mission's No. 5 prospect, went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored, while Cross and Verdugo each went 2-for-4 with a homer, a pair of RBIs and a run scored. Both homers scored Wideman. Yoiber Ocopio, hitting cleanup, and Jorge Quintana each added two hits, while Dylan Grego drove in two runs.

Verdugo hit a two-run homer in the third for a 2-1 lead, then the Storm opened it up in the fifth with seven runs. Cross hit a two-run homer, another run scored on Quintana's infield single and a throwing error, Grego had a two-run double and Wideman capped the outburst by tripling home a pair of runs.

Storm left-handed starter Kruz Schoolcraft, Padres Mission's No. 4 prospect, allowed just one run on four hits with no walks and three punchouts. The five innings were a career high for Schoolcraft, who didn't allow a walk for the first time in his 10 starts this year.

Player	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K
Ryan Wideman	5	2	3	2	0	0
Kerrington Cross	4	1	2	2	1	1
Jose Verdugo	4	1	2	2	1	1
Yoiber Ocopio	5	0	2	0	0	1
Truitt Madonna	5	1	1	0	0	1
George Bilecki	3	1	1	0	1	0
Qrey Lott	1	0	0	0	0	0
Jorge Quintana	5	1	2	0	0	1
Dylan Grego	3	1	1	2	1	0
Bradley Frye	0	0	0	0	0	0
Conner Westenburg	3	1	0	0	1	0

Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR
Kruz Schoolcraft	5	4	1	1	0	3	0
Cal Riehl	1	2	1	1	0	0	0
Rordy Mejia	2	2	2	0	0	2	0
Carson Swilling	1	0	0	0	0	0	0

Top 20 Prospect Performance

1. Ethan Salas: 0-for-5
2. Kash Mayfield: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 3 HR
3. Miguel Mendez: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
4. Kruz Schoolcraft: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
5. Ryan Wideman: 3-for-5, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI
6. Jorge Quintana: 2-for-5, K
7. Ty Harvey: On injured list
8. Kale Fountain: Injured, out for season
9. Braedon Karpathios: 2-for-4, K
10. Lamar King Jr.: 0-for-1, K
11. Jagger Haynes: DNP
12. Alex McCoy: DNP
13. Truitt Madonna: 1-for-5, K
14. Tucker Musgrove: DNP
15. Garrett Hawkins: 1⅔ IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 1 K
16. Michael Salina: DNP
17. Eric Yost: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 5 BB, 2 K
18. Rosman Verdugo: 1-for-4, RBI, BB
19. Bryan Balzer: DNP
20. Deivid Coronil: DNP

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