Padres Minor-League Recap: Affiliates Show Offensive Firepower, Bullpen Grit, But Suffer Walk-Off Balk

Fort Wayne exploded for 12 runs behind multi-hit games from Jack Costello and Rosman Verdugo. El Paso rallied from an eight-run deficit, with Luis Campusano reaching base five times. Lake Elsinore dropped a heartbreaker on a walk-off balk despite solid pitching. San Antonio’s bullpen delivered five scoreless innings, but the bats managed just one run.

El Paso Erases Eight-Run Deficit, Wins in Extras on Wall’s Walk-Off
Box Score

El Paso staged a dramatic comeback from an early 9-2 deficit, defeating Reno 12-11 in 10 innings at Southwest University Park on Wednesday. The Chihuahuas’ bullpen stabilized after Jackson Wolf allowed 10 earned runs over 2 1/3 innings, giving way to five relievers who allowed just one earned run across 7 2/3 innings.

Luis Campusano, continuing his Triple-A rehab assignment, reached base five times and went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two walks, lifting his OPS to 1.048. Mason McCoy delivered a pivotal swing in the seventh with a grand slam—his fourth home run of the season—off Yilber Díaz, cutting the deficit to 11-9. McCoy is now batting .313 with a .908 OPS at Triple-A.

Tim Locastro and Forrest Wall each collected multiple hits, with Wall driving in the game-winning run on a sharp single to right in the 10th. Mike Brosseau tied the game in the eighth with his sixth homer, and Nate Mondou added a double.

Miguel Cienfuegos, Kevin Kopps, Jose Espada, and Eduarniel Núñez combined for 7 2/3 scoreless innings, with Núñez earning the win. Despite allowing 11 runs on 15 hits, El Paso’s offense matched punch for punch.

San Antonio Falls 2-1 Despite Five Scoreless Relief Innings
Box Score

The Missions dropped a tightly contested 2-1 decision to Frisco on Wednesday night at Nelson Wolff Stadium, undone by a two-run homer in the third and limited offensive production. Starter Jared Kollar was hit with the loss after allowing two earned runs on five hits over four innings, including the go-ahead blast to Josh Hatcher. Kollar struck out five and walked none, but his ERA at Double-A still sits at 6.75.

San Antonio’s bullpen kept the game within reach. Andrew Moore, José Geraldo, Ethan Routzahn, and Jake Higginbotham combined for five scoreless innings, yielding just five hits and striking out nine. Geraldo continued his excellent campaign, dropping his ERA to 2.57 with 1 1/3 shutout frames and three strikeouts.

The Missions managed only five hits against Frisco starter Josh Stephan, who fanned five across seven innings. The lone run came in the fourth when Francisco Acuña singled and later scored on a two-out RBI single by Romeo Sanabria. Acuña, batting .274 with a .780 OPS in Double-A, collected two of San Antonio’s six hits.

The Missions’ offense went 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position and grounded into a costly double play in the seventh. San Antonio has now lost three straight games, all by one or two runs.

TinCaps Offense Explodes in 12–1 Rout of Dayton
Box Score

Fort Wayne overwhelmed Dayton with a 12–1 win at Day Air Ballpark behind 12 runs and 11 hits. Seven of Fort Wayne’s nine starters recorded at least one hit, with three posting multi-hit games.

Jack Costello opened the scoring in the second with a two-run double, his 11th of the season. The TinCaps never looked back, plating three more in the third, including a two-run double by Ryan Jackson. Catcher Oswaldo Linares added his first home run of the year in the fourth, and Braedon Karpathios broke the game open with a three-run blast in the ninth—his seventh.

Jackson, now hitting .250 with a .900 OPS in High-A, finished 1-for-4 with one run and two RBIs. Brandon Butterworth reached base four times, going 3-for-4 with a triple, walk, and three runs scored. Rosman Verdugo doubled and singled, boosting his OPS to .796.

On the mound, left-hander Miguel Mendez earned the win with 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball, striking out five and allowing just four hits, though he also walked five in the outing. Three relievers closed the door, surrendering just one hit and no runs over the final 3 2/3 innings.

The TinCaps went 6-for-13 with runners in scoring position and turned in a clean defensive performance in the field.

Storm Drop Tough One on Ninth-Inning Balk
Box Score

Lake Elsinore fell 3–2 to Rancho Cucamonga in walk-off fashion Wednesday night after Xavier Ruiz was called for a balk in the bottom of the ninth, allowing the winning run to score from third. The Storm hit into three double plays and were held hitless with runners in scoring position (0-for-8), stranding five.

Boston Bateman was solid across five innings, allowing one earned run on three hits with six strikeouts and two walks. The lone run against him came on a wild pitch after a triple by Mairoshendrick Martinus. Igor Gil followed with three innings of one-run ball (zero earned runs), with four strikeouts.

Lamar King Jr. had a single, two walks, and his tenth stolen base. King is now hitting .270 with a .768 OPS at the Single-A level. Chase Valentine doubled and scored the game’s first run on a wild pitch in the first, while Ryan Wilson added a double and later scored on a groundout.

Victor Figueroa, pinch-hitting in the ninth, grounded out to score Wilson and tie the game. But in the bottom half, two walks and a sacrifice set up Ruiz’s costly balk that sealed the Storm’s third straight defeat

Interested in learning more about the San Diego Padres' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!