Padres Minor League Report: Affiliates Split, TinCaps Pitching Dominates

The system went 2–2 on Thursday. El Paso fell short against Las Vegas. Fort Wayne shut out Quad Cities 3–0 with strong work from Miguel Mendez and Garrett Hawkins. Lake Elsinore lost 7–4 after surrendering a four-run fourth, despite two doubles from Chase Valentine. San Antonio held off a late Wind Surge... well, surge.

Transactions:

• OF Samuel Zavala placed on 7-Day IL (retroactive to July 9)

• RHP Bernard Jose reinstated from Dev List

Chihuahuas’ Rally Falls Short in Loss to Aviators
Box Score

The El Paso Chihuahuas mounted multiple rallies but couldn’t overcome early damage in a 6–4 loss to Las Vegas. After being held scoreless through the first three innings, the Chihuahuas plated two in the fourth on three straight hits, including a double from Yonathan Perlaza and RBI knock by Nate Mondou.

They added two more runs in the seventh. A walk and an error set the stage for another Perlaza RBI single, scoring Luis Campusano on the hit to center. Forrest Wall also notched an RBI on a sacrifice fly, but El Paso left the tying run at the plate.

On the mound, Logan Gillaspie took the loss after allowing four second-inning runs. Omar Cruz followed with 3 innings, yielding 2 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks. Harold Chirino and Ron Marinaccio handled the final two frames with only one hit allowed between them.

Perlaza reached base twice with a double and a single. Campusano walked twice and scored a run. Mike Brosseau contributed two hits and scored once. The Chihuahuas were ultimately held to seven hits, all singles or doubles, and were 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Despite solid bullpen work and opportunistic hitting, the early deficit proved too steep for El Paso to climb.

Missions Cash In With Timely Hits to Hold Off Wind Surge
Box Score

San Antonio jumped out to an early lead and held off a late rally to secure an 8–6 win in Wichita on Tuesday. The Missions did most of their damage across the second and fourth innings, piling up 14 hits overall, including a longball from catcher Anthony Vilar.

The Missions plated four in the second, keyed by Marcos Castañon’s RBI double and a two-run homer from Vilar. Albert Fabian followed with an RBI single to cap the inning. Vilar reached base three times on the night, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs, a homer, and a double.

After Wichita crept back into the game, San Antonio responded with another run in the fifth. Moisés Gómez doubled and later scored on a double-play ball to stretch the lead to 7–1. San Antonio’s final run came in the sixth.

Though Wichita scored three in the sixth and two more in the ninth, relievers Tyson Neighbors and Kevin Kopps held off the rally. Starter Enmanuel Pinales allowed four runs over 5 2/3 innings and picked up the win.

In addition to Vilar, Ripken Reyes reached base three times and scored twice. Romeo Sanabria had two hits and scored a run, while Castañon drove in two. Every Missions starter reached base at least once in the victory.

TinCaps Blank Bandits Behind Mendez, Hawkins
Box Score

Behind stellar pitching from Miguel Mendez and Garrett Hawkins, the Fort Wayne TinCaps shut out the Quad Cities River Bandits 3-0 at Parkview Field on Thursday. Mendez worked seven brilliant innings, allowing just four hits and striking out six without issuing a walk. Hawkins followed with a two-inning save, striking out five to seal Fort Wayne’s 41st win.

The TinCaps opened the scoring in the third inning on a Leo De Vries RBI single, and tacked on another in the sixth courtesy of Brandon Butterworth’s two-run single after a fielding error allowed the runners to advance.

Fort Wayne managed just five hits, but made the most of them with timely execution and aggressive baserunning; Butterworth swiped two bags to bring his season total to 12. De Vries had two hits, scored a run, and drove in another in a standout night for the top prospect. The defense turned in a clean effort as well.

With the win, Mendez improved to 6-2 while lowering his ERA to 1.61. Hawkins recorded his sixth save.

Storm Let Early Lead Slip Away in 7–4 Loss to Rawhide
Box Score

Lake Elsinore struck first and led twice through the first four innings, but a costly bottom of the fourth doomed the Storm in a 7–4 loss to Visalia on Wednesday night.

Chase Valentine continued to swing a hot bat, going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and two runs scored. He sparked a two-run second inning with a two-out double, scoring on a single by Colton Vincent. Kale Fountain followed with an RBI double of his own to put the Storm up 2–0. After Visalia briefly pulled ahead in the third, Lake Elsinore reclaimed the lead in the top of the fourth on another Valentine double and an RBI single from Carlos Rodriguez.

Starter Boston Bateman cruised through the first two innings before running into trouble in the third and fourth. Visalia loaded the bases with one out in the fourth, and then took a brief lead. Bateman was lifted with two outs in the fourth and tagged for six runs (four earned) in the loss.

The Storm offense went quiet after the fourth, managing just one hit over the final five innings. Vincent finished 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI, while Fountain added his first Cal League double and drove in a run.

On the mound, Bernard Jose, Vicarte Domingo, and Igor Gil combined for 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief, but the damage had been done. Visalia’s Jake Fitzgibbons worked the final two innings for the save, stranding Kale Fountain in scoring position in the ninth to secure the win.

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