San Diego Padres Daily Farm Report: May 18 (2024)

Chihuahuas 11, Las Vegas Aviators 3

Key Statistics: 3B Eguy Rosario 3-for-4, HBP, 3 RBI; 1B Graham Pauley 2-for-3, 2 BB, RBI; LF David Peralta 2-for-4, BB, RBI; 2B Nate Mondou 2-for-4, 3B, BB; SS Matthew Batten 2-for-4, 2B, RBI; RF Tirso Ornelas 2-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI; RHP Gabe Mosser (W, 1-2) 5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K; RHP Nick Hernandez 2 IP, H, BB, 3 K; LHP Austin Davis 1 IP, 2 K

Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas ended their five-game losing streak by rapping out 15 hits and scoring 11 runs. Las Vegas is one of the best parks to hit in the minor leagues, and a few El Paso players took full advantage. Matthew Batten had his sixth straight multi-hit game and is in the midst of an 11-game hitting streak during which he’s added 86 points to his batting average, which is now at .316. He has had 13 hits during his Las Vegas visit. … Long time big league outfielder David Peralta officially signed with the Padres in the morning and was in the lineup by the evening. The 36-year-old had a pair of hits and a walk in his first game. Last week, Peralta opted out of a minor league deal he signed with the Cubs during spring training after hitting just .217/.341/.348 in 81 plate appearances with their Triple-A affiliate in Iowa. … Eguy Rosario, 24, came up a triple shy of a cycle. Since being sent down from San Diego, Rosario has 12 hits in 10 games, including five doubles and three home runs. He’s also collected five walks and now has a 1.054 OPS. Both of his extra-base hits on the day came against right-handed pitching.

Missions 6, Corpus Christi Hooks 2

Key Statistics: 2B Michael De La Cruz 1-for-3, BB; 3B Marcos Castañon 2-for-3, RBI; RF Robert Perez Jr. 2-for-3, HR (2) 3 RBI; RHP Victor Lizarraga (W, 1-2) 5.2 IP 3 H, ER, BB, 8 K; RHP Raul Brito 1.1 IP, H, K; RHP Bobby Milacki 2 IP, 2 H, ER, 3 K

Prospect Watch: Victor Lizarraga, after struggling in his last start, bounced back with his best and longest outing of the year to secure his first Double-A win. The 20-year-old righty held the Hooks to one run on three hits over 5.2 innings and struck out a season-high eight hitters. In an upcoming interview with MadFriars, Lizarraga using his improved sweeper to give him a pitch to complement his changeup, which is his best offering. When he’s on, as he was Saturday when he sent down 13 batters in a row at one point, he relies on getting ahead with his off-speed pitches early to allow him to locate his low-90s fastball. Lizarraga now has a 3.48 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 20.2 innings. … Offensively, Robert Perez Jr. led the way with a two-run home run off rehabbing big leaguer Jose Urquidy in the second and an RBI single in the fourth. Perez is hitting .326/.415/.478 for the month. The Venezuelan signed with the Padres in the offseason after spending his first six years in the Mariners organization. In 2023, he posted an OPS of .737 with 16 home runs for their Double-A affiliate in Arkansas.

TinCaps 9, South Bend Cubs 1

Key Statistics: RF Kai Murphy 1-for-3, BB, SB (4); DH Albert Fabian 3-for-4, 3 RBI; C Ethan Salas 2-for-4, 2 2B, RBI; SS Jay Beshears 2-for-4, 2B, RBI; 3B Devin Ortiz 2-for-3, BB; 2B Nerwilian Cedeno 1-for-3, HR (2), 4 RBI; RHP Dylan Lesko 5 IP, 3 H, ER, 4 BB, 7 K; Bradgley Rodriguez (W, 1-0) 2 IP, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Francis Pena (S, 1) 2 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, K

Prospect Watch: The TinCaps won their fourth in a row, plating three runs in the sixth inning before blowing the game open with six runs in the eighth. The big rally was highlighted by a Nerwilian Cedeno grand slam. In Fort Wayne’s 16 victories this year, they have come from behind in ten of them. … The big news was the performance of the Padres’ two top prospects, Dylan Lesko and Ethan Salas who shined in Fort Wayne’s most complete game of the year. Lesko had his best outing of the season, allowing just one earned run and striking out a season-best seven over five innings. He needed 90 pitches – only 50 were for strikes – and still walked four, but it was a significant step in the right direction for the 20-year-old who has struggled mightily with his control in the Midwest League. When he has thrown strikes, he’s held opponents to a .169 batting average. … Salas tied the game with a double in the sixth and hit another in the eighth. He scored twice and ran an impressive game behind the plate as the TinCaps staff struck out 11. The 17-year-old backstop has had a brutal May, putting up a .521 OPS, but he’s reached base five times over the last two games. … Jay Beshears, 22, hasn’t slowed down at the plate since he was promoted from Lake Elsinore. After two more hits, including a double, he has six hits and four doubles in his first four High-A games. The 6-foot-4 Duke University product made his seventh start of the year at shortstop. Last year, he played the other three infield positions, but he saw the most time at first base after also making occasional forays into the corner outfield spots. … After struggling in his first two games following a promotion from the Storm, Bradgley Rodriguez, 20, has settled in working out of the middle of the TinCaps bullpen. The Venezuelan with the big fastball tossed two scoreless innings Saturday with three strikeouts to earn his first stateside victory. Rodriguez has struck out 10 over 9.1 innings in his last five appearances, though he has allowed five walks and hit a batter.

Storm 5, Visalia Rawhide 2

Key Statistics: DH Rosman Verdugo 2-for-5, 2B; LF Jacob Campbell 0-for-3, 2 BB; SS Chase Valentine 1-for-3, BB; RHP Isaiah Lowe 6 IP, 3 H, R, BB, 6 K; RHP Xavier Ruiz IP, H, K

Prospect Watch: The Storm put three on the board in the third inning and added on in the seventh and ninth as they rode a big start from Isaiah Lowe. The righty, who turned 21 earlier this month, earned his first professional win as he allowed just one run over a career-high six innings while striking out six. On the season, he has a 2.78 ERA in 22.2 innings, but in three starts and 13.2 innings in May he has been even better with a 1.98 ERA and 19 strikeouts against only five walks. Lowe was an 11th-round selection out of Combine Academy High School in North Carolina who signed for an overslot bonus in 2022. That draft, which includes Lesko, Robby Snelling, Adam Mazur, Nathan Martorella, Jakob Marsee, and Graham Pauley has the potential to be the most productive in the Padres’ history. … Rosman Verdugo had a single and double. He’s carrying an .843 OPS this month, but has struck out 19 times in 67 trips to the plate.

ACL Padres 2, ACL Guardians 1 (7 innings)

Key Statistics: RF Kaden Hollow 1-for-3, 2B: 1B Addison Kopack 1-for-3, HR (1), RBI; C Carlos Rodriguez 1-for-3, 2B; CF Kashon Conliffe 1-for-2, BB; LHP Ian Koenig IP, K; RHP Aldo Leija IP, 2 K; LHP Adler Cecil IP, 2 K; RHP Abraham Parra 3 IP, H, R, 2 BB, 3 K; RHP Kleiber Olmedo (W, 2-0) IP, K

Prospect Watch: The Guardians’ Complex League team shut down the ACL Padres through the first six frames until Addison Kopack hit his first professional home run to left field. Carlos Rodriguez followed with a double and two batters later, pinch-runner Hugo Sanchez came home on a wild pitch for a walk-off victory. … Kopack is now hitting .400 with a 1.218 OPS and nine extra-base hits in 11 games. Last year, the 22-year-old played in three games but didn’t record a hit after signing as an undrafted free agent. Defensively, he has only played first base this year, but he was primarily a middle infielder in college. … A trio of pitchers working their way out of the rehab group and into general action each tossed a scoreless inning. LeftyIan Koenig, coming off Tommy John surgery almost exactly 12 months ago, made his second one-inning appearance. He’ll look to get out to join the Storm rotation later this summer. Aldo Leija and Adler Cecil are likely to finish their year in the desert … Righty Kleiber Olmedo, who signed out of Venezuela last year, has been impressive in limited work this year. After a scoreless frame Saturday, the 19-year-old has eight strikeouts against a single walk in 6.1 innings for a 1.42 ERA.