Las Vegas Aviators 20, Chihuahuas 2
Key Statistics: C Luis Campusano, 1-for-4, R, HR (8), RBI; LF Tirso Ornelas, 2-for-3, BB; CF Forrest Wall, 1-for-2, BB; LHP Wes Benjamin (L, 1-3) 0.2 IP, 4 H, 7 R, 2 ER, 2 BB; RHP Francis Peña, IP, 2 K
Luis Campusano continues to have plenty to celebrate in El Paso. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Prospect Watch: The Chihuahuas fell behind 8-0 in the first inning and it went downhill from there as they lost by 18 runs in Las Vegas. … Luis Campusano had only one hit, but he made it count with a 418-foot homer with a 106 mph exit velocity. It was Campusano’s eighth homer of the year, which is tied for fourth in the league. The 26-year-old catcher’s power production has been impressive, considering he’s walked 23 times while striking out just 17 games. His 1.084 OPS leads the Pacific Coast League. … Tirso Ornelas had his second multi-hit game of May, as he notched a pair of singles. He also drew a walk in four plate appearances. The 24-year-old finally got his first taste of big league action this season but his numbers in Triple-A have been a bit underwhelming. The Tijuana native has an excellent .393 on-base percentage but his .352 slugging percentage is considerably lower than the .497 slugging percentage he posted last year in his breakout campaign. Ornelas has always posted solid walk rates and he doesn’t strike out much but he will need to get to his power again to get another opportunity in San Diego. … Starter Wes Benjamin struggled badly, earning his third loss. The veteran lefty could not get out of the first inning, as he allowed seven runs (just two earned) while recording two outs before being lifted. Benjamin also committed a throwing error that directly led to three runs scored. The crafty southpaw has struggled in his first year since returning from the KBO. Opposing batters are hitting .312 against him and his 7.36 ERA is the second-worst in the league among qualifiers. … The only Chihuahuas pitcher to avoid damage on the day was Francis Peña, who punched out two of the three batters he faced in a clean inning. His sinker velocity was off, sitting 93-95, but he got three whiffs on the five sliders he threw.
Midland RockHounds 14, Missions 6
Key Statistics: 1B Romeo Sanabria, 4-for-5, 2 R, 2 2B; 3B Devin Ortiz, 2-for-3, R, BB, RBI; DH Marcos Castañon, 1-for-4, R, HR (3), 2 RBI; RF Joshua Mears, 1-for-3, R, HR (4), BB, RBI; RHP Enmanuel Pinales (L, 0-2) 1.1 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, K; RHP Andrew Moore, IP, K
Romeo Sanabria locked in on Tuesday. (Photo: San Antonio Missions)
Prospect Watch: The RockHounds jumped all over Enmanuel Pinales early and blew out the Missions at home. … Suffice it to say, Pinales does not like the school day games that teams play in the early morning during spring. For the second straight outing, Pinales made a pre-12 pm start and once again, he was shelled. The 24-year-old lasted just 1.1 innings, allowing seven runs on seven hits including three extra-base hits. He walked two and struck out one. Pinales proved he was too advanced High-A level, but so far in two Double-A starts, he’s struggled. In 4.2 innings, he’s allowed a staggering 11 earned runs on 12 hits – good for a 21.21 ERA. Pinales is on track to start Sunday’s 1:00 game. … Romeo Sanabria broke out of his mini-slump with four hits, including a pair of doubles. Coming into Tuesday’s game, Sanabria was 3-for-22 in May, with a dramatic, walk-off homer last Saturday. Despite the slow month, the 23-year-old is still hitting .314/.360/.486 overall. … 24-year-old Joshua Mears connected on his fourth homer of the season in the loss. Mears still has impressive power when he makes contact, but he’s still striking out at an unworkable clip. His whiff mark of 23.1% is the second-highest in the Texas League and he’s struck out in 30% of his plate appearances on his way to a dismal .170/.273/.309 line in his third attempt at Double-A. Still, when Mears gets into one, his power is as impressive as anyone in professional baseball. … Righty Andrew Moore made his organizational debut, pitching a scoreless inning, striking out one. Moore was acquired last week from the Reds in the Connor Joe deal. The 25-year-old, who isn’t on the 40-player roster, had a 4.15 ERA in 8.2 innings at Double-A Chattanooga. Originally the Mariners’ 14th-round pick out of Chipola Junior College in Florida back in 2021, he posted a stellar 35.6% strikeout rate last year, but he’s walked more than 16% of the batters he’s faced throughout his career.
West Michigan Whitecaps 3, TinCaps 0
Key Statistics: SS Leo De Vries, 1-for-4; 1B Addison Kopack, 1-for-3; RHP Ian Koenig (L, 1-1) 5.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K; RHP Tyson Neighbors, 1.1 IP, H, 2 K; RHP Josh Mallitz, 2 IP, H, 4 K
Tyson Neighbors’ grip contributes to his big spin rates. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps managed just three singles, losing at home to the Whitecaps. A rain delay pushed back the start time by nearly two hours, and when they got started, they were completely shut down by rehabbing big leaguer Sawyer Gipson-Long for three innings. … Leo De Vries had one of the hits in four plate appearances. The 18-year-old has struggled in May after finishing April on an unbelievable heater. In nine games this month, De Vries has just one extra-base hit and is hitting .250/.357/.278 this month. … Righty Ian Koenig turned in a solid start, but thanks to the lack of offense took the loss. The 24-year-old righty pitched 5.2 innings, ultimately giving up three earned runs on five hits. He walked two and struck out five. He allowed just one run through the first five innings, but when he went out for the sixth for the first time all year, he walked the leadoff man. He got then next two hitters before allowing a booming triple off the right field wall and hitting a batter with his 87th and final pitch. The California native has overcome a pair of poor starts to end April and has thrown 10.2 innings in two starts this month. … Tyson Neighbors took over for Koenig and pitched well once again. The former Kansas State reliever recorded four outs, two via strikeouts. The 22-year-old has carved up Midwest League hitters, establishing himself as one of the top relief prospects in an organization full of them. In 15 innings this season, Neighbors has a 1.20 ERA and 27 strikeouts. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him move up to San Antonio in the near future.Â
Roster Moves: To make room for Moore in San Antonio, lefty Fernando Sanchez will head back to Fort Wayne, where he spent all of April. Xavier Ruiz will head back to Lake Elsinore, where he enjoyed a successful 2024 season.
Fresno Grizzlies 12, Storm 3
Key Statistics: SS Cobb Hightower, 3-for-5, R, BB, 2B; DH Kavares Tears, 3-for-5, RBI; LF Kaden Hollow, 1-for-3, BB, RBI; LHP Kash Mayfield, IP, 3 K; RHP Johan Moreno (L, 0-3) 3.2 IP, 5 H, 8 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 5 K; RHP Xavier Ruiz, 2 IP, H, 2 R, ER, 2 BB, 2 K
Cobb Hightower is getting locked in at Lake Elsinore. (Photo: Robert Escalante)
Prospect Watch: The Storm jumped out to an early 2-0 lead but Fresno scored the next 12 runs to turn this one into a blowout. … The lead story of this game will be the status of lefty Kash Mayfield. The top prospect breezed through the first inning, striking out the side with ease. He came back out for his second inning of work but felt shoulder discomfort as he finished his warm-ups. His catcher, Victor Duarte, immediately came out from behind the plate after his first pitch of the inning and called for the trainer. Mayfield exited the game after a brief conversation with the Storm staff. The 20-year-old is arguably the top pitching prospect in the organization and has pitched better than his stats would indicate. We’ll provide an update on his status when it is available. … Shortstop Cobb Hightower had the best game of his young pro career in the loss, setting a new career-high with three hits, including his first double. He also drew a walk while hitting out of the leadoff spot. The 20-year-old has looked impressive thus far with the Storm. Overall, he is hitting .259/.412/.370 with seven walks. He’s struck out just four times in 34 plate appearances. … Kavares Tears had his second consecutive three-hit game with three singles in the Storm loss. Tears has been hot, going 8-for-13 in his last three games. The former Tennessee star is hitting .325/.404/.500 this month.Â
Roster Moves: In addition to getting Ruiz back, the Storm got Igor Gil back from the ACL. The Padres sent righty Jimmy Reyes and lefty Javier Chacon back to the ACL to make room.
ACL Athletics 7, ACL Padres 5 (7 innings)
Key Statistics: LF Donte Grant, 2-for-4, R; CF Kai Roberts, 2-for-3, 2 R, BB, 2B, SB (2); 1B Victor Figueroa, 2-for-3, BB, RBI, 2B; 2B Luis De Leon, 2-for-2, R, 2 BB; C Carlos Rodriguez, 2-for-4. R, RBI; RHP Humberto Cruz, IP, H, ER, BB, K; RHP Langston Burkett (L, 0-1) 3.1 IP, 2 H, 6 R (2 ER), 4 BB, K, HBP
Speedy outfielder Kai Roberts is doing damage in his desert rehab assignment. (Photo: Jerry Espinoza)
Prospect Watch: First baseman Victor Figueroa continued his hot streak, stroking two more hits, including a double. In addition to his seventh straight multi-hit game, he drew another walk and swiped a base for the second straight day. The Padres drafted the 21-year-old out of Florida SouthWestern Junior College in the 18th round. In 30 at-bats, Figueroa is hitting an absurd .567 with a 1.751 OPS in eight games. The big lefty was delayed in spring training because of an offseason injury, but is certainly making a case for a quick promotion. … Center fielder Kai Roberts continued his rehab progression, playing his first full game in the field in center field. The University of Utah product tallied two more hits, including a double, and drew a walk to lift his line to .600/.714/.800 in five rehab games. The speedy outfielder should be added to a full-season roster at some point this week. … Righty Humberto Cruz continued his slow build-up, pitching just inning for the second straight week. The 18-year-old allowed one run on one hit, walking one and striking out one. The righty is stretching out slowly as he comes back from a shoulder impingement he suffered last fall. … Langston Burkett followed Cruz and worked three clean innings. While he walked a batter in both the second and third innings, he quickly got double-play grounders both times to face the minimum over three innings. Things came off the rails in his fourth frame though, as he gave up a double and homer to open the inning. Then, after two straight grounders to short that turned into Yimi Tovar throwing errors, Burkett walked two and hit a batter to finish his night. The big righty had plenty to build on in the outing.