Padres Press Clips Tuesday, September 12, 2017

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Padres mailbag: Could Fernando Tatis Jr. reach the majors UT San Diego Lin 4 next season?

Michel Baez dominant again as TinCaps advance UT San Diego Sanders 5

MacKenzie Gore, Fernando Tatis Jr. highlight Padres' UT San Diego Sanders 6 instructional league roster

Asuaje coming into his own for Padres Padres.com Center 9

Preview: Twins vs. Padres FOX Sports Stats 11

TinCaps finals bound Journal Gazette Goff 13

Padres On Deck: Baez, Potts Lead Single-A Fort Wayne FriarWire Center 15 to Finals

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Padres mailbag: Could Fernando Tatis Jr. reach the majors next season?

Dennis Lin

The Padres have 18 games left to play in 2017. The next two, at Minnesota, are the only ones against a non-National League West opponent. The rest, save for a season-concluding series with last-place San Francisco, will give San Diego a chance to pester a contending team, a familiar role over the last decade.

Let’s get to the mailbag. As always, you can submit questions via Twitter or email.

Shortstop has been a hole. The odds the Pads get on the market and pick up an established SS and not wait for Urias or Tatis Jr to develop?

Aside from Alexi Amarista, there isn’t an upcoming free agent who can play under the age of 30. We’ve seen how the Padres have fared signing above-30 the last few years. On the trade front, General Manager A.J. Preller would not be opposed to a reunion with Texas man crush , though it’s not as if he and former college roommate Jon Daniels have lined up on a ton of trades.

Absent an immediate solution, the Padres might not be as desperate as they once were; help could arrive before the end of 2018. Luis Urias, still only 20, is projected to debut in the majors sometime next season. At least at the start, the second-base prospect could occupy a role similar to what has done recently — bouncing between his primary position, shortstop and third. (Solarte, who easily could have been traded if he hadn’t suffered an oblique injury, is a candidate to be moved this winter.) The Padres certainly could use a right-handed bat that can work a count.

Fernando Tatis Jr., who, unlike Urias, could be an everyday major league shortstop, has the ability to make the jump as soon as the second half. He’s one of the best prospects in , and he already has numbers to back it up. As an 18-year-old, he hit .278/.379/.498 between low

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Single-A, which he dominated, and 14 games at -A, where he’s likely to begin next season.

Service time, however, will be a significant consideration for an uber-talent such as Tatis Jr., and the Padres might be wise to wait until 2019 to start his clock. In the meantime, they still would benefit from adding a big-league-level shorstop, whether that’s Profar or someone with less upside.

Chances the Padres sign a big free agent this offseason considering the projected low payroll

The best soon-to-be job-seekers are players like J.D. Martinez, , Justin Upton, Jake Arrieta and . It’s not nearly as loaded a group as the 2018-19 class, which will include, among other superstars, Bryce Harper, and Clayton Kershaw.

It seems unlikely that the Padres will be a major factor in either winter. That has never really been their style, and when they tried it two years ago, they flopped. I can see the front office filling out next year’s roster with a couple of mid-level signings, but the Padres are in the midst of what projects to be a five-or-so-year rebuild. For now, they’ll save their money.

Who plays RF for Padres in 2018?

Hunter Renfroe. He has not lived up to his potential as a rookie, but given where they are, the Padres need to find out what they have. The certainly regret giving up on Martinez, who emerged as an All-Star right fielder at age 27 and is one of the premier sluggers in the game.

Obviously, Renfroe may never become half the major leaguer that Martinez is. With his power potential, though, it’s too early to give up on him.

How do you see this year's rule five picks being used in 2018?

Allen Cordoba and Luis Torrens will return to the minors, probably at Double-A or thereabouts. There’s a slight chance Miguel Diaz makes the opening-day roster. The bullpen would appear

3 more likely than the rotation, but the Padres see him as a future starter. He, too, could comfortably continue his development away from the big-league spotlight.

Odds of getting a 1 or 2 year contract this offseason?

I’d say pretty decent. Stammen wants to return, and has said he’d love to have him back. Re-signing a reliever who will be 34 on opening day would seem counterintuitive for a rebuilding club, but Stammen has been, and can continue to be, a stabilizing presence for young bullpen arms on and off the field.

If you only had one word to use, how would you describe the 2017 Padres?

Millennial.

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Michel Baez dominant again as TinCaps advance

Jeff Sanders

Fort Wayne is again moving on.

Right-hander Michel Baez turned in five dominant innings and the TinCaps’ bullpen followed suit in a 3-0 win that punched Fort Wayne’s ticket for the Midwest League Championship Series.

The 21-year-old Baez struck out seven Dayton hitters and scattered two hits and a walk in the start. He is 1-0 with 16 , two walks, seven hits allowed in 12 innings in his two playoff starts.

A $3 million signee out of Cuba in December, Baez was 7-2 with a 2.54 Era, 89 strikeouts and a 0.83 WHP in his first 11 pro starts (two in the Arizona League, nine with Fort Wayne).

Right-handers Ronald Bolanos, Dauris Valdez and Hansel Rodriguez then combined for one hit and one walk allowed over the final four innings.

Third baseman Hudson Potts homered and doubled and shortstop Gabriel Arias went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk. Center fielder Buddy Reed also singled in a for the TinCaps, who will host Quad Cities for Game 1 and Game 2 of the Midwest League Championship Series on Wednesday and Thursday.

The TinCaps are 4-1 since the start of the postseason. They have outscored the competition 18-7 after blanking Dayton the last two games of the Eastern Division championship series.

Note

• El Paso starts the championship series on Tuesday at Memphis.

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MacKenzie Gore, Fernando Tatis Jr. highlight Padres' instructional league roster

Jeff Sanders

Top 2017 draft pick MacKenzie Gore and shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr., one of the fastest-rising prospects in the game, highlight the 79-player instructional league roster that will finish its three- week schedule on Sept. 30 in the Padres’ annual prospect game at . Play began Monday in Peoria, Ariz.

Other participating Padres top-30 prospects, according to MLB.com, include left-hander Adrian Morejon (No. 5), right-hander Michel Baez (No. 11), right-hander Jacob Nix (No. 15), (No. 16), Jeisson Rosario (No. 17), shortstop Luis Almanzar (No. 18), right-hander (No. 19), outfielder Mason House (No. 22), third baseman Hudson Potts (No. 23), catcher Blake Hunt (No. 24), shortstop Jordy Barley (No. 25), right- hander Reggie Lawson (No. 27), right-hander Sam Keating (No. 28), second baseman Eguy Rosario (No. 29) and second baseman Esteury Ruiz (No. 30).

Gore, the organization’s top prospect in MLB.com’s midseason rankings, struck out 34, walked walk and allowed a .184 opponent average in in his first 21 1/3 innings as a pro.

Tatis Jr. was ranked No. 4 in the organization at midseason and has since emerged as one of baseball’s top prospects. The 18-year-old shortstop hit .281/.390/.520 with a franchise-record 21 homers and 29 steals in 117 games at low Single-A Fort Wayne, closed the season on a nine- game hitting streak at Double-A San Antonio (.255/.281/.327) and hit .350 with a homer in five playoff games in the .

Tatis started last year’s prospect game at Petco Park.

The entire 2017 instruction league is below.

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2017 INSTRUCTIONAL LEAGUE ROSTER

CATCHERS (8) • Luis Campusano • Juan Fernandez • Jonny Homza • Blake Hunt • Chandler Seagle • Brandon Valenzuela • Gilberto Vizcarra • Jalen Washington INFIELDERS (21) • Kelvin Alarcon • Luis Almanzar • Gabriel Arias • Jordy Barley • Jarryd Dale • Ruddy Giron • Reinaldo Ilarraza • Jerri Landines • Justin Lopez • Carlos Luis • • Kelvin Melean • Jason Pineda • Hudson Potts • Eguy Rosario • Esteury Ruiz • Yeison Santana • Fernando Tatis Jr. • Bryan Torres • Jaquez Williams • Brad Zunica (12) • Tre Carter • Cristian Heredia • Mason House • Hunter Jarmon • Jorge Ona • Tirso Ornelas • Buddy Reed • Jeisson Rosario • Agustin Ruiz • Angel Santos • Angel Solarte • Jack Suwinski 7

RIGHT-HANDED (29) • Angel Acevedo • Luarbert Arias • Pedro Avila • Lake Bachar • Michel Baez • Cole Bellinger • Ronald Bolanos • Martin Carrasco • Dom DiSabatino • Jordan Guerrero • Manny Guzman • Henry Henry • Sam Keating • Reggie Lawson • Walker Lockett • Moises Lugo • Adrian Martinez • Michell Miliano • Vijay Miller • Andres Munoz • Chandler Newman • Jacob Nix • Luis Patino • Gerardo Reyes • Harrison Simon • Austin Smith • Jeremy Smith • Mason Thompson • Dauris Valdez LEFT-HANDED PITCHERS (9) • Joey Cantillo • Dan Dallas • MacKenzie Gore • Osvaldo Hernandez • Gabriel Morales • Adrian Morejon • Manuel Partida • Ramon Perez • Noel Vela

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Asuaje coming into his own for Padres

By Bill Center / MLB.com Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.

Padres manager Andy Green was recently asked to identify the biggest surprises of the 2017 season.

Remember, Green knew going into the season that had the makings of being a Major League center fielder. And that Austin Hedges had proved himself as a big league receiver. So Green identified three others players -- right-handed , left fielder Jose Pirela and Carlos Asuaje.

Green knew Lamet had stuff, but he reached the Padres late in May with command and confidence.

As for Pirela, the Padres dropped him from the 40-man roster last offseason only to re-sign him as a free agent. They knew he could hit, but he worked himself into a competent outfielder.

And Asuaje...

"Carlos has improved as much as anyone I've seen, and he's done it on his own," Green said recently of the rookie second baseman.

Remember, late in , Green told Asuaje that his game -- offensively and defensively -- wasn't up to Major League standards. Asuaje responded by going back to -A El Paso and successfully addressing his shortcomings.

"You don't doubt guys with his kinds of characteristics," Green said over the weekend. "He has worked incredibly hard and has a ton of self-confidence. He doesn't yield, no matter the circumstances.

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"When you look at the package, there's nothing that gets you overly excited about Carlos until you understand what's inside the heart and the 'compete factor' he has. He doesn't fly around the field, it's not a ton of arm strength.

"But he doesn't quit and he has good at-bats consistently. When he's not in the lineup, you usually notice it. I don't know what our record is when he plays and when he doesn't play, but he's been a winning player for us. And that's exciting for us."

Officially, the Padres are 34-29 when Asuaje has started. He is hitting .276 for San Diego, with 11 doubles, a triple, four home runs, 19 RBIs and 26 runs scored.

But Asuaje's value rises when other figures are factored in -- a .347 on-base percentage, a .725 OPS and one error while possessing the greatest range (particularly to his left) as any of the four players on the roster who can play second base.

Pirela also has a .347 on-base percentage, with a .288 batting average and a .490 slugging percentage for an .837 OPS. Pirela has 39 extra-base hits (25 doubles, four triples and 10 homers) in 344 plate appearances. News and notes

• has hit in four straight games (7-for-16 with three homers, a double, six RBIs and four runs scored) and eight of the past ten. Over nine games, Myers has gone 15-for-37 (.405) to raise his batting average from a season-low .232 to .246. He has also drawn three walks for a .450 on-base percentage, and has a .757 slugging percentage, for a 1.207 OPS over that stretch.

• Pirela is in a 9-for-29 run (.310) with three doubles, a , five RBIs and four runs scored over nine games. • Erick Aybar is 6-for-14 over a four-game hitting streak and is hitting .313 (10-for-32) with a double, a triple, a home run, four RBIs and six runs scored since returning from the disabled list on Sept. 1.

• Margot is 7-for-16 in his past four games, with a double, a triple and four RBIs. 10

Preview: Twins vs. Padres

STATS

MINNEAPOLIS — As the Minnesota Twins make a push for the playoffs, they will do so against quite a few opponents with losing records.

That includes this week’s brief two-game series against the , who comes into the Tuesday opener with a 65-79 record. The Twins, meanwhile, are 74-69 and hanging onto the second wild-card spot in the American League by one game over the Los Angeles Angels.

If Minnesota can thrive against upcoming teams with lesser records, the Twins could find themselves in a good spot by the end of the regular season. Manager Paul Molitor, however, isn’t paying much attention to that.

“I find it a little bit comical. I saw something about the lack of teams we play that are over .500 as early as a couple of weeks ago,” Molitor said. “But the last time I checked, (the games) were all going to be against major league teams.”

Right-hander Kyle Gibson will start Tuesday for Minnesota. The Padres will counter with left- hander Travis Wood.

Gibson (9-10, 5.19 ERA) has struggled at times this year, but he has been solid in his past four outings. During that stretch, he is 3-0 with a 1.69 ERA. He will be facing the Padres for the first time in his five-year big league career.

Wood (3-5, 6.00 ERA overall) is making his ninth start with San Diego since he was traded by Kansas City in late July. He has had mixed results so far in his Padres tenure, going 2-2 with a 5.03 ERA in eight starts.

Wood has faced the Twins six times in his career, starting against them twice. In those six games, he does not have a decision and has posted a 5.73 ERA.

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Five of those games and one of the starts came earlier this season while Wood was with the Royals. He started against the Twins on July 2 but didn’t get a decision after allowing two runs in four innings of Kansas City’s 6-2 victory.

Wood was hit hard his last time out, giving up seven runs (six earned) on seven hits in just two innings against the St. Louis Cardinals on Sept. 5.

Unlike the Twins’ schedule, many of the Padres’ remaining opponents are playoff contenders. After two games in Minneapolis, San Diego plays its next 10 games against the and Colorado Rockies, the clubs currently occupying the top two spots in the National League wild-card race.

The San Francisco Giants are the only team left on the Padres’ schedule this year that isn’t fighting for a playoff spot.

“We’re playing as tough of a schedule as you can to end a year,” Padres manager Andy Green told Mighty 1090 AM in San Diego. “I think what it does is it teaches you what you need to do to become one of those teams instead of on the outside looking in.”

As for playing the role of spoiler? That is not something Green is particularly interested in.

“I’m more interested in our guys getting better and us playing winning baseball,” he said.

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TinCaps finals bound

Potts homers, Baez pitches 5 shutout innings to win East clincher

CHRIS GOFF | The Journal Gazette

DAYTON – For the third time in franchise history, the TinCaps are headed to the Midwest League Championship Series after they culminated their Cinderella story by using dominating pitching and just enough hitting to win the Eastern Division title.

On Monday night, Fort Wayne beat Dayton 3-0 in a winner-take-all Game 3 of the Eastern Division Championship Series. The TinCaps had to win twice at Fifth Third Field after falling behind 1-0 with Saturday's 2-1 loss at Parkview Field.

“That didn't phase us at all,” said Hudson Potts, who hit a home run Monday. “We know we were better than them for where we are now, and we took care of what we needed to, so we're going to the championship.”

Quad Cities, an affiliate of the Houston Astros, is Fort Wayne's opponent. The best-of-five series begins Wednesday night at Parkview Field. Game 2 is also in Fort Wayne before the remainder of the series shifts to Modern Woodmen Park in Davenport, Iowa.

In early May, the TinCaps played there and dropped two out of three games to the River Bandits, who went 79-59 in the regular season.

“Only three looks at those guys,” Fort Wayne manager Anthony Contreras said. “It was quite a while ago. I don't know what the team looks like now. There are always changes. They have kind of a hitter-friendly ballpark.”

Michel Baez, a season-changing pitcher for the TinCaps since his July debut, went five innings and gave up just two hits Monday with seven strikeouts.

The 6-foot-8 Cuban accepted the responsibility of an important game and withstood the pressure.

“He was lights out,” Potts said. “That's clutch.”

Ranked the seventh-best prospect in the San Diego Padres' farm system, Baez was pitching on four days' rest. Usually he has had five days off between starts, so the Padres informed Contreras 13 to “be cautious with him.” That explained why Baez, who threw 99 pitches in his first postseason outing, departed with his pitch count at 71.

“Obviously, his future is way more important than a Midwest League championship, so we wanted to get at least five out of him and hand the ball (to the bullpen),” Contreras said.

Ronald Bolanos handled two innings before he passed the baton to Dauris Valdez. Working around a one-out walk, Valdez took care of the eighth, and closer Hansel Rodriguez handled the final three outs.

On offense, the TinCaps had given their pitchers enough of a cushion, with Potts crushing a solo homer in the first and Gabriel Arias (RBI groundout) and Buddy Reed (RBI single) adding tallies in the second.

This is a very different team from the one that started 19-39.

“Honestly, it probably hasn't hit me yet,” Contreras said. “Last place in the first half, to come 180, to see the excitement, the celebration, is exceptional. I couldn't be more proud.”

Notes: Michael Beltre, Dayton's starting right fielder the first two games, was placed on the disabled list before Game 3 because of a foot injury. ... The TinCaps previously reached the league finals in 2012 and 2009. They won their lone title in 2009.

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Padres On Deck: Baez, Potts Lead Single-A Fort Wayne to Midwest League Finals

Triple-A El Paso opens Pacific Coast League championship series Tuesday

By Bill Center

Right-hander Michel Baez and three relievers combined on a three-hit shutout and third baseman Hudson Potts homered Monday night as Single-A Fort Wayne defeated Dayton 3–0 to advance to the Midwest League championship series.

Fort Wayne won the best-of-three series with two straight shutout wins at Dayton after losing the series opener at home.

Eastern Division champion Fort Wayne will face Quad cities in the best-of-five Midwest League Championship Series. The first two games will be played in Fort Wayne Wednesday and Thursday.

Meanwhile, Triple-A El Paso will open the best-of-five Pacific Coast League Championship Series Tuesday night in Memphis.

Right-hander Chris Huffman, who allowed one run on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts to get the win Sept. 6 in the Chihuahuas’ opener of the PCL’s Pacific Conference finals against Reno, will start Tuesday night’s series opener for the defending PCL champions.

Memphis will host the first two games in the series Tuesday and Wednesday. El Paso will host game three on Sept. 15 and games four and five if necessary on Sept. 16–17.

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The 6-foot-8 Baez allowed two hits and a walk with seven strikeouts in five innings Monday night against Dayton. The Cuban is 2–0 in the playoffs, allowing no runs on seven hits and two walks with 16 strikeouts over 12 innings in the two games.

Right-hander Ronald Bolanos followed Baez and had three strikeouts in two perfect innings.

Right-hander Dauris Valdez issued a walk with two strikeouts in a hitless inning. Right-handed closer Hansel Rodriguezallowed a hit with a in a scoreless inning to get credit for his second save in as many games.

Over the last two games, seven Fort Wayne pitchers allowed eight hits and six walks with 23 strikeouts in 18 scoreless innings. Fort Wayne pitchers had a 0.33 earned run average in three games, allowing two runs (one earned) on 16 hits and six walks with 24 strikeouts in 27 innings.

Potts (.167 in the three games) was 2-for-4 with a solo homer. Shortstop Gabriel Arias (.273) was 2-for-3 with a walk and a RBI. Jorge Oña (.273) was 1-for-4 with a run scored. Center fielder Buddy Reed (.182) was 1-for-4 with a RBI. Second baseman Justin Lopez (.222) was 1-for-3 with a walk. C Marcus Greene Jr. (.100) was 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored.

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