Gore makes Missions debut in Frisco series.
Staff writer Greg Luca highlights the week that was and also previews the upcoming week for the San Antonio Missions.
At the outset of the 2021 season, Mackenzie Gore was ranked by MLB Pipeline as the sport’s top pitching prospect, poised to start at Triple-a and potentially earn a call-up to the San Diego Padres before the end of the year.
Instead, Gore took the mound in a San Antonio Missions uniform for the first time Saturday — the next step through a tumultuous season in which he dropped from No. 6 to No. 58 in MLB Pipeline’s prospect rankings.
The No. 4 overall player and top-rated pitcher in the Padres organization, Gore allowed two runs on three hits and five walks with eight strikeouts through five innings of San Antonio’s 7-4 road loss to the Frisco Roughriders.
Gore was mostly sharp until the start of the sixth inning, when he walked the first three batters he faced in 16 pitches before being pulled for Henry Henry, who escaped the jam with one run allowed.
A 22-year-old who was selected No. 3 overall in the 2017 MLB draft, Gore finished the night with 55 strikes in 97 pitches, and the Missions said he touched 97 mph on his fastball.
Gore opened the year with Triple-a El Paso, posting a 5.85 ERA across six outings and 20 innings while allowing 24 hits, three homers and 12 walks against 18 strikeouts. He missed time due to a blister on his finger, and in June he was sent to the Padres’ complex in Arizona to work through mechanical issues that became problematic as he spent last summer at San Diego’s alternate training site.
Returning to game action in August, Gore made three starts in rookie league and posted a 1.65 ERA across 161⁄3 innings, allowing 13 hits and four walks against 22 strikeouts. He moved up to Single-a Fort Wayne (Ind.) for a lone start Sept. 5, giving up three runs on three hits and four walks with five strikeouts in five innings.
After the Missions play their final series of the season at home this week against the Corpus Christi Hooks, Gore may be in line for a return to Triple-a El Paso, which plays through Oct. 3.
PROSPECT WATCH
Infielder Eguy Rosario, San Diego’s No. 15 prospect and the Missions’ top-rated hitter, went 7 for 24 (.292) in the series against Frisco with a homer, three steals and four walks against nine strikeouts.
Through the span of a month — from Aug. 12-Sept. 12 — Rosario hit .346 with a pair of home runs, eight steals and 14 walks to 19 strikeouts.
Outfielder Agustin Ruiz, who ranks No. 27 among Padres prospects, hit .286 in the series with two homers.
In 29 games with the Missions, Ruiz has mashed six homers, making him San Antonio’s active leader with a home run every 19 at-bats.
DYNAMIC DEBUT
Called up from Fort Wayne just hours before the game, Kelvin Alarcon went 2 for 4 in his first outing with the Missions on Friday, knocking a two-run double in the fifth inning that lifted San Antonio to a 3-1 win.
A 22-year-old from Venezuela, Alarcon is playing at the Double-a level for the first time as he works through his fifth professional season.
STANDOUT PITCHERS
Jerry Keel posted the longest and most effective starting pitching performance for the Missions last week, allowing just one run on five hits and three walks in six innings.
Jose Quezada nailed down all three of his save opportunities, tossing four perfect innings with eight strikeouts. He has allowed just a single run in his past nine outings, giving up three hits and five walks with 14 strikeouts in 91⁄3 innings.
Nick Kuzia extended his scoreless streak to 10 innings across nine outings, allowing three hits and three walks with 17 strikeouts through that stretch.
Tom Cosgrove has also dominated since returning Aug. 21 after missing two months to injury, pitching nine scoreless innings with four hits and one walk against nine strikeouts.
BY THE NUMBERS
— Strikeouts by pitcher Pedro Avila on Sunday, matching the most in a game by a Missions player this season. In five innings, Avila allowed a run on three hits and one walk.
— Consecutive games reaching base for infielder Ethan Skender before the streak was snapped Saturday. Since earning the promotion to San Antonio on Aug. 27, Skender is hitting .306.
66 — Strikeouts by San Antonio pitching during the series against Frisco, leading Double-a Central for the week. For the year, the Missions’ staff ranks next to last in the league with 978 strikeouts.
UP NEXT
San Antonio (55-59) opens the season’s final series at home against Corpus Christi (50-63) at 7:05 p.m. Tuesday. After claiming four of six against the Roughriders (61-51) last week, the Missions are in range of a .500 season with a hot finish.