San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Padres minor league report leads off with Anderson Espinoza.
Anderson Espinoza’s first trip to the mound was a resounding success. That he hasn’t pitched since throwing two shutout innings in high Single-a Fort Wayne’s third game of the season is of minor concern to the organization.
The road back from backto-back Tommy John surgeries was never going to be an uninterrupted climb.
The 23-year-old Espinoza was scratched from this week’s start for an unspecified reason, but was expected to resume throwing again Friday and was not expected to require an injured list stint.
Once the top prospect in the Padres system, Espinoza ran his fastball up to 97 mph in his first minor league appearance since Aug. 21, 2016, at Fort Wayne when it was the Padres’ low Single-a affiliate.
Espinoza allowed just one hit after striking out the first batter he faced. His build-up was expected to continue in the three-inning range every five to six days through at least the first month of his return to action.
Espinoza was 1-3 with a 4.73 ERA, 28 strikeouts and a 1.42 WHIP in 32 innings at Fort Wayne in 2016. He was set to start the following year in high Single-a Lake Elsinore’s rotation when elbow trouble began, ultimately derailing him until his May 6 start for Fort Wayne
“Everyone knows all the story about me,” Espinoza told reporters after last week’s start. “I lost the last four years. Tonight was an amazing night for me because I was anxious to pitch again.”
Gore’s encore
Mackenzie Gore finished better than he started.
The Padres’ top pitching prospect retired the last seven hitters he faced, including three strikeouts in the sixth inning as the Chihuahuas rallied for a 5-3 win over Albuquerque in their home opener on Thursday
As he hopped off the mound with a final punchout of Zac Rosscup, Gore yelled and flexed his muscles.
It was his first start in front of a home crowd since August 2019 at Double-a Amarillo.
Gore’s three-strikeout sixth inning pushed his total to five and gave him his first quality start of the season. He walked one in the game, allowed three runs on eight hits and threw 53 of his 89 pitches for strikes, an improvement after he allowed three runs in four innings in his Triple-a debut the previous week.
Around the farm
San Antonio (AA): SS CJ Abrams has hits in seven of his first 10 games, including four extra-base hits: three doubles and a home run. The left-handed-hitting Abrams is hitting .400/.455/.600 against left-handed pitching.
Lake Elsinore (A+): OF Robert Hassell III entered Saturday with a 10-game onbase streak, which includes walking 12 times against 14 strikeouts. He has homered twice, tripled and logged four doubles while driving in 11 runs. Hassell is also 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts.