Category: Missions

Ripken Reyes’ walk-off hit finishes Missions’ 9th-inning rally against Sod Poodles

Ripken Reyes' walk-off hit in the bottom of the ninth inning gave the Missions the victory. The San Antonio Missions beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 4-3 on Wednesday, April 24, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ripken Reyes’ walk-off hit in the bottom of the ninth inning gave the Missions the victory.

The San Antonio Missions trailed for most of the game but rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 4-3 on Wednesday at Wolff Stadium.

Ripken Reyes, one of the Missions’ leading hitters on the season, stroked a hit to right field to drive in the winning run.

The Missions put together three hits, a walk and a sacrifice fly in the ninth. The sac fly was the Missions’ only out in the frame, as five straight batters produced strong at-bats.

Korry Howell, who just rejoined the team on Tuesday after being on the injured list, led off the inning with a hit and scored the run that tied the game. Juan Fernandez had the second hit of the inning, and was replaced by pinch-runner Ray-Patrick Didder, who scored the winning run.

NINTH INNING

– Korry Howell led off with a single to right field.

– Juan Fernandez hit a ground ball single to center and Howell advanced to second base.

– Howell went to third base and Fernandez to second on a passed ball.

– Ray-Patrick Didder entered the game to pinch run for Fernandez at second.

– Cole Cummings worked a three-ball count and then was intentionally walked.

– Michael De La Cruz pinch-hit and lofted a sacrifice fly to right to drive in Howell and tie the game 3-3. Didder advanced to third.

– Reyes singled to right right to score Didder from third, giving the Missions the winning run.

INTRODUCING COLE CUMMINGS

Cole Cummings made his Double-A debut on Wednesday as the Missions’ designated hitter. His first at-bat was an RBI single to drive in the Missions’ first run of the game. He followed that with a double in the fith inning.

Cummings had a walk in the ninth inning during the Missions’ winning rally.

The 24-year-old from UC Santa Barbara batted .233 in 18 games at Class A Fort Wayne before being promoted to San Antonio.

Cole Cummings produced an RBI single in his first Double-A at-bat in his Missions debut. The San Antonio Missions beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 4-3 on Wednesday, April 24, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Cole Cummings produced an RBI single in his first Double-A at-bat in his Missions debut.

Michael De La Cruz helps Missions score season-high 14 runs

Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz had three hits. The San Antonio Missions beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 14-4 on Tuesday, May 23, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz had three hits.
Four San Antonio Missions batters had multi-hit nights as they rolled to a 14-4 victory over the Amarillo Sod Poodles on Tuesday at Wolff Stadium.

Michael De La Cruz, who has been the Missions’ No. 2 catcher this season, had a team-high three hits including a double. He walked twice, drove in two runs and scored three times.

San Antonio had 13 hits and seven walks and dominated the game despite not hitting any home runs.

Tirso Ornelas, Daniel Johnson and Connor Hollis had two hits each. Johnson walked twice, scored four runs and had two RBIs.

Juan Fernandez, who leads the Missions with a .330 batting average, had a double to extend his current hitting streak to five games. Hollis, last season’s Texas League batting champion, also hit in his fifth straight game.

Missions outfielder Korry Howell played in his first game since going on the injured list on April 27. He didn’t have a hit but he walked twice, drove in one run and scored twice.

Daniel Johnson had two hits, two walks and scored four times. The San Antonio Missions beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 14-4 on Tuesday, May 23, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Daniel Johnson had two hits, two walks and scored four times.
Korry Howell returned from the injured list and started in center field. The San Antonio Missions beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 14-4 on Tuesday, May 23, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Korry Howell returned from the injured list and started in center field.

Missions pitcher Jared Koenig promoted to Triple-A El Paso

San Antonio Missions pitcher Jared Koenig of the San Diego Padres organization pitching against the Northwest Corpus Christi Hooks on May 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Jared Koenig of the San Diego Padres organization pitching against the Northwest Corpus Christi Hooks on May 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium.
Relief pitcher Jared Koenig appeared in 12 games this season for the San Antonio Missions and never allowed a run.

His work was rewarded with a promotion to the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas on Monday.

The imposing 6-foot-5, 235-pound left-hander pitched 14.0 innings for the Missions with 10 hits, 22 strikeouts, and seven walks and earned three saves.

Last season, Koenig pitched mainly as a starter at Las Vegas, the Triple-A farm club of the Oakland As. He appeared in 20 games, made 18 starts, and had a 6-6 record and 4.71 ERA. He struck out 104 batters and walked 30 in 107.0 innings.

Koenig elected to become a free agent after the 2022 season. He was signed by the San Diego Padres organization in February, 2023, and assigned to the Missions in March.

Hooks’ Spencer Arrighetti edges Missions’ Jackson Wolf in duel of Astros, Padres pitching prospects

Missions starter Jackson Wolf pitched seven innings in the loss. The Corpus Christi Hooks beat the San Antonio Missions 1-0 on Sunday, May 14, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions starter Jackson Wolf pitched seven innings in the loss.
Both of Sunday’s starting pitchers at Wolff Stadium have been projected as future big leaguers.

The Corpus Christi Hooks’ Spencer Arrighetti and San Antonio Missions’ Jackson Wolf looked the part. Both rose to the occasion with their longest outing of the season.

Arrighetti earned the win and Wolf took the loss as the Hooks won 1-0.

Wolf (2-4), the No. 16 prospect in the San Diego Padres’ system, pitched well enough for a win on most days. The 6-foot-7 left-hander went seven innings and allowed the one run on four hits with no walks.

Missions reliever Alek Jacob, the Padres’ No. 26 prospect, pitched two scoreless, hitless innings to finish the game. He did not allow a walk and struck out two batters.

Arrighetti (3-2) is the Houston Astros’ No. 9 prospect. The 6-foot-2 right-hander pitched seven shutout innings and allowed two hits with two walks and nine strikeouts. Hooks reliever Cole McDonald pitched two innings and allowed one hit with five strikeouts for the save.

The Missions’ offense was limited to two hits by Juan Fernandez and one by Luis Aviles Jr.

The Missions won five of the seven games in the series. They have Monday off and open a six-day road series in Midland on Tuesday. The Missions return home for a six-day series against Amarillo beginning Tuesday, May 23.

Missions reliever Alek Jacob pitched the last two innings. The Corpus Christi Hooks beat the San Antonio Missions 1-0 on Sunday, May 14, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions reliever Alek Jacob pitched the last two innings.
Hooks starter Spencer Arrighetti pitched seven innings and got the win. The Corpus Christi Hooks beat the San Antonio Missions 1-0 on Sunday, May 14, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Hooks starter Spencer Arrighetti pitched seven innings and got the win.

Seth Mayberry, Henry Henry provide winning relief as Missions win 5th straight

Tirso Ornelas (2) and Connor Hollis (6) celebrate at the plate after they both scored ono Hollis' home run in the first game. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 4-3 in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday, May 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Tirso Ornelas (2) and Connor Hollis (6) celebrate at the plate after they both scored on Hollis’ home run in the first game.
San Antonio Missions relievers Seth Mayberry and Henry Henry earned wins as the Missions swept a doubleheader with the Corpus Christi Hooks, 4-3 and 2-1, on Saturday at Wolff Stadium.

The Missions have won five straight going back to the second half of a Wednesday night doubleheader. The series concludes with a single game on Sunday at 1 p.m. – weather permitting.

The Missions’ got their first-game scoring with four runs in the bottom of the first inning. Connor Hollis had the big shot with his first home run of the season to score two runs. Brantley Bell and Chandler Seagle also had RBI hits in the inning.

Missions starter Daniel Camarena pitched 3 1/3 innings in the first game and allowed one run. Mayberry was the first pitcher out of the bullpen and allowed two runs in 1 2/3 innings.

Michel Baez and Jared Koenig pitched one scoreless inning each to finish the seven-inning game. Koenig picked up his third save.

Jose Espada started the second game for the Missions and pitched two scoreless innings with no hits and two strikeouts. Henry was next on the mound and tacked on two more scoreless innings to get his first win of the season.

Lake Bachar added two scoreless innings and Nick Hernandez got the save by pitching the final inning and allowing one run.

The Missions’ runs in the second game came on a Juan Fernandez RBI ground ball in the first inning and Hollis came in from third base on a passed ball in the sixth inning.

Seth Mayberry was the winning pitcher in Saturday's first game. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 4-3 in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday, May 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Seth Mayberry was the winning pitcher in Saturday’s first game.
Henry Henry was the winning pitcher in Saturday's second game. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, May 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Henry Henry was the winning pitcher in Saturday’s second game.

Starter Nolan Watson holds Hooks in check, Pedro Castellanos homers in Missions win

Pedro Castellanos hit his fifth home run of the season. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 5-2 on Friday, May 12, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Pedro Castellanos hit his fifth home run of the season.
The San Antonio Missions got a big effort from their starting pitcher for the second night in a row on Friday.

Missions starter Nolan Watson pitched six innings and got his first win of the season in a 5-2 victory over the Corpus Christi Hooks at Wolff Stadium. On Thursday night, starter Efrain Contreras got his first win of the season.

Watson, a 6-foot-2 right-hander, allowed two runs on seven hits, but walked only one and struck out two.

Kevin Kopps pitched the final two innings for his second save of the season. He did not allow a hit and struck out three.

The Missions went in front for good with three runs in the second inning. Michael De La Cruz had a sacrifice fly and Ripken Reyes hit a two-run double to make it 3-2.

Reyes, a switch-hitting middle infielder, has hits in six of his last seven games with three doubles and a triple in that stretch.

Pedro Castellanos hit a solo home run in the third inning, his fifth homer of the season, to make it 4-2.

Connor Hollis scored from third base on a De La Cruz groundup in the sixth inning to complete the scoring.

Daniel Johnson and Tirso Ornelas had two hits each for the Missions.

Missions starter Nolan Watson allowed two runs in six innings. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 5-2 on Friday, May 12, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions starter Nolan Watson allowed two runs in six innings.

Efrain Contreras earns first win, Juan Fernandez, Ripken Reyes have key hits as Missions beat Hooks

Starting pitcher Efrain Contreras walks off the field after pitching six innings on a humid night at Wolff Stadium. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 3-1 on Thursday, May 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Starting pitcher Efrain Contreras walks off the field after pitching six innings on a humid night at Wolff Stadium.
San Antonio Missions pitcher Efrain Contreras turned his seventh start of the season into his first win on Thursday at Wolff Stadium.

Contreras (1-4) pitched six scoreless innings and allowed three hits with no walks and eight strikeouts as the Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 3-1.

It was Contreras’ longest outing of the season. The 23-year-old right-hander improved his season ERA from 6.50 to 4.88.

The win was a long time coming for Contreras. His last win before Thursday night was in Class A ball on Aug. 27, 2019. He went 6-6 that season.

Contreras didn’t play in 2020 because of the covid season. He had Tommy John surgery in late 2020 and missed all of the 2021 season. Last summer he was 0-5 with a 5.74 ERA in 17 starts in High-A.

Fernandez had a hit and a single. He has three hits and two RBIs so far in the series and is batting .373 for the season – the only Missions player batting better than .300. He finished the month of April with an eight-game hitting streak before going hitless in three road games last week.

The Missions recorded two runs in the first inning when Ripken Reyes scored on a wild pitch and Daniel Johnson had a sacrifice fly to bring in Pedro Castellanos. Fernandez singled to center to drive in Reyes in the fifth.

Reyes put himself in scoring position twice with a triple in the first inning and a double in the fifth.

Corpus Christi made it close by loading the bases and scoring a run in the eighth inning and putting two runners on base in the ninth. Missions reliever Lake Bachar got the final two outs for his second save of the season.

Ripken Reyes tripled in the first inning and scored the first run of the game on a wild pitch. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 3-1 on Thursday, May 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ripken Reyes tripled in the first inning and scored the first run of the game on a wild pitch.

Strong pitching, timely hits help Missions split pair with Hooks

Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz catches a pop-up behind home plate. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 5-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz catches a pop-up behind home plate.
The San Antonio Missions had an early three-run inning to beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 5-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday at Wolff Stadium.

The Hooks won the first game 5-2 on the strength of 10 hits including two extra-base hits.

The Missions played as the visiting team in the second game, which was a makeup of a rainout earlier in the season in Corpus Christi. The Missions took the lead in the second inning with an RBI single to left by Jorge Ona, an RBI single to center by Brantley Bell and an RBI sacrifice bunt by Ripken Reyes.

Michael De La Cruz added a run-scoring double in the sixth and Juan Fernandez had an RBI single in the seventh. De La Cruz, Fernandez, Bell and Jorge Ona all had two hits in the game.

Three Missions relievers combined to hold the Hooks hitless over the final four innings after Corpus Christi took a 1-0 lead in the first. Seth Mayberry, the first reliever in the game, went two innings, struck out four batters and earned his second win of the season.

Starter Jose Espada allowed two hits and one run with no walks and three strikeouts. Relievers Jared Koenig and Nick Hernandez pitched one inning each.

Juan Fernandez had an RBI single to center in the seventh inning and is batting .382 on the season. The San Antonio Missions beat the Corpus Christi Hooks 5-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Juan Fernandez had an RBI single to center in the seventh inning and is batting .382 on the season.

Naturals use big inning to sink Missions; Juan Fernandez has another big day at the plate

Juan Fernandez had three hits including this two-run single in the seventh inning. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 6-3 on Sunday, April 30, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Juan Fernandez had three hits including this two-run single in the seventh inning.
Northwest Arkansas pounded out six runs in the second inning and rolled to a 6-3 victory over the San Antonio Missions on Sunday at Wolff Stadium.

The Missions’ Juan Fernandez had three hits and extended his hitting streak to eight games. He has a .487 batting average and 1.155 OPS with eight RBIs in 10 games.

Fernandez scored the Missions’ first run in the bottom of the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly. He added a two-run single in the seventh for the rest of the Missions’ scoring.

San Antonio starter Daniel Camarena made his season debut with the Missions and pitched one scoreless inning. The 30-year-old left-hander did not allow a hit, walked two and struck out two. Camarena pitched in six games with the San Diego Padres in 2021.

Missions reliever Henry Henry was tagged for all six runs. He gave up three hits and two walks and hit two batters in 2/3 of an inning as he struggled with his control.

Three San Antonio relievers – Nolan Watson, Alek Jacob and Kevin Kopps – combined to hold Northwest Arkansas scoreless over the final seven innings.

Daniel Camarena started on the mound in his Missions debut. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 6-3 on Sunday, April 30, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Daniel Camarena started on the mound in his Missions debut.

Missions start strong behind Efrain Contreras’ pitching, Pedro Castellanos’ slam before falling to Naturals

The Missions' Pedro Contreras hits a grand slam in the second inning. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
The Missions’ Pedro Contreras hits a grand slam in the second inning.

The San Antonio Missions’ Luis Aviles Jr. came through with a two-run double in the second inning.

And then, Pedro Castellanos hit his fourth home run of the season, a grand slam later in the same inning.

And then, Missions starter Efrain Contreras pitched five no-hit innings.

And then, the Missions were on their way to a 7-0 lead after seven innings on Saturday night at Wolff Stadium.

And then, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals rallied… and rallied… and rallied.

The Naturals scored three runs in the eighth, four in the ninth, and outscored the Missions 4-3 in three extra innings for an 11-10 victory. Northwest Arkansas scored the go-ahead run on an RBI double by Jose Briceno in the top of the 12th inning.

Contreras, who is rebuilding his career after an injury wiped out his 2021 season, had his best outing of the season in his fifth start and was in line for a win when he left the game. The 23-year-old right-hander pitched five full innings and struck out six batters and had three walks.

Castellanos finished the game with two hits and five RBIs.

Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz had two hits and scored twice.

Juan Fernandez had only one plate appearance but extended his hitting streak to seven games. He entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the 11th inning and produced an RBI single.

Missions starter Efrain Contreras left the game with a 7-0 lead after pitching five no-hit innings. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions starter Efrain Contreras left the game with a 7-0 lead after pitching five no-hit innings.
Luis Aviles Jr. hit a two-run double to help the Missions score seven runs in the second inning. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Luis Aviles Jr. hit a two-run double to help the Missions score seven runs in the second inning.
Ray-Patrick Didder made his San Antonio Missions debut and played center field. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ray-Patrick Didder made his San Antonio Missions debut and played center field.