Missions 2021 statistical notes on players like Jack Suwinski, Eguy Rosario, Reiss Knehr, Allen Cordoba, Esteury Ruiz

Esteury Ruiz slides into home with the San Antonio Missions' second run of the game in Tuesday's season-opening victory over the Corpus Christi Hooks. - photo by Joe Alexander
Esteury Ruiz slides into home with the Missions’ second run of the game on May 4 in the 2021 season-opening victory over the Corpus Christi Hooks.
Watching the local team’s star players move on is a part of minor league baseball that is fun, gratifying and frustrating.

One example of what the San Antonio Missions lost this season:

– Jack Suwinski led the team in home runs with 15. The 23-year-old outfielder was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates organization on July 26, so he was the Missions’ leader despite not being with the team for almost the last two months of the season.

More statistical notes:

– Eguy Rosario played more games in a Missions uniform than anyone else this summer at 114. Kyle Overstreet was second at 103.

– Rosario was second on the team in home runs with 12 and second in stolen bases with 30. Rosario was the Missions’ opening day second baseman and was with the team all summer, playing shortstop late in the season.

– Outfielder Esteury Ruiz led the Missions in stolen bases with 36.

– Infielder Allen Cordoba led the Missions in batting average at .299 (not including players who appeared in less than 10 games). Cordoba played in 74 games. He didn’t start playing until June 8.

– CJ Abrams entered the season as the Missions’ most highly regarded prospect. The 20-year-old shortstop was limited to only 42 games due to injuries. He finished second on the team in batting at .296, but went on the injured list for the second time on July 8 and didn’t play again.

– Adrian Martinez (7-3) led Missions pitchers in wins, led their starters in ERA (2.34) and was second in starts (13).

– Reiss Knehr was 6-1 in 11 starts before moving up to pitch for both the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas and San Diego Padres.

– Reliever Carlos Belen led the Missions staff in appearances with 39. Henry Henry (38), Nick Kuzia (37), Jose Quezada (35) and James Reeves (31) all had 30-plus appearances.

Some players were notable for what they did after they moved up.

– Jose Azocar played in 79 games for the Missions, mostly in center field. He batted .276 with nine home runs and six triples. He is batting .324 for El Paso, second on the team, and is currently leading the Triple-A West in triples with seven despite only playing in 37 games at that level so far.

– Robbie Podorsky opened the season with the Missions but never played at Wolff Stadium. After batting .370 in seven road games, the speedy outfielder was promoted to El Paso. He is batting .275 with five home runs in Triple A, but has been limited to 27 games due to injuries.

– Taylor Kohlwey leads El Paso in batting at .339. He was with the Missions on opening day and played in 18 games for San Antonio before moving up.

– Matt Batten is fourth in hitting for El Paso at .301. He was with the Missions on opening day and played in six games before moving up.

– Pitcher Caleb Boushley has made 15 starts with a 3-8 record in El Paso since being called up on June 21. He was 2-3 in eight games with the Missions.

– Knehr has appeared in seven games in El Paso, four as a starter. His role changed after leaving San Antonio, where he was a starter. He was called up to San Diego four times, appearing in eight games and starting twice. He has a 1-0 record and 3.93 ERA with the Padres.

Kevin Kopps, Javy Guerra pitch in Missions’ loss to Hooks

Former Arkansas star Kevin Kopps pitched the ninth inning for the San Antonio Missions on Saturday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Former Arkansas star Kevin Kopps pitched the ninth inning for the Missions.
Two players at different stages of their careers saw action on the mound for the San Antonio Missions on Saturday at Wolff Stadium in a 6-1 loss to Corpus Christi.

Javy Guerra pitched in a combined 22 games in relief for the San Diego Padres in 2019 and 2020. He hasn’t pitched in the majors this season due to an elbow issue.

The 6-foot, right-hander from Panama was assigned to the Missions on a rehab assignment Saturday and pitched the fifth inning on Saturday night. He retired the side in order with no hits, walks or strikeouts.

Kevin Kopps, playing in his first summer of pro ball after a stellar college career at Arkansas, pitched at Wolff Stadium for the second time this week. He worked the scoreless ninth inning, allowing no hits, one walk and no strikeouts.

Eguy Rosario scored the Missions’ only run in the fourth inning. He doubled, went to third on a wild pitched and went home on Dwanya Williams-Sutton’s sacrifice fly.

MacKenzie Gore makes Wolff debut as Missions beat Hooks

San Diego Padres prospect MacKennzie Gore was the San Antonio Missions' starting pitcher on Friday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
San Diego Padres prospect MacKennzie Gore was the Missions’ starting pitcher on Friday at Wolff Stadium.
MacKenzie Gore pitched at Wolff Stadium for his first and only time this season on Friday night.

The highly regarded San Diego Padres prospect made his second start of the season for the San Antonio Missions in a 4-1 victory over the Corpus Christi Hooks.

Gore did not get a decision, pitching four innings and allowing one run on three hits, three walks and eight strikeouts. He made his first start for the Missions on the road last week, going five innings and allowing two runs.

The 6-foot-2 left-hander was a first-round draft pick, No. 3 overall, by the Padres in 2017.

The game was tied 1-1 heading into the late innings. The Missions got a solo home run from Michael Curry in the seventh inning to take the lead for good. Eguy Rosario added a two-run homer in the eighth for the final runs of the game.

Esteury Ruiz keys rally as Missions top Hooks

Esteury Ruiz had this catch in center field in addition to two run-scoring hits for the San Antonio Missions on Thursday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Esteury Ruiz had this catch in center field in addition to two run-scoring hits for the Missions.
Esteury Ruiz’s three-run double in the seventh inning gave the San Antonio Missions the lead for good in an 8-6 victory over the Corpus Christi Hooks on Thursday at Wolff Stadium.

Ruiz’s key hit was a bases-loaded cracked-bat bloop that landed near the right-field line. That broke a 3-3 tie and put the Missions up 6-3. The Missions weren’t done that inning as they put up five runs with RBI hits by Ethan Skender and Eguy Rosario to surge in front 8-3.

The Hooks made it interesting when they scored a run in the eighth and loaded the bases in the top of the ninth and scored two more.

The Missions’ first three runs came in the second inning. Esteury Ruiz had a two-run hit. Michael Curry doubled to drive in Dwanya Williams-Sutton with the first run of the game.

Missions starting pitcher Jerry Keel went six innings and allowed three runs, two earned. Sam Williams (3-2) pitched a scoreless seventh inning and earned the win.

Sod Poodles pound out another win against Missions

San Antonio Missions shortstop Eguy Rosario makes a throw to first on a grounder to the left side on Saturday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions shortstop Eguy Rosario makes a throw to first on a grounder to the left side.
The Amarillo Sod Poodles beat the San Antonio Missions for the third night in a row with a 6-3 decision on Saturday at Wolff Stadium.

Amarillo’s Stone Garrett hit his 18th home run of the season, a two-run shot in the third inning. The Sod Poodles had 10 hits including four doubles and one triple. The Missions had six total hits, including two by Olivier Basabe, and no extra-base hits.

All three Missions runs crossed in the bottom of the third. Basabe scored on Eguy Rosario’s sacrifice fly, Esteury Ruiz scored on a wild pitch and Ethan Skender scored on Kyle Overstreet’s sacrifice fly.

Agustin Ruiz hits 4th homer; Sod Poodles rally past Missions

Agustin Ruiz hit his fourth home run as a member of the San Antonio Missions on Thursday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Agustin Ruiz hit his fourth home run as a member of the Missions.
The Amarillo Sod Poodles scored four runs in the top of the eighth inning to rally past the San Antonio Missions 6-5 on Thursday night at Wolff Stadium.

The Missions got eight hits including a two-run, seventh-inning homer by Agustin Ruiz. Eguy Rosario had two hits including his 28th double of the season.

Missions starting pitcher Osvaldo Hernandez went five innings and allowed two runs on five hits and no walks with six strikeouts. Reliever James Reeves pitched the last five outs for the Missions and took the loss.

Ethan Skender’s walk-off hit, Juan Fernandez’s homer lift Missions to sweep of Sod Poodles

The Missions' Ethan Skender (center) celebrates with teammates after his walk-off hit in Wednesday's second game at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
The Missions’ Ethan Skender (center) celebrates with teammates after his walk-off hit in Wednesday’s second game at Wolff Stadium.
Ethan Skender ended a five-hour, 14-inning night of baseball with a walk-off hit to give the San Antonio Missions a doubleheader sweep of the Amarillo Sod Poodles at Wolff Stadium.

GAME 2: MISSIONS 5, SOD POODLES 4

Skender singled with the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning of the second game, bringing home Kelvin Melean with the winning run in a 5-4 Missions victory.

The Missions’ Allen Cordoba scored a key run in the bottom of the sixth. He stole second and then went all the way around to third and home on two throwing errors on the play. That tied the game 4-4.

The Missions' Ethan Skender (7) gets showered by his teammates after his walk-off hit in Wednesday's second game at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ethan Skender – San Antonio Missions

GAME 1: MISSIONS 2, SOD POODLES 0

The Missions limited the Sod Poodles to one hit to win the first game 2-0. Juan Fernandez hit his eighth home run of the season and Eguy Rosario’s sacrifice fly scored Olivier Basabe with the other run.

Missions starting pitcher Brandon Komar, who has usually been a reliever this season, went five innings and allowed only one hit and one walk with three strikeouts.

Olivier Basabe slides into home on Eguy Rosario's sacrifice fly to score the San Antonio Missions' second run in Wednesday's first game at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Olivier Basabe slides into home on Eguy Rosario’s sacrifice fly to score the Missions’ second run in Wednesday’s first game at Wolff Stadium. – photo by Joe Alexander

Ethan Skender a hit in Missions debut in win over RockHounds

Ethan Skender had two hits including an RBI triple in his San Antonio Missions debut on Friday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ethan Skender had two hits including an RBI triple in his Missions debut.
Ethan Skender joined the San Antonio Missions on Friday after being promoted by the San Diego Padres.

Skender made a quick impact with an RBI triple in his second at-bat at Wolff Stadium. His big hit was part of a 3-run fourth-inning rally by the Missions in a 3-1 victory over the Midland RockHounds.

Skender, who was the designated hitter, also had a double later in the game.

The 24-year-old infielder was batting .258 with two home runs in 60 games in Class A Fort Wayne before moving up to the Double-A Missions.

Eguy Rosario got a leadoff walk to start the bottom half of the fourth inning. He scored on a double by Michael Curry for the first run of the game. Olivier Basabe’s sacrifice bunt brought in Curry from third to make it 2-0. Skender’s triple drove in Juan Fernandez, who had followed Curry’s hit with a single.

Missions starting pitcher Osvaldo Hernandez pitched five scoreless innings to get the win.

The RockHounds’ scored their only run in the top of the seventh. Missions closer Jose Quezada pitched the ninth inning for his 14th save of the season and second of the current series against Midland.

The Missions’ Allen Cordoba, who entered Friday with a 12-game hitting streak, went 0-for-4 and saw his streak end.

Allen Cordoba keeps hitting, Missions pitchers dominate Midland

Allen Cordoba dodges a tag attempt by Midland RockHounds catcher JJ Schwarz to score the San Antonio Missions' final run in the bottom of the eighth inning on Wednesday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Allen Cordoba dodges a tag attempt by Midland RockHounds catcher JJ Schwarz to score the San Antonio Missions’ final run in the bottom of the eighth inning on Wednesday at Wolff Stadium. – photo by Joe Alexander
Allen Cordoba didn’t just keep his hitting streak alive at 11 games. The San Antonio Missions cleanup hitter drove in the go-ahead run and scored an insurance run in Wednesday’s 3-1 victory over the Midland RockHounds at Wolff Stadium.

Cordoba doubled in the bottom of the third inning to score Eguy Rosario and give the Missions a 2-1 lead.

Cordoba doubled in the eighth and scored on a hit by Michael Curry to extend the Missions’ lead to two runs.

Cordoba is batting .305 on the season and .377 in the month of August. He has nine RBIs during his hitting streak.

Esteury Ruiz scored the Missions’ first run. He led off the bottom of the first inning with a walk, stole second and went to third on an error on the steal, and scored on a wild pitch.

Five Missions pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts and allowed only two hits. Starter Pedro Avila couldn’t get the win because he only went 4.0 innings, but he allowed just the one run with two hits while striking out five.

Sam McWilliams, the first pitcher out of the Missions’ bullpen, went two scoreless innings and got the win. Nick Kuzia and Tom Cosgrove pitched one scoreless inning each. Jose Quezada pitched the ninth inning and earned his 13th save of the season.

Michael Curry’s home run not enough for Missions in extra-innings loss to Hooks

Michael Curry hit a 3-run homer in the second inning in the San Antonio Missions' loss to the Corpus Christi Hooks on Thursday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Michael Curry hit a 3-run homer in the second inning in the Missions’ loss to Corpus Christi on Thursday at Wolff Stadium.
San Antonio Missions outfielder Michael Curry started hitting home runs at the beginning of July and added another on Thursday night at Wolff Stadium.

Curry hit his sixth homer since July 2, a three-run shot in the second inning for the first runs of the game. The Missions couldn’t hang on to the lead in a 7-5 loss to the Corpus Christi Hooks in 10 innings.

The Hooks had three homers of their own, including a two-run shot by Corey Julks in the top of the 10th that turned out to be the game-winner.

Curry also had a sacrifice fly and had four RBIs in the game. Eguy Rosario had two doubles and drove in the Missions’ other run.