Padres Minor League Report: April 29
Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.
The hottest hitter in the Padres' farm system right now - indeed, the hottest hitter in the Texas League -- is Double-A San Antonio center fielder Travis Jankowski.
Jankowski was 2-for-3 with two steals and two runs Tuesday night to extend his hitting streak to 15 games, tying his career high and the longest hitting streak in the Texas League this season.
Jankowski isn't the lone hitter in the Padres' system swinging a hot bat:
• Triple-A El Paso catcher Austin Hedges, 22, had two doubles in five at-bats Tuesday for two RBIs. He is hitting .345 on the season with 15 RBIs in 18 games and ranks among the top 10 in the Pacific Coast League in both categories.
• San Antonio outfielder Hunter Renfroe is on an 8-for-22 run over the past five games. After a slow start, Renfroe is hitting .200.
• Class A first-third baseman Duanel Jones was 3-for-4 with an RBI for Fort Wayne on Tuesday. Jones, 21, is 10-for-16 with four RBIs in his last four games to raise his batting average to a Midwest League-leading .388.
Jankowski, 23, was the 44th overall pick of the 2012 First-Year Player Draft.
The leadoff hitter is 25-for-56 (.446) during his 15-game hitting streak, with 10 steals. He ranks fourth in the Texas League in batting average (.379), second in on-base percentage (.474 with 12 walks) and leads the league in steals (10).
Jankowski led the California League with 71 steals (the ninth-highest total in Padres' Minor League history) while hitting .286 for Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore in 2013. He spnt most of last season on the disabled list.
Around the farm
Triple-A El Paso (13-7): Chihuahuas 10, Salt Lake 5. SS Ramiro Pena (.304) was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs. 2B Taylor Lindsey was 3-for-4 with a RBI. C Rocky Gale (.308) was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Poway High grad Alex Dickerson (.333) was 1-for-2 with a double and two walks with two RBIs and two runs. Starting RHP Bryce Morrow (3.20 ERA) allowed three runs on five hits and two strikeouts in three innings. RHP Nick Vincent (1-0, 0.96 ERA) gave up two hits with a strikeout in a scoreless inning for the win.
Double-A San Antonio (6-12): Frisco 7, Missions 4. RHP Bryan Rodriguez (0-4, 8.84 ERA) gave up six runs on 10 hits and a walk in 5 1/3 innings. RHP Luis De La Cruz (7.56 ERA) allowed a run on two hits and a walk with three strikeouts in two innings. 3B Casey McElroy was 2-for-5 with an RBI. 1B Luis Domoromo was 2-for-3 with a walk and a RBI.
Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore (8-11): Inland Empire 7, Storm 6. Lake Elsinore blew a 5-0 lead. SS Jose Rondon was 2-for-5 with a RBI and a stolen base. RHP Rafael De Paula (4.50 ERA) allowed two runs on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts in five-plus innings. LHP Kyle Bartsch (0-1, 7.27 ERA) allowed two runs on two hits in two-thirds of an inning to suffer the loss.
Class A Fort Wayne (5-11): Dayton 9, TinCaps 1. LHP Taylor Aikenhead (1-1, 7.63 ERA) allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks with three strikeouts in four innings. RHP Danielson Lamet (3.00 ERA) walked three and struck out four in two hitless innings. RHP Wilson Santos (1.59 ERA) allowed five runs (one earned) on four walks and no hits in two-thirds of an inning. SS Franchy Cordero committed his 12th error in 16 games.