FORT WAYNE, Ind. (ADAMS) – Halfway through the 2023 Minor League Baseball season, the San Diego Padres made a wave of transactions Tuesday.
The moves included promoting left-handed starting pitcher Robby Snelling from the Single-A Lake Elsinore Storm to the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps.
MLB.com ranks Snelling as a top-four Padres prospect and the 87th-best prospect in baseball overall.
The TinCaps released the following:
Snelling was selected by San Diego with the 39th pick in the 2022 MLB Draft out of McQueen High School in Reno, Nev. The lefty originally committed to play college baseball at Stanford. As he blossomed as a multi-sport athlete, Snelling then committed to play both baseball and football (linebacker) at Arizona. When Jay Johnson left Arizona to become the head baseball coach at LSU, Snelling had the intention of following Johnson, but ultimately signed with the Padres after being offered a $3 million signing bonus.
Snelling was selected by San Diego with the 39th pick in the 2022 MLB Draft out of McQueen High School in Reno, Nev. The lefty originally committed to play college baseball at Stanford. As he blossomed as a multi-sport athlete, Snelling then committed to play both baseball and football (linebacker) at Arizona. When Jay Johnson left Arizona to become the head baseball coach at LSU, Snelling had the intention of following Johnson, but ultimately signed with the Padres after being offered a $3 million signing bonus.
Listed at 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, the 19-year-old was shining in the California League. Over 11 starts with Lake Elsinore, Snelling posted a 1.57 earned run average (lowest in the league among those who logged at least 50 innings). Utilizing a mid-90s fastball, a devastating curveball, and a developing changeup, he struck out 59 batters and walked just 13 in 51 2/3 innings, so his 4.54 strikeout to walk ratio was also the best in the circuit. Furthermore, his strikeout rate (30%) ranked second highest, while his walks and hits per innings pitched (1.01) was second lowest.
Snelling is one of seven players coming to the TinCaps from Lake Elsinore. The list also features another top-30 Padres prospect, Graham Pauley. The 22-year-old left-handed batter was drafted out of Duke last year in the 13thround. Playing primarily third base, he ranked second in the Cal League in on-base percentage (.422), ninth in on-base plus slugging percentage (.887), and 10th in average (.309).
Another lefty starter, Austin Krob, will join Snelling in the rotation. Krob, a 23-year-old from Iowa, was selected last year in the 12th round out of TCU. His 2.34 ERA was second to only Snelling in the Cal League. Krob’s 10.62 K/9 was even higher than Snelling’s, while he also ranked second in the league in ground ball rate (59%).
Righty reliever Will Geerdes, 23, who went to Columbia University and the University of Virginia, is another addition. Out of Cal League pitchers who worked more than 30 innings, he had the fifth lowest average against (.185), while striking out 30% of the batters he faced.
Outfielder Albert Fabian, right-handed reliever Carter Loewen, and catcher Anthony Vilar, all of whom have previously played for the TinCaps, are also returning. The 21-year-old Fabian ranked fourth in the Cal League in home runs with 12.
Meanwhile, four players are going from Fort Wayne up to Double-A San Antonio and three others are being transferred to Lake Elsinore.
Catcher Brandon Valenzuela, outfielder Justin Farmer, and pitchers Jared Kollar and Raul Brito are now with the Missions in the Texas League.
Out of Midwest League hitters with more than 155 plate appearances, Valenzuela, 22, ranked eighth in average (.279) and ninth in OPS (.828). His “weighted runs created plus” of 138, meaning he was 38% better than league average, also ranked top 10. Defensively, among catchers, he was seventh in catching runners attempting to steal (12).
Farmer, 24, over his last 40 games, ranked ninth in the Midwest League in OBP (.368) and 10th in average (.288). His 13 stolen bases on the season were 13th most in the circuit.
Out of Midwest League pitchers who’ve logged at least 30 innings, Kollar, 24, had the lowest ERA (1.67). He walked only six batters in 37 2/3 innings, and never allowed a home run.
Brito, 26, was holding opponents to a .164 average against — 10th lowest in the Midwest League among those who’ve pitched more than 20 innings.
Infielder Chase Valentine and pitchers Nick Thwaits and Ruben Galindo are now with the Storm. Thwaits was leading the TinCaps in appearances (18) and tied for the most saves (three). In five appearances this month, he had a 1.93 ERA across 9 1/3 innings.
The TinCaps are 2-1 so far in the second half of the season. After the Great Lakes Loons (Los Angeles Dodgers affiliate) won the first-half East Division title, Fort Wayne is one of five teams vying to claim a postseason berth this half. The ’Caps went 22-12 over their final 34 games of the first half.
Offensively, Fort Wayne ranks third in the league in scoring, averaging nearly five runs per game. Shortstop Jackson Merrill (No. 1 Padres prospect) is headed to the MLB All-Star Futures Game, while first baseman Nathan Martorella (No. 23 Padres prospect) leads the league in home runs and RBIs. On the mound, Adam Mazur (No. 6 Padres prospect) has the lowest ERA out of pitchers who’ve worked at least 38 innings, Jairo Iriarte (No. 11 Padres prospect) ranks second in strikeouts, and Ryan Bergert (No. 24 Padres prospect) ranks in the top five in both ERA and strikeout rate among those with 50-plus innings.
The new-look TinCaps, who now feature 12 of San Diego’s top 30 prospects, are on the road this week, visiting the Lake County Captains (Cleveland Guardians affiliate). The Summit City’s squad will return to home action at Parkview Field on the Fourth of July against the West Michigan Whitecaps (Detroit Tigers affiliate), the start of a six-game homestand. Tickets are available through TinCaps.com, by calling 260-482-6400, and at the Parkview Field Ticket Office.
Padres Minor League Transactions Effective Tuesday, June 27, 2023
- Albert Fabian transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- William Geerdes transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- Austin Krob transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- Carter Loewen transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- Graham Pauley transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- Robby Snelling transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- Anthony Vilar transferred from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne
- Ruben Galindo transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Single-A Lake Elsinore
- Nick Thwaits transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Single-A Lake Elsinore
- Chase Valentine transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Single-A Lake Elsinore
- Raul Brito transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Double-A San Antonio
- Justin Farmer transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Double-A San Antonio
- Jared Kollar transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Double-A San Antonio
- Brandon Valenzuela transferred from High-A Fort Wayne to Double-A San Antonio
