Late Homers Power Wind Surge to Series-Opening Win Against Missions 

WICHITA, Kan. (July 8, 2025) – Homers from Rubel Cespedes and Kala’i Rosario turned a tied game in the seventh inning into a comfortable 6-2 win for the Wichita Wind Surge (9-4, 46-36) over the San Antonio Missions (5-8, 44-38). Mike Paredes continued his hobby of collecting victories out of the bullpen as the San Diego native earned his Texas League-best ninth win, and Stephen Jones, who gave up both long balls, took the loss.

Marcos Castañon opened the scoring in the top of the second off Wind Surge starter Ricky Castro. His double off the center field wall brought Devin Ortiz around from first, but the 1-0 lead vanished in the bottom of the second when Ricardo Olivar singled in Rosario to tie the game against Missions starter Victor Lizarraga.

On the very first pitch of the third inning, Albert Fabian whacked his first career Double-A homer into the San Antonio bullpen to give the Missions a 2-1 lead. This advantage lasted longer, but not by much. Jared Kollar, who entered in the third for Lizarraga, watched a two-out chopper make it over the head of the outstretched first baseman, Romeo Sanabria, and into right field. The corners had been covered, so the lucky bounce allowed the Wind Surge to level the game at 2-2.

The deadlock remained for a while as both bullpens and defenses played well. The Missions turned four double plays, and the Wichita outfield glided all over the grass to make good grabs.

After the Equity Bank Park crowd stretched in the seventh, Jones took the bump for San Antonio. He quickly got the first out, but then Cespedes golfed a pitch a smidge over the right-center field wall to give Wichita a 3-2 lead. Andrew Cossetti launched the next pitch towards left field, which looked destined to land as a second straight long ball. However, Fabian timed a jump perfectly to snag the ball back across and rob a homer. Still, Wichita ended the inning with a one-run advantage.

Paredes finished his third clean inning out of the bullpen in the eighth, bringing the Wind Surge right back to the plate. A wild pitch handed Wichita their fourth run before Rosario lifted an opposite-field two-run homer to right. As the game went to the ninth, Wichita now had a 6-2 lead.

Tanner Andrews entered for the ninth and worked around a walk to shut the door on Wichita’s 6-2 win.

UP NEXT:

The Missions continue their six-game series with the Wichita Wind Surge. First pitch on Wednesday is at 7:05 p.m. Lefty Jagger Haynes (3-2, 4.07) goes for the Missions while lefty Connor Prielipp (0-3, 3.38) starts for the Wind Surge. Catch all the action on Country Legends KKYX, 680 AM, 104.9 FM and kkyx.com. Tickets are available at samissions.com or by calling 210-675-7275.

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The San Antonio Missions are the Double-A affiliate for the San Diego Padres. The Missions were established in 1888 and have brought affordable family fun to the Alamo City for 123 seasons. The 13-time Texas League champions play their home games at Nelson W. Wolff Municipal Stadium. For more information and tickets, call 210-675-7275 or visit samissions.com.