Viral Moments, Blockbuster Trades and No-Hitters Highlighted the 2024 Campaign

SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Missions headed into the 2024 season with high expectations following back-to-back trips to the Texas League Postseason. However, the season was filled with plenty of peaks and valleys including no-hitters, controversial wins and blockbuster trades.

In the offseason, the Padres traded Juan Soto to the New York Yankees and in return acquired the 2023 MiLB Pitcher of the Year Drew Thorpe. On paper, the Missions were slated to have one of the best rotations in all Minor League Baseball with Thorpe, Robby Snelling, Jairo Iriarte, and Adam Mazur all in the mix.

Then, the Padres made another blockbuster trade in acquiring Dylan Cease from the Chicago White Sox. Heading to Chicago in the deal included Thorpe and Iriarte. This would not be the last major trade affecting the Missions in 2024. But more on that later.

Luke Montz and Jeff Andrews returned from the 2023 season to lead the field staff. Yunir Garcia served as the club’s hitting coach with Miguel Del Castillo as the bench coach. The Missions missed the playoffs in 2024 for the first time since the 2021 season. The club finished the year at 62-74 overall.

April

The missions began the 2024 season with a three-game series in Amarillo. The club started off strong with a sweep of the Sod Poodles while outscoring Amarillo 39-14 in the process. San Antonio’s first homestand was against the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. The club split the series with the Royals affiliate after claiming victories in the final two contests. Their first series loss came the following week against the Hooks. Corpus Christi claimed four wins in that series. Lastly, the Missions welcomed the Wichita Wind Surge to the Wolff. San Antonio split that series.

The Missions went 11-11 in the month of April. In their April 6th game against Amarillo, the offense slugged six homers including two grand slams from Ray-Patrick Didder and Zach Reks. Didder himself had two homers and six RBI in that game. Nathan Martorella carried the offense with a .293 average and 14 runs batted in. Didder’s three home runs led the Missions in April. Jared Kollar and Ethan Routzahn each recorded two wins while Adam Mazur led the staff with 24 strikeouts and 20.1 innings pitched.

May

The Missions began the month of May with a road series against the Arkansas Travelers. In a rain-shortened series, the Missions lost three of the five games to the Travelers. The club remained on the road and headed to Frisco to take on the RoughRiders. The Rangers affiliate took five out of six from the Missions. San Antonio bounced back to win eight of their next 11 contests against Corpus Christi and Wichita. However, the winning ways hit a speed bump, and the Missions lost their next eight games including a series sweep at the hands of the RoughRiders.

Nathan Martorella and Jakob Marsee went viral on the night of May 3rd. During game two of a doubleheader, with Martorella on second base, Luke Montz called time to talk to the umpire and removed Martorella from the game. A bewildered Martorella was then told he was being traded to Miami. He and Jakob Marsee packed up their gear and made the long walk through the Dickey-Stephens Park outfield towards the clubhouse.

Cole Cummings and Robert Perez Jr. each recorded 21 hits in May. Perez Jr. led all Missions hitters with 17 RBI in May. For the pitching staff, Austin Krob and Adam Mazur each had two wins. Victor Lizarraga and Robby Snelling each had 19 strikeouts while Snelling led the club with 25.2 innings pitched. San Antonio went 11-15 in May.

June

After being swept by the RoughRiders, the Missions hit the road to face the Midland RockHounds. The Missions split that series with the RockHounds including a controversial win on June 8th. San Antonio returned home and secured a 4-2 series victory over the Hooks. San Antonio’s road woes continued after dropping their next series to the Sod Poodles. The RockHounds came to San Antonio for the final series of June. The Missions came out victorious with four wins versus the Athletics affiliate.

The Missions were part of a controversial victory on June 8th. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Jayvien Sandridge looked to close out to the game for the Missions. With the bases loaded and two outs, the Missions held a 4-2 lead. It appeared that Cooper Bowman had hit a walk-off grand slam. However, the Missions fielders remained on the field. Acting manager Miguel Del Castillo asked for an appeal at third base. Upon the appeal, the umpires called Denzel Clarke out and negated the final two runs of the game. This resulted in the Missions winning the game 4-3.

San Antonio was on the wrong end of history on June 15th. At home facing the Hooks, the Astros affiliate completed a combined no-hitter. It was the first nine-inning hitter in Hooks history. Jake Bloss tossed 6.1 innings while Cesar Gomez pitched the remaining 2.2 innings.

Brandon Valenzuela was named Texas League Player of the Month for June. He batted .310 (27-for-87) in 22 games. Valenzuela had five homers, five doubles and 18 runs driven in. Robbie Tenerowicz matched him with five homers of his own. Jared Kollar led all Missions pitchers with four wins and 29.2 innings pitched. He and Victor Lizarraga each had 31 strikeouts. The club finished 13-13 in June.

July

As the calendar turned to July, the Missions started off strong with six consecutive wins against the Hooks and Sod Poodles. In the final series before the All-Star Break. The Missions split with the Sod Poodles at Wolff Stadium. The club had two road trips to start the post-All-Star Break. San Antonio was swept in a three-game series at Arkansas. They then lost four out of six against the RockHounds.

The Missions are no strangers to being impacted by the Trade Deadline and 2024 was no different. Robby Snelling was scratched from his July 30th home start. This was because he was being traded to Miami. Snelling highlighted a prospect package heading to Miami in exchange for Tanner Scott and Bryan Hoeing.

Robbie Tenerowicz led all Missions hitters with 19 hits in July. Marcos Castanon provided the power with four long balls and 13 runs batted in. Victor Lizarraga was named Texas League Pitcher of the Week after tossing seven scoreless frames on July 25th against Midland. He led all Missions pitchers in innings pitched (25.0) and strikeouts (28) in July. Miguel Cienfuegos, Omar Cruz and Jared Kollar carried the pitching staff with two wins. San Antonio finished the month of July at 10-12.

August

San Antonio entered August on a five-game losing streak including the first two games of their series with the RoughRiders. The losing ways continued as the Missions dropped 10 out of 11 games from July 26th through August 7th. After losing their series to Frisco, the Missions split a road series with the Springfield Cardinals. Returning home, the club split another series with the Sod Poodles. San Antonio continued to struggle against Frisco and dropped four out of six at Riders Field. In 2024, the Missions went 4-20 against the RoughRiders. To finish the month, the RockHounds took five of six games from the Missions in San Antonio.

The Missions famously pitched two combined no-hitters in a three-game span in 2022. The Missions were no-hit twice by the Sod Poodles during the 2021 season. It took three years for the Missions to get Amarillo back. On August 15th, Ryan Bergert, Bradgley Rodriguez and Ryan Och combined to no-hit Amarillo. Bergert did the heavy lifting with six perfect innings. This resulted in him being named Texas League Pitcher of the Week.

Connor Hollis led the Missions offense with 25 hits in August. Romeo Sanabria burst onto the scene with a .343 average and 17 RBI in 21 games. Robert Perez Jr. led all Missions hitters with four homers. Henry Baez, like Sanabria, took the Texas League by storm in August. Baez led the pitching staff with three wins in six starts. He and Austin Krob led the staff with 32.1 innings pitch. Krob’s 30 strikeouts were the team high for August. The club finished August with a 10-17 record.

September

With the playoffs seemingly out of reach, the Missions had two more series in September: a road trip to Tulsa and six home games against the Cardinals. The final road trip of the year worked out in the Missions favor as they claimed four wins. The Missions split their final series against the Cardinals after winning three of the final four games.

Robert Perez Jr. thrived in the month of September. He batted .341 (15-for-44) with seven doubles in 12 games. Joshua Mears led the Missions with four home runs and 10 runs driven in. Henry Baez and Miguel Cienfuegos each recorded two wins. Ryan Bergert led the pitching staff with 17.0 innings pitched and 14 strikeouts. September was the only month in 2024 that the Missions had a winning record. They went 7-6.

Below is a list of every player to appear in a game for the Missions in 2024.

Hitters

Marcos Castanon: Castanon returned to San Antonio after spending half the 2023 season in the Texas League. The infielder appeared in 110 games for the Missions while also recovering an early season nose injury suffered from a hit by pitch. Castanon batted .227 while leading the club with 13 homers.

Cole Cummings: Returning for his second season with the Missions, Cummings appeared in 123 games in 2024. The outfielder led the club in numerous offensive categories including hits (99), runs (63) and doubles (23). Strikeouts were a problem for Cummings as he punched out 173 times. The California native finished the season with a .219 average, 10 homers and 54 runs batted in.

Jarryd Dale: The Aussie began the season with High-A Fort Wayne before joining the Missions in late-April. Serving in a utility role, he played in 33 games while also taking the mound twice. The Padres released Dale on August 4th.

Michael De La Cruz: The veteran catcher returned for year number two with the Missions. De La Cruz appeared in 71 games and batted .209 with nine extra-base hits.

Ray-Patrick Didder: After spending the majority of the 2023 season in San Antonio, Didder returned to the Alamo City in 2024. Serving as the everyday shortstop for the Missions, he appeared in 111 games. The Aruba native batted .169 with nine homers, 16 doubles and 31 RBI. Didder showcased his speed with a team-high 28 steals.

Clay Dungan: The Padres claimed Dungan as part of the 2023 Rule 5 Draft from the Kansas City Royals. After beginning the year with Triple-A El Paso, Dungan joined the Missions in May and played in 34 games. The Indiana native rejoined El Paso in late-June and finished the year with the Chihuahuas.

Lucas Dunn: Beginning the season in High-A Fort Wayne, Dunn missed time in June while on the Injured List. After rehabbing in Arizona, he joined the Missions in late-July. The utility man appeared in 29 games for San Antonio while playing at six different positions.

Connor Hollis: The 2022 Texas League Batting Champion returned to the Missions for the third consecutive season. Despite missing time early in the year on the Injured List, Hollis batted .241 for the Missions in 86 games. He finished the 2024 season in Triple-A El Paso following a September 12th promotion.

Jakob Marsee: After making his Double-A debut in 2023, Marsee returned to the Missions for the 2024 season. The Michigan native played in 24 games before being traded to the Marlins as part of the Luis Arraez deal. This happened mid-game on May 3rd while the Missions were playing the Arkansas Travelers. Marsee batted .188 in 91 games for Double-A Pensacola before being promoted to Triple-A Jacksonville on August 29th.

Nathan Martorella: Martorella returned to San Antonio after playing in 23 games during the 2023 season. The first baseman went viral on May 3rd after he was removed from the game while standing on second base. He then found out he was heading to the Marlins organization, along with Jakob Marsee, as part of the Luis Arraez trade. Martorella spent the remainder of the season with Double-A Pensacola and batted .214 with 16 homers.

Joshua Mears: Mears began the season on the Injured List before beginning a rehab assignment in Arizona. The outfielder then joined High-A Fort Wayne and homered 10 times in 54 games. This prompted a late-season promotion to the Missions. Mears hit six homers in 18 games while batting .174. Strikeouts have always been an issue for the Washington native as he struck out 108 times in 74 games in 2024.

Kai Murphy: The son of Brewers Manager Pat Murphy, Kai Murphy spent much of the season with High-A Fort Wayne. Murphy joined the Missions for their final homestand and went 3-for-8 with two doubles across three games.

Robert Perez Jr.: After signing a free agent deal in the offseason, Perez Jr. spent the entire 2024 campaign in the Texas League. The Venezuela native batted .225 with nine homers, 21 doubles and 46 RBI in 120 games.

Zach Reks: One of the few Missions players with big-league experience, Reks joined the Padres organization in February after playing in Korea the previous year. The outfielder appeared in 64 games before having his season cut short with knee and shoulder injuries.

Ripken Reyes: A fan favorite in San Antonio, Ripken Reyes returned for his third consecutive season. The utility man played in 119 games while hitting 15 doubles and driving in 42 runs. After setting the MiLB hit by pitch record in 2023, Reyes was plunked 34 times in 2024.

Romeo Sanabria: Romeo Sanabria continues to rise through the Padres system. An 18th-round draft pick in 2022, Sanabria began the season in Single-A Lake Elsinore and finished it in San Antonio. In 125 combined games, including a promotion to High-A Fort Wayne, Sanabria batted .288 with 11 homers, 30 doubles and 78 runs driven in.

Robbie Tenerowicz: Tenerowicz began the season in the Texas League, but with the Arkansas Travelers. Seattle released the veteran infielder on May 1st and the Padres signed him five days later. “Byrd” spent the remainder of the season with the Missions. In 97 games, he batted .230 with 10 homers, 15 doubles and 40 runs batted in.

Chase Valentine: Valentine joined the Missions for a brief period across April and May. The Colorado native played in seven games and even made two scoreless appearances on the mound. Valentine spent most of the season with Single-A Lake Elsinore.

Brandon Valenzuela: After playing for the Missions in 2023, Valenzuela returned for year number two. The Mexico native batted .241 with nine homers and 16 doubles in 84 games. Valenzuela was named Texas League Player of the Month for June. He was promoted to Triple-A El Paso on August 6th and finished the year with the Chihuahuas.

Anthony Vilar: After beginning the season with High-A Fort Wayne, Vilar joined the Missions on August 6th. The Florida native played in 26 games while making appearances at catcher, second base and shortstop.

Juan Zabala: For the first time since 2018, Zabala spent the entire season with one club. The Colombia native began and finished the year with the Missions while appearing in 59 games along the way. He batted .225 with 11 extra-base hits and 19 runs batted in.

Pitchers

Henry Baez: After beginning the season with High-A Fort Wayne, Baez joined the Missions on July 23rd. The Padres named him MiLB Pitcher of the Year after he combined to go 7-4 with a 2.99 ERA in 26 starts.

Ryan Bergert: After making eight starts for the Missions in 2023, Bergert spent the entire 2024 season in San Antonio. The right-hander went 2-10 with a 4.78 ERA in 23 starts. He was named Texas League Pitcher of the Week after contributing to the August 15th combined no-hitter.

Jason Blanchard: For the third consecutive season, Blanchard played for the Missions. The Texas native led the pitching staff with 41 appearances. He went 1-3 with a 3.71 ERA.

Raul Brito: After spending much of the 2023 season in the Texas League, Brito returned to San Antonio for his second Double-A season. The right-hander spent a brief trip on the Injured List in the early part of the year. Brito bounced back and appeared in 33 games for the Missions. He went 3-4 with a 3.31 ERA and made two saves.

Daniel Camarena: The veteran southpaw made stops at all five levels of the farm system in 2024. Camarena made his return to the Missions on August 2nd and finished out the year in the Texas League. In what was expected to be the final appearance of his career, Camarena tossed 4.1 scoreless innings in the season finale on September 15th.

Manuel Castro: Castro made 39 appearances for High-A Fort Wayne before joining the Missions ahead of their final series of the season. In the Midwest League, he went 1-3 with a 3.49 ERA while converting 12 of 13 save attempts. With the Missions, he made two scoreless appearances.

Miguel Cienfuegos: In his second professional season, Cienfuegos pitched for High-A Fort Wayne and Triple-A El Paso before joining the Missions in late-June. The left-hander went 5-2 with a 5.63 ERA in 13 games for San Antonio while making seven starts. For the year, he went 9-8 with a 5.36 ERA in 27 combined games (19 starts).

Omar Cruz: The Padres acquired Cruz during the 2023 Rule 5 Draft from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The left-hander began the season with the Missions before getting promoted to Triple-A El Paso on July 13th. In the Texas League, he went 5-0 with a 3.59 ERA in 20 appearances. He struck out 70 batters in 47.2 innings pitched.

Yovanny Cruz: After signing with the Padres during the offseason, Cruz spent the 2024 season with the Missions. He made 23 relief appearances before suffering a season-ending injury in July.

Jose Geraldo: After spending much of the season with High-A Fort Wayne, Geraldo joined the Missions on August 8th. The right-hander recorded a 2.70 ERA across nine relief appearances.

Woo-Suk Go: The Padres signed Go out of Korea to a two-year, 4.5-million-dollar contract. After some struggles in Spring Training, they decided to start him in Double-A. The right-hander made 10 relief appearances for the Missions before being traded to the Marlins in the Luis Arraez deal.

Jared Kollar: After making 12 starts for the Missions in 2023, Kollar was back for year number two in the Alamo City. The right-hander went 9-3 with a 3.04 ERA in 18 games (15 starts). His nine wins were the most for a Missions pitcher in 2024. Kollar was promoted to Triple-A El Paso on July 25th.

Austin Krob: The southpaw pitched for the Missions during the 2023 postseason. 2024 saw him spend the entire regular season in the Texas League. Krob made 25 starts and went 4-11 with a 4.43 ERA. The left-hander was better in the second half of the season with a 3.56 ERA compared to a 5.40 ERA in the first half. He led all Missions pitchers with 120 strikeouts.

Reggie Lawson: A former second-round pick by the Padres in 2016, Lawson did not play in 2023 after retiring from baseball towards the end of the 2022 season. He spent the 2024 season with the Missions. In a relief role, Lawson went 1-0 with an 8.10 ERA in 13 appearances. An injury cut his season short in May.

Victor Lizarraga: Lizarraga was another Missions pitcher whose season ended due to injury. The right-hander went 5-6 with a 4.03 ERA in 21 starts. He made his last start on August 17th. Lizarraga finished as one of two Missions pitchers with at least 100 strikeouts in 2024.

Carter Loewen: Like Krob, Loewen joined the Missions during the 2023 postseason. The right-hander returned to the Texas League and spent the 2024 season with the Missions. The Canada native went 1-2 with a 5.12 ERA across 38 appearances.

Adam Mazur: Adam Mazur had an interesting 2024 season to say the least. First, he went 3-1 with a 1.95 ERA in six starts for the Missions. Next, he made four starts for Triple-A El Paso. San Diego purchased his contract on June 4th and Mazur made his MLB debut later that night. In eight starts for the Padres, he went 1-3 with a 7.49 ERA. Then, he is traded to the Marlins on July 30th as part of the Tanner Scott deal.

Bobby Milacki: After spending most of the 2023 season in the Texas League, Milacki was back with the Missions in 2024. He began the season in San Antonio before getting a promotion to Triple-A El Paso on April 18th. Milacki made five appearances for the Chihuahuas before returning to San Antonio. He spent the remainder of the season in the Texas League before suffering a season-ending injury in late-August.

Mitch Miller: After signing with the Padres in February, Miller began the season with High-A Fort Wayne. The southpaw suffered an injury in June and began a rehab assignment the following month in Arizona. At the conclusion of his rehab assignment, Miller joined the Missions and made four relief appearances. The Padres released him on August 4th.

David Morgan: The hard-throwing right-hander began the season with High-A Fort Wayne before joining the Missions on June 18th. Morgan made 22 appearances and went 2-2 with a 5.35 ERA.

Braden Nett: Like Castro, Nett joined the Missions towards the end of the season. Nett made 18 starts for High-A Fort Wayne and went 5-2 with a 4.03 ERA. In his lone start for the Missions, he allowed one run across 4.2 innings of work.

Ryan Och: After missing the 2023 season due to injury, Och began the season with High-A Fort Wayne. The left-hander joined the Missions on June 21st and made 19 relief appearances. Och put together a strong season going 2-2 with a 2.76 ERA and contributing to a combined no-hitter on August 15th.

Cole Paplham: The 2024 season was an unfortunate one for Cole Paplham. During a preseason exhibition game between the Missions and the Mexican League, he took a comebacker to the face that sidelined him until late-May. Following a rehab assignment in Arizona and Fort Wayne, he rejoined the Missions on June 11th. 10 days later he was back on the Injured List and did not pitch again in 2024. Paplham made three scoreless appearances for the Missions.

Francis Pena: Pena was a success story for the Padres farm system in 2024. The right-hander began the season in High-A Fort Wayne and logged a 0.86 ERA in 11 games. After joining the Missions, he went 0-2 with a 2.05 ERA in 19 relief appearances. This prompted a promotion to Triple-A El Paso on August 6th.

Wandy Peralta: Peralta was the lone Padres rehabber for the Missions in 2024. The veteran southpaw joined the Missions in late-August and pitched a scoreless inning on August 30th.

Josh Roberson: After signing with the Padres in January, Roberson began the season with the Missions. He went 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA in 19 relief appearances before being promoted to Triple-A El Paso on June 15th.

Bradgley Rodriguez: 20-year-old Bradgley Rodriguez made his stateside debut in 2024. The right-hander began the season with Single-A Lake Elsinore before joining Fort Wayne in late-April. After going 2-0 with a 2.59 ERA in the Midwest League, the Padres promoted him to San Antonio on August 6th. Rodriguez made 12 appearances for the Missions including the August 15th combined no-hitter.

Ethan Routzahn: Routzahn was another success for the Padres farm system in 2024. The Illinois native made three scoreless appearances at High-A before joining the Missions on April 18th. Routzahn made 31 appearances in the Texas League and went 4-2 with a 2.38 ERA. After being promoted to Triple-A El Paso, he went 5-1 with a 2.35 ERA in 14 games.

Jayvien Sandridge: After signing with the Padres in the offseason, Sandridge began the season in the Alamo City. The southpaw went 3-3 with a 3.38 ERA in 21 games before being promoted to Triple-A El Paso on June 11th.

Robby Snelling: After making four starts for the Missions in 2023, Snelling returned to San Antonio to start the 2024 campaign. The 2022 first-round pick struggled in the Texas League going 2-8 with a 6.01 ERA in 16 starts. At the trade deadline, he was scratched from his scheduled start because he was being traded to Miami. As part of the Tanner Scott deal, Snelling was dealt to Miami and assigned to Double-A Pensacola. In seven starts, he went 2-2 with a 4.00 ERA. Snelling made one start for Triple-A Jacksonville at the end of the year.

Sam Whiting: Whiting began the season with Single-A Lake Elsinore before joining High-A Fort Wayne on June 19th. After recording a 2.28 ERA in 10 games for the TinCaps, the Padres promoted him to San Antonio on August 6th. Whiting made six starts for the Missions and went 0-3 with a 6.48 ERA.

Jackson Wolf: The past two seasons were filled with some ups and downs for Jackson Wolf. In 2023, he made his MLB debut on July 22nd. He was traded to Pittsburgh 10 days later. In 2024, he was DFA’d by the Pirates on March 28th and traded back to San Diego on April 2nd. The southpaw spent most of the season with Triple-A El Paso and went 3-9 with a 7.08 ERA. Wolf joined the Missions on August 21st and went 1-1 with a 3.95 ERA in six relief appearances.

The San Antonio Missions will begin the 2025 season with a three-game homestand against the Amarillo Sod Poodles beginning on Friday, April 4th.

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The San Antonio Missions are the Double-A affiliate for the San Diego Padres. The 2025 season will be the 123rd professional season for the San Antonio Missions. The 2025 schedule is out now! Call 210-675-PARK to discuss pricing for season tickets, group tickets and hospitality packages. The Missions Box Office is cashless, and fans can purchase tickets using credit cards. For more information, call 210-675-PARK (7275) or visit samissions.com.