Topes Notes: Triple-A's frustrating reality bites the Isotopes

Isotopes Manager Pedro Lopez loves his job — a baseball lifer getting paid to manage professional baseball. But don’t tell a Triple-A manager the life is easy.

He has little control over who’s on his roster or even who plays.

Case in point, Isotopes first baseman Keston Hiura was the reigning Pacific Coast League Player of the Week going into last week’s home series against Round Rock.

Hiura was a beast July 29-Aug. 3 against Sacramento. He hit cleanup the entire series, going 9-for-22 (.409 average) with three doubles, a triple, three home runs and five RBIs. What’s more, the Isotopes won the series 4-2 for just their second series win of the season.

Then, first baseman Michael Toglia gets optioned back to Albuquerque and the Rockies acquire first baseman Blaine Crim off waivers from the Texas Rangers organization.

“Well, I just got to try and find a way to keep everybody sharp, you know?” was how Lopez answered the Journal’s Aug. 5 question about having three first basemen that all need to get playing time. “Hopefully it’ll be a deal where I don’t have to sit them for back-to-back games. … We just got to keep those guys sharp, because I know for a fact we’re going to need them.”

The results?

Hiura was limited to just four of the seven games in the series and hit 3-for-15 (.200). Crim went 2-for-22 (.091) in six games and Toglia went 5-for-17 (.294) in five games.

With no stability in the cleanup spot or at first base, the Isotopes lost six of seven — just the fourth time in franchise history the ’Topes have lost six in a series.

Know the foe

The Albuquerque Isotopes play six games at the Oklahoma City Comets from Tuesday through Sunday.

• Isotopes, Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, are 46-67 overall, 10th place; 15-24 second half, ninth place.
• Comets, Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, are 68-46 overall, 1st place; 22-17 second half, fourth place

Karros called up

It was a brief stint in Albuquerque for Kyle Karros, the son of former Albuquerque Dukes star Eric Karros.

While Kyle may be back in Albuquerque soon, for now the Karros father/son stat lines for their professional baseball stints in Albuquerque look like this:

• Kyle Karros (16 games in 2025 with the Isotopes): .306 batting average, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, 4 RBI
• Eric Karros (132 games in 1991 with the Dukes): .316 batting average, 33 doubles, 8 triples, 22 home runs, 101 RBI

Three up, three down

Looking good:

1. In the past 15 days (11 games played), OF Sam Hilliard leads the PCL in triples (3), is sixth in RBIs (12), 11th in batting average (.349), 11th in walks drawn (8), sixth in slugging (.721) and sixth in OPS (1.155).

His nine triples in 62 games leads the league. Tied for second in triples are teammate Sterlin Thompson (7 triples in 94 games) and El Paso’s Clay Dungan (7 triples in 108 games).

2. In just three games with the Isotopes, IF Nolan Clifford is 4-for-10 (.400) with a triple, two walks and struck out just once after getting called up from Single-A Fresno.

3. OF Sean Bouchard is riding a 19-game on-base streak that dates to June 28. In the stretch, he’s slashing .218/.365/.267, but has drawn 12 walks.

Look away:

1. The newly acquired Crim, playing against the Round Rock Express team he just left, went 2-for-22 (.091 batting average) with one home run and five strikeouts.

2. Albuquerque pitchers had season worsts for runs allowed (60) and home runs allowed (15) in a series.

If you take out the Aug. 6 doubleheader game that was originally scheduled in July but got rained out, the Isotopes still surrendered a season worst 55 runs and 15 home runs.

3. Sunday’s 7-4 loss to Round Rock dropped Albuquerque to 5-14 in series finales (2-8 at Isotopes Park, 3-6 on the road).