Even when Fernando Tatis Jr. was still a teenaged prospect in the low minors (OK, that wasn’t all that long ago), before Javy Guerra was moved to the mound, Gabrial Arias’ arm strength rivaled just about anyone’s in the Padres’ system.
His bat is continuing to assert itself as a forceful tool, too.
The 19-year-old shortstop upped his career-high with his 13th homer in a three-hit game in high Single-A Lake Elsinore’s 13-8 win at Lancaster on Thursday. The 13 blasts are more than double the six he hit last year, five in the second half after he’d managed just one in his first 112 games as a pro.