Ethan Salas jogged out onto the field at Nelson Wolff Stadium for his pregame routine Tuesday night, looked up into the stands and saw a pair of visitors he wasn't expecting -- his parents. The reason for the surprise visit? Taking the field opposite him was older brother Jose Salas.
It marked the first time that the elder Salas brothers have matched up throughout their Minor League careers. Ethan (MLB's No. 52 prospect) and Double-A San Antonio claimed an 8-3 win over Jose’s Wichita squad, the first of six expected matchups throughout the week, but it was also a reminder of their respective long journeys to this point and what they hope is still to come.
"It's obviously a dream come true," Ethan said. "We want to do it on the next level, the big league stage, but getting to do it now, it's definitely a cool experience.
"It's a little bittersweet because I want him to do [well], but we're competing. It's dog eat dog out there."
But this isn’t the first time that a pair of Salas brothers has faced off in the Minors. Last May, Jose and Single-A Fort Myers took on youngest brother, Andrew Salas (MIA No. 11) and Jupiter.
“Us three brothers, we’re super close," Jose said last year. "We call each other almost every day.”
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There was no need for long-distance calling Tuesday as Jose and Ethan got up close and personal. Ethan was behind the dish for San Antonio, meaning he’d have Jose digging into the batter’s box in front of him four times. After all, who knows how to help pitchers attack you better than a younger brother?
There was no chatter, they just "let it ride" in the moment. But there was a few pats on the shoulder after Jose tipped pitches that ricocheted off Ethan's shoulder twice, the only occasions all night when a Wind Surge hitter dinged up the Missions' catcher.
Ethan claimed bragging rights out of the gate, clobbering his sixth homer of the season in the first. It continued a torrid run for the Padres’ No. 1 prospect, who has looked every bit the top international prospect from the 2023 class as he returns to form after a back injury waylaid his '25 campaign.
Ethan enjoyed a stretch of five homers in seven games from April 24-May 2 and is slashing .324/.409/.649 across 10 contests to open May. His overall .947 OPS is on pace to smash his previous career high despite being the second-youngest regular in the Texas League.
"I've really just changed my mindset of how I want to go about playing the game," Ethan said. "I'm just trying to have as much fun as possible really and eliminate all the external thoughts and the noise and the distractions. Once I kind of started locking in on just competing and having as much fun [as possible] with my teammates and trying to win ball games, I think that ultimately makes your at-bats better and things start to go your way a little more."
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Jose is a former top international talent as well, having ranked No. 14 overall in 2019. He was dealt from Miami to Minnesota as part of the Luis Arraez/Pablo López deal and is still looking to find his footing offensively in pro ball. Andrew, who checked in at No. 5 on the ‘25 International Prospects list, received a similarly aggressive push as Ethan to open his own pro career, jumping straight to Single-A last spring.
"I played against Andrew and that was part of my dream," said Jose, who was first to check the schedule for when the two Texas League clubs would face off. "It still felt like I needed to be able to play against Ethan. That made the dream a whole lot better."