One of the most respected batters in Mexican baseball history, Carrillo has also become one of the country’s most well-regarded managers since retiring as a player in 2008. He added to his growing reputation by taking a historically-weak Guasave franchise and leading the Algodoneros to a first-half Mexican Pacific League title stretching Obregon to a seventh and deciding game in the LMP title series.
A Sinaloa native who turns 48 on February 24, Carrillo made his managerial debut in 2009 with the Quintana Roo Tigres of the Mexican League, the team he spent most of his playing career with. He has led the Tigres to two playoff berths, including a finals appearance in his first year. Carrillo came to Guasave last winter and took the Cottoneers to a playoff berth prior to this year’s finals performance. Thus, in a total of four seasons over two years, Carrillo-led teams have earned four postseason bids and two finals appearances.
Carrillo played in 22 Mexican League seasons, all but two with the Tigres. He hit .300 or more every year but 2003 and 2006 and hit 340 career homers between 1982 and 2008. He also hit .288 with 159 homers in 27 Mex Pac seasons, winning the MVP award in 1992-93 after hitting .404 for Mexicali. An outfielder, Carrillo spent parts of three MLB seasons with Milwaukee and Florida, hitting .251 in 107 games.
WEDNESDAY'S BBM WINTER AWARD: LMP Pitcher of the Year
No Eddie Diaz?
ReplyDeleteEddie Diaz would've been a great pick, and my choice for this came down to between him and Carrillo. I decided to go with Carrillo because he took a team to within one win of its second pennant ever with a lot less talent on his roster than Diaz had in Obregon.
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