CHARLES IN CHARGE: LEONES SLUG WAY TO 2ND ROUND

Yucatan DH/1B Art Charles

Led by the explosive bat of Art Charles, Yucatan outlasted Puebla, 20-17, last Wednesday to win their Mexican League first round playoff series 4-games-to-2 and advance to the South Division semifinals against Quintana Roo. By winning two games, the Pericos also moved on to face Mexico City in their LMB South semi set.

A former Toronto and Philadelphia farmhand, the 6’6” Charles crashed a pair of homers in the Leones’ deciding-game win, including a three-run bomb during a six-run eighth inning outburst that brought Yucatan back from a 17-14 deficit to the Parakeets in Puebla. The two teams combined for 37 runs on 42 hits as 19 pitchers were used in the 5-hour, 5-minute marathon. Charles ended the series with five homers in six games. 

The Leones’ post-series ride to the Mexico City airport for a flight back to Merida was marred when their bus was attacked and fired upon less than ten miles out of Puebla. Two of their buses’ tires were punctured and destroyed by rocks as the team was chased by a vehicle with at least one occupant firing a gun at them. The National Guard was called and nobody on the bus was hurt. While Mexico is beset nationwide by drug cartels, the attack is believed to have come from some irate Pericos fans.

The Yucatan players and coaches showed no lost nerve by winning the first two games of their next series against rival Quintana Roo at home in Merida. The Lions thumped the Tigres, 9-1, in Saturday’s opener. Charles’ bat sayed hot with a three-run homer in the top of the fifth and a run-scoring single in the sixth. Former Blue Jays and Marlins starter Henderson Alvarez got the win by tossing 5.2 innings of 1-run ball and scattering seven hits. McKenzie Mills took the loss, allowing three runs on two frames.

The Leones needed 12 innings to slip past the Tigres, 5-4, on Sunday. Charles crushed another three-run roundtripper in the bottom of the eighth to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 lead, but Alexis Wilson’s solo blast in the top of the ninth tied it up as the game went into overtime. Quintana Roo’s Raul De Los Reyes came out from the bullpen in the bottom of the twelfth with two Yucatan runners on and promptly walked Jose Martinez to load the bases and then gave Marco Jaime a free pass to score Norberto Obeso from third to end what was literally a walk-off win for the hosts.  Crowds topping 12,000 attended both contests at Parque Kukulkan. Game Three will be Tuesday night in Cancun.

Meanwhile, the Mexico City Diablos Rojos plated 27 runs in winning their first two games against Puebla, beginning with Saturday’s 10-6 triumph over the Pericos. The Diablos were up 4-3 before a six-run fifth inning essentially put the game away. Catcher Julian Leon, not ordinarily considered one of the team’s big guns, the the most damage by swatting a two-run homer in the third and a three-run clout in the sixth, both off Puebla starter Gabriel Ynoa. While starter Jeffry Nino pitched four innings of two-run ball, reliever David Huff got the win despite allowing a counter in the fifth. Ynoa took the loss by letting in seven runs on eight hits in four-plus innings (serving up Leon’s second homer after walking Roberto Ramos and Juan Carlos Gamboa to start the fifth.

Game Two of the series was a Red Devils’ 17-7 blowout of Puebla as the home team socked five homers, two by Ramos. The former KBO star finished 3-for-5 (adding a double) and drove in five runs). Daniel Mercado and Miguel Guzman went deep for the Pericos but with Mexico City holding a 13-3 lead after four entradas, it was all Diablos. Bernardo Flores’ five innings of 4-run pitching was good enough to be given the win while Puebla starter Braulio Torres-Perez somehow lasted long enough to allow five runs on two hits and three walks in Mexico City’s 7-run first before being yanked with only one out to show for it. Attendance at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helo approached 28,000 for the two contests as the series now shifts to Puebla for Games Three on Tuesday night. 

SULTANES UP 2-0 IN LMB NORTH SEMIS VS. TECOS

Monclova RHP Josh Lowey

The Monterrey Sultanes topped Dos Laredos twice in Nuevo Laredo over the weekend to take the reins in their Northern Division semifinal playoff series. Both games were played at Estadio Nuevo Laredo, a somewhat surprising move because while the 12,000-seat facility is much nicer than the Tecolotes usual Mexican home of aging Parque La Junta, it sits several miles outside the city and fans tend to stay home rather that avoid the risk of running into cartel activity along the way. Attendance was over 5,000 both Friday and Saturday, decent crowds compared to La Junta’s usual turnout but well below the double-figure audiences at the six other second-round matchups played in Merida, Mexico City and Tijuana.

Monterrey doubled up the Tecos, 4-2, in Friday’s Game One after building up a 4-0 lead on RBI singles by Zoilo Almonte in the first inning and Jose Cardona in the third, preceding a homer in the fourth from Ramiro Pena (who scored on Ali Solis’ sacrifice bunt in the sixth. Kennys Vargas and Balbino Fuenmayor put Dos Laredos on the board with ron-scoring singles in the seventh but the Tecos couldn’t come any closer.  Yohander Mendez pitched five shutout innings for the Sultanes to collect the win as Neftali Feliz notched the save. Brandon Brennan was handed the loss after giving up three runs in four frames.

One night later, the Sultanes grounded the Owls, 9-3, behind the solid start from former Atlanta hurler Julio Teheran, who had five 10+ win seasons for the Braves in the 2010’s. Teheran allowed just two safeties in six shutout innings to earn the win. Longtime independent league reliever Nate Antone was converted into a starter with the Tecos this season and while he didn’t pitch badly on Saturday (5 innings, 3 runs), he got no support and was handed a loss in what might’ve been a winning effort on another night. Cardona went 5-for-5 with a double and two runs to pace the Sultanes batters as the series shifted to Monterrey for the next two games.

Defending champion Tijuana and 2020 titleists Monclova have developed a good rivalry over the past few years, so it’s no surprise that their LMB North final four series is tied at a game apiece. The set opened Friday night in Tijuana as 16,001 fans witnessed the visiting Acereros 13-1 throttling of the Toros. Francisco Peguero’s bases-loaded single drove in Bruce Maxwell with the first run of the game in the top of the second and the Steelers built an 8-0 lead before Agustin Murillo’s solo homer in the bottom of the fifth gave Tijuana their only run of the tilt. The Acereros scored runs in six of the nine innings they batted, including a 3-run homer from Noah Perio during a five-run fifth.  Former Pitcher of the Year Josh Lowey, who went 4-0 in five late starts for Monclova, allowed one run on five hits over six innings for the win while another longtime LMB star, Manny Barreda, was shelled for seven runs in 4.1 innings to take the loss for the Toros.

Tijuana bounced back in Game Two with a 5-4 win on Saturday as another crowd exceeding 16,000 jammed Estadio Nacional in the border city. Monclova held a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the eighth before RBI singles by Efren Navarro and Murillo put the Bulls on top. Closer Fernando Rodney took the ball in the top of the ninth and the former MLB All-Star struck out Peguero, Rudy Amador and Keon Broxton on ten pitches to end the game with a flourish. The contest was a homer orgy during the first three innings, with Felix Perez and Nick Williams going long for TJ while Addison Russell belted a lngball and Alex Mejia homered twice for Monclova. The series shifted to Monclova for the next two games in the Steel Capital.

RENOVATIONS APPROVED FOR NAVOJOA BALLPARK

Estadio Manuel "Ciclon" Echeverria

One of the major accomplishments for outgoing Mexican Pacific League president Omar Canizales over his 14 years in office was the construction or modernization of ballparks in all ten Mex Pac cities. Although Canizales won’t be sitting behind the big desk when it’s completed, the final renovation was approved under his watch earlier this year when the governor of Sonora appropriated 65 million pesos ($US3.23 million) for upgrading Navojoa’s Estadio Manuel “Ciclon” Echeverria, home of the Mexican Pacific League Mayos. 

Navojoa mayor Mario Martinez Bojorquez made the initial announcement in January while Sinaloa governor Alfonso Durazo held a press conference to that effect in late May. According to Durazo, work was scheduled to begin in June and be completed in time for the Mayos’ 2022-23 regular season home opener on Thursday, October 13 when the Los Mochis Caneros come to town. 

Estadio Echeverria was first opened on October 7, 1970 and has seated 11,500 spectators since Day One. Dimensions are a cozy 378 feet to straightaway center field, 318 feet down both foul lines. The ballpark is named after a former local pitcher and is owned by the State of Sonora, although it falls under the jurisdiction of the Navojoa city government and is both rented and managed by the Mayos under team owner Victor Cuevas Valenzuela.

Primary funding for the renovation was expected to come from the federal government, which has paid for many such efforts across the country under the presidency of lifelong baseball enthusiast Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. According to Marian Millan of the  La Verdad website in Navojoa, mayor Martinez said federal approval for funding the project was twofold in its objective: “One, that it serves the Navojoa Mayos professional sports team and also that it provides service to the community in the sports and cultural fields.”

Of course, as so often happens, what is said and what is done can be two different things in Mexico. While both announcements came out before the end of May, there was no information immediately found via online searches about the actual progress of renovations to Estadio Manuel “Ciclon” Echeverria as of August 22.  Guess we’ll all find out on October 13.

MLB CANCELS APRIL PADRES-D'BACKS MEXICO SERIES

The outbreak of the coronavirus and the resulting panic that led to the delay of the Major League Baseball regular season has unsurprisingly meant the cancellation of a planned two-game series between the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks in Mexico City next month. The so-called Mexico Series would've pitted the two National League West rivals against each other on the weekend of April 18-19 at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in Mexico City.

Instead, the two contests will be rescheduled later in the season in Phoenix, as the Diamondbacks had relinquished two home dates to make room for the Mexico Series. "It breaks our heart we won't be playing in front of the incredible fans in Mexico," a statement from the Arizona front office reads, "but health and safety come first." A tweet from the Padres states, "Our series in Mexico City has been cancelled do to the delayed start of the 2020 season. We look forward to the next time we are playing in front of our beloved fans in Mexico." MLB also cancelled a planned three-game series between the New York Mets and Miami Marlins between April 28-30 at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico. No decision has been made yet regarding the fate of this June's London Series in England between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals.

Mexico City's Estadio Harp Helu

The Mexico Series would've marked the first MLB regular season games ever played in Mexico City, where the Diablos Rojos' 20,576-seat ballpark (named after their billionaire owner) opened a year ago this Monday when the Diablos hosted a team of Padres minor leaguers in front of a full house. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador became the first Mexico president to throw out a ceremonial first pitch since 1947 and Mexico City's Jesus Fabela scored the first run in the new facility, but the rest of the contest belonged to the Padres, who won 11-2 in a game that was overshadowed by the festivities surrounding it. The Diablos went on to draw 389,641 fans over 54 regular season games last year (an average of 7,216 per opening) to finish fourth in the LMB in attendance, trailing only Tijuana (11,291), Monterrey (9,770) and Yucatan (8,673). The Toros and Sultanes led all of Minor League Baseball in average attendance while the Leones finished fifth. Mexico City was 18th overall.

The cancellation of the Mexico City will cause a financial hit to the host Diablos Rojos. Ticket prices for the two games started at 450 pesos (US$18.41) for outfield seats and rose to 3,200 pesos (US$130.95) for VIP seats and 2,500 pesos (US$102.30) to sit behind home plate. Ticket refunds are being offered to those who already purchased their ducats.

MLB has previously held eleven regular season games in Mexico, all at Estadio de Beisbol Monterrey, home of the Sultanes.  The first was a Padres-Colorado Rockies game on April 4, 1999, which brought in a ballpark record 27,104 spectators. A pair of two-game series last year (Cardinals-Red and Angels-Astros) drew in the 16,000-18,000 range per opening. 

MEX PAC NAMES 2019-20 GOLD GOVE AWARD WINNERS

Jalisco catcher Gabriel Gutierrez

The Mexican Pacific League has announced the winners of its 2019-20 season Rawlings Gold Glove awards, given annually to players considered the best fielder at their respective positions. Four of then ten players receiving honors were members of the LMP champion Culiacan Tomateros.

Pitcher of the Year Yoanys Quiala of Los Mochis aided his own cause by handling 18 chances in the field without a miscue in 87.2 innings over 14 starts without to earn the Gold Glove for hurlers, his second in a row with the Caneros. As a Culiacan postseason addition, Quiala was perfect on four chances during his lone start in the Caribbean Series.

Two catchers also played errorless ball in 2019-20 to share the Gold Glove. Jalisco's Gabriel Gutierrez, already known as a top-notch receiver, burnished his reputation by not committing an error on 458 chances behind the plate. He also nailed 25 of 49 base-stealers for a 51% mark in that category. Another stalwart defensive backstop, Mexicali's Xorge Carrillo, was awarded after fielding 376 chances cleanly in 51 games. Carrillo threw out 17 of 46 base-stealers, a 37 percent rate.

Culiacan anchored the right side of the LMP's defensive dream team. First baseman Joey Meneses committed two errors on 454 opportunities to finish with a .996 fielding percentage. Meneses, who hit .332 during the regular season, was flawless in 35 chances in four games at the initial hassock during the Caribbean Series and hit .417 before signing with Boston after the tournament.

Tomateros second baseman Ramiro Pena, a favorite of manager Benji Gil, earned top honors at the keystone position by turning in a .988 fielding percentage after committing just three blunders over 256 chances. The former Yankees infielder, who also had MLB stints with Atlanta and San Francisco, handled 24 chances without error in the Caribbean Series and turned three double plays.

Culiacan second baseman Ramiro Pena

Jalisco veteran Agustin Murillo is not a newcomer when it comes to winning Gold Gloves at third base in the Mex Pac, and 2019-20 was no exception. Murillo turns 38 in May but showed no sign of slowing after augmenting his .314 batting average with a .993 fielding percentage, committing just one gaffe in 139 chances and taking part in nine twin-killings.

Daniel Castro's glovework is what led to MLB opportunities with both Atlanta and Colorado between 2015 and 2018, thus it's no surprise that his work at shortstop for Mexicali has been rewarded. Castro, who also plays second and third, was 261-for-266 in fielding chances for the Aguilas to finish with a .981 average after splitting the 2019 season between the Mariners and Dodgers systems.

Culiacan players also anchored two of three positions on the LMP's Gold Glove team. Speedy Rico Noel, who led the league in steals (30) and runs scored (47), earned the nod in centerfield with a .986 fielding percentage, committing five errors in 138 chances during the regular season. He handled 18 chances without sin during the Caribbean and started a double play from the outfield.

Tomateros teammate Sebastian Elizalde was named the Gold Glove rightfielder after recording a .983 fielding average, committing two errors in 115 chances over 54 regular season contests. A former Reds farmhand who played for Mexico in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, Elizalde played three games in the Serie del Caribe, fielding eight fly balls cleanly before signing with the New York Mets.

Navojoa's Alonzo Harris, the 2019 Mexican League MVP, was given a Gold Glove for his play in left field for the Mayos. Harris was 133-for-135 in chances for a .985 fielding percentage and threw out six baserunners. The Mississippi native broke into pro ball in 2008 as a second baseman before being converted into an outfielder as a Mets minor leaguer during the 2011 season.

MEXICO HOLDS FIFTH PLACE IN LATEST WBSC BASEBALL RANKINGS

The World Baseball Softball Confederation released its first set of global baseball rankings for 2020 last Friday. There were no changes among the top six teams, which means Mexico maintained its number five ranking from the previous rankings released on December 31, 2019. In all, 86 nations were listed.

Japan held on to the top spot with 6,167 total points, providing the Baseball Samurai a comfortable lead over the second-ranked United States, who came in with 4,676 points. South Korea is breathing down the USA's neck with 4,648 points while Taiwan held on to fourth place at 4,385. Mexico's 3,375 points was good enough to keep the fifth slot but Australia is not far behind in sixth at 3,249. Cuba and Venezuela leap-frogged past The Netherlands into seventh and eighth place, respectively, while the Dutchmen slipped from seventh to ninth. The Dominican Republic rounded out the Top Ten with Puerto Rico hanging on to its #11 ranking while Panama slipped past Canada into twelfth on the list as Latin American countries make up half of the dozen leading nations on the listing. At the other end of the spectrum, Bahrain, Haiti and Iraq were tied for 84th and last with five points apiece.

In other categories, Japan also led in the women's baseball rankings, ahead of Canada, Taiwan and Venezuela, who bypassed the USA into fourth place while the Americans dropped to fifth. Mexico moved past the Philippines into 14th place in women's baseball. In men's softball, Japan holds the top slot in those rankings as well after slipping past former #1 Argentina in the latest listing. New Zealand, Canada, Australia and the United States round out the top six while Mexico moved up one berth to eighth, trailing the seventh-place Czech Republic. In the WBSC women's softball rankings, the USA preventing Japan from sweeping all the top spots by holding the number one position on that table while Japan stayed in second. Canada, Puerto Rico and Mexico complete the first five.

Mexico's 2018 U-23 World Cup champions

Global rankings from the WBSC are compiled on a points system based on how well respective national teams perform at various levels of competition. Baseball rankings are drawn from the World Baseball Classic and Premier12 events as well as Baseball World Cup tournaments at the U-23, U-18, U-15 and U-12 age groups. Continental events such as Europe's CEB Championships or the Pan-American Games are also included, albeit for fewer points in the ranking system, while co-called friendlies between national teams in non-tournament settings (such as last winter's Samurai Series between Japan and Mexico) round out the points system. Rankings are released on an irregular basis, although the WBSC usually compiles them at least once a year.

CHARROS FINISH 2-2, JUST MISS CARIBBEAN TITLE GAME

Jalisco's CS Dream Team 1B Victor Mendoza

The Jalisco Charros won two of their four double round-robin games at the Caribbean Series in Panama City last week, but the Guadalajara team lost out on a berth in the final game against Panama's Herrera Toros via mathematics.  Jalisco, Cuba's Las Tunas Lenadores and Venezuela's Lara Cardenales all finished Group A competition with identical 2-2 records but Jalisco barely missed qualifying despite a 9-4 win over Lara last Friday due to a tiebreaker.  One more run over their four games would've made the difference for the Mexican Pacific League champions.

The Charros scored only two runs over their first two games at Rod Carew National Stadium, beginning with last Monday's 5-1 defeat at the hands of Lara.  Cardenales starter Nestor Molina allowed one Jalisco run in the top of the fifth when Stephen Cardullo singled in Agustin Murillo to take the win.  A familiar face to Mexican League fans as the 2017 Pitcher of the Year with Veracruz and an All-Star Game selection last summer with Dos Laredos, Molina scattered four hits and struck out four over his five frames of work.  Carlos Rivero, who spent part of 2018 with Tijuana, belted a two-run homer off Francisco Moreno in the sixth for Lara but a two-run fourth for the Cardenales gave Molina and mates all the scoring they'd need for the night.  Orlando Lara (3.2 IP, 2 R, 2 H, 2 BB) took the loss for Jalisco, who went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

One night later, the Charros fell, 3-1, to Las Tunas as the Lenadores' Lazaro Blanco, a 32-year-old veteran of international competition, blanked Jalisco on three hits over seven innings to take the victory.  Another longtime figure for the Cuban National Team, Alfredo Despaigne, hit three singles in four at-bats to drive in three Las Tunas runs.  Despaigne spent parts of the 2013 and 2014 seasons with Campeche in the LMB before moving to Japan, where he has become one of NPB's premier power hitters with 118 homers since mid-2014 for the Chiba Lotte Marines and Fukuoka Softbank Hawks.  Jesus Valdez' two-out single brought in Amadeo Zazueta with Jalisco's lone run in the bottom of the ninth, but Murillo ended the contest by flying out to right on the first pitch he faced from Raidel Martinez as the Mexicans dug themselves an 0-2 hole midway through the round.

Mexican baseball fans representing in Panama

After a day off Wednesday, Jalisco came back Thursday with a revenge win over Las Tunas, a 3-2 knucklebiter that wasn't settled until the eleventh inning.  At the top of that entrada, Ramon Rios drilled a Livan Moinelo pitch up the middle for a two-out single that drove in Dariel Alvarez from second with the go-ahead run.  Ramirez actually whiffed Alvarez for the second out but the third strike sailed past Lenadores catcher Yosvani Alarcon, allowing the former Orioles minor leaguer to reach first safely.  Sergio Romo came in with one out in the ninth and went on to pitch 2.2 scoreless innings for the win, including a 1-2-3 eleventh for Jalisco.  Leadoff hitter Alonzo Harris had three singles and a walk, scoring twice for manager Roberto Vizcarra's Charros.

The Charros' offense finally woke from their torpor on Friday by recording 15 hits during their 9-4 win over Lara.  Jalisco took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Victor Mendoza singled in Harris for one run and a Japhet Amador sacrifice fly scored Amadeo Zazueta from third for another.  A Gabriel Gutierrez RBI single made it a 3-0 Mexican lead in the fourth and while the Cardenales went on to plate four runs over the next two innings, there was no denying the Horsemen a win in this one.  Mendoza wrapped up a productive Caribbean Series by going 4-for-5 with two runs and four RBIs, including a three-run homer off Elvis Araujo in the sixth, while Zazueta singled twice and scored a part of tallies.  Starter Marco Tovar left the game with a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth, but it was Rafael Martin (from among seven relievers sent in by Vizcarra) who got the win by tossing 2.1 scoreless innings.

In the end, the tiebreaking formula did in Jalisco.  Despite outscoring both Las Tunas and Lara during group play, a slice of arcana called "Total Quality Balance" required the LMP kingpins to outscore the Cardenales by six runs Friday to have a chance of advancing to the finals.  As a result, even though the Cubans beat the Venezuelans, 3-0, Saturday to put all three Group A teams at 2-2, the Charros were done.

In Sunday's title game, Las Tunas met surprising host Herrera, who went 3-1 in Group B after winning only two of six games the previous week at the Latin American Series in Veracruz.  The Panamanians completed their Cinderella performance Sunday with a 3-1 win over Las Tunas, an amazing feat for a team whose country hadn't played in the Caribbean Series since 1960 and were only added to the field as tournament host after political turmoil forced organizers to move the event from Barquisimeto, Venezuela for the second year in a row.

The Charros can console themselves knowing they'd earned some redemption after losing their first two games, came in second among the six combatants with a .261 average and pitched reasonably well with a 2.92 team ERA, although that figure only ranked fifth among the teams as hurlers ruled the week (Las Tunas' team ERA was a paltry 1.40, yet the Cubans only won two of five contests).  Gutierrez led Jalisco with a .385 average over four games while Mendoza and Zazueta each batted .375.  Mendoza, who hit Mexico's only homer of the week, was named as first baseman on the CS Dream Team for his work.  Martin and Romo combined to allow no earned runs in nine innings out of the bullpen, with Romo collecting six strikeouts and letting up just one hit in his 4.2 frames of work.


LIGA ANNOUNCES 2019 SCHEDULE, LAGUNA FRANCHISE SOLD

Mexican League president Javier Salinas

The Mexican League held an Assembly of Presidents meeting last week in Mexico City, where they announced they have finalized the 2019 season schedule (although it has not yet been released to the public), confirmed their June All-Star Game and approved the sale of one of its franchises.

The regular season will open Thursday, April 4 in Monterrey when the defending Fall champion Sultanes will host the Yucatan Leones, who defeated Monterrey in last year's Spring title series.  One day later, the rest of the Liga's 16 teams will play their inaugural games.  The Mexico City Diablos Rojos are set to open their new Estado Alfredo Harp Helu on April 5 against longtime rival Quintana Roo, who shared the nation's capital with the Diablos for 46 years before moving to Puebla in 2002 and eventually landing in Cancun five years later.  The Diablos and Tigres have 28 Mexican League pennants between them, with Mexico City winning 16 titles.

The LMB will play a 120-game schedule this year, divided into two 60-game halves.  The first half will conclude just before All-Star Weekend commences on Saturday, June 15, a day which will feature both the traditional Home Run Derby and the Double Play Derby, a competition among top keystone combinations from around the league that debuted at last year's All-Star Weekend in Merida.  The host Yucatan Leones got the sweep as Luis "Cacao" Valdez beat Monterrey's Ricky Alvarez in the final round to win the Home Run Derby while Everth Cabrera and Diego Madero teamed up to beat out four other duos and cop the Double Play Derby last June 28.  One day later, the South crushed the North, 10-2, with veteran Mexico City outfielder Ivan Terrazas winning MVP honors at Parque Kukulcan.

The second half of the Liga season will open Friday, June 21 and run through Thursday, August 29.  If a single elimination game is required should the fourth- and fifth-place teams in either division finish within three games of each other, it would be played Saturday, August 31 at the fourth-place team's ballpark.  The full playoffs will begin September 3 with the division semifinals and conclude with the Serie del Rey between September 24 and October 2 (if a Game Seven is required).

Union Laguna players after 2018 win in Durango

Also at the Assembly meeting, owners approved the sale of the Union Laguna franchise by brothers Jose Juan and Erick Arellano to a group of businessmen headed by Francisco Orozco, the executive director of the Solucionika telecommunications company.  Orozco also owns his hometown Saltillo Dinos franchise in Mexico's League of American Football (LFA), a semipro circuit which will open its third season later this month.  Terms of the sale were not disclosed but the Arellanos made no secret of the fact that they wanted to take the Torreon-based team off their hands so they could focus all their time and resources on the Yucatan Leones, which they also own.

One of the conditions of the transaction was that the team, which may change its nickname from Algodoneros, will stay in the Torreon-Gomez Palacio area.  Last year, Union Laguna went 41-73 overall and missed the playoffs both seasons while playing in front of 176,931 fans in 55 openings at Estadio Revolucion, an 86-year-old ballpark seating 9,500.  One of the first items on the new ownership group's docket was to find a new manager and they did so with the selection of Jonathan Aceves, a former catcher who spent nine years in the White Sox system and one with the Marlins organization before playing another twelve summers in the Mexican League (all but one game with Saltillo).  He retired in the offseason.  Last year's Laguna skipper, Ramon Orantes, has taken the reins in Tabasco for 2019.

An added note from LMB president Javier Salinas was that while Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador recently promised the return of the Veracruz Rojos del Aguila to the port city, that will not happen before 2020 at the earliest and that the Liga is expected to play with the same 16 teams it ended last year with.

However, the jockeying may not be over yet.  Beatriz Pereyra of Proceso says that AMLO is determined to fulfill his promise to bring the LMB back to Veracruz this year, and that the Jalisco Charros of the Mexican Pacific League are being lobbied to field a summer team to bring the number of Mexican League teams up to 18.  The Monterrey Sultanes recently agreed to create an LMP team to play winterball with the reconstituted Guasave Algodoneros, the latter fulfilling another Lopez  Obrador promise.  An admitted baseball fanatic, AMLO seems to be remaking the sport in Mexico in a way not seen since the days of Jorge Pasquel.


LMB ENDS AGREEMENT WITH LIGA NORTE, LA PAZ ADDED TO LNM

In a move that sent shockwaves throughout the baseball community in northwest Mexico, the Mexican League has decided to not renew an agreement with the Northern Mexico League for the 2019 season.  The decision, which was announced by LMB president Javier Salinas late last month, means the Class AA Liga Norte will not receive financial assistance from the Class AAA Liga this year.  Teams in the LNM have served as affiliates for LMB franchises over the past several summers, which Salinas said may continue on an individual team-by-team basis despite the lack of a signed interleague agreement.

The move comes as a blow to the Liga Norte, which has relied on the Mexican League to help cover operating expenses for the six-team loop.  In his announcement, Salinas referred to a debt of 240,000 pesos (about US$12,585) that he would like to have paid to the LMB.  The LNM held a meeting in Tijuana last week that was attended by former major league infielder Edgar Gonzalez, who has been tabbed by Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to oversee the development and promotion of baseball on a nationwide basis.  Liga Norte president Francisco Ochoa Montano and others appear to be hoping their league, which is considered by some to be the top player development circuit in Mexico, can receive assistance from the federal government in lieu of lost support from the LMB league offices.

Estadio Arturo C. Nahl in La Paz

Earlier this year, the Liga Norte announced a new franchise, the La Paz Delfines, who will begin play in the Baja California Sur city this spring.  There has been past interest among officials from La Paz in securing a Mexican Pacific League franchise in the future, but the city of 244,000 will instead receive an LNM team to replace Tecate after the Indios requested a year off.  The Delfines will represent the first Liga Norte franchise to ever play outside the states of Sonora and Sinaloa in the loop's seven-year history.  Baja California Sur governor Carlos Mendoza Davis said, "We are proud of the announcement of the LNM and of the entrance of La Paz to this professional baseball circuit, fulfilling a wish of the fans who will be able to enjoy the games at Estadio Arturo C. Nahl, which will be completely rehabilitated."  The ballpark is expected to seat 3,800 spectators when league play opens April 12.

The Ensenada Marineros have won the last two LNM pennants.  They'll be joined in 2019 by La Paz, the Caborca Rojos, Puerto Penasco Tiburones, San Luis Algodoneros and San Quintin Freseros.  San Luis will play one more season at Estadio Andres Mena Montijo before moving into a new 7,500-seat in 2020, a year in which both Tecate and the Mexicali Sentinales are expected to return, making the Liga Norte an eight-team association.

ALL THREE LMP FIRST ROUND SETS GO TO GAME SIX

After the first week of the Mexican Pacific League postseason, all three first-round series have teams one win away from clinching a berth in the semifinals with Culiacan, Los Mochis and Mazatlan each leading their respective sets, 3 games to 2, heading into Monday's travel day.  With that in mind, let's take a look at last week's action:

Jalisco leads Culiacan, 3 games to 2

Jalisco Charros closer Sergio Romo

Culiacan opened the series last Tuesday with a 3-2 home win in a 10-inning thriller as Luis Alfonso Cruz' infield dribbler to third off Charros reliever Sergio Romo brought Ali Solis in from third with the game-winning run. Cruz and Rico Noel each had three hits the the Tomateros while Manny Rodriguez homered off Manny Barreda in the top of the first for the Charros.  One night later, Alonzo Harris belted a grand slam off former Indians farmhand Jeff Johnson in the seventh as Jalisco went on to even the series with a 7-4 win. Romo struggled again in the ninth, allowing a run, but held on for the save. Stephen Cardullo had three hits and scored twice for the winners while Sebastian Elizalde paced the Tomateros by going 2-for-4 with three RBIs.

After a travel day, the teams congregated in Guadalajara Friday, when the Charros won again in ten frames, this time by a 5-4 score as Amadeo Zazueta led off with a walkoff homer against reliever Juan Noriega (ironically a Jalisco native).  Zazueta and Henry Urrutia each had three hits for the Charros while Japhet Amador socked a seventh inning homer off MLB free agent Oliver Perez.  Elizalde had another strong effort in a losing cause for Culiacan, going 4-for-5 with two runs and a ribbie while ex-Yankee Ramiro Pena went deep for the Tomateros.  Jalisco took a 3-games-to-1 lead Saturday by walloping the defending champs, 11-1, in a game that was tied at a run apiece until the Charros pushed seven runs across in the bottom of the fifth as Rodriguez, Cardullo and Agustin Murillo each homered (the latter a three-run bomb) to support Horsemen starter Marco Tovar, who gave up one run and struck out five in as many innings.  Dariel Alvarez chipped in with four hits while Murillo and Urrutia split four hits and six RBIs.  Pena had two hits and scored the lone Tomateros run on a Solis double in the top of the fifth.

The Tomateros avoided elimination Sunday by topping Jalisco, 5-2, as veteran lefty Danny Rodriguez tossed six innings and allowed one unearned run to earn the win.  Rodriguez, who turned 34 last month, did not pitch last summer for Saltillo in the Mexican League and was only 2-5 for the Tomateros during the regular season, but he's been a big-game pitcher in the past and looked the part Sunday.  Rainel Rosario's two-run triple keyed a four-run fifth inning for the Tomateros that broke up a scoreless tie and the defending champs never looked back.  Game Six is set for Tuesday night in Culiacan.

Los Mochis leads Hermosillo, 3 games to 2

Hermosillo first baseman Dustin Geiger

The first four games of this series featured blowouts bookending a pair of close contests.  Los Mochis drew first blood by bombing the Naranjeros, 12-1, last Tuesday as Saul Soto's homer highlighted a Caneros' six-run fourth inning that kicked off a three-frame stretch that netted eleven runs for the visitors. Cuban starter Yoanys Quiala earned the win with six strong innings while 10-year MLB vet Jaime Garcia absorbed the loss for Hermosillo, allowing five runs on four hits, two walks and a throwing error over his two-inning start.  The Naranjeros came back Wednesday with a 6-5 triumph over Los Mochis in ten innings on Dustin Geiger's walkoff single off former three-time MLB All-Star closer Jose Valverde that brought in Garabez Rosa from second.  Geiger and Rosa had two hits each for the winners while Rudy Amador went 4-for-5 with a homer for the Caneros.

The series shifted to Los Mochis for Friday's Game Three, which was won by the Caneros, 5-3.  Alejandro Pena had a solid start for Willie Romero's team, going six innings and allowing one run on just two hits, striking out nine Orangemen.  Valverde had better luck this time, pitching a scoreless ninth to earn the save.  Leandro Castro and Josuan Hernandez had two hits each for Los Mochis, driving in five runs between them.  Jose Samayoa took the loss for Hermosillo, who got two hits apiece from Jasson Atondo and Jose Cardona.  The Naranjeros evened the series at two games each Saturday with a 12-2 thrashing of the Caneros.  Hermosillo was up 2-0 before plating ten runs between the fifth and seventh entradas to salt the game away.  Geiger had a huge night for the victors with seven (!) RBIs on three singles and a double while Atondo went 3-for-4 and scored four tallies to support starter Luis Mendoza (6 IP, 1 R, 4H) in the win.  Diory Hernandez had two hits for the Caneros, including a homer off Mendoza.

There would be no similar offensive explosion by either team during Sunday's Game Five, as Hermosillo starter Juan Pablo Oramas and Caneros hurler Quiala (making his second start of the series) locked horns in a scoreless battle that carried into the top of the seventh.  Irving Lopez hit a two-out grounder to deep short off Quiala that Isaac Rodriguez wasn't able to make a play on for an infield single, after which Cardona lined a double to left field to score Lopez with the game's first run.  The Caneros tied the game back up in the bottom of the seventh when former Toronto farmhand Jonathan Jones cracked a two-out solo homer off reliever Jake Sanchez to even the score at 1-1. Los Mochis took the lead for good in the bottom of the eighth when Sanchez walked both Josuan and Diory Hernandez (no relation) before being replaced by Garcia, who walked Esteban Quiroz to load the bases.  Exit Garcia and enter Zack Jones, who gave up a two-run single to Amador to put the Caneros up 3-2.  Valverde entered the game in the ninth and three outs later, Los Mochis had both the comeback win and the series lead.  After Monday's off-day, Game Six will be played Tuesday in Hermosillo.

Mazatlan leads Obregon, 3 games to 2

Jeremias Pineda in a rare standstill moment

This series has favored the home team, with the team batting second winning all of the first four tilts. Game One was held last Tuesday in Obregon, where the Yaquis emerged as 3-2 winners as Jesus "Cacoa" Valdez smacked a ninth-inning walkoff homer off Mazatlan reliever Edgar Torres.  Yaquis starter Yoanner Negrin put in seven good innings, letting in two runs on six hits and striking out six, but closer Maikal Cleto had a 1-2-3 outing in the top of the ninth and was awarded the win via Valdez' homer.  The loss wasted a strong outing by starter Casey Harman (6 IP, 2 R, 4 H) for the Venados, who got three hits from Alex Liddi in defeat.  Obregon won again last Wednesday, this time by a 3-1 count.  Brazilian pitcher Andre Rienzo had a solid outing for the Yaquis with 7.1 innings of one-run ball to earn the win.  Victor Mendoza poleaxed a two-run homer off Mazatlan starter Konner Wade in the seventh to put the Tribe in the lead while Jefri Perez added an insurance run with an RBI double one inning later.  Jeremias Pineda homered off Rienzo in the top of the third for the Venados.

The action moved to Mazatlan for Friday's Game Three, won by the Venados, 6-1.  Deer starter Irwin Delgado allowed 11 hits over 5.1 innings and somehow let in just one run as Obregon went 2-for-15 with runners in scoring position and left ten men stranded on base for the night.  Pineda was 3-for-4 with a double, triple, a run and two RBIs for Mazatlan.  The Yaquis' 6th and 7th batters (Isaac Paredes and Juan Carlos Gamboa) each had three hits but neither scored nor drove in a run.  The Venados tied the series on Saturday with a 5-2 win over the visitors.  Sebastian Valle swatted a homer in the third but Mazatlan won by pushing three runs across the plate in the eighth, when a Cleto wild pitch to Brian Hernandez with the bases loaded brought in Valle with the go-ahead run and a Hernandez sacrifice fly to center sent Pineda in from third.  A Ramon Rios RBI single brought in Justin Greene with an insurance run and it was left to former Atlanta reliever Brandon Cunniff to post a 1-2-3 ninth the end the game and earn the save for the Venados.

As was the case in the Game Five tilt between Los Mochis and Hermosillo on the same evening, the Venados and Yaquis contest featured a pitcher's duel to wrap up the Mazatlan leg of the series Sunday.  Starters Negrin of Obregon and Harman of the Venados swapped zeroes until Mazatlan broke through with two out in the bottom of the fifth, when Negrin uncorked a wild pitch to Pineda that sailed past veteran catcher Iker Franco, allowing the 6'4" Liddi to rumble down from third with the game's first score.  The Venados' slim 1-0 lead was maintained precariously the rest of the way, as Cunniff came on in the ninth and held Obregon scoreless for his second save in as many night.  The series now moves back to Obregon for Tuesday night's Game Six.


TOBIS, CHILEROS ADVANCE TO LIV TITLE SERIES

The Acayucan Tobis and Xalapa Chileros were both extended to a full five games, but each won their Veracruz Winter League semifinal playoff series last week and are meeting in the LIV championship series.

The defending champion Tobis, who cruised to the regular season title with an 18-3 record, were expected to make short work of the Jaltex Astros, who finished at 8-13 and barely squeezed past the Veracruz Rojos for the fourth and final playoff berth.  Instead, after dropping a wild 13-11 series opener December 22 in Acayucan on Cuban Yadil Mujica's walkoff grand slam , the Astros won the second and third games of their best-of-5 series to stand one victory away from the league finals.  The Tobis bounced back to tie the set with a 2-0 Game Four shutout December 29 in Jaltex to set up Game Five in Acayucan on December 30.

Although the Astros took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first frame of that contest, the Tobis plated four runs in the second (with Ramon Ramirez contributing a three-run homer) and went on to post a 10-2 laugher, punching their ticket to the LIV finals. The Mexican League's 2017 batting champion, Yadir Drake, added a two-run bomb while Rigoberto Armenta's three singles paced a 15-hit attack from manager Edgar Castro's squad.

Cordoba went 14-6 in the regular season to finish in second place, a game ahead of 13-7 Xalapa.  The Cafeteleros took Game One of their semifinal at home, 7-6, on December 22 before the Chileros won Games Two and Three to pull ahead in the series, which (like the other semi) alternated venues from game to game.  Cordoba won Game Four, 6-5, on December 29 to bring the series home the following day for Game Five.

Although Xalapa would prevail in the rubber match on December 30, the Chileros' 8-3 triumph required a six-run sixth inning to put the visitors ahead for good.  Trailing 3-2 heading into the frame, Xalapa sent twelve men to the plate and while they scored six times, it was due more to a Cordoba implosion than a Chileros outburst at the plate as Xalapa registered just two hits in the inning, including a single by Alan Garcia that drove in Eduardo Arredondo with the tying run and Kevin Flores with the go-ahead tally.  The inning also featured five walks (one intentional), an error, a stolen base and a wild pitch before Cafeteleros reliever Jahir Perez got Garcia to fly out in his second plate appearance of the inning to mercifully end the entrada.  Winner Marco Quevedo, Jesus Garcia and Alexis Lara blanked Cordoba over the final three innings on one hit to seal the victory and send the Chileros to the best-of-7 finals, where they won two games in Acayucan over the weekend (next Monday's BBM will include an update of the LIV championship series).

The winner of the title set will represent both the Veracruz Winter League and Mexico in the Latin American Series at Estadio Beisbol de Roberto Avila in the city of Veracruz.  The Serie Latinoamericana brings together champions from six winter leagues in a competition ranked one level below the Caribbean Series.  Nicaragua's Chinandega Tigres are the defending LAS champions.

VERACRUZ WINTER LEAGUE
Championship Series Schedule
Game 1: Xalapa 7, Acayucan 5
Game 2: Xalapa 8, Acayucan 6
Game 3: Acayucan at Xalapa, Friday, January 11 (TBA)
Game 4: Acayucan at Xalapa, Saturday, January 12 (TBA)
Game 5: Acayucan at Xalapa, Sunday, January 13 (TBA)*
Game 6: Xalapa at Acayucan, Saturday, January 19 (4PM)*
Game 7: Xalapa at Acayucan, Sunday, January 20 (1PM)*
*-If necessary.  All times local.


LEON SIGNS JAPANESE PITCHER, FORMER ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

New Leon Bravos pitcher Yasutomo Kobo

The Leon Bravos have signed veteran pitcher Yasutomo Kobo for the upcoming season.  The 38-year-old right-hander spent 13 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball, toiling mostly as a starter for the Chiba Lotte Marines, Hanshin Tigers and Yokohama BayStars before a stint last year in the United States in two independent leagues.

Kobo debuted with the Marines in 2005 and went 10-3 with a 3.40 ERA in 18 starts, tossing five complete games (three of them shutouts) for manager Bobby Valentine.  That effort earned the 5'11" 185-pounder the Pacific League Rookie of the Year award in a season where future MLBer Nori Aoki was accorded similar honors in the Central League while playing outfield for the Yakult Swallows.

After that, Kobo's fortunes were mixed as he fell to a 7-13 record and a 4.55 ERA for the Marines in 22 starts in 2006.  He ended up going 30-31 over four summers in Chiba before ending up with the Central League Hanshin Tigers in 2009.  After a 9-8 campaign, Kobo turned in his best NPB season for the Tigers, posting a 14-5 mark with a 3.25 ERA and making his lone All-Star Game appearance as the Tigers finished in a virtual tie for second with with the Yomiuri Giants with a 78-63 record, one game behind the Chunichi Dragons.  Kobo would spend three more years in Nishinomiya and while he didn't pitch badly for Hanshin, he never had the success he'd seen in 2010.  He was dealt to the Yokohama BayStars following a 2013 campaign in which he pitched out of the bullpen, going 3-4 with six saves in 44 relief appearances.

As in his previous two stops, Kobo had one double-figure season in wins in Yokohama, registering a 12-6 ledger for the BayStars in 2014 to augment a 3.33 ERA.  After that, however, he only went 17-17 over the next three seasons in 43 starts as injuries began to pop up.  His last season in NPB was the 2017 campaign, when he was 4-2 with a 5.35 ERA in seven starts over 62.2 innings prior to his release.  During his 13-year career in Japanese baseball, Kobo was a combined 97-86 with a 3.70 earned-run average, including eight shutouts and those six saves with the Tigers in 2013.

Kobo then crossed the Pacific to pitch in 2018, first for the SouthShore RailCats of Gary, Indiana in the independent American Association.  He spent less than two weeks with the RailCats in late June and early July, starting twice and relieving once and earning no decisions while turning in a 4.05 ERA.  He was let go on July 7 but was picked up nine days later by the Atlantic League's Sugar Land Skeeters, managed by ex-Rangers outfielder Pete Incaviglia and featuring teammates familiar to Mexican baseball fans like Konner Wade, Casey Coleman and Welington Dotel.  Kobo enjoyed a measure of success pitching in the Houston suburb, joining the Skeeters' rotation and going 5-2 in ten starts for the eventual ALPB champions, but only having a 5.14 ERA to show for 56 innings.

And now it's on to Leon as Kobo pitches in his third country in as many summers.  The Bravos are hoping the addition of the former NPB Rookie of the Year will spur interest among the estimated 5,200 Japanese nationals living in the region while working for such corporations as Honda, Mazda and Toyota.  New owners Grupo Multimedios is using the same mindset with the defending LMB champion Monterrey Sultanes, who they also co-own.  The Sultanes recently signed Korean pitcher Hyun-Jun Park, a 32-year-old right-hander who spent time in the KBO and won 13 games for the LG Twins in 2011, in part to appeal to the estimated ten thousand Asians living in the Monterrey area.

SULTANES WIN LIGA FALL PENNANT; LMP SEASON OPENS

Sultanes 3B Agustin Murillo hoists the LMB title trophy

Ramiro Pena's walkoff single in the bottom of the ninth inning drove in Chris Roberson with the final run of the Fall 2018 season as Monterrey defeated Oaxaca, 3-2, last Tuesday in Game Six of the Mexican League's Serie del Rey.  The win clinched the Sultanes' eighth LMB pennant and Monterrey's tenth Liga flag overall since the northern city entered the circuit in 1939 (the former Industriales team won titles in 1943 and 1947).

Oaxaca took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when Alejandro Gonzalez' two-out single to right off Monterrey starter Anthony Vasquez brought in Game Five hero Samar Leyva from second to give the underdog Guerreros the early advantage.  Sultanes rightfielder Sebastian Elizalde's throw to the plate allowed Gonzalez to scamper to second base while Alan Sanchez moved 90 feet to third, but Vasquez got Erick Rodriguez to ground out to Pena at shortstop, ending the threat.

Monterrey came back two innings later with a run to even the score at 1-1.  Agustin Murillo, who had a splendid series, opened the bottom of the fourth by lining a double to left off Oaxaca starter Ruddy Acosta.  Murillo was able to go from first to third during a Felix Perez groundout to Guerreros first sacker Henry Urrutia, then plated the Sultanes' first score on a Roberson single.  The Oakland native was able to advance to third on a Ramon Rios single, but died 90 feet from paydirt when Elizalde lofted a fly ball to Gonzalez in right to end the entrada.

The two teams remained deadlocked until the top of the eighth.  Gonzalez led off by singling to left against Monterrey reliever Ozzie Mendez, moved to second on a Rodriguez sacrifice and took third on Jay Austin's groundout to Rios at second before Vasquez uncorked a wild pitch to Julian Ornelas, allowing Gonzalez to streak in with the Guerreros' go-ahead run.  The Sultanes came back in the bottom of the eighth to knot the game back up at 2-2 when Murillo's sacrifice fly to Ornelas in left brought in pinch-runner Marco Guzman (son of longtime LMB catcher and manager Marco Antonio Guzman) from third.  Monterrey closer Wirfin Obispo then came in to retire the Oaxacans without a score in top of the ninth, setting up the Sultanes' pennant-winning heroics.

Roberson started things off by doubling an 0-1 Samuel Zazueta pitch to right, then skipped over to third when Rios laid down a bunt in front of home plate that Zazueta could only throw to Urrutia at first for the out.  Monterrey manager Roberto Kelly brought in Yadir Drake as a pinch-hitter for Elizalde, but Zazueta intentionally walked the 2017 LMB batting champion to put Sultanes runners at the corners.  That was a temporary situation, as pinch-runner Leo German (in for Drake) stole second whil Zazueta was working on the next batter, Arturo Rodriguez.  At that point, Rodriguez was intentionally walked to load the bases with Julio Borbon coming up.  Zazueta struck out Borbon swinging on four pitches for the second out, but Pena grounded the first pitch he saw up the middle to score Roberson from third, ending the game and season to the delight of an Estadio Monterrey sellout crowd of 21,909.

Obispo was awarded his second win of the Serie del Rey for his one inning of work, but Vasquez (who allowed five Oaxaca runs on seven hits in 2.2 innings in Game Two) gave the winners eight solid frames of pitching, letting in two runs and scattering five hits while walking one.  Zazueta absorbed the loss after allowing the winning run on three hits and two walks, also in one frame.  The 21-year-old Obregon product pitched in every game of the finals for manager Sergio Gastelum's Guerreros and generally did well before wilting in Game Six.  Guerreros starter Acosta acquitted himself well, giving up one run and scattering four hits in 5.1 innings before being replaced by Mendez.

Murillo was named the Serie del Rey MVP after helping the Sultanes win their first pennant since 2007.  While the Tijuana-born third baseman's finals numbers of a .308 batting average with two homers and five RBIs are hardly off-the-charts, Guty's two-run game-tying homer in the bottom of the ninth in Game Two was a shocking blow the Guerreros never really recovered from while his Game Three performance (3-for-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBIs) was key in giving the Sultanes a series lead they never relinquished.


MEXICAN PACIFIC LEAGUE OPENS 2018-19 CAMPAIGN

Mexicali P Javier Solano was dominant Friday

When Culiacan pitcher James Russell threw a pitch to Navojoa centerfielder Alonzo Harris at 8:10 last Friday night it marked the opening of the Mexican Pacific League's 2018-19 regular season.  Let the record show it was a ball, as Russell fell behind in the count 3-0 before eventually getting Harris to pop out to Tomateros third baseman Ronnier Mustelier in foul territory for the first OUT of the season.

Navojoa went on to beat defending champion Culiacan, 8-2, as a crowd of 19,210 jammed Estadio Tomateros.  The Mayos knocked Russell, who spent seven years in the majors for the Cubs and Phillies between 2010 and 2016, for six runs on seven hits over 4.1 innings.  The 32-year-old served up a two-run homer to Fernando Flores in the second and a solo blast to Harris (an ex-Mets farmhand) in the third as the Mayos outhit the Tomateros by a 13-7 margin, with four Navojoa players collecting two hits each

In Friday's other opener, Mexicali shut out Hermosillo, 3-0, as former MexPac pitching champion Javier Solano blanked the Naranjeros over six innings, giving up two hits, striking out 12 and walking none.  It was a vintage performance for Solano, who turned in a 10-6 record in the LMB last summer for Monterrey and Quintana Roo but had an ERA of 5.31 ERA over the two seasons.

Two more openers were played Saturday.  Visiting Mazatlan overcame a two-run sixth inning deficit to pull past Jalisco, 5-4.  The game lasted until a minute before midnight as a combined 15 pitchers took the mound for both teams.  Former Cubs prospect Anthony Giansanti went 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs for manager Joe Alvarez' Venados and newcomer Quincy Latimore, who was dealt to the Deer by Navojoa in the offseason, also had three hits and scored twice.

Obregon got strong outings from starter Nate Reed (5 IP, 1 R, 2 H) and four relievers to earn a 4-1 road win at Los Mochis Saturday.  The Yaquis got a three-hit night from John Nogowski but it was a two-run single by number 9 batter Juan Carlos Gamboa that keyed a four-run Obregon fourth inning to in essence put the game away for the visitors.

Four more openers in the MexPac's traditional two-game, home-and-away series were played Sunday.  Mexicali went to 2-0 on the season with an 8-3 win at Hermosillo as Ricardo Serrano highlighted a four-run Aguilas second by slamming a three-run homer off Scott Copeland.  Mazatlan is likewise 2-0 after blanking Jalisco, 1-0, on a one-hitter spun by Venados starter Jose Hernandez and five relievers.  Visiting Culiacan topped the Navojoa Mayos, 2-1, as International League MVP and Triple Crown winner Joey Meneses singled in Dylan Moore with the tiebreaking run in the top of the ninth.  A Ramon Urias RBI single in the top of the eleventh brought in the go-ahead score as Los Mochis went on to an 8-6 triumph in Obregon.

In all, 120,705 fans attended the eight openers, an average of 15,088 per game as all contests sold out.  Ballpark renovations have not been completed in either Mazatlan or Los Mochis, but both projects are expected to be completed in time for the January playoffs.  In the offseason, the LMP expanded the limit of foreign players from eight to 14 per team in response to the Mexican League's expanded schedule.  While roster churn is an accepted fact of life in the circuit, the first half is expected to be more active than usual as domestic players who've been performing in the LMB playoffs will become available over the next few weeks.


 PITCHER ORTEGA RETIRES, WILL COACH IN OBREGON

Tigres P Pablo Ortega after his 2011 no-hitter

Pablo Ortega earned a living as a pitcher for nearly two decades by baffling opposing batsmen in both the Mexican and Mexican Pacific Leagues until he finally found someone he couldn't beat forever: Padre Tiempo (or Father Time).

Ortega, who turns 42 on November 7, has announced his retirement as a player after a forgettable Fall 2018 season with the Quintana Roo Tigres in which he went 1-5 with a 9.55 ERA in ten starts.  He'd had a respectable Spring campaign with the Tigres, going 3-2 with a 3.18 ERA in eight outings, including a May 10 complete game 5-0 shutout over Leon in Cancun, scattering five singles and throwing 63 strikes in the 93-pitch performance.  However, the wheels gradually fell off Ortega's wagon in the second season, one that saw the Tigres miss the postseason for the first time in years.  His final outing was an August 29 start against defending champion Yucatan in Merida, where he lasted 3.1 innings and allowed four runs on seven hits before QR manager Raul Sanchez replaced him with Luis Ivan Rodriguez, who'd just turned 22 and hadn't even been born when El Maestro began his career.

The Nuevo Laredo native made his Mexican League debut in 1995 with his hometown Dos Laredos Tecolotes as an 18-year-old.  Ortega didn't set the Liga on fire over his five appearances (two starts) that year, going 0-1 with a 5.93 ERA, but he showed enough to earn a contract with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who had not yet fielded a team at the Major League level.  The 6'2" righthander spent four years in the Rays system and turned in a 30-38 record, pitching once for AAA Durham in 1999 before returning south of the border the following year.

That was when his legacy as a Mexican baseball pitcher began as he was 11-3 for the Mexico City Tigres and was the championship series MVP for the 2000 LMB pennant winners, the first of six Liga titles Ortega would win (all for the Tigres).  Although he would spend all or part of 2002 and 2003 with the Puebla Pericos, Ortega would become a mainstay in the Tigres rotation during his career.  He reached double figures in wins nine times and was selected to at least six All-Star Games.  He was named the LMB Pitcher of the Year in 2003 and Comeback Player of the Year in 2011, a year in which he was 10-3 (including a no-hitter against Veracruz) for the Tigres after going 2-6 with an 8.24 ERA the previous summer.  For his Mexican League career, Ortega was 164-107 and he turned in a 4.34 ERA, a respectable figure for a hitter's league like the LMB.  He had 1,174 strikeouts in 2,191 innings pitched.

El Maestro didn't limit his skills to the Liga.  He spent 17 winters pitching in the Mexican Pacific League, pitching for three title teams, and also appeared in the Caribbean Series (winning the 2005 CS with Mazatlan) and was on the Mexican National Team for several international tournaments, including the World Baseball Classic, Olympic Games qualifiers, Pan American Games, Central American and Caribbean Games and Americas Cup competitions.

While Ortega was in training camp with the MexPac's Obregon Yaquis when he announced his retirement, he won't be stepping away from the game.  He'll stay on with the Yaquis this winter as a bullpen coach under new manager Oscar Robles, who faced Ortega as a batter several times over the years as a player in Mexico City Oaxaca and Tijuana.

OAXACA TOPS SULTANES, STAY ALIVE IN SERIE DEL REY

Oaxaca's Samar Leyva stroked a bases-loaded pitch from Monterrey closer Wirfin Obispo into the left field corner to bring in Yuniesky Betancourt with the winning run as the Guerreros topped the Sultanes, 6-5, in ten innings Sunday night at Oaxaca's Parque Eduardo Vasconcelos.  The win ended Monterrey's three-game Serie del Rey win streak and brought the Warriors to within a game of the Sultanes, who lead the Mexican League championship series, 3 games to 2.

Game Six is set for Tuesday night in Monterrey.

GAME 1 - Tuesday, October 2

Oaxaca 4-11-0, MONTERREY 1-3-1

W-A. Delgado. L-E. Gonzalez.

Oaxaca pitcher Alex Delgado

Alex Delgado mastered the Sultanes in the opener at Estadio Monterrey, blanking the hosts on two singles before exiting after 93 pitches with two out in the bottom of the seventh inning.  Ex-Yankee Ramiro Pena did double off Samuel Zazueta in the eighth to score Ramon Rios and put the Sultanes on the board, but Oaxaca had been protecting a 4-0 lead since the second inning and a 1-2-3 ninth sealed the opening win on the road for manager Sergio Gastelum's club.

Yuniesky Betancourt doubled twice, drove in three runs and scored another to have a hand in every Oaxaca score but the story was Delgado, who battled out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam in the third when he induced Pena to pop out to Leyva at short and struck out Agustin Murillo to end the threat.  The 23-year-old Mexicali-born lefty struck out nine and walked two. Former Arizona starter Edgar Gonzalez took the loss for Monterrey in front of 21,909 at home.

GAME 2 - Wednesday, October 3

MONTERREY 7-9-0, Oaxaca 6-12-1.  

W-W. Obispo. L-C. Felix.

Monterrey third baseman Agustin Murillo

Murillo got revenge for his inning-ending whiff the night before in a huge way by drilling a two-run, two-out homer to left off Carlos Felix in the bottom of the ninth to erase a 6-4 Oaxaca lead and what looked like a sure Guerreros win. Two-time 2018 homer champion Felix Perez then launched a Felix pitch into the seats in right center to cap the stunning walkoff win and give the Sultanes a 1-1 split of the first leg of the Serie del Rey before another sellout crowd of 21,909 at Estadio Monterrey.

Perez ended the night with three hits and three runs for the winners, who touched Oaxaca starter Irwin Delgado (Alex' cousin) for four runs on six hits and three walks over the first six frames.  The Guerreros chased Monterrey starter Anthony Vasquez after 2.2 frames by plating five runs on seven hits as Oaxaca outhit the Sultanes, 12 to 6. Alan Sanchez had three safeties for the visitors, driving in three runs.  Wirfin Obispo pitched a scoreless ninth for the win while Felix was tagged with the loss.

GAME 3 - Friday, October 5

Monterrey 5-10-1, OAXACA 1-6-0  

W-J. DePaula. L-R. Acosta.

Monterrey pitcher Jose De Paula

Murillo's revenge carried past last Thursday's travel day and into Game Three in Oaxaca.  The veteran third sacker went 3-for-4 and homering off Erick Casillas in the top of the eighth to cap a night in which he also drove in Ramiro Pena with a second-inning single.  Pena, Julio Borbon and Felix Perez combined for another six hits, four runs and a ribbie for manager Roberto Kelly's Sultanes, who pulled into a 2-games-to-1 series lead in front of 7,000 onlookers in the Parque Eduardo Vasconcelos stands.

Former Yankees prospect Jose De Paula, who had only pitched winterball in his home Dominican Republic since 2015 before hooking on with Monterrey this year, tossed six shutout innings for the Sultanes.  He scattered five hits and a walk while striking out six. Ruddy Acosta absorbed the loss for Oaxaca, getting roughed up for three runs on four hits and three walks over 1.2 innings. The Guerreros got a single and double from Samar Leyva in the defeat.

GAME 4 - Saturday, October 6

Monterrey 3-9-0, OAXACA 2-8-2

W-D. Martinez. L-J.C. Medina.

Monterrey second baseman Ramon Rios

The Sultanes scored three runs in the top of the second, then had to hang on late for a 3-2 win in Oaxaca with 7,150 in attendance.  Jose Amador led off the second with a double off Guerreros starter Jose Carlos Medina, who then gave up consecutive singles to Chris Roberson, Ramon Rios (scoring Amador from third) and Sebastian Elizalde to bring in Roberson.  After an Ali Solis flyout, Julio Borbon's single plated Rios to give the Sultanes a 3-0 lead they carried into the seventh.

That's when Oaxaca fought back with two runs off reliever Felipe Gonzalez, who gave up an RBI triple to Samar Leyva before his pitch to Alejandro Gonzalez eluded catcher Solis, allowing Leyva to score but that's as close as it got.  Sultanes starter Dallas Martinez, another former Yanks farmhand, earned the win with six shutout innings while Medina was charged with the defeat. Amador had two hits for Monterrey while Julian Ornelas singled twice for the Guerreros.

GAME 5 - Sunday, October 7

OAXACA 6-13-1, Monterrey 5-16-1  

W-S. Zazueta. L-W. Obispo.

Oaxaca shortstop Samar Leyva

The Sultanes broke a 1-1 tie by scoring twice in the top of the fourth on a Ramon Rios double and Ali Solis, both with two out, and plating two more runs in the fifth on Ramiro Pena's leadoff homer against Alex Delgado and a Julian Ornelas RBI double to give Monterrey a 5-1 bulge.  With starter Marco Tovar having retired 10 of the last 11 Guerreros batsmen he'd faced since the first, the Sultanes appeared poised to win Monterrey's tenth LMB pennant before a full house of 7,230 hostile Oaxacan witnesses.

Instead, the Guerreros roared back to chase Tovar and tie the game with four runs in the bottom of the fifth.  Julian Ornelas doubled in one run and later scored the tying tally on Henry Urrutia's groundout. The two teams then traded zeros into the bottom of the tenth, when Monterrey closer Wirfin Obispo allowed a Yuniesky Betancourt single and walked both Dustin Geiger and Alan Sanchez to load the bases, allowing Samar Leyva's liner to left to bring Betancourt in with the walkoff run.  Obispo was handed the defeat while Guerreros middleman Samuel Zazueta got credit for the win.