LEYVA KEEPS LEONES ALIVE; OJEDA SUSPENDED

C Sebastian Valle and P Elian Leyva, Yucatan

The Mexican League South Division Championships are moving back to Mexico City for Game Six on Tuesday after pitcher Elian Leyva’s masterful outing Sunday in Merida kept his Yucatan Leones afloat in their battle with the Diablos Rojos, who lead the best-of-7 series, 3-games-to-2. 

Leyva, a two-time Mexican Pacific League Pitcher of the Year (including last winter), tossed seven shutout innings of one-hit ball Sunday as the Leones outlasted the Diablos, 2-0, in front of a third consecutive sellout crowd of 14,917 at venerable Parque Kukulkan. Leyva struck out eight Mexico City batters before leaving the scoreless tie after the top of the seventh. In the bottom of the frame, Art Charles lined a two-run homer to straightaway center field off Diablos reliever David Huff, who’d replaced starter Jeffry Nino after the latter had whitewashed Yucatan over the first six entradas. Charles’ blast was enough as three Yucatan relievers held Mexico City scoreless over the final two innings with Jorge Rondon striking out the dangerous Roberto Ramos looking to end the contest, after which fans in Merida danced and sang in the ballpark’s esplanade during a postgame concert by bands El Fresca and La Sentencia.

The series opened last Tuesday at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in the nation’s capital with an 11-10 Diablos win in eleven innings. The contest featured five homers among the 36 combined hits from the two combatants, but it was a bases-loaded walkoff single from Jesus Fabela off Rondon that scored pinch-runner Antonio Castaneda that ended the tilt in the bottom of the eleventh as 14,528 fanaticos looked on. Juan Carlos Gamboa socked two homers for the winners, including a grand slam in the bottom of the first inning, while Charles belted a roundtripper for the Leones in the top of the tenth.

After a Tuesday rainout, Game Two of the LMB South title set was played last Wednesday as the Leones triumphed, 15-8, and did something Puebla was unable to achieve in their division semis against Mexico City: Hold the Diablos to less than 10 runs. As 18,851 watched, Yucatan scored 12 times between the third and sixth innings to take a 12-6 lead and never looked back. Yadir Drake homered and drove in four runs for the Lions while Luis Juarez went 3-for-5 and two RBIs. Moises Gutierrez led the Red Devils with two hits (including a homer) and two ribbies as every starting batter for both teams had at least one of the game’s combined 31 hits except for Diablos catcher Julian Leon, the Puebla series hero who struck out three times. Sic transit gloria.

The series shifted to Merida for Game Three last Thursday, with the visiting Diablos taking an 8-3 win behind the bats of Julian Ornelas (who went 4-for-5 with two homers, scoring four runs and driving in three) and Gamboa, who had three hits, including an RBI single. Cristhian Adames hit a solo homer for the Leones while pinch-hitter Lazaro Alfonso socked a two-run bomb in the ninth to give the home crowd of 14,917 something to cheer about but it was too little, too late. Diablos reliever Huff got the win after going 2.1 scoreless innings and striking out four Yucatan batsmen while Leones starter Henderson Alvarez (5 innings, 4 runs) took the loss.

Another rainout delayed Game Four until Saturday, which saw another Mexico City road win in front of one more full house of 14,917 at Parque Kukulkan, albeit by a closer 6-5 score. The Leones led, 4-3, after one inning thanks to Josh Fuentes’ two-run single, but the Diablos tied the tilt in the fifth and a Fabela bunt scored Gutierrez with the go-ahead run one frame later. Ramos had a resourceful night for the Red Devils as the former KBO star drove in three runs and scored once on a double, a sacrifice fly and a plunking by Hunter Cervenka while Gamboa stroked a two-run single in the first. Francisco Haro came out of the bullpen to replace starter Humberto Sosa two outs into the first and pitched 6.1 scoreless innings (allowing two hits and striking out 11) for the win. Jake Thompson, normally a starter for Yucatan, took the loss in relief after giving up Fabela’s run-scoring sacrifice bunt during his two-inning stint as the Diablos found themselves one win away from the Serie del Rey going into Leyva’s season-saving heroics on Sunday. Game Six is set for 8PM Eastern on Tuesday in Mexico City.

Not all the drama in the series has been on the field. Former big league and Liga catcher Miguel Ojeda, who managed Mexico City to their last pennant in 2014 and is now the team’s sports manager, was suspended for a year by LMB president Horacio de la Vegas after it was discovered the Diablos used a television camera in center field to steal signs from Yucatan catcher Sebastian Valle during the first two games of the series at Estadio AHH. The Leones front office told de la Vega of their suspicions last week and after an investigation, Ojeda received his suspension Sunday, as did Diablos TV producer Marco Antonio Avila Toledo.

SULTANES SWEEP CHAMPS, ON TO SERIE DEL REY

Victor Mendoza, Monterrey Sultanes 1B

Given the sometimes-heated nature of the rivalry between the Monterrey Sultanes and the defending Mexican League champion Tijuana Toros over the past few years, there was much anticipation going into their LMB North Championship Series last week. As it turned out, the anticipation exceeded the event as the Sultanes swept the Toros in four straight games to advance to the pennant-deciding Serie del Rey later this week.

Monterrey took the first two games at Tijuana’s Estadio Nacional, opening the series last Monday with a 6-2 win over the Toros in front of 10,081 spectators. The Sultanes were paced offensively by homers from Sebastian Elizalde and Zoilo Almonte and Orlando Calixte’s 3-for-5 night at the plate as starter Yohander Mendez turned in a strong five innings for the winners. Mendez, who was 7-0 and led the LMB with a 2.78 ERA during the regular season, gave up just one run on a Nick Williams triple in the fifth while striking out eight to earn the win as Agustin Murillo’s RBI single in the eighth accounted for the Toros’ other run. TJ starter Nick Struck didn’t have a bad outing, going five innings and giving up 2 runs on 3 hits, but he couldn’t match Mendez’ mound mastery (no extra charge for the alliteration).

Game Two on Tuesday in Tijuana was more of the same as strong Monterrey pitching keyed a Sultanes road win, this time by a 4-1 count. It was mostly a pitcher’s duel except for one pitch: Toros starter Manny Barreda dished up a three-run homer to Calixte in the top of the fourth that decided the game for all intent and purposes. Leandro Castro broke up Monterrey’s shutout bid in the seventh with a solo homer off reliever Juan Gamez with 15,313 watching at Estadio Nacional, but the night belonged to the Sultanes pitching staff. Julio Teheran has had a great postseason thus far for manager Roberto Kelly’s troops as the former Braves starter threw six innings of two-hit baseball in blanking the potent Toros. Barreda went five frames and struck out eight while allowing five hits, but took the loss for Tijuana.

After a travel day, the series resumed at Estadio Monterrey as 17,241 were in the stands for a 2-1 knucklebiter win in 13 innings for the Sultanes last Thursday. The game was scoreless heading into the bottom of the seventh, when Elizalde scored from third after a Javy Guerra pitch eluded Tijuana catcher Xorge Carrillo. Guerra had relieved Toros starter Humberto Mejia after Elizalde opened the inning with a single, but promptly hit Zoilo Almonte with his first pitch, advancing Elizalde to second. Guerra gave himself a little breathing room by inducing Victor Mendoza to ground into a 3-6-1 double play as Elizalde moved to third on the play but Carrillo mishandled a pitch while he pitched to Calixte. Murillo tied the game in the top of the ninth by coming in from third on a bases-loaded forceout at second on a grounder from Nick Williams. The two teams battled for three more scoreless innings until Mendoza’s walkoff single off Kyle Lobstein in the bottom of the 13th brought in Gustavo Nunez with the game-winner, giving the Sultanes a 3-games-to-1 advantage.

The series (and Tijuana’s season) ended last Friday as Monterrey completed the sweep with a 12-11 home win with a sellout crowd of 21,000 fans in the stands. After allowing four runs over the first three games, the Sultanes pitching basically took the night off as a Junior Lake solo homer in the top of the ninth gave the Toros an 11-9 lead. Former MLB All-Star Fernando Rodney took the mound in the bottom of the inning and was one out away from the save after getting the first two Sultanes.

As anyone who’s followed Rodney’s career knows, however, two outs are never enough as the 45-year-old righty (second to Monterrey’s Neftali Feliz with 22 saves in the regular season) then gave up singles to Nunez and Jose Cardona and walked Elizalde to load the bases. Rodney then walked Almonte to score Nunez, making it an 11-10 Tijuana lead, then gave up a single to Mendoza to plate Cardona with the tying run and Elizalde with the game winner in what could well have been Fernando’s last pitch in Tijuana togs, given the capricious nature of Toros owner Alberto Uribe. Uribe may also be wondering why manager Homar Rojas left a struggling Rodney in to face Mendoza while leaving Struck, a successful long-time reliever in Mexico until last year who hadn’t pitched for four nights, in the bullpen. Managers have been fired for less in Tijuana.

With the win, the Sultanes will be well-rested when they seek the franchise’s eleventh pennant since 1943 and their second under Kelly, who took them to a title in 2018. The Serie del Rey is scheduled to open Friday night.

MEXICO CITY TO HOST TWO MLB GAMES IN 2023

The San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants will meet in a two-game series at Mexico City’s Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in Mexico City on April 29 and 30 next year. Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association made the announcement last week. The games, which will serve as Padres home games, will represent the first-ever regular season series played in Mexico City. In 2016, the Padres hosted Houston in a two-game exhibition series at Fray Nano Stadium in Mexico City.  

The Mexican Series games next April mark the fourth time the Padres have traveled to Mexico for regular season games: They’ve also been a part of three MLB visits to Monterrey, including a three-games series against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018, the 1999 season-opener against the Colorado Rockies and a three-game series against the New York Mets in 1996.  These games will be the first games in Mexico for the San Francisco Giants in their long history. In 2004, they traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico for a three-game regular season series against the Montreal Expos, who played part of their home schedule at Estadio Hiram Bithorn that season prior to moving to Washington a year later.

“The Padres are excited to return to Mexico and play in the first regular season series in Mexico City in MLB history,” said San Diego CEO Erik Greupner. “We are fortunate to have a loyal and passionate fan base in Mexico, and it will be an honor to showcase our team in Mexico’s capital city at the beautiful new ballpark built by and named after Padres minority owner Alfredo Harp Helú.”

“It will be an honor to represent Major League Baseball, as well as San Francisco, at historic Mexico City for the first time ever,” said Giants President and CEO Larry Baer. “We look forward to bringing the Giants and Padres rivalry to a passionate sports fan base and it will be a great opportunity to introduce the Giants to an international audience to further develop new fans across all of Mexico.”

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.

TJ SWEEPS RIELEROS IN LMB NORTH FIRST ROUND

Monterrey OF Jose Cardona (r)

It took them a second day to do it, but the defending Mexican League champion Tijuana Toros completed an 11-1 win in Aguascalientes Sunday to complete a four-game sweep over the Rieleros in their first round playoff series, punching a ticket to the LMB North semifinals in the process.

The game was somewhat closer than the final score indicates as Tijuana took a 4-1 lead into the top of the eighth, where they put two more runs on the scoreboard on Leandro Castro’s homer and then put the contest away with five counters in the ninth as Nick Williams and Felix Perez added two-run roundtrippers of their own off Ags closer Ryan Kussmaul. Toros starter Arturo Reyes combined with five relievers on a four-hitter as Carlos Rivero’s solo homer to left off Reyes in the second gave the Railroaders their lone run.

Elsewhere in the LMB North, Dos Laredos defeated Union Laguna in five games while Monterrey did likewise with Monclova. The Tecolotes advanced to the LMB semis with an emphatic 15-2 road win Sunday at venerable Estadio de Revolucion. The Algodoneros actually led 2-1 after five entradas before the visitors posted 14 runs over the next three frames, including a 9-run eighth. Kennys Vargas went 4-for-6 for the borderites, scoring once and driving in four teammates as the Tecos’ 16-hit attack included no extra-base hits. Surprise starter Brandon Brennan, a reliever since 2016, got the win after scattering two runs on nine hits over five innings. Algodoneros reliever Josh Lueke had a nightmarish outing, allowing six runs on three hits and three walks in one-third of the eighth inning.

While Dos Laredos was pummeling Union Laguna, Monterrey needed a run in the bottom of the ninth to top Monclova, 6-5, clinching their 4-1 series win. Keon Broxton homered twice for the Acereros, including a two-run blast in the top of the ninth that pulled the visitors into a 5-5 tie, while longtime Sultanes star Chris Roberson (now playing right and batting eighth for Monclova) socked a solo shot in the fifth. However, the game was won in the bottom of the ninth when speedy Sultanes center fielder Jose Cardona manufactured the winning run the old-fashioned way.

Cardona singled on a bang-bang play via a grounder to Acereros shortstop Addison Russell, stole second, advanced to third on Sebastian Elizalde’s groundout and motored in on a Wirfin Obispo wild pitch to Zoilo Almonte to end the contest. Despite allowing Broxton’s game-tying homer, reliever Neftali Feliz was awarded the win. Although they lost the series, Monclova will stay alive by virtue of the “lucky loser” system, in which the team with the best showing in a first-round losing cause advances to the next round. The Acereros will take on Tijuana in the LMB North semis while the Sultanes face Dos Laredos.

DIABLOS OUST AGUILAS 4-0, REACH LMB SOUTH SEMIS

Mexico City 1B Roberto Ramos

After finishing with an LMB South-best 58-34 record, the Mexico City Diablos Rojos carried their regular season success into the playoffs by bouncing the Veracruz Aguilas out of the postseason in four straight first round games and advancing to the division semifinals.

Mexico City delivered the coup de grace over their ancient rivals, 4-2, Sunday night in front of 6,500 fans in Veracruz. The win was fairly methodical for the Red Devils, who scored single runs in the second, third, fourth and fifth innings and got a solid performance from reliever Francisco Haro, who tossed four innings and allowed one run on four hits to earn the win. 

The Diablos benefitted from a pair of solo homers off the bat of former Rockies farmhand Roberto Ramos, who swatted 38 homers for Korea’s LG Twins in 2020 but was released the following season when he struggled at the plate. Ramos struggled for the Red Sox’ AAA Worcester affiliate this year (a .158 average with 5 homers and 16 RBI in 39 games) but warmed up with Mexico City by batting .272 with 10 homers and 28 ribbies over 26 contests.

In another LMB South first round series, Quintana Roo closed out their series against Tabasco with a 13-4 Game Five win Monday night in Cancun. The Olmecas went up 1-0 in the top of the first when Herlis Rodriguez scored on Francisco Rivera’s sacrifice fly, but the Tigres knotted it up in the bottom of the frame when Olmo Rosario homered to right. Jorge Rivera lined a two-run single to left to give the Tigres a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth. 

From that point both teams traded in the fifth and sixth (when Rosario poled his second homer for Quintana Roo), with the Tigres holding a 6-4 head heading into the seventh, when they iced the game and series with a seven-run outburst highlighted by Tito Polo’s grand slam off Tabasco reliever Fernando Salas to end the night’s scoring. Ricky Rodriguez had four hits, missing the cycle by one homer, for the winners while scoring three runs and driving in two. Felipe Arredondo tossed 1.2 perfect innings in relief for the series-clinching win. Both the Tigres and Diablos Rojos are waiting for the third LMB South first round series to conclude so they’ll know who’s next on their respective postseason schedules.

Finally, Game Five of the Puebla-Yucatan series in Merida Monday was scoreless through four innings before Peter O’Brien’s solo homer for the Pericos in the top of the fifth broke the spell and launched a see-saw battle. Art Charles belted a two-run circuit clout in the bottom of the sixth to put Yucatan ahead but the Pericos regained the lead in the seventh on Armando Aguilar’s two-run bomb. Then the Leones took the lead back in the bottom of the eighth, 4-3, on RBI singles by Christhian Adames and Yadir Drake and it was left to Jorge Rondon to hold Puebla scoreless in the top of the ninth for the save as Yucatan took a 3-2 series lead.

Game Six is slated for Wednesday night in Puebla. Game Six is slated for Wednesday night in Puebla. Both teams have qualified for the LMB South semis since both have more wins in this series than either Veracruz (0) or Tabasco (1) earned in their respective sets, meaning the “lucky loser” will emerge from this matchup.

LMP GAMES TELEVISED TO USA BLOCKED BY SKY SPORTS

LMP president Carlos Manrique

The Mexican Pacific League has begun a new era under the presidency of Carlos Manrique, who has replaced Omar Canizales after the latter had served 13 seasons at the helm overseeing tremendous growth in attendance and the building or renovation of all but one of ten LMP ballparks during his reign. By the end of Canizales’ reign, the Mex Pac routinely drew much larger attendance per game than any affiliated minor league north of the border.

 An industrial engineer with over two decades of experience working for large national and international corporations, Manrique had been a general director with the Voit sporting goods manufacturing company for five years prior to replacing Canizales in April. Some things never change no matter who is running the show, however, and Manrique is already facing a challenge involving the availability of MexPac games to TV viewers in the USA.

Septima Entrada writer Irving Furlong reports that while Manrique wants to take viewership of the league to an international level, the agreement that the league has with SKY Sports at this time blocks the LMP from sending its signal to the United States. One of the first points that Manrique touched on in a recent presentation was precisely to internationalize the circuit and take it to the country with perhaps the greatest presence of Mexican people outside the nation’s borders: the USA. 

"The United States market is very important,” said Manrique during his presentation. ”The Hispanic market is one of the fastest-growing markets in the United States and quality content is demanded to serve and reach that market. We are going to find a way to get there first through the media.” 

However, the agreement signed at the beginning of 2020 with the satellite television platform blocks the LMP from accessing the United States by having the live and exclusive broadcast of all their games. "We want to talk with SKY," said Manrique. “We are going to sit down and see what options we have and look for a better scheme that is convenient for all parties and see how we can reach other markets as quickly as possible.” 

For the 2022-23 season, the Mex Pac will begin the third of its four-year contract with SKY Sports, a UK-based television system that at the time boasted a presence in the Dominican Republic and Panama (countries with long histories in baseball) but far from the 37 million Mexicans living in various parts of the United States, according to the US Census Bureau in 2017. 

Under current agreements, Manrique and the LMP office will instead continue to seek to position themselves in the center of Mexico, placing special emphasis on Mexico City.

VALDEZ PITCHES LEONES WITHIN GAME OF LMB FLAG

Cesar Valdez pitching for Oakland in 2017

If there was any doubt remaining as to why Cesar Valdez is the odds-on favorite to be named the Mexican League Pitcher of the Year for 2019, the 34-year-old Dominican right-hander should have dispelled them after he pitched a shutout Sunday to lead the Yucatan Leones to a 3-0 win over the visiting Monclova Acereros in Game Five of the Serie del Rey in front of 14,917 fans at Merida's Parque Kukulkan.  The triumph gives Yucatan a 3-games-to-2 lead in the series.

Valdez threw 112 pitches (77 of them strikes) in holding the potent Steelers to four hits and a walk, striking out eight batters to run his playoff record to 4-0 after a 15-2 regular season in which he led the LMB in wins, ERA (2.26) and WHIP (1.06) in 23 starts.  Art Charles' two-out single in the bottom of the first inning off Monclova starter Adam Quintana drove in Jonathan Jones from third with the first run of the game. It would turn out to be the only tally Valdez would need but (just in case) Jorge Flores opened the third with a triple and scored on a Jones single to make it 2-0 and Alex Liddi's solo homer in the bottom of the eighth added one more insurance run for manager Geronimo Gil's squad.  Jones contributed two singles to the Yucatan offense as seven of the other eight Leones batsmen had one hit. Catcher Sebastian Valle had an 0-fer but called a solid game behind the plate for the winners.

Valdez' outstanding Sunday outing was far removed from his work during last Tuesday's Serie del Rey Game One in Monclova.  Although he was awarded a 5-4 win over the Acereros, the 2008 California League All-Star Game MVP and future major leaguer let in four runs over seven innings and gave up home runs to Jose Amador, Eric Young Jr. (a two-run shot) and Noah Perio to account for all Steeler scoring.  Valdez did strike out 13 of the 27 batters he faced.

Monclova evened the series Wednesday with a 9-3 comeback win over Yoanner Negrin, the 2016 LMB Pitcher of the Year.  Negrin was impressive in earlier playoff wins over Oaxaca and Mexico City and had a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the seventh when the Acereros loaded the bases after striking out leadoff batter Bruce Maxwell.  At that point, Gil replaced the Cuban righty with Manny Parra, who gave up a two-run Young single up the middle and an RBI safety to Erick Aybar that gave the home team a 4-3 lead. The Acereros scored five more in the eighth, including a Ricky Rodriguez grand slam off Enrique Burgos, to put the game away.  Amador singled twice and doubled for three of ten Acereros hits as another sellout crowd of 8,500 watched at Estadio Monclova.

Art Charles (r) homered for Leones in Game 4

The title set shifted to Merida for Game Three on Friday, when Monclova took a 2-games-to-1 lead with a 6-3 road win.  Francisco Peguero went 3-for-4 with a double, scoring one run and driving in another as the Acereros collected 13 hits off Leones starter Jose Samayoa and five relievers.  Valle socked a solo homer off Monclova closer Carlos Bustamante in the bottom of the ninth but the contest was all but decided by then. Connor Herber earned his third postseason win by pitching five innings of two-run ball for manager Pat Listach.

Yucatan battled back to tie the series Saturday night with 3-2 victory.  Monclova took an early lead in the top of the first when leadoff hitter Perio doubled off Leones starter Dustin Crenshaw and came in one out later on a Peguero two-bagger.  The Acereros made it 2-0 one entrada later when Perio's two-out single off Crenshaw brought in Amador from second after the latter had doubled to open the inning.  From that point on, Crenshaw went unscathed through the sixth inning and benefitted from a three-run Yucatan fourth keyed by a two-run Charles homer against Monclova opener Geno Encina.  That would mark the last run of the game as Crenshaw, who earned the win, and three relievers held the Acereros scoreless over the last seven innings. A Californian who pitched collegiately at South Alabama and spent four years in indy ball before making his 2015 LMB debut with Laguna, the 6'5" Crenshaw has been one of the Liga's best pitchers since when healthy with a 29-14 record and 3.63 ERA in 61 starts.

The Serie del Rey now shifts back to Monclova for Tuesday night's Game Six.  All five games have been sellouts and another full house is expected at Estadio Monclova as the Acereros strive for the city's first Mexican League pennant since entering the league in 1974.  Negrin is expected to start for Yucatan while Jaime Lugo will take the mound for Monclova.

LOS MOCHIS, GUASAVE BALLPARKS READYING FOR LMP SEASON

Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada in Los Mochis

Two of the Mexican Pacific League's ten ballparks are undergoing upgrades in preparation for the upcoming 2019-20 season.  

State approval of renovations at Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada in Los Mochis was signed by Sinaloa governor Quirino Ordaz Coppel on October 7, 2017 with hope that the two-stage project would be completed by October 2018 after an initial investment of 50 million pesos for work that winter and 260 million pesos projected as the overall price. Sinaloa Public Works secretary Osvaldo Lopez Angulo envisioned a total remodel of the central portion of the stadium, which now has three seating levels (lower and upper box seats topped by luxury and press boxes), and other safety- and comfort-related amenities.  Instead, the facelift will be unveiled a year late with a pricetag of 400 million pesos, or about 20 million US dollars, not an unusual turn of events when it comes to ballparks, new or renovated. 

Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada was first opened in 1947 when Los Mochis was admitted to the old Pacific Coast League, precursor to the modern LMP.  Initially known as Estadio Mochis, the facility seated 3,000 and had no lights. It has since undergone a number of renovations, the first coming in 1963 when seating was doubled to 6,000 and a lighting system was installed.  A second renovation took place in 1972, as seating was nearly doubled again to a capacity of 11,000 while being renamed after Ibarra, who brought pro baseball to Los Mochis in 1947 and helped inaugurate the ballpark that winter.  Ten years later, Hurricane Paul damaged the facility so badly that the Caneros were forced to play the first half of the 1982-83 LMP schedule on the road before playing home games without lights during the second half. The updated, modern facility is expected to be ready to host 12,000 spectators when the Caneros play their first home game on Saturday, October 12 against Guasave.

Speaking of Guasave, work at Estadio Francisco Carranza Limon has been hurrying along in advance of the revived Algodoneros' home opener against Los Mochis on October 13, one day after the two teams welcome the season at the Caneros' new digs.  Where renovations in Los Mochis have had almost two years to reach completion, Guasave has had less than a year to bring their stadium up to modern standards because the city was only granted re-entry to the Mex Pac last winter after the previous version of the Algodoneros were sold and moved to Guadalajara in 2014.

Guasave's Estadio Francisco Carranza Limon

Estadio Francisco Carranza Limon is a much newer plant than its counterpart in Los Mochis, opening in 1970 with seating for up to 8,000 spectators.  However, the ballpark was not upgraded over the years and by the time it was 44 years old in 2014, it was showing its age and falling into disrepair as the undercapitalized team owners couldn't afford to make needed changes and the state government wasn't willing to pick up the tab.  Attendance had long been declining in Guasave and the team was eventually sold to a group led by Armando Navarro and Salvador Quirarte and moved inland to Guadalajara, where the renamed Jalisco Charros have become of of Mexican baseball's more recent success stories, hosting several international tournaments and winning last winter's LMP pennant.  After a five-year absence, the Mex Pac returned to Guasave when Mexico president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador fulfilled a campaign promise to bring baseball back to the Sinaloa agricultural center.

Mexico City Diablos Rojos owner Alfredo Harp Helu, who bankrolled a new ballpark of his own in the nation's capital, is paying for renovations at Estadio Francisco Carranza Limon, which will be expanded to 10,000 seats.  While there was speculation that Harp might own an LMP along with his Mexican League franchise, he said he had no such interest and another LMB owner, Arturo Aramburo (who owns the Durango Generales but is said to be looking to sell that franchise), officially bought the team over summer.  

The ballpark used by the new Algodoneros was in enough disrepair that the facility might not have been ready to host games next month.  LMP president Omar Canizales, who toured the stadium with Governor Ordaz last week, was quoted in Puro Beisbol as saying, "I am pleasantly surprised.  I had come a couple months ago and I was really a little worried, and when I realize what has happened in the last six weeks, I see a very important breakthrough.  

"They will be ready to sing 'Play ball' on October 13." 

MEDIUM: 30% OF 2019 LMB PLAYERS WERE MEXICAN-AMERICANS

Tijuana outfielder Beau Amaral

It's been two years since the Mexican League expanded its definition of what constitutes a "Mexican" player.  The issue is one reason the LMB underwent an offseason schism that threatened either a split into two separate leagues or cancellation of the 2017 season altogether.  An uneasy truce was eventually brokered and the new policy, in which a player with Mexican heritage who can qualify for a passport is considered "domestic" and does not count against foreign player limits per team, has played out for two years.  While it can be argued that making players with peripheral family connections to Mexico eligible has raised the overall level of play in the Liga, homegrown Mexican players are now having a harder time finding work in their own country.

A September 18 story by Joseph Bien-Kahn for the Medium website delves deeply into the topic.  According to Bien-Kahn, "If you had a Mexican ancestor and could qualify for a Mexican passport, you were Mexican in the eyes of the league."  Tijuana Toros press officer Armando Esquivel estimates that 30 percent of the Mexican League's 400 players (25 players per team) are Mexican-Americans, many of whom bring Major League Baseball experience south of the border.  One such player, Tijuana outfielder Beau Amaral, is a son of former major league infielder Rich and spent seven seasons in the Reds minor league system and part of 2018 with the Mariners' AA Arkansas affiliate before joining the Toros this year.  A Californian who played collegiately at UCLA, Amaral had a great-grandmother who was born in Mexico and thus is not considered a foreigner in the eyes of the LMB.

Indeed, Tijuana has come to specialize in finding players with tenuous literal relations to Mexico who still oxymoronically qualify as domestic imports, with Director of International Operations Arturo Marcano heading the effort.  "That's one of my areas of work: to look for pochos," Marcano told Bien-Kahn, "It's kind of like detective work."  Marcano is a hard-working man, as only six Toros players this season were born in Mexico, including just one pitcher.  He says, "It's not like we have a network of spies looking for pochos everywhere.  What we're doing is scouting players for the team."

Tijuana won their first LMB pennant in 2017 after embracing the philosophy and earning the enmity of Monterrey owner Jose "Pepe" Maiz, who played on Mexico's 1957 Little League World Series champions as a 12-year-old.  Maiz called the team who defeated his Sultanes in the LMB North Championship Series the Pocho Toros, a term that stuck among opposing fans and players who saw the influx of foreign-born players after eligibility rules were relaxed as taking away jobs from homegrown talent.  Although the Mexico City Diablos Rojos played the 2017 season without a single foreign player in protest and missed the playoffs. Other teams noticed that Tijuana won a pennant with 22 foreign-born players (including 16 Mexican-Americans) while Monterrey was eliminated in the semis and Mexico City took the postseason off altogether, and the Toros' philosophy was eventually adopted by organizations across the Liga.

Manny Barreda pitched 2017 no-hitter for Toros

The term pocho technically applies to foreign-born ethnic Mexicans (similar to the longer standing term chicano), but it can also be a derogatory one used toward ethnic Mexicans perceived to have "lost their way" culturally.  While players like Watkins won't hear it directed towards them, Mexican-Americans like pitcher Manny Barreda are frequently targeted.  Born and raised in Arizona, Barreda came to Tijuana in late 2015 after eight years in the Yankees system and one in the Brewers organization.  Except for an excellent seven-start stint with the Braves' AAA Gwinnett affiliate in 2017 (3-1 record with a 1.83 ERA), he's played for the Toros every summer since.  Barreda memorably tossed a 138-pitch no-hitter for Los Mochis of the Mexican Pacific League on November 28, 2016 and then repeated the feat for Tijuana on July 16, 2017, requiring 135 pitches for that 14-strikeout performance.

Although he and wife Karla have become more comfortable living in Mexico, Barreda's first full year in the LMB resulted in several hostile emails and a sense of isolation in a country where he had much stronger cultural roots than many players with far more tertiary ties.  Players of Mexican descent born and raised north of the border often find themselves in a cultural void on both sides of the border. Barreda explains to Bien-Kahn, "In the U.S., you're considered 'Mexican.' And when you come to Mexico, you're an American. You're a pocho. People like us, we don't have a place."  Minnesota Twins reliever Sergio Romo, who still pitches winterball for the Mexican Pacific League's Jalisco Charros, has voiced similar frustrations in the past.

Perhaps the biggest losers with the new regulations are the Mexican-born players who would have played in the LMB in the years prior to 2017.  Previously, Mexican League teams could only carry four foreign-born players, including Mexican-Americans, so only 64 total imports were on the 16 active team rosters.  If Marcano's estimate is accurate, that number is now 120 and could be higher. Not being able to play in their national circuit has hurt these players economically because the average pay in the both the Liga and Mex Pac for homegrown players is said to generally be in the $3,000-$5,000 per month range, a lot of money in a nation where the International Monetary Fund estimated the per capita income in 2017 to be equal to 9,377 US dollars per year. Minor league baseball is not a lucrative undertaking north of the border but in Mexico, many players extend their careers as long as possible because few jobs at home pay the kind of money they can earn in the LMB and LMP.

The notion of limiting the number of foreign-born players may be an unfamiliar one outside Major League and Minor League Baseball (where such practices are illegal), but it is a common practice in almost every other country in the world as a means to allow domestic talent a chance to play.  With the apparent impending ouster of president Javier Salinas and return to power of the so-called Old Guard owners who opposed relaxing player eligibility rules, a return to the old standards may well be discussed during the offseason.

SULTANES TO SERIE DEL REY; ALL-STAR ROSTERS OUT

Monterrey Sultanes outfielder Leo German

Leo German launched a two-run homer off Tijuana reliever Daniel Moskos in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Monterrey a 6-5 lead they'd hold until the end of Saturday's Mexican League North Division championship series Game Six to win the set, 4 games to 2.  Thus, the Sultanes advance to the Serie del Rey for the first time since 2013 by knocking off the defending champs in the third consecutive LMB North title showdown between the two teams.  Chris Roberson also homered for Monterrey while Corey Brown and Roberto Lopez went deep for the Toros as setup man Nick Struck won his third game of the series.  A full house of 21,909 were on hand for the third straight sellout at Estadio Monterrey in a well-attended LMB North finals, during which 113,732 aficionados attended the six encounters for an average of 18,955 per opening.

The Toros had taken a 2-games-to-1 LMB North title series lead last Tuesday with an 11-5 win at home as Rodriguez' bases-full triple keyed a six-run fourth inning for the (Pedro) Mere Men of Tijuana.  The Sultanes came back to take the next two contests at Estadio Gasmart: a 4-3 Wednesday win when Chris Roberson doubled and came in on Guty Murillo's single in the top of the eleventh followed by a 6-5 Thursday triumph in which Murillo came in from third on Yadir Drake's bases-loaded single in the top of the ninth to score the tiebreaker.

The LMB South championships will go to a seventh and deciding game on Monday night.  Quintana Roo took a 2-games-to-1 lead in the set last Tuesday by beating Yucatan, 6-1, in Cancun as Javier Solano gave up one run on five hits before being replaced by Derrick Loop with two out in the eighth.  The Leones responded Wednesday night with a 6-2 victory over the hosts as starter Yoanner Negrin went seven strong innings, allowing one run on three hits.

Then the rains came and washed out Game Five both Thursday and Friday nights and delaying Saturday's contest by nearly seven hours.  The Leones won that one, 8-6, in a game marked by two big innings as the Tigres scored five times in the bottom of the fifth to break a scoreless tie before Yucatan posted six runs in the seventh as Everth Cabrera doubled in two runners and later scored on Art Charles' two-bagger.

The Tigres roared back to take Sunday's Game Six, 5-2, thanks to a three-run homer by Alonzo Harris in the top of the sixth off Yucatan reliever Jose Manuel Lopez to break a 2-2 deadlock.  Harris, who hit .301 with eight homers for Quintana Roo in 48 games, is a former Mets prospect who spent two years playing indy ball with St. Paul before batting .315 with 23 homers for York in the Atlantic League last summer.  Venerable Pablo Ortega took the 2-2 tie into the fifth before he was replaced by Javier Solano with two out and the bases loaded.  Solano induced Leo Heras to ground out sharply to C.J. Retherford at first to end the threat and went on to hurl three more scoreless frames to take the win in relief.  Although it was Lopez who gave up Harris' homer, predecessor Carlos Frias was charged with the go-ahead run and thus the loss, his second in the series.

Game Seven is set for Monday night at 7PM Eastern in Merida's Parque Kukulcan.  Manager Roberto Vizcarra will send Yoanner Negrin to the mound for the Leones while TIgres skipper Tim Johnson counters with Jesse Estrada.  The contest will be streamed live at the LMB En Vivo page on Facebook.  En espanol, por supuesto.


LMB ALL-STAR GAME ROSTERS RELEASED

A total of 56 players will converge on Merida at the end of June for the annual Mexican League All-Star Game, set for June 29 at Parque Kukulcan, the 14,917-seat home of the Yucatan Leones.  The game had originally been scheduled for Mexico City's Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu but was shifted to Yucatan earlier this year when construction delays on the Diablos Rojos' new ballpark pushed the facility's opening back to the 2019 season.

Both the North (managed by first-place finisher Monterrey's skipper Roberto Kelly) and South (headed by Yucatan helmsman Roberto Vizcarra) division rosters will include 28 players apiece, half of them pitchers.  Kelly will have Monclova's wins and strikeouts champ Josh "The Mayor" Lowey, wins co-leader Carlos Hernandez of Tijuana and Jorge Reyes, who was the Liga's ERA leader for Kelly's Sultanes, to choose from for the North's starting pitcher.  Vizcarra has plenty of starting material on the South roster, including Quintana Roo's Henderson Alvarez, Yucatan ace Yoanner Negrin and Octavio Acosta of Mexico City.

There are even a  pair of sentimental choice in Campeche's Francisco Campos and Pablo Ortega of Quintana Roo.  Campos, 45, is in his 24th season pitching for the perennial also-ran Piratas, spending some time on loan with Monterrey in 2006.  While his 2-2 record and 5.16 ERA are so-so at best, an All-Star Game without the beloved Pancho Ponches would be almost unthinkable (this is his 14th).  The venerable Ortega (in his 20th LMB campaign at age 41) has shown he can still pitch by going 3-2 with a 3.13 ERA in seven regular season starts for the Tigres and turning in a complete game win over Mexico City in the LMB South semifinals earlier this month.

A day ahead of the All-Star Game, there'll be the ubiquitous Home Run Derby plus a new competition featuring double play combinations.  The Home Run Derby will feature three longballists from each division:  Aguascalientes' Francisco Perez, Ricky Alvarez of Monterrey and Monclova's MVP Jesse Castillo will represent the North against Puebla's Daric Barton, Luis Juarez of Yucatan and former MLB shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt, now with Oaxaca.  The Double Play Derby will feature five keystone combinations being timed on turning two outs:  Moises Gutierrez and Javier Salazar (Durango), Ramiro Pena and Ramon Rios (Monterrey), Maxwell Leon and Isaac Rodriguez (Tijuana), Rolando Acosta and Carlos Gastelum (Quintana Roo) plus Walter Ibarra and Everth Cabrera (Yucatan).

Here are the rosters for both All-Star squads:

NORTH DIVISION
Pitchers (14) - Anthony Carter (AGS), Linder Castro (AGS), Maikel Cleto (LAG), Tiago Da Silva (DUR), Carlos Hernandez (TIJ), Josh Lowey (MVA), Josh Lueke (MVA), Rafael Martin (SAL), Nestor Molina (LAR), Wirfin Obispo (MTY), Roman Pena (LAG), Jorge Reyes (MTY), Marco Tovar (MTY), Raul Valdes (MTY).
Catchers (2) - Jose Felix (MVA), Isidro Pena (DUR).
Infielders (7) - Jorge Cantu (TIJ), Jesse Castillo (MVA), Dustin Geiger (DUR), Agustin Murillo (MTY), Ramiro Pena (MTY), Isaac Rodriguez (TIJ), Saul Soto (AGS).
Outfielders (5) - Yadir Drake (MTY), Desmond Jennings (MVA), Maxwell Leon (TIJ), Enrique Osorio (LAR), Chris Roberson (MTY).
Manager - Roberto Kelly (MTY).

SOUTH DIVISION
Pitchers (14) - Octavio Acosta (MXC), Henderson Alvarez (QR), Francisco Campos (CAM), Dustin Crenshaw (LEON), Barry Enright (QR), Adrian Garza (TAB), Chad Gaudin (YUC), Arcenio Leon (OAX), Dallas Martinez (LEON), Yoanner Negrin (YUC), Juan Pablo Oramas (TAB), Pablo Ortega (QR), Pedro Rodriguez (CAM), Jose Samayoa (YUC).
Catchers (2) - Sebastian Valle (YUC), Hans Wilson (TAB).
Infielders (6) - Emmanuel Avila (MXC), Daric Barton (PUE), Yuniesky Betancourt (OAX), Alberto Carreon (PUE), Carlos Gastelum (QR), Alexei Ramirez (MXC).
Outfielders (6) - Carlos Figueroa (MXC), Leo Heras (YUC), Luis Juarez (YUC), Junior Lake (LEON), Ivan Terrazas (MXC), Jesus Valdez (YUC).
Manager - Roberto Vizcarra (YUC).

LOS MOCHIS DEALS VALLE TO MAZATLAN FOR QUIROZ

New Mazatlan catcher Sebastian Valle

The Los Mochis Caneros and Mazatlan Venados have swung a major Mexican Pacific League offseason trade, with the Caneros sending catcher Sebastian Valle to the Mazatlan Venados for second baseman Esteban Quiroz.  In the 26-year-old Quiroz, Los Mochis brings in one of the top second sackers in a country with several good ones (including Manny Rodriguez, Isaac Rodriguez and Ramon Rios), a nice blend of batting with extra-base power and good range afield.  In the 28-year-old Valle, Mazatlan gets one of Mexico's top catchers, a one-time Phillies prospect featuring solid defensive skills and some pop at the plate, if not necessarily a high average.

New Los Mochis second baseman Esteban Quiroz

Both are members of the Mexican National Team who've had their careers harmed by injuries.  Quiroz was placed on the 7-day DL April 30 by the Boston Red Sox with a leg injury suffered when the 5'7" sparkplug nicknamed "El Pony" was hitting .302 with 4 homers and 13 ribbies over 15 games for AA Portland.  He had .264/0/21 numbers in 59 games for Mazatlan last winter.  Valle hit just .203 with 6 homers in 36 games for Yucatan of the Mexican League this Spring (he's currently batting .381 after six games against Quintana Roo for the LMB South championship) after a .184/6/12 LMP season with Los Mochis in 2017-18

Veteran second baseman Paul Leon is expected to take Quiroz' place in new Venados manager Joe Alvarez' everyday lineup while former Padres farmhand Ricardo Valenzuela will battle 32-year-old Humberto Sosa (a current teammate of Valle in Yucatan) for the Yaquis catching job next winter.