ORANGEMEN HOLD OFF MOCHIS, WIN 1ST HALF CROWN

Hermosillo pitcher Elian Leyva

    Schedule makers have rarely been as prescient as those who cobbled together the Mexican Pacific League's first-half schedule for the 2022-23 season. As luck (or “something”) would have it, that first half came down to its final day on Sunday before a champion could be crowned and given the 10.0 playoff points that come with finishing in first place.

    The Hermosillo Naranjeros, who had led the LMP standings most of the season, showed a 20-14 record and a one-game lead over 19-15 Los Mochis heading into Sunday's showdown between the two clubs at Estadio Sonora. If the Caneros prevailed, they'd have vaulted into a tie for first with the Naranjeros and the first-half championship by virtue of having more wins than losses against the Orangemen. In fact, the Mex Pac standings were so tight that a four-way tie for first was mathematically possible, which would've led to calculators (or slide rules for stubborn traditionalists) being brought out to determine just who DID finish first.

    Fortunately, the mathematicians have been spared as the Naranjeros recorded a 6-1 win over Los Mochis in front of 10,808 spectators. Hermosillo starter Elian Leyva, who has become one of the top pitchers in Mexican baseball, turned in a solid performance over six innings, allowing one run on three hits while striking out nine Caneros and throwing 63 strikes on his 95 pitches to even his record at 2-2.

    The game was tighter than the final score implies, however, as the score was knotted at 1-1 until the bottom of the sixth inning when veteran Tomas Solis replaced starter Luis Miranda on the mound for Los Mochis. It took three pitches for slugger Roberto Ramos to send a Solis delivery over the right-center field wall to give Hermosillo the lead and the Naranjeros went on to score four more runs in the frame, two coming in on a Jose Carmona single off another reliever, Miguel Vazquez.

    After that, it was left to ex-Padres starter Cesar Vargas and former Mets prospect Thomas McIlraith to shut down the Caneros on one hit over the final three innings to clinch first place and the points. Roel Santos, Ramon Mendoza and Jasson Atondo each had two hits for the winners (Atondo contributing an RBI single in the fourth to give Hermosillo a 1-0 lead). Isaac Rodriguez' game-tying single in the fifth was one of three hits on the night for the Caneros' leadoff hitter and second sacker. Miranda allowed his first run of the season in his seventh start on Atondo's single but it was Solis who took the loss for Los Mochis.

    Elsewhere in the winter circuit Sunday, Guasave snuck past Navojoa, 2-1, on Erisbel Arruebarrena's walk-off RBI single to overtake Los Mochis for second place (and 9.0 points) with a 20-15 record. The Mayos finished the half at 16-19 and in a three-way tie for sixth with Mexicali and Monterrey. Monterrey scored five times in the seventh as Alex Liddi stroked a two-run double to beat Mexicali, Mexicali, 8-3.

    Mazatlan and Obregon joined Los Mochis in a tie for third with 19-16 records. The Venados dropped a 5-0 shutout against visiting Jalisco (15-20) as U-23 World Cup star Alemao Hernandez blanked the Deer over five innings while Obregon snuck past Culiacan (14-21) by a 5-4 count when Juan Carlos Gamboa scored all the way from first on Allen Cordoba's walk-off single in the bottom of the tenth to send 10,228 fanaticos at Estadio Yaquis home happy.

    Monterrey's Roberto Valenzuela leads the batting race with a .385 average, well ahead of Jalico's Fernando Villegas (.348) and veteran third baseman Rudy Amador of Los Mochis (.341). Anthony Giansanti of Mexicali has nine homers to lead four other players with six longballs apiece. Obregon's 1-2 puch of Yadir Drake and Victor Mendoza share the RBI lead with 26 each, one more than Christian Villanueva of Jalisco. Hermosillo's Jose Cardona stole his first base in seven games to take a one-pilfer lead over Randy Romero of Mazatlan, 15 to 14. Romero swiped five bases in one seven-game stretch earlier this month.

    It remains crowded at the top of the pitching wins list with a cast of thousands (okay, okay, a cast of seven) showing four victories each. Among those hurlers, Nico Tellache of Guasave (1.66) and Juan Pablo Oramas of Hermosillo (1.69) trail only Los Mochis' Luis Miranda (0.24) in the ERA derby after the latter allowed his first run Sunday in Hermosillo. Oramas' Naranjeros moundmate, Touki Toussaint, leads the LMP with 41 strikeouts, just ahead of the 40 by Matt Pobereyko of Guasave while Culiacan vet Manny Barreda is third with 39 whiffs. Colombian closer Elkin Alcala of Mazatlan had two saves last week to bring his season total to 12, followed by the 10 of Guasave's Brandon Koch and Jake Sanchez of Mexicali.

    With everyone's slate wiped clean, six weeks of second-half action will begin Tuesday night with the first of five three-game midweek series.


LMB AWARDS: TOROS' PEREZ NAMED MVP FOR 2022

Mexican League 2022 MVP Felix Perez

    Tijuana Toros designated hitter Felix Perez has been named the Mexican League's Most Valuable Player for 2022. He becomes the second consecutive Tijuana player to be accorded MVP honors after outfielder Leandro Castro won in 2021 and first Cubano to win it since Monterrey's Michel Abreu in 2012. Perez was also named the Liga's Comeback Player of the Year.

    Perez, who celebrated his 38th birthday last week, is a Cuba native who played three seasons for his hometown Isla de la Juventud Toronjeros in the Cuban National Series before defecting from the island nation in 2008. He subsequently signed with Cincinnati and spent five seasons in the Reds system between 2010 and 2014, including two years in AAA Louisville, batting a combined .281 with 33 homers and 241 RBIs in 532 games.

    The 6'2” lefty hitter known as “El Nino” south of the border made his LMB debut in 2015 with Monterrey and hit over .300 for the Sultanes two years before signing with the Rakuten in Japan's NPB for the rest of the 2016 campaign, hitting .238 in 24 games. Perez returned to Mexico for good in 2017 and has also spent time with Aguascalientes and Leon before coming to Tijuana this year after only batting .200 with three homers over 17 games for the Bravos in 2021.

    Perez made the most of his first season in the border city in 2022 by hitting .323 with 38 homers and 109 RBIs over 87 games and missing just three contests for the Toros, who finished the regular season under manager Homar Rojas with an Liga-best 62-28 record before falling to rival Monterrey in the LMB North finals. Perez tied Saltillo's Rainel Rosario for most homers, was second to Rosario's 116 ribbies, finished in the top ten for total bases, slugging percentage and on-base+slugging and came in eleventh with 73 runs scored.

    Beyond the numbers, Toros sports manager Ricardo Williamson says the veteran Perez served as a team leader and mentor to younger TJ players. “He is a very important pillar for veterans and young people for their journey in baseball,” Williamson states. “He pushed others to be better. He is a great player and a great human being of good mood and happy.” Toros press officer Armando Esquivel confirmed Williamson's assessment of Perez. “He was an immediate leader,” said Esquivel. “There are natural leaders and Felix was integrated from the first days. He teamed up and was one of the most appreciated.”

    Other Mexican League postseason honorees include Yucatan skipper Roberto “Chapo” Vizcarra as Manager of the Year after leading the Leones to the 2022 pennant, Monterrey closer Neftali Feliz (24 saves) as Reliever of the Year, Sultanes starter Yohander Mendez (7-0, 2.78 ERA) as Pitcher of the Year, Veracruz pitcher Luis Marquez (9-1, 2.38) as Rookie of the Year and Union Laguna center fielder Edgar Robles (.990 fielding percentage) as Defensive Player of the Year.


LIGA RELEASES 2023 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE

Tabasco Omecas to host 2023 LMB All-Stars

    The Mexican League has announced its official schedule for the 2023 regular season. “Play ball!” will first be heard on Thursday, April 20 at Estadio Domingo Santana when the current champion Yucatan Leones visit the Leon Bravos.

    The regular season will open for the remaining 16 teams one night later (including when the Quintana Roo Tigres are welcomed by their longtime rival Mexico City Diablos Rojos at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium in the nation's capital) on Friday, April 21. The rest of the Friday night inaugurals will be Tijuana at Veracruz, Aguascalientes at Monclova, Saltillo at Guadalajara, Durango at Nuevo Laredo, Monterrey at Union Laguna, Tabasco at Oaxaca and Campeche at Puebla.

    The weekend of the All-Star Game, to be played in Villahermosa, Tabasco, will be from June 16 to 18. The Olmecas finished a surprising 47-37 under manager Pedro Mere in 2022 (who coaxed .311/7/24 numbers over 43 games from ex-MLB star Pablo “Kung Fu Panda” Sandoval), while playing home games at makeshift Estadio Angel Toledo Meza in Macuspana while renovations were being done on Parque Centenario de Febrero 27 in Villahermosa.The latter was opened in 1964 and served as home to Tabasco's Mexican League teams from 1975 until the federally-funded facelift began in late 2021. The ballpark will seat 16,500 spectators when it's reopened next year to house a team that averaged 1,911 in attendance for 2022.

    As in 2022, the LMB schedule will be 90 games per team (equivalent to 810 games in total for the regular season), and when the postseason is added there will be about 900 matches in all. The same competition system of 2020 and 2021 will be maintained, with a continuous season (no first or second halfs) and six qualified teams per divison based on the percentage of won and lost will qualify for the postseason.

    The regular circuit campaign will end on Sunday, August 6. The postseason will begin on August 8 in the South Zone and on August 9 in the North Zone. The “lucky loser” system will be used again in which winners of each of three first round series in each division will be joined in their respective Division Semifinals by a fourth club that fared the best among the three losing teams.

    In all, there will be four playoff stages, all in a best-of-7 format:
DIVISION FIRST ROUND (1v6, 2v5, 3v4) between August 8 and 16
DIVISION SEMIFINALS between August 18 and 27
DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIPS between August 28 and September 6
LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP (Serie del Rey) between September 8 through 16

    Here is a link to the complete Mexican League schedule for 2023:
    https://bit.ly/3XfMn1l

NARANJEROS TAKE LMP LEAD, ELIZALDE HITTING .429

Hermosillo OF Jose Cardona

    The Hermosillo Naranjeros are one of the proudest teams in Mexico. Dating back to the 1940's (when the team was known as the Queliteros), Hermosillo has won a total of 19 pennants in four winter leagues, the most recent being in 2013-14 under manager Matias Carrillo, who also led that year's squad to their second Caribbean Series title. Since then, the team has gone through manager after manager seeking another flag for the Orangemen. The latest occupant of the perpetually-hot seat in Hermosillo is Juan Gabriel Castro, a former Dodgers infielder and Mexican National Team manager who has already become very well-aquainted with the vagaries of managing a baseball team south of the border.

    Castro inherited the reins of the Naranjeros from ex-skipper Juan Navarrete during the season last winter and led them to a 36-32 regular season record (21-18 under his command) before a first round playoff loss to Monterrey in seven games. He got the chance to start this season at the helm of the team and thus far has the Naranjeros at 8-3 out the gate to lead the LMP standings, good for a one-game lead over Guasave and two games up on four other teams. Defending champion Jalisco is tenth and last at 3-8.

    The Naranjeros are a veteran outfit with the likes of thirtysomethings Maxwell Leon, Luis Alfonso Cruz, Walter Ibarra and Fernando Salas along with relative youngsters Roberto Ramos, Nick Torres, Jasson Atondo and Jose Cardona. Thus far, Cardona (an eight-year Texas farmhand who hit .389 for Jalisco in last winter's Caribbean Series) is hitting .319 with three doubles, a triple and 11 runs scored in as many games while Ramos and Torres have seven homers and 19 RBIs between them.

    Hermosillo's pitching has been solid, if unspectacular, as Salas has two saves in five appearances and has yet to be scored upon while another vet hurler, Juan Pablo Oramas, is 2-0 with a 0.84 ERA and 11 strikeouts in two starts. While it's far too early to think about the postseason with 58 games and two-plus months left in the regular season, Castro is hoping to be a rarity with the Naranjeros: A manager who lasts two full seasons in orange and black.

    One player who's off to a hot start is veteran outfielder-first baseman Sebastian Elizalde of Culiacan. Now in his 12th Mex Pac season (starting at the tender age of 18 with Hermosillo in 2010-11), Elizalde is the only .400 hitter in the early LMP going with a .429 average, 35 points ahead of Mexicali's Leo Heras at .394. Hermosillo's Torres is tied with Felix Perez of Monterrey with four homers each while Perez, who's also hitting .366, is leading with 14 RBIs, three up on Torres and Navojoa's Ian Sagdal. Justin Dean (Los Mochis) and Jared Oliva (Obregon) are tied at the top of the stolen base charts with six apiece.

    At least eight pitchers are tied with two wins each, among them Guasave's Jeff Kinley, Braulio Torres-Perez of Mazatlan and Navojoa righty Luis Payan (who are all sporting 0.00 ERAs less than two weeks into the schedule). Fabian Cota of Los Mochis had four strikeouts in his last start to raise his total to 14, one more than Kinley. Brandon Koch has been a standout as Guasave's new closer, saving each of the Algodoneros' seven wins to lead the loop, while Mazatlan's Elkin Alcala has five salvados for the Venados.

MEXICAN PACIFIC LEAGUE Standings: Hermosillo 8-3, Guasave 7-4, Los Mochis 6-5, Mazatlan 6-5, Mexicali 6-5, Navojoa 6-5, Culiacan 5-6, Monterrey 4-7, Obregon 4-7, Jalisco 3-8.

MEXICO FALLS SHORT IN U-23 GOLD CUP BRONZE GAME

Angel Camacho at 13 in 2017

    Despite taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Angel Camacho motored home from third base on a Lee Chen-hsun wild pitch, Mexico went scoreless the rest of the way in a 3-1 loss to host Taiwan in Sunday's Bronze medal game at the World Baseball Softball Confederation's U-23 Baseball Gold Cup tournament in Taipei.

    After surprise starter Nestor Anguamea (who'd been Mexico's closer) pitched a 1-2-3 top of the first, Camacho hit a leadoff single off Lee, took second on an Aldo Nunez bunt and moved to third on a bunt by Jose Zepeda before scampering home when Lee uncorked a wild pitch to Brandon Valenzuela. Lee settled down to end the inning without any further damage and went on to limit the Mexicans to two more singles through the fifth frame, retiring the last eight batters he faced before giving way to reliever Chuang Hsin-yen in the sixth.

    By then, Taiwan had taken the lead after tying the score on Chen Sheng-ping's RBI double in the top of the second and then going up 3-1 one inning later on Chen's two-run single up the middle off reliever Erubiel Armenta, who had just replaced Anguemea with the bases loaded. Armenta and three relievers held Taiwan scoreless for the next four innings while Chuang pitched two perfect entradas for the hosts as 481 onlookers watched at Tianmu Stadium. Besides Camacho, Zepeda and Hugo Sanchez singled for Mexico but no runner reached base after the third inning. Later in the Gold medal game, Japan shut out South Korea, 3-0, as Asian teams took all three medals home.

    It was somewhat miraculous that Mexico got as far as they did. They advanced to the Super Round with five other teams despite being shut out in both of their last two First Round games: a 2-0 loss to Cuba last Tuesday in what had been a scoreless contest until the Cubans pushed two runs across in the top of the seventh, followed by a 1-0 defeat to South Korea in Wednesday's make-up of an earlier rainout. That one was likewise scoreless until the Koreans scored the game's lone run in the top of the eighth on a throwing error by Mexican catcher Valenzeula, who was trying to nail tiebreak lead runner Kim Tae-yun at third after Kim had first advanced from second on a throwing error by reliever Manuel Castro.

    Despite failing to score over their last 15 innings and collecting eight hits over the two shutouts, Mexico was one of five Group B teams to finish 2-3 behind 5-0 South Korea, and was waved to the Super Round along with Australia due to tiebreaker arcana we won't go into here (life is short enough already).

    Mexico then went 2-1 in the Super Round, starting with a 4-3 win over Colombia last Thursday in which they overcame a 3-1 deficit with three fifth-inning runs thanks to a pair of walks and a wild pitch (all with the bases loaded). Camacho and Valenzuela each had two of Mexico's eight hits in the game.

    That was followed by 2-1 Friday shocker over host Taiwan in eight innings. Mexico recorded ten singles for the night, none more important than Ruben Salinas' poke to left field that allowed Zepeda to score from third with the go-ahead run. After getting the last two outs of the seventh, Castro held the Formosans hitless in the bottom of the eighth to nail down the victory.

    Mexico suffered their first loss of the Super Round Sunday in a 4-2 defeat at the hands of 2016 Gold Cup champion Japan. The game wasn't that close, with the Japanese scoring a run in the second inning and three more in the third as Kanta Aiba and Kaido Saida had RBI singles. Mexico finally got on the scoreboard via Salinas' bases-loaded walk in the sixth and Zepeda's double in the seventh bringing in Christopher Escarrega, but manager Che Reyes' team had just three hits overallas Japan's Raiku Katayama tossed five no-hit innings in another Mexican offensive meltdown after two solid games at the plate. Japan advanced to the title game against South Korea with the win while Mexico was sent to the third-place game against Taiwan. Sunday's loss dropped the Mexicans' overall record to 4-5 for a fourth-place finish in the 12-team tournament.

    Mexico hit .203 as a team for the Gold Cup. Camacho's .333 average the only one above .250 among individual players. A California native, Camacho's nine hits led the team, as did his one triple. Valenzuela and Javier Sanchez had three RBIs each while 2021 Mexican Winter League batting champion Oliver Carrillo's four runs scored were tops.

    The pitching was much better, as the squad turned in a collective 1.59 ERA. Castro was 2-1 in relief and one of four hurlers with a 0.00 ERA. Fernando Sanchez had no decisions in two starts but he had a 1.50 ERA while his 15 strikeouts in 9.1 innings led Mexico. Anguamea's ERA went from 0.00 to 3.32 with his rocky start against Taiwan in the Bronze medal game and he finished 0-2, but he also had both saves at the World Cup.

WHERE DO THIS YEAR'S LMP PLAYERS COME FROM?

    

While most of the the 300 players on the Mexican Pacific League's opening night rosters overwhelmingly hail from Mexico, to the surprise of nobody, there are many countries that contribute talent to the Mex Pac's ten teams. Writer Christan Vernet of Mexico's ScoreDeportes website recently took a deep dive into the numbers to find out exactly where these guys DO come from. Here are translated and edited excerpts from his column on the matter (thanks to Carlos Fragoso of Mexico City for forwarding the story):

    Two Mexican locales with a rich history and baseball tradition, Sonora and Sinaloa, top the list of States in Mexico with the largest number of players represented, according to birthplaces listed on the Mexican Pacific league's opening rosters.

    This article shows the distribution of the origin of the 300 baseball players who started in the rosters of the 10 teams for their respective opening games of the 2022-2023 season of the Mexican Pacific League. The players and places of birth were listed by the 10 teams on their respective rosters, which were distributed to representatives of the media.

    There are 234 players born in Mexican territory, or 78 percent of the total of players. In addition, there are 7 other nations represented, led by the United States, which has 52 (17.3%), including players who are regarded as Mexican “nationals.” The overall percentage of foreigners born outside of Mexico is 66 playrs, or 22 percent. Cuba is the second foreign country with the most players with seven (2.3%), followed by Colombia with three (1%) and the rest are Germany, Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico with one each (0.3%).

    Now it's time to distribute them by states: Sinaloa is unsurprisingly number one in that category, since of the 234 Mexicans, 67 (28.6%) were born in Sinaloan territory. Sonora is number two with 62 players, or 26.5 percent.

    In total there are 22 states of the Mexican Republic represented. Third place is occupied by Baja California Norte with 31 (13.2%), followed by Jalisco with 12 (5.1%), then Coahuila and Nuevo León with 9 apiece (3.8%). The “Top Ten” is completed by Veracruz with 6 (2.6%), Baja California Sur, Chihuahua and Yucatan with 5 each (2.1%).

    Regarding the distribution by municipalities, Ahome, a suburb of Los Mochis, is the leader of all with a total of 30 players, or 12.8% of the 234 Mexican baseball players. Hermosillo and Cajeme are tied for second place with 19 baseball players (8.1%), followed by Guasave with 14 (6%), Tijuana and Culiacán each have a dozen (5.1%) while Mexicali and Mazatlán both have 10, or 4.3%.

    Looking at the United States, California has 21 players, which could be the fourth best mixed with those in Mexico, just behind Sinaloa (67), Sonora (62) and Baja California Norte (31). California has 40.4 percent of the LMP's American 52 players, followed by Texas with 6 (11.5%), Arizona has 5 (9.6%), Florida and Illinois have 3 each (5.8%) and Indiana has 2 (3.8%). In total, there are 18 US states.

    As for the foreign cities with the largest number of players, they are Cartagena, Colombia; Havana, Cuba; and Dallas, Texas (all with 3), followed by Camagüey, Cuba; Tucson, Arizona; and Anaheim and Long Beach, California with 2 each.

    The Mexcali Aguilas have the most players born outside of Mexico with nine, while Guasave, Obregon and Los Mochis have 8 each followed by Hermosillo (7), Culiacan (6) and Mazatlan, Monterrey, Jalisco and Navojoa with the minimum regulatory amount of 5.

    These are only numbers and statistics of places of origin of the players who started the season. In January, we'll have a second installment to know the origin of all the players who participated during the season.

LEONES TOP SULTANES 6-1 IN GAME 7, WIN LMB CROWN

Yucatan Leones pitcher Henderson Alvarez

           The Yucatan Lions were crowned Mexican League champions for the fifth time in their history last Monday, thanks to pitcher Henderson Alvarez and outfielder Jose “Cafecito” Martinez. The Merida squad joins their predecessors from 1957, 1984, 2006 and Spring 2018 as pennant-winners, leaving behind two consecutive defeats in the Serie del Rey after skipper Roberto Vizcarra and his players defeated the Monterrey Sultanes, 6-1, in the seventh and deciding game as a sellout crowd of  21,909 at Estadio Monterrey looked on.

Nicknamed “Chapo,” the 55-year-old Vizcarra managed Yucatan’s Spring 2018 champions before parting ways with Leones owners Juan Jose and Erick Arellano after a first-round playoff exit in the second abbreviated Fall 2018 season. Vizcarra was brought back to manage Yucatan on May 30 when Luis Matos was relieved of his duties after piloting the Merida club to a 14-19 record, marking the third mid-year change at the helm in as many seasons for the Leones and sixth such move since 2013. Yucatan went 32-24 the rest of the way under Vizcarra to finish fourth in the LMB South during the regular season before defeating Puebla, Quintana Roo and Mexico City in the playoffs to reach the title series against manager Roberto Kelly’s Sultanes. He managed Jalisco to a Mexican Pacific League pennant last winter.

The Leones were paced in Game Seven by the mound work of Alvarez, a former big league starter in Toronto and Miami who was selected to the 2014 All-Star Game as the Marlins representative but did not appear. The 31-year-old Venezuelan tossed eight-plus innings of one-run ball and scattered seven hits to earn the win on the heels of 7.2 shutout innings in a Game Three triumph, and was named the Serie del Rey's Most Valuable Player for 2022 by media members.

After driving in just one run over the first six games of the finals, Martinez picked the right time to wake his bat up for the winners, doubling in Norberto Obeso in the top of the first to put the visitors on the scoreboard, scoring Obeso on a single in the fifth and then crashing a three-run homer off Wander Suero in the seventh to bring in Obeso and Art Charles before crossing the plate himself. Walter Ibarra stroked a solo homer off Monterrey closer Neftali Feliz in the top of the ninth to give Yucatan a 6-0 lead. 

Alvarez came out in the bottom of the frame to complete his complete game shutout bid but after Sultanes leadoff batter Zoilo Almonte deposited a 1-1 pitch (Alvarez’ 102nd of the game) over the left field wall, Vizcarra brought Jorge Rondon from the bullpen to complete the inning and season by holding Monterrey scoreless the rest of the way.

Martinez, who grew up 125 miles from Alvarez in Venezuela, finished the night 4-for-5 at the plate with five RBIs for Yucatan while Orlando Calixte had three singles and Almonte homered and singled for the Sultanes.  Yoanner Mendez had a decent start for Monterrey, allowing two runs on five hits over 4.2 innings, but was no match for Alvarez and took the loss.

With this title, the Leones win their fifth flag to equal the Dos Laredos Tecolotes as for fifth among LMB teams with the most pennants (Mexico City has 16, the Quintana Roo Tigres have 12 and Monterrey has won 10). Vizcarra climbs in the record books to third place among managers with the most titles in the LMB, reaching four (2013 and 2015 with the Tigres, Spring 2018 and 2022 with Yucatan) to trail only Lazaro Salazar (7) and Benjamin “Cananea” Reyes (6).

TIJUANA, MEXICALI SPLIT CLASICO CON CAUSA SERIES

Tijuana Toros OF/P Felix Perez

     While the Mexican League was wrapping up its 2022 season in Monterrey, the Mexican Pacific League’s ten teams were already in full training camp mode. Although their season had officially ended with their elimination by Monterrey in the LMB North Division championship series, the Tijuana Toros were able to assemble a squad to play a two-game “Clasico con Causa” (“Classic with a Cause”) series against the LMP Mexicali Aguilas as a fundraiser for two cancer-fighting organizations, the Fundacion Mujeres Que Viven of Mexicali and Fundacion Castro Limon of Tijuana.

The short set opened Friday night in Mexicali at a sold out El Nido ballpark with a resounding 9-1 win before 13,000 fanaticos for the host Aguilas, who broke the game open early with an 8-run third inning, aided by a pair of costly Toros errors. Tijuana had taken a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Junior Lake scored from third on a Zach Kirtley single up the middle off Eagles starter Eduardo Vera. The lone run held until the fateful third, which was keyed by Kevin Zamudio’s two-run double and an RBI single by venerable Aguilas outfielder Chris Roberson. 

A 43-year-old Californian who hit .317 with 10 homers and nine steals in 78 Mexican League games between Leon and Monclova in his 22nd summer of pro ball, Roberson is a naturalized Mexican citizen who has settled his family in Monterrey and is arguably the most beloved American ballplayer south of the border today. He received a warm ovation from Mexicali fans, for whom he’d played nine winterball seasons before spending the last two Mex Pac campaigns in Mazatlan, when he was pulled for pinch-runner Israel Camacho after his one-bagger. 

Mexicali reliever Thomas Melgarejo was awarded the win after the left-hander had a strong outing out of the bullpen while Daniel de la Fuente’s disastrous third inning was enough to tag him with the loss. 

The second and closing game of the historic first series between the two neighboring border cities was held Saturday in Tijuana as the Toros held off Mexicali, 6-4, at Estadio Nacional with 12,974 onlookers in the stands.

Tijuana again drew first blood in the opening inning, taking a 3-0 lead on a Jose Guadalupe Chavez single that scored Isaac Rodriguez and a double from Agustin Murillo that plated Lake and Felix Perez. Mexicali woke the scorekeeper in the top of the third when Yahir Gamez socked a homer over the left field wall to close the gap to two runs, but Perez responded with a two-run roundtripper of his own to right in the bottom of the entrada to stretch the Bulls’ advantage to 5-1. 

Not to be put away that easily, the Aguilas made it a 5-3 game in the top of the fourth on Fernando Diaz’ two-run single but Perez put the game away in the bottom of the eighth with a run-scoring safety to bring the Toros’ lead to 6-3 and while Mexicali scored one more time in the top of the ninth, the visitors ran out of outs to fall by a pair of runs.

Perez did more than just homer and drive in three runs for the winners.  The 37-year-old Cuban expat, who’d spent five years in the Reds system before coming to Mexico in 2015, pitched a scoreless fifth inning and was awarded the victory.  The 6’2” lefty, who hit .323 with 38 homers to tie Saltillo’s Rainel Rosario for most in the Liga this summer, made four relief appearances for his hometown Isla de la Juventud team in the Cuban National Series and tossed two-thirds of an inning for AAA Louisville in 2014, allowing nine runs on six hits and five walks. Maybe he’s been working on his slider.

MEXICO FINISHES SIXTH AT U-18 BASEBALL WORLD CUP

Celebration of win over Panama

After a fairly promising start in which they won three of five first round games at the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup at spring training sites in Bradenton and Sarasota, Florida, the Mexican U-18 National Team lost all three of their Super Round games to finish sixth overall in the 12-team event earlier this month under manager Enrique “Che” Reyes.

Mexico opened Group B play on Saturday, September 10 with a 9-5 win over Australia at Sarasota’s Ed Smith Stadium, spring home of the Baltimore Orioles. Rosman Verdugo doubled in Carlos Gutierrez with the first run of the game for the Mexicans in the top of the first inning, followed by an RBI single from Yael Romero, who later scored on an Alberto Barriga groundout. A two-run Romero double capped a four-run fourth inning in which Mexico opened a 7-0 lead and never looked back. Romero finished with four RBIs on the night while starter Manuel Rodriguez tossed four innings of one-run ball to earn the win.

One day later, a three-run first for Japan was the difference as the top-ranked team went on to top Mexico, 4-1, at the former McKechnie Field in Bradenton, spring headquarters of the Pittsburgh Pirates since 1969. The key hit for Japan in the first was a two-run, two-out single to right by Kaito Ito of Mexico starter Angel Sanchez that gave the visiting team a 3-0 lead that turned out to be insurmountable. Mexican batters could only muster one run on four hits, including a Romero single that drove in Verdugo in the fifth, against winner Kazuki Kozai and reliever Haruya Miyahara. Kozai allowed one hit in four shutout innings. Sanchez took the loss for Mexico.

Mexico bounced back on September 12 with a 12-7 triumph over Italy in Bradenton as leadoff hitter Antonis Macias went 4-for-5 with a triple, two RBIs and a run scored for the victors. Italy held a 2-1 lead until the top of the third, when Mexico erupted for five runs in the third. Barriga and Daniel Sierra each contributed two-run doubles  while Macias’ RBI three-bagger chased Italian starter Giacomo Taschin. Italy kept battling and were within 9-7 until Mexico scored thrice in the top of the seventh (two on Barriga’s second double of the afternoon) to salt the contest away. Reliever Victor Landeros took the win while Anhuar Garcia held Italy scoreless on three hits over the final 2.2 innings to earn the save for Mexico, but it was a hitter’s day as both teams combined for 25 safeties over seven innings.

The Mexicans could have used some of that offensive output during their September 13 loss to defending U-18 champs Taiwan, 4-0. Lin Shao-En pitched a complete game one-hitter for the Formosans, needing only 85 pitches over seven innings. Manue Estrada averted the no-hit bid with a leadoff single on an 0-2 pitch in the top of the fifth but Lin was in control throughout., striking out eight batters and walking one. Mexico, who entered the tournament ranked fourth in the world, did not help their own cause by committing four errors in the field 

It was back to Bradenton on September 14, when Mexico beat Panama, 8-7, in eight innings for their last win in Florida. After falling behind 2-0 in the top of the first, Mexico plated five runs on just two hits in the bottom of the frame. Macias stroked a leadoff double and scored on a Gutierrez single but the next four runs were scored without benefit of a hit, thanks in part to two walks and two hit batsmen. Panama fought back and tied the game with two seventh-inning runs, but with runners placed on first and second in the bottom of the eighth via WBSC tiebreaker rules, Macias’ single to right brought in Barriga from second for the walk-off win.  Macias had his second straight four-hit game, scoring twice and driving in the game-winner, while Gutierrez had three hits, one run and a ribbie. The win gave Mexico a 3-2 first round record, edging out Panama for a Super Round berth.

Mexico U-18 OF Antonis Macias 

After that, it was 3-and-out for Reyes’ charges, starting with a 7-4 loss to The Netherlands on September 15 in Bradenton. Mexico scored first in the top of the second when Barriga laid down a bunt to the mound, allowing Estrada to score from third. The Mexicans eventually built a 3-1 lead that disappeared in the fifth when Holland scored three runs, two coming in after a pair of errors on back-to-back bunts by Cano at third and  Barriga at catcher, respectively. The Netherlands pushed three more scores across in the sixth and that was all she wrote. Romero had two of Mexico’s six hits (including a fifth-inning double down the left field line) but while the Mexicans put runners on base in every inning, eight were left stranded in a disappointing loss to a Dutch team ranked eighth in the world prior to the World Cup.

Mexico played for a sixth straight time in Bradenton on September 16, this time in a 7-5 loss to the host United States.  Mexico scored twice in the top of the first, including a Romero RBI single to right that scored Macias from third, and held a narrow 3-2 lead until the floodgates opened in the bottom of the third. The Americans scored five times  n three hits, two walks and an Estrada error at second. To their credit, Mexico came back with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth to make it a two-run game, thanks in part to an RBI single by Gutierrez, but that would be the last time either team scored. Mexico outhit the USA, 9-4, as Gutierrez and Cano each had two singles but five walks and three errors were hurtful, as were nine Mexican runners left on base.

The Mexicans finally returned to Sarasota on September 17 for their first game there since their World Cup opener, but their tourney appearance ended with a disappointing 6-4 loss to South Korea. Once again, Mexico had an early lead at 3-1 going into the bottom of the third after Cano doubled in Verdugo and Romero in the top of the frame, but the Koreans scored twice in the third to tie the game and then plated three more runs in the fourth to take a 5-3 lead they would never relinquish. Facing a 6-3 deficit in the top of the second, Gutierrez scored from third on a Macias groundout to short just before Romero flew out to left to end the game.  Verdugo had three of Mexico’s five hits, including a pair of doubles, but South Korea was able to convert enough times on eight hits of their own plus seven walks and one Mexico error to put the game away. 

Although the U-18 World Cup ended on a down note, there were bright spots in Mexico’s performance. Yael Romero was selected the All-World first baseman after hitting .476 with eight RBIs for the tournament, which was won by the USA, while Rosman Verdugo was the pick at shortstop by virtue of his .320 average with five RBIs and five runs scored over nine games. Antonis Macias (.448) and  Carlos Gutierrez (.414) joined Romero in the 400 Club while combining for 25 of Mexico’s 62 hits in Florida as the team hit a collective .281. Pitching was not a strong point as the team posted a 5.28 ERA but Manuel Rodriguez did go 1-1 in two starts with seven strikeouts in 8.1 innings for a 2.52 ERA while reliever Anhuar Garcia looked good in two outings, earning a save and a team-best ERA of 1.50 over 4.2 frames.

TIJUANA, SULTANES ADVANCE TO LMB NORTH FINALS

Felix Perez, Monterrey Sultanes

It took them six games to do it, but the Tijuana Toros took one step closer to repeating as Mexican League pennant-winners by defeating 2020 champion Monclova in their Northern Division semifinal series. Tijuana clinched their 6-games-to-2 set victory last Friday with a 12-5 pounding of the Acereros at home before 17,193 fans in a jam-packed Estadio Nacional.

The Toros led 5-0 after two innings after Leander Castro’s two-run homer capped a three-run first against Monclova starter Eduardo Vera. Castro then rapped a bases-clearing double off Wilmer Rios, who came on in relief, in the second. Efren Navarro’s three-run roundtripper in the fourth off Ernesto Zaragosa, who took over for Rios, made it an 8-0 contest and TJ’s win was all but assured. 

The Acereros did score three runs in the sixth as 13-year LMB veteran Chris Roberson contributed an RBI single while former Cubs All-Star Addison Russell’s two-out homer in the eighth off Tijuana reliever Sam Dyson accounted for Monclova’s final two runs. Humberto Mejia got the win by pitching five innings of three-run ball while the loss went to Vera.

The Acereros had actually taken a 2-games-to-1 lead last Monday with an 11-7 win thanks to a six-run seventh featuring homers by Chris Carter and Keon Broxton after trailing 5-0 earlier in the tilt. Tijuana then won the next three games, starting with Tuesday’s 15-2 drubbing in Monclova as Junior Lake, Felix Perez and Castro each had three hits and three RBIs. Perez then clubbed two more homers one night later, driving in four runs in a 9-2 Toros win as a third straight sellout crowd of 8,500 looked on at Estadio Monclova, setting up Friday’s series-closing game in TJ.

Monterrey won the first two games of their LMB North semi set with Dos Laredos before dropping a 4-2 contest last Monday as Balbino Fuenmayor’s two run homer in the top of the 13th off Sultanes reliever Miguel Aguilar held up to give the Tecolotes their lone win before 15,062 onlookers at Estadio Monterrey. Tuesday’s starter Cristian Castillo gave Monterrey skipper Roberto Kelly five innings of one-run pitching while Orlando Calixte singled, doubled and scored twice in a 5-1 Sultanes win with 15,395 in the stands at home and Monterrey ended the division semi set on Wednesday with a solid 7-2 triumph with Zoilo Almonte’s RBI double in the second giving the Sultanes a 2-1 lead that they would never relinquish. The midweek date and a rain delay dropped attendance to 12,160 but co-owner Jose “Pepe” Maiz had to be happy with the three-game turnout exceeding 42,000 in Mexico’s largest ballpark.

The Sultanes and Toros were scheduled to open the LMB North championship series Monday night at Tijuana in what has become perhaps the most bitter rivalry in the Mexican League over the past few years. Monterrey owner Maiz (a firm believer in relying on homegrown talent) has taken deep exception to Toros owner Alberto Uribe and family paying large amounts of money to import foreign players to the border city, a sentiment the 1957 Little League World Series champion likely harbors towards Monclova’s similarly free-spending owner Gerardo Benavides.

Whatever the front office methodology, Tijuana and Monterrey finished 1-2 in the LMB attendance derby this year and it would surprise nobody if more than 50,000 fans attend the first four games of this series, which marks the sixth time in the Toros’ nine years of existence that they have met the Gray Ghosts in the postseason. Monterrey holds a 3-2 lead in that context but Tijuana’s LMB North title wins in 2016 and 2017 were what touched off the rivalry that transcends the playing field.

DIABLOS BASH PUEBLA, FACE YUCATAN FOR SOUTH TITLE

Julian Leon, Mexico City Diablos Rojos

The Mexico City Diablos Rojos won the Mexican League South Division regular season title in no small part to an offense that produced 7.3 runs per game (highest in the LMB) with a .320 team batting average, which ranked fourth in the circuit as the Red Devils were the only LMB South club among seven who topped the .300 mark. That the capital city congregation’s playoff hopes would sink or swim on the strength of their bats was a foregone conclusion, but Mexico City has put on a postseason fireworks that has been nothing short of awesome.

In sweeping both their first round and division semifinal series, the Diablos outscored Veracruz and Puebla by an aggregate 94-45 score, an average of 11.75 per game. The Aguilas were able to hold Mexico City to 8 and 4 runs over the final two games of their opening round set, but the Pericos allowed 57 runs (14.25 per game) during the Diablos’ broom job in their series. To their credit, Puebla averaged 7.5 runs in their division semi but when your pitchers allow 63 hits (including 13 homers) over four games, you’re not likely going to win many games.

The Diablos closed out their dominant series win last Wednesday by throttling the Pericos, 15-5, in Puebla. After a scoreless first inning, Mexico City torched Pericos starter Kurt Heyer and reliever Braulio Torres-Perez for nine runs on nine hits, including Julian Leon’s fourth homer of the series (a two-run bomb off Heyer) and a three-run shot by Juan Carlos Gamboa off Torres-Perez in the fourth. Danny Ortiz, who has hit 94 longballs in 265 games over three seasons in Puebla, captured the spirit of the thing with solo homers off starter William Cuevas in the fourth and reliever Edgar Torres in the sixth but the visitors were up 12-1 when the latter shot came and the outcome of both game and series were no longer in doubt.

After going 1-for-8 over the first two games against the Pericos, veteran slugger Japhet Amador went 7-for-9 (including a homer and a double) with five runs and five RBIs to finish the semis with a .477 average. The hottest bat, however, belonged to Diablos catcher Julian Leon. A 28-year-old former Dodgers and Angels minor leaguer, Leon followed up a decent but unremarkable regular season (.301 with 8 homers in 48 games) and an 0-for-7 performance over two games against Veracruz in the first round with a dominant series against Puebla, batting 10-for-18 (.556) with four homers, 13 RBIs and 6 runs.

It’s unlikely that Leon and the Diablos will match their output against Yucatan in the LMB South divisional finals. Since joining the Liga in 1954, the Leones have built their reputation on pitching and defense. Both were on prominent display in their series-ending 6-0 Game Five win over Quintana Roo last Thursday in Cancun. Starter Henderson Alvarez, a 2014 All-Star with Miami who led the National League with three shutouts that year, tossed a complete game shutout for the Leones, scattering five singles over nine innings, striking out five and walking none while his defense played errorless ball and turned a pair of double plays as he won his second game against the Tigres. Thirteen-year veteran catcher Luis Juarez socked a three-run homer in the top of the first and that was all Alvarez would need.

Alvarez won Game One as well, a 9-1 laugher on August 20 that featured a three-run homer by Art Charles. Game Two on August 21 was more of the same, with another Charles three-run blast keying a 5-4 win. The series shifted to Cancun for the next three games, starting with a homer-filled (8 HRs between the two teams) 11-8 Yucatan win last Tuesday in which the Leones were their own worst enemies, with the visitors batting 5-for-19 with runners in scoring position and leaving 13 runners on base. The Tigres showed some fight with a 6-4 Game Four win last Wednesday as Ramon Bramasco lined a dramatic two-run walkoff homer to right center off reliever Tim Peterson on a 1-2 count with two out for the triumph. A  former University of Washington shortstop, Bramasco hit one regular season homer for the Tigres after hitting no roundtrippers in three collegiate seasons. All three games at Cancun’s refurbished Estadio Beto Avila drew in excess of 9,000 fans, nearing the facility’s listed 9,500-seat capacity.

Like their counterparts to the north, the Diablos and Leones have a long history of facing each other over the past seven decades, albeit without the intensity that marks the Tijuana-Monterrey rivalry. Despite both clubs being in the Mexican League for so long, Mexico City and Yucatan have met only 12 times in the playoffs. Although the Diablos have a 7-5 overall advantage, the Leones have topped Mexico City twice (2019 and 2021) for the LMB South championship. This year’s South Division title set will open Tuesday night in Mexico City.

All division championship series games will be available via streaming. The Tijuana-Monterrey LMB North title set is being carried on various ESPN and Star+ channels while the Mexico City-Yucatan LMB South series can be watched on Fox Sports 2, Claro Sports, TUDN, AYM, ViX+, Azteca Deportes, and Sipse. Both series will be streamed live and on-demand on Jonron.TV, as will next month’s Serie del Rey between the two division champions.

ROBERTO OSUNA NOW PITCHING IN JAPANESE LEAGUES

Roberto Osuna, Chiba Lotte Marines

One pitcher who started the 2022 season strong for Mexico City but is not likely to pitch for the Diablos Rojos during the playoffs is former MLB All-Star closer Roberto Osuna.

A nephew of one-time reliever Antonio Osuna, who pitched in 411 games over 11 major league seasons between 1995 and 2005, the younger Osuna had established himself as one of the game’s top closers by averaging 31 saves over a five-year period, gaining an All-Star Game selection in 2014 with Toronto and leading the American League with 38 saves in 2019 for Houston, although a domestic violence charge that was settled out of court hastened his exit from Canada. 

However, the Sinaloa native came down with an elbow injury that erased his 2020 season after just four appearances and the Astros placed him on waivers following the campaign after he turned down Tommy John surgery in favor of a rest-and-rehab approach. After holding a showcase in the Dominican Republic the following March but receiving no offers from an MLB team as a free agent, Osuna then signed with the Diablos Rojos two months later. He spent the rest of the abbreviated 2021 Mexican League season in Mexico City, going 3-0 with 12 saves in 24 appearances and turning in a 1.09 ERA (striking out 27 batters with just three walks in 24.2 innings).

After spending the winter pitching for his hometown Jalisco Charros in the Mexican Pacific League (5-2/11 saves/1.26 ERA in 28 appearances) and making four scoreless outings in the Caribbean Series, Osuna was back in Diablos Rojos togs this season. He got off to a hot start for the Red Devils and was 2-0 with six saves and a 1.35 ERA after his first 12 appearances when he got a call from Japan’s Chiba Lotte Mariners of NPB’s Pacific League and signed a contract with the team on June 11. Terms were not available.

Osuna, who turned 27 in February, has since pitched for both the Marines’ Eastern League affiliate, giving up a pair of runs over three innings in as many relief appearances, but has spent most of the past ten weeks with the big club, where’s he’s been teammates with Mexican National Team member Brandon Laird, former Rangers center fielder Leonys Martin and one-time Marlins infielder Adeiny Hechavarria. 

After 20 games out of the bullpen for the Marines (who are fifth in the Pacific League with a 56-59 record), Osuna is 3-0 with five saves, nine holds and a 0.90 ERA. Continuing to exhibit the pinpoint control he showed in Mexico City, the righty has struck out 23 NPB batters and issued just two walks over 20 innings pitched. The NPB regular season lasts into the first week of October, meaning Osuna’s return to the Diablos Rojos for the playoffs is highly unlikely.

LMB REGULAR SEASON ENDS: TJ, DIABLOS TOP SEEDS

Mexico City OF Julian Ornelas

The Mexican League’s 2022 regular season came to a close Sunday as defending champion Tijuana finished one game ahead of Dos Laredos (59-27) to finish in first place in the Northern Division with an Liga-best 62-28 record. The Mexico City Diablos Rojos similarly outlasted Tabasco in the LMB South at 50-34, three games up on the 47-37 Olmecas. 

Those four teams will be joined by eight more in the postseason, beginning with three games Tuesday night involving the six qualifying LMB North teams. The six LMB South playoff teams will open their respective first round series Wednesday night. Monterrey (51-39) will be in Monclova (54-31) for an 8:35ET contest Tuesday, Dos Laredos hosts Union Laguna (48-40) at the same time and Tijuana welcomes Aguascalientes (42-46) at 10:35ET.

On Wednesday, the LMB South first round begins as Mexico City will host ancient rival Veracruz (41-48), the Quintana Roo Tigres (44-48) play Tabasco in Macuspana and Yucatan (46-43) will be at Puebla (48-39). The LMB will use the “lucky loser” system employed for decades during the Mexican Pacific League’s winterball season, in which all three series winners advance to their division semifinals along with the team that fared the best in losing their opening round matchup.

The Toros closed out their 90-game schedule Sunday with a 13-4 drubbing of Laguna on the road at Torreon’s historic Estadio Revolucion. Felix Perez cracked a pair of homers while starter Arturo Reyes tossed five innings and allowed just one run on an Alan Cordoba RBI single in the bottom of the first that gave the Algodoneros a 1-0 lead. 

The Toros roared back with six runs in the second, keyed by a 2-run Junior Lake double off Laguna reliever Josh Lueke, who allowed all six counters on five hits, one walk and an error by Cordoba at third base. The Bulls lead stretched to 9-1 in the top of the seventh as the defending champs never looked back. The Tijuana win rendered Dos Laredos’ 4-1 win over Aguascalientes in Nuevo Laredo moot. The Tecolotes got homers from Kennys Vargas and Arturo Rodriguez in support of a great start from Gabino Avalos (5 IP, 1 H, 0 R) in 100-degree heat at Parque La Junta. 

Meanwhile, Mexico City doubled up, 14-7, on little sister Oaxaca Sunday in front of 11,509 fans at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in the nation’s capital. The Guerreros jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first but the Diablos came back with big innings of five runs in the third, four in the fourth and five more in the seventh to wear down the Oaxaca pitchers. Leadoff hitter Julian Ornelas had a banner day for the Red Devils, going 4-for-6 with four RBIs, including a pair of two-run homers. Moises Gutierrez, Alejandro Gonzalez and Emmanuel Avila combined for nine of Mexico City’s 18 hits, scoring eight runs and driving in two more. Bryan Araiza crushed a three-run homer for the Guerreros in the fourth while former Diablos center fielder Carlos Figueroa was 3-for-5 with two doubles and a pair of runs for Oaxaca.

Tabasco topped Puebla, 9-6, Sunday to edge out the Pericos by one-and-a half games for second place in the LMB South. Puebla had built a 5-1 lead, thanks in part to Peter O’Brien’s two-run homer in the top of the second, but the Olmecas took the lead with six runs in the sixth frame as both Edwin Garcia and Herlis Rodriguez stroked two-run doubles to stake reliever Francisco Moreno a 7-6 lead. Maikel Serrano’s two-run homer to left made it a three-run Tabasco advantage and the Olmecas held on for the win as 4,750 looked on at Estadio Angel Toledo Meza in Macuspana, their temporary home while Villahermosa’s Parque Centenario 27 de Febrero undergoes a major facelift 34 miles away.

ROSARIO WINS HR, RBI TITLES; MENDEZ (7-0) COPS ERA CROWN

Saltillo OF Rainel Rosario

Although Saltillo slugger Rainel Rosario fell short in his bid for the Mexican League Triple Crown after contending in all three categories, the 33-year-old Dominican outfielder still tied for the home run crown, won the RBI title and finished tenth in the batting race. He was one of the few bright spots in a disappointing season for the Saraperos, who finished five games behind Aguascalientes for the sixth and final LMB North playoff slot.

Rosario, a former Cardinals farmhand who spent 2014 and 2105 in Japan with the Hiroshima Carp, tied Tijuana’s Felix Perez for the lead in homers with 38 each (a good total for a 90-day schedule). Rosario and Perez were 1-2 in the RBI race, ending the campaign with 116 and 109 ribbies, respectively. 

Rosario also finished seventh in the batting race as his Saltillo teammate, Cuban-born first baseman Henry Urrutia, won the batting title with a .420 average, ahead of Durango’s Alberth Martinez (.416) and Tabasco’s Roel Santo (.411). A second Durango player, Alfredo Lopez, rounded out the quartet of .400 hitters with a .404 average of his own. Urrutia, who hit .350 over five years for La Tunas in the Cuban National Series before defecting in 2010, has never hit below .361 in four years playing in the Mexican League.

Quintana Roo outfielder Tito Polo led the circuit with 35 stolen bases in 44 attempts, one more swipe than Cade Gotta of Dos Laredos. Longtime Yokohama outfielder Tomo Otosaka made a successful conversion to Mexico after eight years in NPB by batting .367 and finishing third with 26 steals while splitting the season with Leon and Saltillo. The Saraperos hit .316 as a team with 154 homers, but their collective 7.67 ERA doomed them to their seventh-place finish at 38-52.

Saltillo was hardly the only LMB team with pitching woes. Batting averages were a combined .304 league-wide as 10 of 18 teams finished at .300 or better (with Durango topping the list at .341). Conversely, Mexican League pitchers allowed 6.11 earned runs per game, with Leon bringing up the rear at 8.62. Even so, there were some solid individual performers among all the mound carnage in 2022. Monterrey starter Yohander Mendez, a Texas Rangers hurler between 2016-19, was awarded the ERA title after turning in a sparkling 2.78 mark over 15 starts and 74.1 innings en route to a 7-0 record for the Sultanes. 

Longtime Tijuana starter Carlos Hernandez, working out of the bullpen this summer, was one of eight pitchers with eight wins at 8-0, but the wins title was shared at nine apiece by Veracruz reliever Luis Marquez (9-1) and Monclova starter Wilmer Rios (9-4), the latter tossing a pair of shutouts and three complete games (both best in the Liga). Marquez had an excellent year with a 2.38 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 53 innings for the Aguilas. Just three starters finished with 100 or more strikeouts in the shortened schedule: Quintana Roo’s Pedro Fernandez (103), Tijuana veteran Manny Barreda (102) and another vet, Erick Leal of Aguascalients (100).

The saves crown went to Monterrey closer Neftali Perez, who was the 2010 American League Rookie of the Year for the Texas Rangers and selected to that year’s MLB All-Star Game. Perez, in his first Mexican League season after spending all or part of 10 campaigns in the big leagues, finished with 24 saves to beat another former MLBer, Tijuana’s Fernando Rodney, by two salvados.

TOROS WIN ATTENDANCE DERBY; LMB DRAWS 3.56 MILLION

Estadio Nacional, Tijuana

It’s become commonplace for the Tijuana Toros to finish at or near the top of the Mexican League attendance tables and 2022 was no exception. While the Uribe family has sometimes made what could charitably called capricious decisions in running their franchise in the border city, there’s no question that they’ve made the right moves in bringing fans into Estadio Nacional consistently over the years.

The recently-concluded regular season showed the defending champions with both the best record in the LMB at 62-28 and the most backsides in the stands at 453,961 clicking the turnstiles at their 17,000-seat ballpark, an average of 10,088 that was the highest in all of minor league baseball this year. The Yucatan Leones, always a strong draw in Merida over the decades, finished second with 440,165 attending games in their fortieth season at Parque Kukulkan.

Overall, a total of 3,564,524 people went to 792 Mexican League games during the regular season, an average of 4,501 per opening. The numbers represent an increase in average attendance from 2021. Crowds went up 2,015 per opening over last year, a gain of 81 percent over the previous average of 2,486. Overall attendance naturally took an upward spike after the schedule was increased from 66 to 90 games per team. Still, it’s hard not to be impressed with the LMB more than doubling their total attendance of 1,446,929 in 2021, the circuit’s first year back as a fully-independent loop after more than seven decades as a member of Minor League Baseball.

The hike in league-wide numbers does not hide the fact that several, if not most, of the 18 Mexican League franchises are struggling financially, some mightily. Although five teams averaged over 5,000 per game in attendance (with Monterrey, Saltillo and Mexico City joining Tijuana and Yucatan at the top of the derby), another five clubs drew fewer than 100,000 over an average of 44 home games. Tabasco (81,656), Guadalajara (78,910), Aguascalientes (74,606), Oaxaca (71,916) and Durango (70,771) drew fewer attendees combined than Tijuana, Yucatan and Monterrey each did alone while averaging just over 1,700 per opening.