Mexico loses 10-4 to Arizona; WBC Pool D opens Thursday

Despite taking an early lead by scoring a pair of first inning runs off former Cy Young Award winner Zack Greinke, the Mexican National Team ended up losing a 10-4 decision to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a World Baseball Classic tuneup Wednesday at Scottsdale, Arizona.  The loss came a day after a defeat at the hands of the San Diego Padres as the Verdes Grande played a pair of Major League Baseball sides in preparation for the World Baseball Classic.

Dodgers prospect Alex Verdugo led off the game by singling to left field off Greinke, followed by a Luis Alfonso Cruz double to left that brought Verdugo all the way in from first base to give Mexico a 1-0 lead.  Cruz advanced to third on Brandon Laird's flyout to center and scored on Efren Navarro's line-drive single up the middle to bring the lead to 2-0.  Navarro went from first to third on Chris Roberson's two-out single, but Greinke then picked Roberson off first to end the inning.

The lead held until the bottom of the third, when the Diamondbacks scored three times.  Oswaldo Arcia led off by waiting out Mexico starter Hector Daniel Rodriguez, who then gave up consecutive singles to Jack Reinheimer, Kristopher Negron and Domingo Leyba, with Negron's driving in Arcia and Leyba's safety plating Reinheimer to tie the game.  Idelmara Vargas lofted a sacrifice fly to Verdugo in right for the inning's first out, but Negron came in to give Arizona a 3-2 advantage.  Rodriguez got the final two outs on three pitches.

The Snakes were up by a 5-2 count when Mexico next scored in the top of the seventh when Sebastian Elizalde's bases-loaded walk issued by Kevin Jepsen pushed Luis Urias across the plate with a run.  After Arizona scored once more in the bottom of the seventh, the Mexicans scored in the top of the eighth when Japhet Amador's groundout to third sent Manny Rodriguez in from third to close to gap to 6-4, but the Diamonbacks put four more runs on the board in the bottom of the frame to put the game away, with Evan Marzilli's three-run homer off reliever Will Locante the key blow.  Locante is a former D-Backs farmhand now in the Padres organization who was among a handful of pitching fill-ins for Mexico as manager Gonzalez wanted to save some wear and tear on his mound staff prior to the opening of WBC play.

Greinke got the win for the Diamondbacks despite allowing two runs on four hits and two walks in two innings. Danny Rodriguez was tagged with the loss by coughing up four runs on as many hits in two-plus frames, striking out two.  Manny Rodriguez had a single and double for the Mexicans, who were outhit by a 14-10 margin and went 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position over the contest.  A crowd of 6,391 watched the encounter under sunny skies at Salt River Fields.

After the game, the Verdes Grande headed south to Guadalajara for Thursday's WBC Pool D opening game at 8PM Central Time against Italy at Estadio Charros after an elaborate ceremony.  Here is the entire Pool D schedule:

Thursday, March 9 - Mexico vs. Italy, 8:00pm CT
Friday, March 10 - Venezuela vs. Puerto Rico, 8:00pm CT
Saturday, March 11 - Venezuela vs. Italy, 2:00pm CT
Saturday, March 11 - Puerto Rico vs. Mexico, 8:30pm CT
Sunday, March 12  - Italy vs. Puerto Rico, 1:30pm CDT
Sunday, March 12 - Mexico vs. Venezuela, 8:00pm CDT
Monday, March 13 - Tiebreaker (if needed), 7:00pm CDT

Play in Pools A and B has already begun, with Israel the early surprise team with Pool A upset wins over South Korea, Taiwan and The Netherlands, punching their ticket to the second round.  The Dutch will also advance while the favored Koreans and Taiwanese will square off Thursday night in Seoul with matching 0-2 records and a lot of questions to answer from their respective fan bases, particularly in South Korea.

In Pool B action at the Tokyo Dome, host Japan is 2-0 after wins over Cuba and Australia heading into Friday's likely win over China (which has lost twice by an aggregate score of 17-0), and will move on to the WBC quarterfinals.  Australia and Cuba will play Thursday night to determine the second Pool B team to reach the final eight.

In addition to Pool D in Guadalajara at the only opening-round venue without a roof, Pool C play gets underway Thursday when Canada meets the Dominican Republic in Miami's Marlins Stadium.  The USA will play Colombia on Friday night.

De La Rosa, Garcia bow out as WBC opener approaches

With only a few days remaining until their World Baseball Classic opener against Italy in Guadalajara, the Mexican National Team roster is still undergoing changes as more players originally expected to play have decided to sit out the WBC in favor of remaining in training camp with their Major League Baseball teams.

The latest to send their regrets are pitchers Jorge De La Rosa and Jaime Garcia, who will stay with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Atlanta Braves, respectively.  Another player, Mexican League outfielder J.J. Aguilar, had to beg off the WBC due to a shoulder injury.  They'll be replaced by pitchers Hector Daniel Rodriguez and Miguel Aguilar along with outfielder Luis Juarez.  Reds minor leaguer Sebastian Elizalde has also been tabbed to fill in for A's outfielder Khris Davis, who recently elected to stay in Oakland's Arizona camp even though his roster spot is pretty well assured after belting 42 homers for the A's last year.

De La Rosa was signed to a minor league contract by the Diamondbacks in recent weeks after several seasons in Colorado (where he's the Rockies' all-time wins leaders) and wants to focus on trying to make his new big club.  Garcia is likewise with a different team after coming to the Braves following several seasons in St. Louis.  As with De La Rosa, the injury-plagued Garcia is wanting to concentrate on staying healthy after being dealt to the Braves for three players in the offseason. J.J. Aguilar, a top-of-the-order hitter with some speed and a career .306 average after seven seasons in the Mexican League, hurt his shoulder while training with the Yucatan Leones.

As is becoming a ritual for many managers of WBC teams dealing with rejections and injuries among their rostered players, Mexico skipper Edgar Gonzalez (pictured) is having to apply a tourniquet to his roster while trying to prepare for Pool D play against tough teams from Venezuela and the Dominican Republic and an Italy side hoping to surprise a few people.  Gonzalez' reinforcements may not have the resumes of the men they'll be replacing, but each has something to offer beyond a willingness to represent their homeland in baseball's version of soccer's World Cup.

Many observers were surprised when Danny Rodriguez was left off Mexico's original WBC roster after establishing himself as a big-game pitcher and one of the best lefties south of the border.  The 32-year-old Rodriguez was 9-4 with a 3.95 ERA last summer for a Saltillo team that failed to reach the playoffs, then turned in a decent regular season during the winter for Culiacan before raising his game in the Mexivan Pacific League postseason and Caribbean Series, as usual.  It has not been determined if Rodriguez will be used as a back-of-the-rotation starter or out of the bullpen.

Miguel Aguilar is a 25-year-old left-hander who has toiled in the Mexican League since debuting with Laguna in 2012.  He currently serves as a middleman for Yucatan, for whom he went 1-1 with a 2.08 ERA last year for manager Willie Romero's regular-season South Division champions.  Although he's had some control issues, Aguilar has averaged over one strikeout per inning for his career in both the Liga and the MexPac.  He will likely continue his reliever's role under Gonzalez in the WBC.

Luis Juarez had spent eight summers with Monterrey in the LMB and six winters with Mexicali in the LMP with fairly moderate totals (a combined .269 average and 29 homers over 517 games) before registering a career-type season of winterball with the Aguilas in 2016-17.  The 5'8" Culiacan native, who can play first lase, left field or catcher, won the MexPac batting title with a .364 average to finish 17 points ahead of the nearest hitter, and went on to bat .329 in 19 playoff games.  He was named by the league as its Most Valuable Player. Although it's hard to envision him as a starter in Guadalajara, Juarez' versaility will likely get him some playing time for Mexico in a utility role.

Sebastian Elizalde is not going to replace Davis' power in the Verdes Grande batting order, but he'll bring more foot speed to the outfield and on the basepaths.  The 25-year-old from Guaymas was a mid-season All-Star in the Florida State League while playing for Daytona in 2015, and is currently a non-roster invitee at Cincinnati's big league camp in the Sunshine State.  He topped the .300 mark three times in four LMB seasons while playing sparingly for Monterrey between 2010 and 2013 before the Red bought his contract before the 2014 campaign.  Elizalde batted .297 in 111 for AA Pensacola last summer.

The Mexicans will have tuneup game against the San Diego Padres in Peoria on Tuesday and the Arizona Diamonbacks on Wednesday in Scottsdale prior to their WBC opener against Italy Thursday night in Guadalajara.

Culiacan GM Padilla sacked, Tomateros players complain

Anyone who's read Jim Bouton's classic "Ball Four" is aware that ballplayers don't often hold general managers in high esteem.  While Bouton's lampooning of Seattle Pilots GM Marvin Milkes was just one reason that got him into considerable hot water with the baseball establishment, it's fairly common knowledge that an adversarial relationship can develop between a professional athlete and the person who ultimately determines their salary (especially in the era prior to free agency).

That's why the response of a dozen Culiacan Tomateros players, many of them current or former major leaguers, in the wake of the team's firing of general manager Ray Padilla (pictured) raised so many eyebrows last week.  Padilla spent twelve winters in the GM's chair for the Tomateros before being let go after the season.  Although original owner Juan Manuel Ley built the Mexican Pacific League team into one of the country's top baseball organizations from the late 1960's until his death a year ago at age 82, Ley's family successors at the helm of the team ultimately grew frustrated with Padilla's lack of on-field success this season after the club, which won the MexPac's first-half title before dropping off in the second half and being eliminated in the playoff semifinals.

With Culiacan hosting the Caribbean Series earlier this month, much pressure was placed on Padilla to bring the Tomateros a pennant and berth in the CS.  The results of impatient ownership led to manager Lino Rivera's firing after a slow start to the second half (remember, this is the team that WON the first half title), replacing him with veteran skipper Enrique "Che" Reyes, who'd been coaching in the organization.  When Reyes failed to bring the team a flag, Padilla's fate was all but sealed despite an LMP pennant and a Caribbean Series title game berth just two years ago under his watch.

A terse February 18 statement from the Tomateros office said, "Continuing with the process or re-engineering our club, it is announced that Mr. Reymundo Padilla is leaving his position of Sports Manager."  Padilla's ouster brought on an unusual reaction of support from his former players days later, as no less than twelve Tomateros jugadores signed a formal statement protesting the move and sent it to the press.  Here is a translated version of that letter:

Due to what happened last week, in which the Culiacan Tomateros Baseball Club reported that Mr. Ray Padilla stopped being the Sports Manager, the players of this organization want to express our feelings about it.

In the years that Mr. Padilla was in charge of the sports management of this club, he managed to form a great harmony in the group of players that today make up the roster of the Tomateros team of Culiacan. That is why we are very upset the news. Ray, as we all call him, had a unique work ethic, always showing us his support in good and bad.

We feel a great disappointment inside this group of players. We understand that the owners make their decisions, but many times they do it without consulting those inside the team, doing things that may damage the organization in the future.

We want to show our support to Ray, thanking him for all his support throughout these years in which we had the opportunity to work with him.

Without more to add, we said goodbye, even with this news and very hurt by the decision that was taken by the directors, which we do not agree with.


Among the twelve players who signed the statement are pitchers Oliver Perez and Hector Daniel "Danny" Rodriguez, infielders Oscar Robles, Luis Alfonso Cruz and Ramiro Pena, and outfielders Ronnier Mustelier and Joey Meneses. Perez, Robles, Cruz and Pena all have MLB experience (Perez, a Culiacan native, is entering his 15th big league season), Rodriguez is one of Mexico's top left-handed pitchers and Mustelier and Meneses were two of the Tomateros' top hitters this season.

Padilla's replacement in Culiacan has not been determined.

Mexicali nips Cubans, 1-0, reach CS final vs. Caguas

Miguel Pena (pictured) built a shutout over the first five innings and Hector Daniel Rodriguez carried it another three before Jake Sanchez closed the deal as the Mexicali Aguilas shut out Cuba's Granma Alazanes, 1-0, Monday night as another sellout crowd of 19,177 looked on at Culiacan's Estadio Tomateros.  The win punches Mexico's ticket to a fifth consecutive Caribbean Series championship game, this one against Puerto Rico's Caguas Criollos on Tuesday night.

However, this win didn't come easily for the Mexican Pacific League champions, whose recent offensive struggles continued after a hot start.  Mexicali now has 11 hits combined over their past two games after collecting 33 safeties in their first three contests.


MEXICALI (MX) Aguilas 1-5-0, Granma (CU) Alazanes 0-2-1

Starting with Sunday's 4-0 loss to Granma, Mexicali's scoreless string against Alazanes pitching reached 13 innings before the Aguilas broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth on Monday.  Cuban expat Ronnier Mustelier led off with a walk against Granma starter Lazaro Blanco, scurried to third when Sebastian Valle's bunt single drew a bad throw by Cuban third baseman Yunior Paumier and then came in to score on Agustin Murillo's single to left.  It was as close to home as anyone would get the rest of the night.

Blanco settled down and resumed his duel with Aguilas starter Pena, who gave up no runs on two hits in five innings before making way for Rodriguez.  The Culiacan native, who won Mexicali's opening game against Caguas on Wednesday, picked up the shutout and carried it through the eighth.  For his part, Blanco lasted through the seventh, allowing just one run on four hits for an excellent start.  Livan Moinelo took the mound in the bottom of the eighth for Granma and blanked the Aguilas.  It then came down to closer Sanchez, the MexPac Reliever of the Year who has allowed one earned run all winter, to close out the win and clinch a berth against Caguas in Tuesday's finale.

Sanchez opened the ninth by getting Roel Santos to tap a comebacker to the hill, which Sanchez threw to first for the out.  The Cal Baptist product then walked Victor Mesa on a full count, breaking the string of 24 consecutive Cuban batters retired in a row by Pena, Rodriguez and Sanchez.  Pinch-hitter Guillermo Aviles grounded to second baseman Isaac Rodriguez, who flipped the ball to shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to force Mesa at second, but Betancourt's relay to C.J. Retherford was ruled not in time to beat Aviles to the bag.  That brought Mexicali manager Roberto Vizcarra out of the dugout and an appeal was made, but the call was upheld with Aviles safe at first on a fielder's choice and two out.  Sanchez went back to work and caught Alexander Ayala looking for strike three to complete the shutout for his second CS save, sending the Aguilas into the championship game against the Puerto Ricans.  Mexicali opened their first round schedule with a 4-2 win over Caguas on Wednesday.

Pena got the win with his first start of this CS.  Pena, Rodriguez and Sanchez combined to limit the Cuban batting order to two hits and one walk, striking out ten Granma batters (Rodriguez had five in three innings).  Blanco gave up one run on four hits with five whiffs over seven innings in a tough-luck loss.  Chris Roberson singled and drew two walks for Mexicali as the Eagles gathered just five hits.  Mesa singled and Ayala doubled for Granma's lone hits of the night.

Hector Velazquez will get the start against Caguas in Tuesday's CS title game.  The LMP's choice for Pitcher of the Year went five innings and struck out seven Licey hitters in Mexicali's 7-2 win over the Tigres last Thursday.


Caguas (PR) Criollos 9-11-0, ZULIA (VZ) Aguilas 6-16-1

Caguas jumped out to a 4-0 first inning lead and David Vidal socked his third Caribbean Series homer as the Criollos surprised Venezuela's Zulia Aguilas, 9-6, Monday afternoon in the first CS semifinal of the day.  The victory gave the Puerto Rican champs, who'd barely snuck into the Final Four after losing three of their four round-robin games (including a 4-3 loss to Zulia last Thursday), a berth in Tuesday's title game against Mexicali.

Aguilas starter Mitch Lively, who spent time in the Mexican League with Reynosa and Laguna last summer, was knocked out of the box with two out in the first after allowing four runs, including RBI singles from Rusney Castillo and Yadiel Rivera. The Criollos built on their lead with two more runs in the top of the third and single scores in the fourth and fifth frames to go up 8-0.  Zulia plated their first run in the bottom of the fifth when Jose Castillo came in from third on Alex Romero's groundout.  Both teams scored a run in the sixth to put the Puerto Ricans lead at 9-2, which the Criollos maintained until the Venezuelans scored four times in the bottom of the eighth.  Ronny Cedeno doubled in two runs and Castillo singled in two more to bring Zulia within three runs of Caguas.  The Criollos threatened in the bottom of the ninth when Romero, Jesus Flores and Denis Phipps led off the frame with consecutive singles off reliever Ricardo Gomez to load the bases, but Gomez bore down and struck out Ali Castillo, got Freddy Galvis to fly out to center with no baserunners advancing and then struck out Cedeno swinging to end the game.

Criollos opener Orlando Roman pitched with a cushion from the get-go and went on to register five innings, letting in one run while scattering seven hits and three walks, striking out seven.  Lively took the loss after allowing four runs on four hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning.  Henry Ramos led Caguas with three hits (including a triple) and scored once while Vidal homered, singled and drove in two runs.  Castillo and Jose Pirela each had three hits for Zulia (who outhit the winner, 16-to-11), with Castillo driving in a pair of runs and Pirela doubling twice.  Pirela and Aguilas manager Lipso Nava were both ejected for arguing with home plate umpire Jair Fernandez after Pirela ended the bottom of the eighth by popping out to Caguas first sacker Ruben Gotay in foul territory.

Caribbean Series championship game

Tuesday, 6 February 2017

Caguas (PR) at Mexicali (MX)

7:00pm MST (0200 UTC)

Mexicali rests; CS semifinal field determined

The 3-and-0 Mexicali Aguilas enjoyed a day off Saturday as their spot in the 2017 Caribbean Series bye rotation came up.  It was a rest well-earned by manager Roberto Vizcarra's troops, whose Mexican Pacific League playoff pennant run was marked by a potent offense but it's been the pitching staff that's distinguished them at the CS in Culiacan with a microscopic three-game ERA of 1.33 as Hector Daniel Rodriguez, Hector Valenzuela and Barry Enright have all registered standout starts.

They've had plenty of breathing room, as the Aguilas offense has average .324 as a team for an average of 5.33 runs per game.  Four Mexicali batsmen are hitting .400 or better, led by Jason Bourgeois at .500.  Including last year's title run by Mazatlan, Mexican teams have now won nine games in a row at the Serie del Caribe.  The last loss by an MexPac in the CS occurred February 8, 2015 when Culiacan fell to Cuba's Pinar del Rio Vegueros, 3-2, in the championship game.

It'll be a Cuban team that'll attempt to derail Mexicali Sunday when the 2-and-1 Granma Alazanes take on the Aguilas at 5:00pm MST (0000 UTC) in Culiacan's Estadio Tomateros to wrap up CS Day Five.


ZULIA (VZ) Aguilas 8-15-0, Granma (CU) Alazanes 3-10-2

Freddy Galvis and Ronny Cedeno combined for six hits, three runs and three RBIs at the top of the Zulia order as the Venezuelan champion Aguilas beat Cuba's National Series champs Granma, 8-3, Saturday night as 14,973 onlookers watched in Culiacan.  The Zulia win knots both the Aguilas and Alazanes into a second-place tie with 2-1 records.  Both clubs were assured slots in Monday's semifinals after Caguas beat Licey in Saturday's opener.

Zulia grabbed the early lead with three runs in the bottom of the first inning, two of them coming in on Jose Castillo's slow roller to short resulted in an infield single to score Galvis, followed by a throwing error by Granma shortstop Alexander Ayala to bring in Cedeno.  A subsequent Alex Romero single plated Rene Reyes with the Aguilas' third run.  Granma tied the contest in the top of the second when Carlos Benitez belted a three-run homer to left.  Cedeno singled in Galvis to put the Venezuelans back on top, 4-3, in the bottom of the fourth, but it was the fifth when Zulia effectively put the game out of reach by scoring three more runs as Galvis scorched a two-run double for the key blow to make it a 7-3 Aguilas advantage and one more Zulia run in the seventh closed the scoring for the day.

Besides the batwork of Galvis and Cedeno, Romero and Reyes each had two hits for Zulia.  Benitez, William Saavedra and Roel Santos each had two hits for Granma.  Wil Ledezma pitched 2.2 innings of shutout relief ball to earn the win while reliever Yoelvis Entenza (4.1 IP, 3 ER) took the loss for the Alazanes.


CAGUAS (PR) Criollos 10-11-0, Licey (DR) Tigres 2-5-2

Cuban exile Rusney Castillo set an early tone with a first-inning, two-run homer as Caguas avoided a winless appearance at the Caribbean Series by beating Licey, 10-2, in Saturday afternoon's Day Four opener at Culiacan.  The Criollos have completed the round robin stage with a 1-3 record while Licey drops to 0-3.  Even if the Tigres beat Venezuela's Zulia Sunday in their Day Five matchup, Licey would still miss the final four to to their loss to Caguas, which in effect got the one win they needed when they needed it.

The score remained at 2-0 after Castillo's longball into the bottom of the fourth, when the Puerto Rican  pennant-winners added another run when Jorge Padilla scored from third on a Jonathan Morales sacrifice fly.  Licey got on the scoreboard in the top of the fifth with their lone two runs of the game as Zoilo Almonte lined a single to right to bring Engel Beltre and Anderson Hernandez to whittle the Criollos lead to one at 3-2.  That was as close as Licey would get, with Caguas scoring three times in the fifth as the Tigres self-destructed with two errors and added three more in the sixth behind Ivan De Jesus Jr.'s two-run double that gave Caguas a 9-2 lead.  Castillo's RBI single in the eighth was the cherry on the whipped cream for the Criollos, who outhit the Dominicans by an 11-to-5 margin for the game.

DeJesus finished the game with three hits, three runs and two RBIs while it was a three-hit night for the Criollos' David Vidal.  Beltre had two of Licey's five hits.  Andres Santiago pitched 2.1 innings in relief of Caguas starter John Brownell to earn the win, while nine-year minor leaguer Bryan Evans took the loss for Licey, going 2.1 innings and allowing two runs in the start.

The Tigres will close out their round robin portion of their schedule against Venezuela's Zulia Aguilas Sunday at 1:00pm MST (2000 UTC) in Culiacan.


Caribbean Series standings
3-0  Mexicali (MX) Aguilas
2-1  Granma (CU) Alazanes
2-1  Zulia (VZ) Aguilas
1-3  Caguas (PR) Criollos
0-3  Licey (DR) Tigres

Sunday's schedule
Licey at Zulia, 1:00pm MST (2000 UTC)
Mexcali at Granma, 5:00pm MST (0000 UTC)
Caguas bye

Late Roberson homer lifts Mexicali to 4-2 win in CS opener

Hector Daniel Rodriguez turned in a brilliant start for Mexicali Wednesday night, as the Aguilas lefthander allowed just one Caguas hit over six innings, but it was Chris Roberson's two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh that put the Mexican Pacific League champions ahead for good as Mexicali went on to defeat the Puerto Rican champ Criollos, 4-2, in the second game of the 2017 Caribbean Series before 19,177 fans at Estadio Tomateros in Culiacan, Sinaloa.  The Aguilas are attempting to become the fifth team representing Mexico to win the Serie del Caribe since 2011.  Mexicali last won the CS in 1986 at Maracaibo, Venezuela under Salon de la Fama manager Benjamin "Cananea" Reyes.

MEXICALI (MEX) 4-10-0, Caguas (PR) 2-5-2

After retiring the first four Caguas batters he faced, Rodriguez gave up consecutive walks to Ruben Gotay and David Vidal with one out in the top of the second, but got the final two outs without incurring any further damage.  From that point, the 32-year-old portsider carried his no-hitter into the fifth inning, when Ivan de Jesus Jr. lined a single to center to momentarily break the Culiacan native's spell.  It was a good thing for Mexicali that Rodriguez continued the tradition of being at his best in big games because Criollos starter Orlando Roman matched him zero for zero through the fifth inning until Caguas manager Alex Cora brought in William Oliver from the bullpen to pitch a scoreless sixth.  Rodriguez threw 93 pitches to 21 Caguas batters through six innings before making way for reliever Derrick Loop, who got the first two outs in the top of the seventh frame before giving up a homer to Vidal for the first run of the game.

In the bottom of the seventh, Aguilas rightfielder Ronnier Mustelier greeted new Criollos reliever Fernando Cabrera by hitting a full-count pitch for a grounder through the right side of the infield into right field for a single. Agustin Murillo then tapped a sacrifice bunt toward the mound to advance Mustelier to second.  Xorge Carrillo's single to right moved Mustelier to third, giving Mexicali runners at the corners with one out. At that point, Aguilas manager Roberto Vizcarra called on reinforcement Jesse Castillo to pinch-hit for Ramon Rios and sent Isaac Rodriguez in to pinch-run for Carrillo at first. Cora countered by replacing Cabrera with J.C. Romero, who got Castillo to hit a roller to second to force Rodriguez for the second out, but Mustelier came in from third on the play to tie the game at 1-1.  Then Roberson strode to the plate and lofted Rodney's first pitch into the left field stands for a two-run homer to put Mexicali up by a 3-1 score.  Jason Bourgeois grounded out to first to end the inning.

MLB vet Sergio Romo was brought in to pitch for the Aguilas in the top of the eighth, but De Jesus socked Romo's second pitch over the same left field wall Roberson cleared for a solo homer to cut Mexicali's lead to one run.  After striking out Jesmuel Valentin, Romo let up back-to-back singles by Jorge Padilla and Rey Navarro before inducing Rusney Castillo to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat.  In the bottom of the eighth, with Hiram Burgos now pitching for the Puerto Ricans, leadoff batter Yuniesky Betancourt whacked a 1-0 pitch out to right for a solo homer to make it a 4-2 game.  Jake Sanchez, who has given up one earned run all season, entered the game in the top of the ninth and retired the Criollos in order for the save and the win.

Loop was awarded the win but the laurels must go to Rodriguez, who dazzled the Caguas lineup and the folks at home with his six innings of one-hit shutout pitching, striking out four batsmen.  Cabrera took the loss in relief for the Criollos, sparing Roman the indignity after the former Mets minor leaguer's five frames of five-hit shutout hurling kept pace with Rodriguez.  Mexicali outhit the Puerto Ricans by a 10-5 margin, with Roberson, Mustelier and C.J. Retherford collecting two hits apiece.

Mexicali will next play Dominican champions Zulia on Thursday night at 8:00PM MST (0300 UTC) in a battle of Los Dos Aguilas.  MexPac Pitcher of the Year Hector Velazquez will start for the Mexican side.

Granma (CUBA) 4-7-0, Zulia (DR) 0-7-2

Centerfielder Roel Santos doubled, tripled, drove in two runs and scored another to lead Cuban National Series champion Granma to a 4-0 shutout over Dominican titlists Zulia Wednesday in the first game of the 2017 Caribbean Series in Culiacan.  Alazanes pitchers Lazaro Blanco and Livan Moinelo combined on the seven-hit shutout of the Aguilas, accruing eight strikeouts between the two of them.

Santos led off the top of the first inning by tripling off Zulia pitcher Ivan Pineyro as his liner up the middle eluded Aguilas centerfielder Leury Garcia.  Two batters later, Santos motored in with the first run of the game on a passed ball by catcher Webster Rivas.  The score stood at 1-0 in favor of the Cubans until they added three more tallies in the top of the fifth.  After Pineyro loaded the bases with one out, Zulia manager Lipso Nava brought in reliever Edgar Garcia to face Santos.  Oops.  Garcia's first delivery was a wild pitch that scored Carlos Belitez from third base while baserunners Frank Morejon and Yoelkis Cespedes both advanced 90 feet.  Santos then cracked Garcia's next pitch into right field for a double, scoring both Morejon and Cespedes to open the Alazanes lead to 4-0.  Given some breathing room, Blanco and Moinelo carried the shutout to the end, with the latter recording a 1-2-3 ninth for the save.

Caribbean Series standings
MEXICALI (MEX) 1-0, Granma (Cuba) 1-0, Aragua (VEN) 0-0, Caguas (PR) 0-1, Zulia (DR) 0-1.

Aguilas set roster for CS; Rodriguez to start vs. Caguas

Prior to making their first appearance representing Mexico in the Caribbean Series since 1999, the Mexicali Aguilas have set their roster for the week-long event in Culiacan.

Of the 28 players who'll be in uniform for the Eagles, 15 will be pitchers.  Mexicali has added 14 reinforcements from other Mexican Pacific League clubs and a cursory glance at the roster shows a team with experience, versatility, a good mix of power and speed, and (as mentioned) lots and lots of pitching.

The following is the Mexicali roster for the CS.  Reinforcements are noted by their regular season MexPac team in parentheses:

MEXICALI AGUILAS 2017 Caribbean Series roster
Pitchers (15): Tyler Alexander (JAL), Manny Barreda (MOC), Fautino De Los Santos, Barry Enright (HMO), Edgar Gomez, Derrick Loop (CUL), Jose Manuel Lopez, Jose Meraz, Miguel Pena, Oliver Perez (CUL), Hector Daniel Rodriguez (CUL), Sergio Romo (JAL), Jake Sanchez, Javier Solano, Hoctor Velazquez (NAV).
Catchers (2): Xorge Carrillo, Sebastian Valle (MOC).
Infielders (6): Yuniesky Betancourt, Jesse Castillo (NAV), Agustin Murillo (JAL), C.J. Retherford, Ramon Rios, Isaac Rodriguez (MOC),
Oufielders (5): Jason Bourgeois (HMO), Luis Juarez, Yordanys Linares, Ronnier Mustelier (CUL), Chris Roberson.
Manager: Roberto Vizcarra
Coaches: Martin Arzate, Eddy Castro, Jose Angel Chavez, Manuel Del Campo, Luis Enrique Huerta, Mario Mendoza, Armando Valdez.

Skipper Roberto Vizcarra's squad appears capable of providing Mexico its fifth Caribbean Series championship in seven winters, including the Mazatlan Venados last February.  Prior to Obregon's title in 2011, Mexico had won five CS crowns total since the crown jewel of Latin baseball began in 1949 and none before Hermosillo broke through in 1976.  Ironically, no Mazatlan players appear on the Mexicali roster, although Hector Daniel Rodriguez was a reinforcement who went on to win two games in the CS for the Venados. No Obregon players were brought in as reinforcements either.

It's been quite a past couple of months for the 49-year-old Vizcarra, a middle infielder during his two-decade playing career before leading the Quintana Roo Tigres to Mexican League pennants in 2013 and 2015.  The man nicknamed "El Chapo" began the winter managing the Tigres' Uriangato team in the Mexican Winter League before he was named manager in Mexicali on November 18 after Gil Velazquez was fired.  At the time, the Aguilas were 14-17 in the first half but had lost 9 of 11 games before Vizcarra took the reins.  Last winter, Mexicali reached the LMP championship series under first-year helmsman Edgar Gonzalez, who was named BBM's Manager of the Year.

The Aguilas play their first Caribbean Series game Wednesday night at Culiacan's Estadio Tomateros against the Caguas Criollos, champions of Puerto Rico's Roberto Clemente League.  First pitch is scheduled for 8:00PM MST (0300 UTC).  Rodriguez will start for Mexicali.  The lefty was a perfect 4-0 with a 2.52 ERA in four playoff starts in January for his hometown Culiacan Tomateros after going 4-6 during the regular season.  Hector Velazquez will get the start Thursday against Venezuelan champs Licey.

Culiacan, Hermosillo win; Game Seven semis set for Thursday

Both Culiacan and Hermsosillo had to win road games Wednesday to stay alive in their respective Mexican Pacific League semifinal series.  The Tomateros and Naranjeros responded to the "Win-or-go-home" challenges by copping victories to extend each set to a seventh and deciding game Thursday night.  Ramiro Pena's three-run homer highlighted a six-run outburst in the sixth inning, propelling Culiacan to a 9-2 triumph in Los Mochis as a standing-room crowd of 11,192 watched at Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada.  Hermosillo likewise won big, 7-2, in Mexicali as Dodgers farmhand O'Koyea Dickson (pictured) walloped two homers in front of a full house of 17,000 at the Aguilas' Estadio B'Air.

Thursday's Game Sevens in Los Mochis and Mexicali will both get underway at 7:30PM Mountain Time.

Culiacan 9-13-1, LOS MOCHIS 2-5-0

As seems his wont, Hector Daniel Rodriguez has brought his "A" game to the postseason for Culiacan.  The Tomateros' homegrown lefty went 4-6 with a 3.50 ERA in 13 starts during the regular season, a subpar winter for him.  Since the playoffs began, however, the 32-year-old lefty has kicked into overdrive and the result is a 4-0 record with a 2.52 ERA, including Wednesday's 9-2 win at Los Mochis.  Rodriguez allowed one run while scattering five hits in six innings for the Tomateros, striking out nine Caneros batsmen and walking two.  Sixty of his 93 pitches went for strikes before leaving the game with a 6-1 lead.  Rodriguez has earned a reputation as a big game pitcher, winning the MVP award at last winter's Caribbean Series as a reinforcement pickup of the champion Mazatlan Venados.

The contest was competitive for the first few innings.  Culiacan drew first blood by scoring a run on a Joey Meneses sacrifice fly to center in the top of the second that brought in Ronnier Mustelier.  Mochis tied it up at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth when vet Saul Soto doubled in Leandro Castro from first.  One of the ageless wonders of Mexican baseball, the 38-year-old Soto is hitting .343 in the playoffs while, like Rodriguez, playing for his hometown team.  Culiacan broke the tie with two runs in the fifth as Caneros starter Luis Niebla self-destructed by giving up two hits, walking two more batters and hitting a batter before he was mercifully lifted for Isaaac Jimenez, who got Issmael Salas to fly out with the bases loaded to keep the floodgates from opening.  That happened in the sixth, when six more Culiacan runners crossed the plate to make it 8-1.  Pena's three-run bomb was the deepest cut as eleven Tomateros strode to the plate against four Mochis pitchers.  From that point it was acamedic, although the Caneros did score one final run in the seventh.

Mustelier finished the night with three hits, two runs scored and one driven in for Culiacan, who also got two hits each from longtimers Jose Manuel Rodriguez and Oscar Robles.  Niebla took the loss for Mochis, although special mention should be given to reliever Lenix Osuna, who faced five batters and allowed four runs (including Pena's blasted) without retiring a batter.  Onetime Red Sox minor leaguer J.C. Linares had two of the Caneros' five hits, including a double, while throwing out Culiacan's Ryan Lollis at the plate from center field to end the third inning.

Hermosillo 7-12-0, MEXICALI 2-12-2

Dickson had a huge game at the plate for the Naranjeros, going 3-for-4 with two homers, four RBIs and a pair of runs to pace Hermosillo's must-win 7-2 road triumph at La Nida in Mexicali.  It was a forgettable night for both starting pitchers, with Travis Blackley of Hermosillo and Mexicali's Hector Velazquez combining to cough up 15 hits and six runs over eight innings between them.  It was left to unsung Jose Samayoa to relieve Blackley and hold the fort until the Orangemen offense found its bearings.

The Naranjeros got on the board in the top of the first via a two-out Dickson solo homer off Velazquez to left. Xorge Carrillo scored on a force out in the second to pull Mexicali even.  Hermosillo responded by adding a run in the third when Jason Bourgeois came in on a Dickson groundout, but the Eagles came back again to knot the score at 2-2 in the bottom of the third as Luis Juarez doubled off Blackley and then scored on an Agustin Murrillo single up the middle.  Hermosillo effectively put the game away with two runs in the fifth on Dickson's second homer (with Carlos Gasteul on base) and two more in the sixth when a Bourgeois single and an error by Naranjeros centerfielder Chris Roberson plated Sergio Burruel and Jorge Flores to make it a 6-2 tilt.  Hermosillo added a final run in the ninth, but it was superfluous by then.

Blackley struggled into the fourth frame, when he was relieved by Samayoa with two on and one out.  It took two pitches for Samayoa to get Ramon Rios to ground to third for a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.  Samayoa, a Hermosillo product who spent time in the Rangers system, got the win after throwing four innings of shutout ball, giving up three hits and two walks while striking out two.  Velazaquez took the loss for the Aguilas as the Pitcher of the Year candidate's playoff miseries continued, giving up four runs on seven hits and two free passes to see his postseason ERA rise to 8.38.  Rafael Martin got his fifth save in January for the Naranjeros.  Besides Dickson, the Hermosillo bats were also led by Gastelum's two hits and two runs plus Bourgeois' two hits, a run and RBI. Yordanys Linares (no relation to Mochis' J.C., although both are Cubans) went 4-for-4 for Mexicali, but neither scored nor drove in a run.

Culiacan posts first semi win, rainout in Hermosillo

Number nine batter Jose Guadalupe Chavez (pictured) had a three-run homer and an RBI double to help power the Culiacan Tomateros to a 7-3 win over Los Mochis Saturday for a Game Three win in their Mexican Pacific League semifinal series.  The Caneros lead the set, 2 games to 1.

Meanwhile, Saturday's Game Three between Mexicali and Hermosillo at Estadio Sonora was rained out and rescheduled for Sunday, as is Game Four of the Tomateros-Caneros series in Culiacan.


CULIACAN 7-9-1, Los Mochis 3-6-1

Chavez' home run was the high point of a Tomateros four-run seventh inning that broke a 3-3 tie and sent the home team to their first win of their semifinal soiree against Mochis.  The Guaymas native, a former Indians prospect who turned 32 on January 2, hit .241 with just 9 RBIs in 37 games for Culiacan during the regular season, making him an unlikely offensive hero in a lineup featuring more notable batters like Ronnier Mustelier, Jose Manuel "Manny" Rodriguez, Ramiro Pena and Joey Meneses.

The Tomateros manufactured a run in a hit-free bottom of the first when leadoff hitter Maxwell Leon got on base after Mochis first sacker Saul Soto misplayed his grounder, beat a fielder's choice relay to second on Ryan Lollis' ground to Caneros third baseman Juan Carlos Gamboa, took third on a Pena sacrifice bunt and came in to score on Meneses' sacrifice fly to center.  Culiacan took a 3-0 lead in the second when Chavez doubled in Ali Solis and Leon singled in Chavez from second. The score stood until Los Mochis pushed three tallies across in the top of the fifth to tie the contest as Soto, Sebastian Valle and Gamboa each had run-scoring singles in a tough inning for Tomateros starter Hector Daniel Rodriguez.  The Tomateros put the final three runs of the night on the board in the seventh when veteran Oscar Robles plated Rodriguez with a sacrifice fly, followed by Chavez' three-run bomb off reliever Isaac Rodriguez (a Phoenix-born rookie not to be confused with the Mochis second baseman of the same name, who hails from Hermosillo).

Hector Daniel Rodriguez took the pitching win to go to 3-0 for Culiacan in the playoffs after turning in a rather pedestrian 4-6 record with a 3.50 ERA during the regular season.  The hometown product went seven innings, allowing those three fifth-inning runs and six hits overall, striking out three and issuing no walks.  Roy Merritt was tagged with the loss for the Caneros after pitching 5.1 frames until being pulled by Mochis manager Luis Sojo.  Merritt was charged with five earned runs on seven hits and a walk, striking out one. The Houston native, who spent five years in the Mets system, was 6-6 for the Caneros prior to the postseason. Chavez, Mustelier and Manny Rodriguez each had two hits for Culiacan as 16,530 looked on at Estadio de los Tomateros, the site of next month's Caribbean Series. Nobody for Los Mochis had more than one hit.

Defending champs ousted; Mayos, Tomateros win

Less than a year after fighting their way to a Mexican Pacific League pennant and the Caribbean Series championship, the Mazatlan Venados have been eliminated from this winter's LMP playoffs in five games after Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Los Mochis Caneros. Elsewhere, Culiacan pulled ahead in their series with Hermosillo after topping the Naranjeros, 6-2, while Navojoa staved off a first-round series loss to Mexicali by besting the Aguilas, 8-6, as all three visiting teams won Saturday.  Culiacan will host Hermosillo in Game Six on Sunday and Navojoa will return home to welcome Mexicali.


Los Mochis 4-5-3, MAZATLAN 3-15-1

The Venados put plenty of men on base via 15 hits, two walks, a hit batsmen and three Mochis errors, but only went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position and ended up leaving 13 of them stranded in Saturday's season-ending 4-3 loss before 9,267 spectators at Mazatlan's Estadio Teodoro Mariscal.

The Caneros drew first blood in the top of the first inning when Eugenio Velez scored on Lew Ford's sacrifice fly off Mazatlan starter Jeremy Kehrt, then made it a 3-0 lead in the third on RBI singles from Isaac Rodriguez (pictured) and J.C. Linares.  The Venados tied the contest with three tallies in the fifth as Heber Gomez and Jesus Fabela contributed run-scoring singles, but Mochis pulled ahead in the top of the seventh when Sebastian Valle plated the game's final run on Velez' sac fly to center.  Mazatlan loaded the bases in the bottom of the frame but failed to score and the game ended in the ninth when Samar Leyva was sent in by Venados manager Daniel Fernandez as a pinch-runner for Hector Paez, then was cut down stealing second on a throw by Valle to Mochis second baseman Jesus Arredondo.

Guillermo Trujillo pitched a scoreless sixth inning in relief for the Caneros to pick up the win after Mochis starter Roy Merritt struggled through five innings, allowing three runs on nine hits.  MLB free agent Sergio Romo got the final four outs of the game for his third save of the series.  Rodriguez had two of the Caneros' five hits, scoring one run and driving in another.  Drew Maggi and Brian Hernandez each had three hits for Mazatlan but neither figured in any scoring.


Culiacan 6-8-0, HERMOSILLO 2-5-1

Culiacan scored a single run in six of their nine innings to deliver a death-by-a-thousand-cuts deafeat to Hermosillo, 6-2, Saturday in front of an overflow throng of 16,581 at the Naranjeros' Estadio Sonora.  The win edges the Tomateros ahead, 3 games to 2, in their first-round matchup with Hermosillo in a battle between two franchises with 26 MexPac pennants between them.

The Tomateros got a run in the first when Jose Manuel Rodriguez singled in Ryan Lollis.  After three scoreless innings, Culiacan scored a run in each frame from the fifth through the ninth: Ali Solis scored on a Rodriguez sacrifice fly in the fifth, Ramiro Pena scored on a Jose Guadalupe Chanvez single in the sixth, Lollis scored on a Pena sac fly in the seventh, Sebastian Elizalde scored on a Lollis single in the eighth and Joey Meneses scored on a Issmael sac fly in the ninth.  Culiacan was up 4-0 when Dustin Martin whacked a two-run homer for the Naranjeros in the bottom of the seventh, but that was all the scoring the Orangemen could muster against Tomateros starter Hector Daniel Rodriguez and three relievers.

Rodriguez went to 2-0 in the playoffs by pitching six innings and allowing two runs on three hits, striking out seven with one walk.  Derrick Loop struck out three of Hermosillo's final four outs for his second save.  The Naranjeros' Travis Blackley suffered his second loss in as many head-to-head starts against Rodriguez, going five innings and allowing three runs (two earned) on three hits and striking out three.  Blackley had control issues, however, giving up five walks and throwing two wild pitches.


Navojoa 8-11-2, MEXICALI 6-9-0

The Navojoa Mayos blew open a scoreless game by pushing six runs across the plate in the top of the fourth inning and went on the outlast Mexicali, 8-6, Saturday before 15,813 witnesses at La Nida in the border city.  Navojoa pulled to within a game of the Aguilas, who lead the series, 3 games to 2.

The Mayos batted through the order in that fateful fourth, picking up four hits and two walks after Mexicali starter Javier Solano had retired the first two batters he faced in the inning.  The key Navojoa hits were a two-run single by Jesus Castillo that was immediately followed by a three-run Quincy Latimore homer. The 6-0 cushion was more than enough for Mayos starter Hector Velazquez to hold the fort before being pulled with one out in the seventh, leaving the game with a 8-4 lead. Another Mexicali run charged to Velazquez came in, but it was too little, too late for the home team, who must now beat the top seeded Mayos Sunday in Navojoa to close out the series.

Velazquez ended up allowing five runs on seven hits and two walks for his second postseason win in what was not one of his stronger outings of the season.  Solano was yanked with two out in the fourth and took his second playoff loss, giving up six runs on seven hits and four walks.  Castillo led the Mayos with three hits and three RBIs while scoring a run.  Chris Roberson had a single and double for Mexicali, scoring twice and driving in a run while batting champ Luis Juarez doubled in Yordanys Linares and then scored on an Agustin Murillo in the fourth inning, but it was not to be the Aguilas' night.