Tucson Mexican Baseball Fiesta: Day Two Report

Hermosillo pitcher Cesar Vargas

Day Two of the 2017 Mexican Baseball Fiesta in Tucson’s Kino Stadium on Friday saw a reasonably close first game in which the defending Mexican Pacific League champion Mexicali Aguilas held off a Cincinnati Reds Arizona Instructional League team, 4-3, as Yuniesky Betancourt singled, doubled and drove in two runs.  The much-anticipated nightcap between Hermosillo and Obregon, two longtime LMP rivals, ended up being an 8-1 Naranjeros romp as starting pitcher Cesar Vargas tossed three innings of one-hit scoreless ball while veterans Jason Bourgeois, Carlos Gastelum and Jose Amador evenly split six hits and scored four runs between them.  Throughout the evening, however, a festive mood prevailed in the ballpark as live bands played on the concourse, mascots took parts in between-innings skits and fans from Arizona and Mexico got to enjoy an evening of baseball, Mexican-style.

In the opener, Cincinnati opened the scoring in the top of the second inning when Morgan Lofstrom redirected a Javier Solano offering off and over the top of the wall in right-center for a leadoff homer.  Solano then bore down and struck out the next three Reds batters.  Mexicali came back in the bottom of the frame with a pair of runs.  C.J. Retherford led off with a single and came around to score on Ricky Alvarez' double against the center field wall to tie the game.  After Josh Romanosky struck out, Ramon Rios punched a single to left to bring Alvarez in with the go-ahead run.

The defending MexPac champion Aguilas added to their advantage in the bottom of the third with two more runs.  With one out, Yordanys Linares and Walter Ibarra hit back-to-back soft singles, bringing up Yuniesky Betancourt.  After Linares and Ibarra successfully pulled off a double steal, Betancourt smoked a Luis Alecis pitch down the third-base line into left field, scoring both baserunners and bringing about Alecis' exit.  Reds reliever Tanner Rainey struck out both Retherford and Alvarez to end the inning, but Mexicali had themselves a 4-1 lead after three.

Cincinnati got two runs back in the top of the fourth, both after the first two batsmen were retired by Solano. Lofstrom rapped a single to right and then scored when Mark Kolozsvary doubled into the gap in right-center. Leandro Santana then singled up the middle to bring in Kolozsvary, but was gunned down trying to take second on Linares' throw to the plate after catcher Francisco Cordoba's subsequent throw barely beat Santana to the bag on a close call.  That ended both the inning and the night for Solano, who finished his four entradas of work after allowing three runs on four hits with six strikeouts.

From that point on, it was up to Mexicali’s bullpen to hold the Reds scoreless over the last three frames of the seven-inning contest.  After Marco Quevedo retired the side in order in the fifth, newcomer Nolan Becker, who led the independent Can-Am League with 24 saves for champion Quebec this summer, ran into some trouble in the top of the sixth by walking the first two Cincy batsmen he faced (Jeter Downs and Taylor Trammell) before getting the next two hitters out, although Montrell Marshall sacrificed both runners to third and second, respectively.  Aguilas manager Roberto Vizcarra then brought in another fresh face, Victor Capellan, to strike out Kolozsvary and end the inning.

Capellan, who went 4-4 with a 1.25 ERA for Winnipeg in the indy American Association, went on to post a 1-2-3 seventh for the save as the Aguilas mound staff combined to hold the Reds to three hits on the night.  Solano earned the win for Mexicali while Alecis took the loss for Cincinnati after giving up four runs on six hits in 2.1 innings. Betancourt had two of Mexicali's seven hits with two RBIs while Linares and Rios both reached base twice.  Lofstrom singled, homered and scored two runs for the Reds.

In the second game, Hermosillo and Obregon swapped zeros through the first two innings before the Naranjeros put three runs on the board in the top of the third.  Carlos Gastelum led off with a single, then came around from first base on a Domonic Brown double. Obregon manager Miguel Ojeda took out starting pitcher Irwin Delgado and brought in Martin Sotelo to pitch to veteran slugger Luis Alfonso Garcia.  The move paid immediate dividends as Sotelo got Garcia looking for a strikeout.  Things looked even brighter after Brown was caught stealing third while Jose Amador was batting on a terrific throw by Yaquis catcher Jose Felix for the second out of the inning, and it didn't seem to matter much at the time when Amador singled.  Ojeda then brought in Adrian Ramirez to pitch to Fernando Perez, who promptly doubled and moved Amador to third.  Jose Cardona came up and rapped a single that scored both Amador and Perez to give the Naranjeros a 3-0 lead before Ramirez got Arturo Rodriguez to fly out to right to end the inning.

The Naranjeros broke the game wide open with three more runs in the top of the fourth.  After Jorge Flores popped out to the catcher to open the inning, the next five Hermosillo batters either singled or walked, with Roberto Ramos' bases-loaded walk pushing Jason Bourgeois across with one counter and a sharp Amador single bringing in both Gastelum and Brown to make it a 6-0 Hermosillo lead over their bitter rivals (a Naranjeros-Yaquis matchup is the MexPac's version of the Yankees and Red Sox in terms of intensity).

The Yaquis finally broke their scoreless spell after Hermosillo starter Cesar Vargas was taken out after three innings.  Reliever Sergio Alvarado struggled in the fourth, starting with Carlos Valencia’s leadoff double into the left field corner.  Valencia advance to third on an infield single by Paul Leon and scored on Jonathan Aranda's flyout to left, breaking up Hermosillo's shutout bid.  Jose Felix added a single to put Leon in scoring position but Felix Pie's groundout to second ended the threat.

Not that it really mattered, as Hermosillo plated two more runs in the top of the fifth when Flores singled in pinch-runner Ciro Norzagaray and Flores scored on Irving Lopez' groundout to second, bringing the rout to its final 8-1 count as neither team scored the rest of the way..

Bourgeois, Gastelum and Amador each had two singles, combined to score four runs and drive in four more for the victorious Naranjeros, who outhit Obregon, 11-6.  Nobody had more than one safety for the Yaquis, with Valencia and Irving Falu contributing doubles on a night that clearly belonged to Hermosillo.  Vargas' three innings of work earned him the win, but it almost seems unfair that the loss should be hung on Delgado, whose two-plus innings (in which he gave up one run on three hits and as many walks) was probably the Yaquis’ pitching highlight, which sort of says it all right there.

Saturday's Day Three schedule at the Mexican Baseball Fiesta will begin with a 5:30PM PDT contest between Mexicali and Los Mochis, with the Caneros making their 2017 Tucson debut by taking CIncinnati’s place in the foursome.  That game will be followed by an Hermosillo-Obregon rematch.

2017 Caribbean Series in review

Now that the Caribbean Series is over and the dust is settling, it's time to take a look back at the seven-day event in Culiacan, Sinaloa, where attendance was the highest among the past 14 editions of the CS, regarded as the Crown Jewel of Latin Baseball.

Although the Mexicali Aguilas fell short in their 1-0 title game loss to Puerto Rico's Caguas Criollos, the MexPac champions placed five members on the CS All-Star Team (as voted on by media members), including all three outfield positions.  Gardeners Jason Bourgois, Chris Roberson and Ronnier Mustelier were joined by catcher Sebastian Valle and relief pitcher Jake Sanchez on the squad, as was Aguilas manager Roberto Vizcarra.  Caguas third baseman David Vidal was named Most Valuable Player after batting .417 with 3 homers and 5 RBIs in 26 at-bats.  Granma right-hander Lazaro Blanco was named top pitcher after going 1-1 with a 0.68 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 13.1 innings over two starts.  Former MLB starter Joel Pineiro, who was 104-93 for four teams between 2000 and 2011, threw a scoreless inning for Caguas against Granma on February 3.  The 38-year-old Pineiro was a member of Puerto Rico's last CS champion, Santurce, in 2000.

Caguas' Ivan De Jesus, Jr led CS batters with a .500 average, going 11-of-22 at the plate.  Vidal led in homers with 3 and tied with Granma's Carlos Benitez and Jose Castillo of Zuila in RBIs with 5 each.  Castillo's Zulia teammate, Freddy Galvis, led in stolen bases with 3.  Among pitchers, nobody had more than one win.  Mexicali's Hector Daniel Rodriguez was unscored upon in 9 innings over one start and one relief apearance while Vladimir Banos of Cuba allowed no runs in his 8 2/3 innings against Mexicali.  Blanco was tied by Hector Velazquez of Mexicali with 11 strikeouts while LMP Reliever of the Year Sanchez led with two saves.

Tournament organizers in Culiacan have to be happy with the attendance figures, as 131,432 fans clicked the turnstiles at Estadio Tomateros to set a modern record, even after the initial crowd total of more than 24,000 announced for Friday in the 19,177-seat ballpark was subsequently revised down to capacity level (phone call from the fire marshal, posiblimente?).  With some columnists speculating about the future of the Caribbean Series due to economic crises in Puerto Rico and Venezuela (site of next year's CS) and the uncertain status of Cuba, which is not a host nation, the event has been very popular in Mexico, where four of the past five tournaments that topped 100,000 in accrued attendance were in Mexico.  Not everyone was thrilled with the ticket situation, however.  Mexicali closer Sanchez complained during the week that ducats allotted to players for friends and family were to seats located in the left field bleachers.


CS SCORES and HIGHLIGHTS
Wednesday, February 1  (Attendance 19,177)
GM 1   Granma (CU) 4-7-2, ZULIA (VZ) 0-7-2
Lazaro Blanco and Livan Moinelo combine for seven-hit shutout
GM 2   MEXICALI (MX) 4-10-0, Caguas (PR) 2-5-2
Hector Daniel Rodriguez carries no-hitter into 5th; Chris Roberson homers

Thursday, February 2  (Attendance 19,177)
GM 3   Zulia (VZ) 4-8-0, CAGUAS (PR) 3-9-2
Jesus Flores' 2-run homer caps 3-run Zulia second; Omar Bencomo goes 5 frames for win
GM 4   MEXICALI (MX) 7-15-2, Licey (DR) 2-6-1
Chris Roberson has 4 hits and scores twice; Jason Bourgeois triples twice for 2 RBIs

Friday, February 3  (Attendance 19,177)
GM 5   GRANMA (CU) 6-12-0, Caguas (PR) 1-8-1
William Saavedra hits two singles and 2-run homer; Vladimir Garcia allows 1 run in 5 innings
GM 6  MEXICALI 5-8-1, Zulia (VZ) 1-7-2
Sebastian Valle belts walkoff grand slam; Barry Enright lets in 1 run on 1 hit in 5 frames

Saturday, February 4  (Attendance 14,973)
GM 7   CAGUAS (PR) 10-11-0, Licey (DR) 2-5-2
Rusney Castillo socks 2-run HR in first; Ivan De Jesus 3 hits, 3 runs, 2 RBIs
GM 8   ZULIA (VZ) 8-15-0, Granma (CU) 3-10-2
Freddy Galvis and Ronny Cedeno combined for 6 hits, 3 runs and 3 RBIs

Sunday, February 5  (Attendance 19,177)
GM 9   ZULIA (VZ) 4-7-2, Licey (DR) 3-8-0
Ronny Cedeno's RBI double, Rene Reyes' 2-run HR in 8th put Caguas ahead for good
GM 10   GRANMA (CU) 4-11-0, Mexicali (MX) 0-6-0
Vladimir Banos pitches 8.2 shutout innings; Alfredo Despaigne cracks 3-run HR

Monday, February 6  (Attendance 19,177)
SF 1   Caguas (PR) 9-11-0, Zulia (VZ) 6-16-1
David Vidal hits 3rd CS homer; Rusney Castillo collects 3 hits, 2 RBIs
SF 2   MEXICALI (MX) 1-5-0, Granma (CU) 0-2-1
Miguel Pena, Hector Daniel Rodriguez and Jake Sanchez combine on 2-hit shutout

Tuesday, February 7  (Attendance 20,454)
FINAL Caguas 1-7-1, MEXICALI 0-4-1 (10)
Yadiel Rivera doubles, scores go-ahead run in 10th; Miguel Mejia 2 IP, 0 R in relief for win


2017 CS ALL-STARS
1B - William Saavedra, Granma (Cuba)
2B - Carlos Benitez, Granma (Cuba)
3B - David Vidal, Caguas (Puerto Rico)
SS - Freddy Galviz, Zulia (Venezuela)
LF - Jason Bourgeois, Mexicali (Mexico)
CF - Chris Roberson, Mexicali (Mexico)
RF - Ronnier Mustelier, Mexicali (Mexico)
C -  Sebastian Valle, Mexicali (Mexico)
DH - Ivan De Jesus, Caguas (Puerto Rico)
SP - Lazaro Blanco, Granma (Cuba)
RP- Jake Sanchez, Mexicali (Mexico)
MGR -  Roberto Vizcarra, Mexicali (Mexico)
MVP - David Vidal, Caguas (Puerto Rico)


CS ATTENDANCE TOTALS (2004-17)
2004    90,000* Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
2005  102,000* Mazatlan, Mexico
2006    86,103* Maracay/Valencia, Venezuela
2007    28,583* Carolina, Puerto Rico
2008    90,000* Santiago, Dominican Republic
2009  101,500* Mexicali, Mexico
2010    71,405* Isla Margarita, Veracruz
2011    42,500* Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
2012    30,000* Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
2013  112,000* Hermosillo, Mexico
2014  113,517   Isla Margarita, Venezuela
2015  112,000   San Juan, Puerto Rico
2016    24,319   Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
2017  131,432   Culiacan, Mexico
2018     TBD      Barquisimeto, Venezuela
*-Six-day event from 2004 through 2013

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

Valle walkoff grand slam gives Mexicali a win, berth in CS semis

Friday night's "Battle of the Eagles" between the Mexican Pacific League champion Mexicali Aguilas and Venezuela's flag-bearing Zulia Aguilas was a knucklebiting pitcher's duel throughout.  However, the contest ended with a clap of thunder when Mexicali's Sebastian Valle (a reinforcement catcher from LMP finalist Los Mochis) pole-axed a full-count pitch for a grand slam home run to hand Mexicali a 5-1 win in a Day Three-ending thriller at Culiacan's Estadio Tomateros.  With the win, the MexPac champs punched their ticket to the Caribbean Series Final Four as the club from Baja California Norte continues their quest to be the fifth CS champ from Mexico since 2011.

MEXICALI (MX) Aguilas 5-8-1, Zulia (VZ) Aguilas 1-7-2

This one had fans on the edge of their seats from the beginning.  Mexicali's Barry Enright and Zulia's Carlos Hernandez swapped zeros through the first two innings before the Venezuelans struck for a run in the top of the third.  Jonathan Herrera poked an 0-and-2 Enright delivery into left field for a leadoff single, followed by a first-pitch groundout by Ali Castillo that moved Herrera into scoring position.  After Freddy Galvis struck out when Mexicali catcher Valle snagged a Galvis foul tip for strike three, Jose Castillo poked a single up the middle to drive Herrera home from second to give Zulia a 1-0 lead.  Valle led off the bottom of the third with a line-drive double to center and reached third on Isaac Rodriguez' sacrifice bunt, but died 90 feet away from paydirt when Chris Roberson and Jason Bourgeois (two of Thursday night's heroes) both flew out to end the inning.

Neither team advanced a rare baserunner to second from that point until the top of the sixth when Zulia's Rene Reyes drew a two-out walk from Manny Barreda (a surprise pick by Mexicali manager Roberto Vizcarra to relieve Enright after the fifth) and scooted third on Alex Romero's single.  As Jesus Flores was batting, however, Reyes was picked off third by a snap throw from Valle for the receiver's second big play behind the plate of the night.

Mexicali finally broke through in the bottom of the sixth.  Bourgeois stroked a one-out single off Hernandez and, one out later, sped around the bases to score from first on C.J. Retherford's single, beating the throw to the plate from Zulia leftfielder Jose Pirela to tie the contest.  Retherford advanced to second on the throw. Hernandez issued an intentional walk to Luis Juarez to set up a force at any base for the final out.  Zulia manager Lipso Nava (whose return next winter was announced this week) came out and replaced Hernandez with Romulo Sanchez.  Ronnier Mustelier topped a roller to deep short that Galvis was unable to make a play on for an infield single to load the bags, but Sanchez struck out Agustin Murillo on four pitches to kill the rally.

The game continued with no further nudging of the scorer until the fateful bottom of the ninth.  Incoming Zulia reliever Pedro Rodriguez started out with two strikes on Juarez, who rapped pitch number three through the right side of the infield for a single.  Mustelier followed by laying down a bunt, which Rodriguez picked up and threw to second to force Juarez.  Instead, the throw sailed into center field, allowing Juarez to continue to third while Mustelier was safe at first.  Vizcarra sent in Jesse Castillo to pinch-hit for Murillo and was rewarded when Castillo finagled a walk on five pitches.  That brought up Valle, who was 1-for-3 on the night.  The Mariners minor leaguer fell behind 1-2 in the count before working Rodriguez into a full count before sending the payoff pitch sailing into left field bleachers to end the game, sending the 24,065 mostly-partisan fans in the overflowing stands into a state of ecstasy as the Mexican champions tightened their grip on first place in the CS standings.

Although Enright (5 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 5 K) turned in Mexicali's third outstanding start in as many nights, it was longtime MLBer Oliver Perez (a son of Culiacan) who got the win after tossing a scoreless ninth on another Vizcarra hunch as Sergio Romo and Jake Sanchez both received a second straight night off.  Zulia starter Hernandez (5.2 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 3K) matched Enright's work and certainly pitched well enough to win, but it was the luckless Rodriguez (who never did retire a batter) who was tagged with the loss.  Valle, Bourgeois and Juarez each had two of Mexicali's eight hits while Romero went 3-for-4 for Zulia.

Mexicali has a perfect 3-0 record and a semifinals berth going into into Saturday's bye.  As for Sebastian Valle, he has a night he'll share memories of with his grandsons years from now.


GRANMA (CU) Alazanes 6-12-0, Caguas (PR) Criollos 1-8-1

First baseman William Saavedra had three hits, including a two-run homer, and starter Vladimir Garcia allowed one run over six innings as the Granma Alazanes took it to the Caguas Criollos, 6-1, in Friday's opening game in Culiacan.  The win clinched a semifinal berth for the Cubans while the winless Puerto Ricans will have to win their final round robin game Saturday against Licey to even have a chance at the Final Four.

Granma (named after a Cuban province and not the national newspaper, as earlier reported) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second when Denis Laza reached first after grounding into a fielder's choice, stole second and scored on Carlos Benitez' single off Caguas starter Jarret Leverett.  The Criollos knotted the game up in the top of the third, with Jonathan Morales plating a run on Eddie Rosario's sacrifice fly to center.

The Alazanes broke the game open by posting three runs in the bottom of the third.  Alfredo Despaigne singled in one run, another came in on Saavedra's double and Benitez' sac fly to right scored the third run of the inning, giving the Cuban National Series champs a 4-1 lead.  Saavedra's two-run bomb in the seventh gave Granma their final margin of victory,

Over his six innings of work for the win, Garcia allowed one run on five hits.  Leverett took the loss after being yanked with one out in the third.  The lefty from Georgia Southern let in four runs on six hits and a walk.


CARIBBEAN SERIES Standings
3-0  Mexicali (MEX) Aguilas
2-0  Granma (CU) Alazanes
1-1  Zulia (VZ) Aguilas
0-2  Licey (DR) Tigres
0-3  Caguas (PR) Criollos

Saturday's Schedule
Licey at Caguas, 1:00pm MST (2000 UTC)
Granma at Zulia, 5:00pm MST (0000 UTC)
Mexicali bye

Mexicali tops Licey, 7-2, pull into lead in CS standings

Chris Roberson went 4-for-5 and scored twice, Jason Bourgeois (pictured) blazed his way to two triples, one of them a two-run three-bagger, and scored once while Mexicali starter Hector Velazquez (recently named the Mexican Pacific League Pitcher of the Year after leading the loop in wins and strikeouts) gave the Aguilas their second straight solid start after Hector Daniel Rodriguez dominated Caguas on Wednesday to lead Mexico's winterball champs to a 7-2 victory over Dominican pennant winners Licey Thursday at Culiacan's Estadio Tomateros in Day Two of the 2017 Caribbean Series.  A crowd of 19,177 watched the Aguilas rise to 2-0 for the tournament with a clear claim to first place in the round robin standings while the ten-time CS champion Tigres dropped to 1-1.

Mexicali (MX) Aguilas 7-15-2, Licey (DR) Tigres 2-6-1

Chris Roberson led off the game for Mexicali by rapping a single to right on a 2-2 pitch from Tigres starter Cesar Valdez, taking second on Jason Bourgeois' groundout to Valdez on the mound and steaming home on C.J. Retherford's line drive single to right.  Ronny Rodriguez likewise reached first leading off for Licey on a throwing error by Aguilas shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt, then came in all the way from first to score on Zoilo Almonte's double off Velazquez to tie the game.

The Dominicans regained the lead in the bottom of the third when the pesky Rodriguez drew a walk to open the inning, followed by a flight around the basepaths on Leury Garcia's long single to right.  Mexicali went back on top with a pair of scores in the top of the fifth, chasing Valdes in the process.  The entrada opened with Xorge Carrillo geting hit by a Valdez pitch and moving to second on Ramon Rios' sacrifice bunt.  Roberson then laid down another bunt and beat the throw on a disputed play at first as Carrillo made his way to third.  Bourgeois stepped up and ripped a Valdez delivery past Licey centerfielder Mel Rojas Jr. for a two-run triple, giving Mexicali a 3-2 advantage.

Bourgeois also played a prominent role in the Mexicali seventh by larruping his second triple of the night off reliever Ramon Ramirez with two out and nobody on, then plating a run when Tigres shortstop Sergio Alcantara mishandled a Betancourt grounder.  The nine-year big leaguer was safe on third when Retherford rang up Ramirez for a two-run homer, smoking a 2-1 pitch into the left field bleachers to extend the Aguilas lead to 6-2.  Mexicali scored again in the top of the eighth when Rios doubled off Phils' minor leaguer Ulises Joaquin and pinch-runner Isaac Rodriguez ran in on Roberson's fourth single of the game.  With a five-run lead going into the bottom of the ninth, Aguilas manager Roberto Vizcarra gave co-closers Jake Sanchez and Sergio Romo the night off in favor of middleman Fautino De Los Santos and the former Oakland A's reliever responded by retiring Licey without a hit to earn the save and end the contest.

Velazquez, who was selected LMP Pitcher of the Year after leading the league in wins and strikeouts for Navojoa during the regular season, went five innings and allowed one earned run on four hits and three walks for the win, whiffing seven Licey batsmen along the way.  Valdez gave up three runs on six hits in 4.1 frames with two strikeouts to absorb the loss.  Besides Roberson's four-hit, two-run night for Mexicali, Bourgeois' two triples netted a pair of RBIs and a run scored and Retherford finished with two hits and three RBIs.

Mexicali will be back in action Friday with a game against Venezuelan champs Zulia at 8:00pm MST (0300 UTC) at Estadio Tomateros.


Zulia (VZ) Aguilas 4-8-0, CAGUAS (PR) Criollos 3-9-2

Jesus Flores cracked a two-run homer and starter Omar Bencomo gave Zulia five strong innings as the Aguilas defeated Caguas, 4-3, in Thursday's opening CS game in Culiacan.  The Venezuelans are now 1-0 after a Wednesday bye whiie the Puerto Ricans fell to 0-2 after dropping their Wednesday opener to Mexicali.

Flores' blast off Caguas opener Adalberto Flores capped a three-run second for the Aguilas and a lead Zulia would never relinquish.  The Criollos got one run back in the bottom of the second when David Vidal scored on Ivan De Jesus Jr.'s single off Bencomo for the only counter the 27-year-old Twins farmhand would allow before being replaced by Brazilian Tiago Da Silva in the sixth.  Zulia added another run in the fourth to make it a 4-1 game when Flores doubled and later came in on a Ronny Cedeno single.  Vidal knocked out a two-run homer off Leonel Campos in the eighth to bring Caguas to within a run, but closer Hassan Pena held the Criollos scoreless in the ninth for the save and Aguilas win.

Cedeno, Jesus Flores and Freddy Galvis each had two hits for the winners while Vidal and De Jesus did the same for the Criollos.  Bencomo got the win for his five innings of four-hit shutout work for Zulia, striking out six.  Adalberto Flores took the loss after giving up four runs on five hits in four frames.

Caguas will try to stay alive Thursday with a game against Cuba's Granma who lost their Wednesday game to Zulia of Venezuela.


Caribbean Series standings
2-0  MEXICALI (MZ) AGUILAS
1-0  Zulia (VZ) Aguilas
1-1  Licey (DR) Tigres
0-1  Granma (CU) Alazanes
0-2  Caguas (PR) Criollos


Friday's schedule
Caguas (PR) at Granma (CU), 3:00pm MST (2200 UTC)
Zulia (VZ) at MEXICALI (MX), 8:00pm MST (0300 UTC)
Licey bye

Solano sharp in Aguilas win, title series tied after four games

Javier Solano (pictured) took a shutout into the seventh inning and Jason Bourgeois collected three hits, including a key two-run single, as the Mexicali Aguilas tied the Mexican Pacific League championship series after four games with a 6-1 home win over Los Mochis on Wednesday.  For the second night in a row, a full house crowd of 17,000 was on hand in Mexicali's Estadio B'Air.

MEXICALI 6-12-0, Los Mochis 1-6-2

Mexicali broke the ice by scoring a run in the bottom of the second inning.   Regular season bat king Luis Juarez led off with a single off Caneros starter Luis Niebla.  After After Agustin Murillo flew out to J.C. Linares, a Yordanys Linares (no relation) fly ball to left was botched by Eugenio Velez, resulting in Juarez making it to third base and Linares the batter ending up on second.  Xorge Carrillo then hit a grounder back to Niebla, who made the throw to first for the out as Juarez scored from third.

The Aguilas carried their narrow 1-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth, where they put up three more runs on the board.  Niebla was still on the hill for Los Mochis and had pitched well to that point.  Ramon Rios led off for Mexicali with a grounder to third that Juan Carlos Gamboa was able to make the stop but couldn't get the throw to first in time as Rios beat out the infield single.  Chris Roberson followed by bunting in front of the plate and Niebla plucked the ball off the ground and threw it into the outfield.  By the time the ball was relayed back, Rios was on third and Roberson occupied second.  Jason Bourgeois stepped up and lined a two-run single to center, bringing in Rios and Roberson to put the hosts up by three.  Yuniesky Betancourt then drilled a double to right and the speedy Bourgeois motored in from first to bring the score to 4-0.

That spelled the end for Niebla, who was pulled for middleman Jon Sintes.  A 30-year-old West Florida product who pitched for Tabasco last summer, Sintes went on to record three outs without further damage. The Caneros responded with their first score of the night in the top of the sixth.  Velez led off by doubling to left off Solano, who was still working on a whitewash.  Velez completed the atonement for his second inning defensive miscue by roaring in from second on Isaac Rodriguez' single up the middle, beating Roberson's throw from center and plating the run.  Solano retired the next three batter to end the threat, then got the first two outs in the seventh before walking Sebastian Valle.  Aguilas skipper Roberto Vizcarra came out, waved in Efren Delgado from the bullpen and Solano walked off the mound to cheers from the hometown crowd. Delgado got Gamboa to ground to second for the final out.

Mexicali added another run in the seventh when C.J. Retherford lined a double to center off Sintes to score Betancourt, and the Aguilas went up 6-1 in the eighth as Carrillo, Rios and Roberson hit consecutive two-out singles, with Robo's safety driving in Carrillo.  Rios tried scoring on the same play but was nailed at the plate when Castro threw a strike from center to Valle, who applied the tag for the frame's final out.  

Solano pitched 6.2 innings for the win, allowing one run on five hits.  The former Dodgers minor leaguer has had a tough posteason for the Eagles, but looked good Wednesday in going to 2-3 in the playoffs.  Niebla allowed four runs in as many innings on seven hits in absorbing his second loss in four January decisions, but two of the runs were unearned and walked none as 45 of the Rockies farrmhand's 65 pitches went for strikes. Bourgeois finished with three of the Aguilas' 12 hits, driving in two runs and scoring once.  Saul Soto continued swinging the hot bat for the Caneros with the only two-hit game in the Mochis order.

Game Five is set for Thursday night in Mexicali at 7:30PM PST (0330 UTC).  Julian Arballo will get the start for Los Mochis while Miguel Pena will open the game on the mound for the Aguilas.

Velazquez, Retherford lead Aguilas to win; LMP title set tied

Reinforcement pickup pitcher Hector Velazquez took a shutout into the eighth inning and C.J. Retherford cracked a two-run homer to lead the Mexicali Aguilas to a 7-3 victory over the Los Mochis Caneros Sunday night as 10,835 spectators nearly filled Mochis' Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada.  The Mexican Pacific League championship series is now tied at a game apiece as the teams head north to Mexicali for the next three scheduled games.

Mexicali 7-11-1, LOS MOCHIS 2-7-1

Velazquez, who won the MexPac wins and strikeouts titles during the regular season, and Los Mochis opener Manny Barreda, who tossed the LMP's sole no-hitter, kept the contest scoreless until the top of the third, when Mexicali pushed three runs across the plate.  Ramon Rios led off with a single to left against Barreda, then moved to third when Chris Roberson lined a ground-rule double over the fence in right center.  After Jason Bourgeois struck out swinging for the first out, Yuniesky Betancourt hit a sacrifice fly to Eugenio Velez in left, bringing Rios in with the first run of the game while Robo stayed put at second.  That brought up Retherford, who belted Barreda's first pitch over the left field wall for a two-run homer to open the Aguilas' lead to 3-0.  Luis Juarez struck out to end the inning, but the early lead ended up good enough with Velazquez having his way with the Mochis lineup.

Barreda lasted into the top of the seventh, when Caneros manager Luis Sojo brought in Isaac Jimenez after Manny opened the inning by walking Yordanys Linares on five pitches and (after whiffing Xorge Carrillo) issuing another free pass to Rios.  Jimenez then walked Roberson to load the bags before a Bourgeois sac fly forced in Linares from third, bringing the score to 4-0 in favor of the visitors.  The entrada ended on a Betancourt fielder's choice groundout to third.  Velazquez left the game after striking out Sebastian Valle to open the eighth with the shutout intact.  2016 LMB Rookie of the Year Isaac Rodriguez later hit a two-run homer off off Jose Manuel Lopez to bring Los Mochis to within two, but Mexicali came back to post three more runs in the top of the ninth to put the contest out of reach for good with RBI singles by Bourgeois and Retherford and a run-scoring double by Juarez to give the Aguilas a 7-2 lead.  Mexicali skipper Roberto Vizcarra sent three different pitchers to the mound in the bottom of the frame, with 2015-16 LMP Pitcher of the Year Javier Solano coming in to record the final two outs, striking out Juan Carlos Gamboa swinging to end the game.

Velazquez was superb for the Aguilas, letting up just four hits and no walks while striking out 10 Mochis batters in 7.1 innings for his second win of the postseason.  Sixty-eight of his 88 pitches went for strikes.  Barreda took the loss, allowing four runs on four hits, four walks and a hit batsmen over 6.1 frames.  Bourgeois finished 2-of-4 with three RBIs, Roberson had two hits and scored twice and Retherford added a single to his two-run bomb for Mexicali.  Rodriguez and Saul Soto each had two hits for the Caneros.

Monday will be a travel day, with Game Three of the title series set for Tuesday night at 7:30PM PST (0330 UTC) at Mexicali's Estadio B'Air.

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 ties series, Hermosillo gets first semi win

Issmael Salas had two run-scoring singles and longtime MLBer Oliver Perez (pictured) retired all four batters he faced to earn the win in relief as Culiacan defeated Los Mochis, 4-1, Sunday in front of 16,675 aficionados at Estadio de los Tomateros, evening their Mexican Pacific League semifinal series with the Caneros at two games apiece.  In the other MexPac Final Four contest, Barry Enright gave up one run on six hits over eight innings to pitch Hermosillo to a 2-1 knucklebiter win over Mexicali at Estadio Sonora as 16,572 looked on.  The Naranjeros now trail Mexicali, 2 games to 1, after Saturday's game in Hermosillo was rained out.

Game Four between the Tomateros and Mochis is set for Monday night in Culiacan while Game Three of the Naranjeros-Aguilas matchup will be held in Hermosillo.


CULIACAN 4-11-0, Los Mochis 1-7-2

Tomateros starter Edgar Gonzalez gave manager Enrique "Che" Reyes a few anxious moments after retiring the first seven Caneros batters he faced. Gonzalez allowed a Sebastian Valle solo homer and a Juan Carlos Gamboa double in the third inning, then served up a leadoff two-bagger to former Twins outfielder Lew Ford in the fourth before issuing subsequent one-out walks to J.C. Linares and Saul Soto. That was enough for skipper Reyes to bring his hook to the mound, replacing the ex-Diamondbacks hurler with Dennys Reyes (no relation).  The latter, who pitched for eleven MLB teams from 1997 to 2011, has a ballpark named after him in his hometown of Higuera de Zaragoza, Sinaloa

After Reyes and Hector Navarro combined to stop the bleeding, Culiacan got the run back in the bottom of the fourth when Salas singled in Jose Manuel Rodriguez from third to tie things up at 1-1.  The score remained unchanged until the Tomateros took the lead in the seventh when Ramiro Pena poked a single through the right side of the infield, scoring Maxwell Leon from second.  Culiacan posted a pair of insurance runs in the eighth as Salas singled in Rodriguez off reliever Jon Sintes and Ali Solis lofted a Santiago Guerrero pitch to Linares in right field for a sac fly to plate Sebastian Elizalde from third, bringing the score to 4-1.  It was left to Derrick Loop to finish things up in the ninth, which he did to earn his third playoff save and even the series at 2 games to 2.

Oliver Perez came in for the Tomateros to get the final out of the sixth inning, then pitched a 1-2-3 seventh to pick up the win.  The 34-year-old Culiacan native appeared in 64 MLB games for the Nationals last summer, going 2-3 with a 4.95 ERA in a middleman role.  After Gonzalez was lifted, six pitchers combined to hold Mochis scoreless on four hits from the fourth inning on.  Julian Arballo took the loss for the Caneros in a hard-luck outing.  The former Yankees minor leaguer pitched well enough to win, allowing two runs in seven innings, but it's hard to get the W when your teammates score only one run and go 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.


HERMOSILLO 2-6-1, Mexicali 1-6-1

After allowing 24 runs over two losses in Mexicali, the Naranjeros needed a good pitching performance to keep from falling behind 3-0 in their series with the Aguilas and Barry Enright provided the tonic.  The former D-backs and Dodgers hurler turned in a sparkling eight-inning start, letting in just one Mexicali run while scattering six hits and striking out five as Hermosillo pulled off a 2-1 come-from-behind win.

Enright and the Orangemen fell behind, 1-0, in the top of the fourth when Yuniesky Betancourt stroked a leadoff double, eventually moved to third when Hermosillo centerfielder Jason Bourgeois misplayed Efren Navarro's fly ball, and then scored the first run of the night when Agustin Murillo grounded out to Naranjeros shortstop Jorge Flores.  It looked like that one run might hold up, as Mexicali starter Kameron Loe pitched beautifully, retiring eleven batters in a row before giving up a Tim Torres double in the fifth.  The Naranjeros were able to load the bases with two out against Loe in the bottom of the sixth, but manager Lorenzo Bundy replaced Loe with Jose Meraz, who induced Dustin Martin to tap a comebacker to the mound for an inning-ending groundout.  The Naranjeros finally tied the game in the bottom of the eighth when Bourgeois hit a leadoff single up the middle off Fautino De Los Santos, stole second, took third on a Carlos Gastelum single and scored when Aguilas closer Jake Sanchez (who may be human after all) allowed an O'Koyea DIckson single.  Sanchez allowed another single to Jose Amador to score Gastelum, giving the Naranjeros a 2-1 advantage.  Rafael Martin, who spent some MLB time with Washington last year, was brought in and got the final three outs, as pinch-hitter Adan Munoz struck out swinging to end the game.

It was a pitcher's night on both sides, with Gastelum collecting two singles for the only multiple-hit game for either team.  Enright ran his playoff record to 3-0 with the win and Martin earned his third save in the postseason.  Loe ended up going 5.2 innings and giving up just two hits and three walks.  Neither run Sanchez allowed was charged to him, keeping his season-long total of earned runs allowed at one (1), while throwing 10 of his 11 pitches for strikes.  For one night, though, the native of Brawley, Calfornia (as are Los Mochis' Julian Arballo and Sergio Romo, who has yet to pitch in the other semi) couldn't seal the deal.

Barreda, Caneros blank Culiacan, 5-0, in semifinal opener; huge comeback propels Mexicali win

Manny Barreda gave up two singles and struck out ten Culiacan batters over eight innings to lead Los Mochis to a 5-0 shutout at home over the Tomateros Wednesday night in the opener of their Mexican Pacific League semifinal series.  In the other MexPac semi, the Mexicali Aguilas overcame a late 7-2 deficit with a six-run eighth inning in pulling off a come-from-behind 8-7 win at home over Hermosillo.

Game Two for the respective series will be played Thursday night at Los Mochis and Mexicali.


LOS MOCHIS 5-9-0, Culiacan 0-3-1

The Caneros' Manny Barreda gave up singles to Ali Solis in the third inning and Maxwell Leon in the sixth while retiring the side in order five times during his eight-frame stint.  He needed to be sharp early on as Barreda and Culiacan starter Patrick McCoy both tossed nothing but zeros until the bottom of the fourth, when Isaac Rodriguez put Los Mochis on the board by whacking a leadoff double, moving to third on a Lew Ford groundout to first and scoring on Leandro Castro's sacrifice fly to right.

Mochis added to their 1-0 lead with three more in the bottom of the sixth, chasing McCoy in the process.  Saul Soto sliced a single up the middle off Victor Marte to plate both Ford and J.C. Linares and make it a 3-0 score.  Ex-MLB hurler Dennis Reyes relieved Marte, but immediately gave up a single to Yosmany Guerra that brought Castro in from third along with an early exit for Reyes.  Castro then put an exclamation point on the procedings by homering to left center off Hector Navarro in the eighth to conclude the scoring in the Caneros' 5-0 triumph.

Castro ended up going 3-for-3 with two runs, two RBIs and a homer while Soto picked up a pair of hits.  An overflow crowd of 11,110 at Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada in Los Mochis watched a masterful pitching performance as neither Barreda nor reliever Santiago Gutierrez allowed a Tomateros baserunner to reach second base all night. The Caneros are seeking their first MexPac pennant since 2002-03 while Culiacan copped their last flag two winters ago.


MEXICALI 8-15-1, Hermosillo 7-13-2

Unlike the Los Mochis-Culiacan game, pitching had little to do with this one as the two combatants combined for 15 runs on 28 hits at Mexicali's Estadio B'Air in front of 14,232 spectators.

Jason Bourgeois led off the game with a double for the Naranjeros and later scored from third when Mexicali shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt misplayed O'Koyea Dickson's grounder to put the visitors up early. C.J. Retherford came in on a Agustin Murillo sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second to tie it up, but Jorge Flores' line single to left in the fourth drove in Jose Amador and Tim Torres to put the Orangemen back on top, 3-1.  The Aguilas got a run back in the bottom of the fifth when Chris Roberson scored on Retherford's sacrifice fly to center, but the Naranjeros padded their lead with two more runs in both the seventh and eighth frames (the latter featuring a two-run homer from Dustin Martin) to make it a 7-2 Hermosillo lead with six Eagles outs needed to nail down the win.

Instead, Mexicali roared back with six runs in the bottom of the eighth to take their first lead of the night.  Luis Suarez cracked a three-run homer off Nathanael Santiago to start the scoring binge and Betancourt's two-out single to right brought in Missael German with the go-ahead tally.  The ex-MLB shortstop singled twice in the eighth as eleven batsmen came to the plate for the home team.   It was then left to Aguilas closer Jake Sanchez, who has allowed one earned run all season, to pick up his fourth postseason save.  It took a double-play comebacker to the mound to end the game, but Sanchez got the save in a most improbable Mexicali win.

Seven Mexicali players had two hits each in the Aguilas' 15-hit attack, but Juarez' homer was the only extra-base knock of the game.  Bourgeois and 5'5" shortstop Luis Flores each had three of Hermosillo's 13 safeties.  Edgar Gomez recorded one out in the top of the eighth to get credit for the Mexicali win while Heriberto Ruelas gave up Betancourt's late RBI single to take the loss for the Naranjeros.

Hermosillo tops Culiacan 6-3 in Game 7, both to MexPac semis

Jason Bourgeois and Fernando Perez combined for six hits, three runs and three RBIs from the top two slots in the Hermosillo batting order to pace the Naranjeros' 6-3 win at Culiacan Monday night.  The victory gives the Orangemen a Game Seven win in the Mexican Pacific League first round series, but both clubs will advance to the LMP semifinals because Culiacan's three first-round wins topped Navojoa's two and Mazatlan's one to qualify the Tomateros for the fourth, or "lucky loser," Final Four berth.

Hermosillo 6-12-0, CULIACAN 3-6-0

An MLB outfielder for six teams from 2008 to 2015, Bourgeois (pictured) started the game off in the top of the first inning with a single off Culiacan starter Tony Cordova, then advanced to second on Efren Navarro's walk.  Both were then driven in when O'Koyea Dickson lashed a double past centerfielder Sebastian Elizalde to put the visitors up early. Perez gave Hermosillo a 3-0 lead in the top of the second by singling in Sergio Burruel from second.  The Tomateros got on the scoreboard when Iker Franco came in on Jose Manuel Orozco's groundout to short in the bottom of the third.  The two teams then swapped goose eggs until the top of the seventh, when Perez followed a Bourgeois double with a two-run homer to left center field off reliever Gerardo Sanchez to make it a 6-1 Hermosillo lead.  Culiacan cobbled together a pair of runs in the bottom of the seventh as Jose Manuel Rodriguez scored on a groundout and Joey Meneses added a run on a sacrifice fly, but that was the last time either team would cross home plate.

Bourgeois and Perez led Hermosillo's 12-hit attack while no Culiacan player had more than one safety in the Tomateros' 6-hit night, although Alfredo Amezaga and Elizalde both doubled.  Juan Pablo Oramas came back from a shaky first start to put in four strong innings for the Naranjeros, giving up one run on two hits.  It was Wilmer Rios who got the win in relief, however, while Hector Galvan picked up his first postseason save.  Cordova took the loss for the Tomateros, playing in front of a playoff-high 18,938 fans at home, by allowing three runs on six hits and two walks over five innings. The home side only won twice over seven games in this series, with Hermosillo taking three of four games in Culiacan.

The semifinals will open Wednesday night when Hermosillo visits Mexicali and Los Mochis welcomes Culiacan.


FIRST ROUND RESULTS

Los Mochis defeated Mazatlan, 4 games to 1
Game 1: LOS MOCHIS 2, Mazatlan 1
Game 2: LOS MOCHIS 6, Mazatlan 4
Game 3: Los Mochis 3, MAZATLAN 0
Game 4: MAZATLAN 7 Los Mochis 6
Game 5: Los Mochis 4, Mazatlan 3 

Mexicali defeated Navojoa, 4 games to 2
Game 1: NAVOJOA 4, Mexicali 2
Game 2: Mexicali 7, NAVOJOA 6
Game 3: MEXICALI 3, Navojoa 2
Game 4: MEXICALI 14, Navojoa 1
Game 5: Navojoa 8, MEXICALI 6
Game 6: Mexcali 6, NAVOJOA 4

Hermosillo defeated Culiacan, 3 games to 2
Game 1: CULIACAN 6, Hermosillo 3
Game 2: Hermosillo 6, CULIACAN 4
Game 3: Culiacan 8, HERMOSILLO 7
Game 4: HERMOSILLO 8, Culiacan 4
Game 5: Culiacan 6, HERMOSILLO 2
Game 6: Hermosillo 5, CULIACAN 4
Game 7: Hermosillo 6, CULIACAN 3

Mexicali pounds Navojoa, Mazatlan stays alive

The Mexicali Aguilas routed top-seed Navojoa, 14-1, Friday to take a 3-games-to-1 lead in their Mexican Pacific League first round playoff series.  Also Friday, the Mazatlan Venados prevented a Los Mochis sweep with a tight 7-6 win in the Pearl of the Pacific while Hermosillo evened up with Culiacan at two games each by doubling up the Tomateros, 8-4.  Game Five action is slated for Saturday in Mazatlan, Mexicali and Hermosillo before the series shift locales on Sunday as needed.

MEXICALI 14-16-0, Navojoa 1-3-1
Believe it or not, the Mayos led this one early.  After a scoreless first inning, Navojoa went up 1-0 in the top of the second when Christian Zazueta drilled a two-out double to left field off Mexicali starter Miguel Pena, scoring Niko Vazquez from third base. The roof promptly caved in for the visitors as the Aguilas scored five runs in the bottom of the second and three in the third to go up 8-1.  The two teams swapped zeros from the fourth frame until the bottom of the sixth, when the Eagles erupted for four more runs to make it a 12-1 game.  The hosts added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth as 15,577 people watched at  Estadio B'Air in the border city.

Key scoring plays for the Aguilas were Yuniesky Betancourt's three-run double in the second inning, RBI doubles by Ramon Rios and C.J. Retherford in the third, Jon Del Campo's three-run homer in the sixth and Rios' two-run longball in the eighth.  In all, Mexicali collected 16 hits and 6 walks off five Navojoa pitchers, with Mayos starter Fabio Castro (1 IP, 5 R, 5 H, 4 BB) taking the loss after allowing the first Mexicali batters to reach base in the second, including a leadoff homer from Mets farmhand Xorge Carrillo (pictured).  The bottom third of the order did the most damage for the winners as Carrillo, Del Campo and Rios combined for 11 hits (including three homers and two doubles), 9 runs scored and 8 RBIs.

All that offense made life easy for Aguilas starter Pena, who lasted seven innings and gave up just three hits and one run, walking none and whiffing three for the win.  Yair Lozoya and Francisco Rodriguez each turned in 1-2-3 innings in relief against the shellshocked Mayos.


MAZATLAN 7-5-2, Los Mochis 6-9-5

It wasn't pretty, but Mazatlan manager Daniel Fernandez wasn't in the position to be choosy about how his team won.  The defending LMP and Caribbean Series champion Venados parlayed five hits, two walks and five Los Mochis into a 7-6 home win over the Caneros Friday night.  In doing so, the Deer stayed alive by bringing their series deficit to 3 games to 1.  A crowd of just 8.572 was on hand at Estadio Teodoro Mariscal, the lowest attendance of all twelve postseason encounters involving six cities.  It's been a season-long puzzle for Mazatlan, the only MexPac team to draw fewer than 200,000 fans during the regular season (albeit barely below that number).

Mazatlan went up 2-0 on Jesus Fabela's RBI single in the second inning and Drew Maggi scampering home on a double-play grounder in the third entrada.  Los Mochis roared back with three runs in the fourth, taking the lead when Sebastian Valle lumbered in from third on a Jesus Sanchez wild pitch, and racked up three more scores in the fifth (key blow: two-run double from Fernando Inzunza) to take a 6-2 lead.  The Venados got one run back in the bottom of the fifth when Fabela scored on a double-play grounder, ironically topped by Maggi, to cut Mochis' lead to three.  Mazatlan drew even with three runs in the seventh, tying the score when Caneros reliever Jon Sintes uncorked a wild pitch to Cyle Hankerd, allowing Roberto Valenzuela to come in from third.  The Venados won in walkoff fashion when Fabela opened the bottom ninth by beating out an errant throw to first by Mochis shortstop Isaac Rodriguez, moved to second on a Valenzuela sacrifice bunt and scored on Maggi's line drive single to right, ending the contest.

Arturo Barradas went a third of an inning in the ninth as the last Mazatlan pitcher and his one out was enough for him to be the winning pitcher.  Ernesto Zaragos started for the Venados and struck out six in 3.1 innings, but he also let in three runs on four hits and three walks over 76 pitches before skipper Fernandez had finally had enough (conversely, home plate umpire Oswaldo Meza had finally had enough of Fernandez in the eighth and tossed him.  Sintes both blew a save opportunity and took the loss despite 20 of his 29 pitches going for strikes.  The real story for Mochis pitchers was that of seven runs allowed by three pitchers, only two were earned as the trio otherwise combined on a five-hitter.


HERMOSILLO 8-7-2, Culiacan 4-7-2

Outfielder Jason Bourgeois scored three runs on two hits (including a homer) and a walk as the Hermosillo Naranjeros topped the Culiacan Tomateros, 8-4, Friday with a standing-room-only crowd of 16,302 at Hermosillo's Estadio Sonora.  The first-round series is now tied at two games apiece.

The contest was tied ar 2-2 when Bourgeois led off the bottom of the third inning with a single and sped to third on Carlos Gastelum's single to left.  Bourgeois then scored on a sacrifice fly, Gastelum took second when Culiacan reliever Jose Sanchez balked with O'Koyea Dickson batting.  Clearly rattled, Sanchez then walked both Dickson and Dustin Martin to load the bases for Jose Amador.  At this point, Tony Cordova came in for Sanchez and induced Amador to ground into a fielder's choice, with Gastelum coming in from third to make it a 4-2 Hermosillo lead.  The Naranjeros added two more runs during another crazy inning in the fourth (two singles, three walks, two wild pitches) and were never threatened again.  In all, Culiacan pitchers issued nine walks, hit a batter and allowed seven base hits for a total of 17 baserunners.  Amazingly, the Naranjeros were only 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position yet still scored eight times.  Ryan Lollis and Oscar Robles each had two singles for the Tomateros.

The recipient of all the Culiacan mound staff largesse was Naranjeros starter Pablo Ortega, who turned 40 in November.  The ageless righty struck out seven in five innings but it was anything but smooth sailiing.  Ortega let in four runs on five hits and a pair of free passes, but still got the win.  Gerardo Sanchez was tagged with the loss for the Tomateros but it was a group effort by the eight pitchers who saw duty.  Victor Marte did toss 2.2 hitless innings in relief with four strikeouts, but Marte also let fly with a bases-loaded wild pitch that brought Bourgeois in from third.

It was that kind of night.