VENADOS DROP CABRERA, ADD GUTIERREZ TO ROSTER

The second half of the Mexican Pacific League season is barely underway and teams continue to tinker with their rosters with a watchful eye on January’s playoffs, including the Mazatlan Venados.

The Deer have added veteran infielder Jesse Gutierrez (pictured) to their lineup after dropping import Jolbert Cabrera, who had a very non-productive stay in the port city. A former big leaguer, Cabrera came to Mazatlan on the heels of a banner Mexican League season in which he hit .364 for Oaxaca, but batted just .073 in 11 games for the Venados. Gutierrez is envisioned as a corner infielder for Mazatlan.

A 2001 Reds draft pick, Gutierrez has topped the .300 mark in the Mexican League and averaged 16 homers over three seasons. The Texas native swatted 21 homers and drove in 84 runs for Reynosa last summer. Gutierrez is no stranger to the Mex Pac. He belted 15 homers for Navojoa in 2005-06 and has also played for Los Mochis and Mexicali.

The Culiacan Tomateros also made a player move last week, bringing in outfielder Jason Botts. Botts played for the Texas Rangers between 2006 and 2008 and spent last summer with Washington’s AAA affiliate in Durham, hitting .279 with 8 homers in 80 games. He hit .326 for Obregon in the LMP in 2007-08.

VENADOS, TOMATEROS BRING IN REINFORCEMENTS

Although perennial Mexican Pacific League contenders Mazatlan and Culiacan have broken slowly out of the gate this season, they can’t be accused of not making moves to right their respective ships.

The Venados, who reaped immediate dividends from recent signee Tim Raines, Jr. when the ex-Baltimore outfielder singled in the game-winning run in his first contest for Mazatlan Tuesday, have brought in another former big leaguer, Jolbert Cabrera. A versatile player who can perform anywhere on the field but pitcher and catcher, Cabrera was sixth in the Mexican League with a .364 average last summer for Oaxaca. He spent eight seasons in the majors and two more in Japan before coming to Mexico.

Meanwhile, Culiacan has added ex-Cincinnati Reds outfielder Norris Hopper to the club. The 31-year-old Hopper spent the 2010 season with Milwaukee’s AAA affiliate in Nashville, hitting .286 and stealing 22 bases in 119 games for the Sounds. An eighth-round draft pick by Kansas City in 1998, Hopper hit .316 in 168 games for Cincinnati between 2006 and 2008, including a .327 average in 121 in 2007.

MEXPAC HOLDS LEAGUE MEETING, PLAYER DRAFT

The Mexican Pacific League held a league meeting last week in Culiacan in which a number of topics were vetted. LMP president Omar Canizales (pictured) said teams would not be able to add reinforcement players to their rosters for the January MexPac playoffs, marking the 13th consecutive winter that rule will be in effect. Canizales also verified that the Caribbean Series would begin on February 2 in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico; televised replays would be used, but only on home run disputes; LMP umpire improvement would continue to be a focus of the league; and that the eight MexPac teams have contributed to a $4 million fund to distribute between the playoff champion and runners-up, with the winner receiving 70%.

The LMP also held its annual player drafts last Wednesday. Lefty pitcher Francisco Esquivel was taken by the Obregon Yaquis as the first pick among domestic players, while right-hander Cecilio Garibaldi was taken second by Hermosillo. In all, 60 Mexican players were selected. In the import draft, Mazatlan led off by tabbing Colombian infielder Jolbert Cabrera and Mexicali followed by picking Cuban pitcher Francisley Bueno. Sixteen extraneros were picked, two by each LMP team.