LMP: FIRST ROUND OVER, SEMIS OPEN WEDNESDAY

Obregon P Samuel Zazueta

    The first round of the 2022-23 Mexican Pacific League playoffs are history and the four remaining teams are slated to square off in the semifinals beginning Wednesday night.

    Los Mochis made short work of Navojoa by eliminating the Mayos, 4 games to 1 while it took six games for top seed Hermosillo to knock out Mazatlan in a series delayed by violence throughout Sinaloa after the arrest of the son of drug cartel kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman last week. Obregon and Guasave were stretched the full seven games before defeating Mexicali and Monterrey, respectively, in their opening round series.

    Here is a game-by-game capsule of each LMP quarterfinal series. Home teams are in all caps:

LOS MOCHIS DEFEATED NAVOJOA, 4 GAMES TO 1
SUN 1/1: LOS MOCHIS 7, Navojoa 6 (Rudy Amador scored walk-off run on throwing error by Mayos P Edwyn Valle in bottom of 11th)
MON 1/2: LOS MOCHIS 7, Navojoa 1 (Bruce Maxwell had RBI double and scored as Nick Struck allowed 1 run in 6 innings)
WED 1/4: Los Mochis 5, NAVOJOA 2 (Maxwell's 2-run HR keyed 4-run ninth after Caneros trailed 2-1, wasting Octavio Acosta's 5IP/1R start for Mayos)
THU 1/5: NAVOJOA 3, Los Mochis 0 (Ruddy Acosta allowed 2 hits in 5 shutout innings as Olmo Rosario doubled and homered for Mayos)
FRI 1/6: Los Mochis 4, NAVOJOA 3 (Amador doubled in Isaac Rodriguez in top of 11th, Esteban Haro held Mayos scoreless on 10 pitches for save in Mochis clincher)

HERMOSILLO DEFEATED MAZATLAN, 4 GAMES TO 2
SUN 1/1: HERMOSILLO 2, Mazatlan 1 (Elian Leyva allowed 1 run on 9 scattered hits over 6 innings for Naranjeros)
MON 1/2: HERMOSILLO 3, Mazatlan 0 (Wilmer Rios pitched 7 shutout innings, Jose Cardona went 4-for-4 with 2 doubles)
WED 1/4: MAZATLAN 3, Hermosillo 2 (Christian Villanueva went 3-for-3 with 2 RBIs and Fabricio Macias tripled and scored twice for Venados)
FRI 1/6: MAZATLAN 2, Hermosillo 1 (Leo German scored go-ahead run from third on Cesar Vargas wild pitch in 5th after Thursday's postponement due to cartel street violence)
SAT 1/7: Hermosillo 4, MAZATLAN 3 (Nick Torres' 2-run HR in top of 11th gave Hermosillo 4-2 lead; Venados got run back before pinch-hitter Leonardo Reginatto flew out to end game)
SUN 1/8: HERMOSILLO 3, Mazatlan 1 (Wilmer Rios allowed 1 unearned run in 8.1 innings as Naranjeros scored 2 runs via 2 Mazatlan errors on same play in bottom of 6th)

OBREGON DEFEATED MEXICALI, 4 GAMES TO 3
SUN 1/1: OBREGON 9, Mexicali 4 (Niuman Romero hit solo HR in 7-run sixth inning as Yaquis overcame 4-1 deficit)
MON 1/2: OBREGON 4, Mexicali 3 (Allen Cordoba's single scored Victor Marquez with walkoff run in bottom of the 13th)
WED 1/4: MEXICALI 10, Obregon 6 (Anthony Giansanti and Xorge Carrillo combined for 4 RBIs as Aguilas chased Yaquis' P Mitch Lively for 7 runs on 6 hits in 1.2 innings)
THU 1/5: MEXICALI 2, Obregon 0 (Miguel Pena and two relievers combined for 3-hit shutout as Carrillo singled, doubled and scored twice for Mexicali)
FRI 1/6: Obregon 6, MEXICALI 5 (Carlos Sepulveda hit 2-run double and scored as Yaquis built 6-1 lead; Aguilas scored 4 in the 7th but Samuel Zazueta got save on 9 pitches)
SUN 1/8: Mexicali 4, OBREGON 2 (Niko Vasquez' 2-run single paced Aguilas' 3-run 6th, then Vasquez hit solo HR in 9th to clinch win for Mexicali)
MON 1/9: OBREGON 5, Mexicali 2 (Yadir Drake's 3-run double in bottom of 2nd helped Yaquis take 4-0 lead, Zazueta's 3 shutout innings of relief for save helped maintain it)

GUASAVE DEFEATED MONTERREY, 4 GAMES TO 3
SUN 1/1: GUASAVE 2, Monterrrey 1 (Joey Terdoslavich scored from first on Francisco Hernandez single in bottom of 10th)
MON 1/2: GUASAVE 2, Monterrey 1 (Solo HRs by Jesse Castillo and Terdoslavich in 2nd held up as Nico Tellache tossed 7.1 innings of 1-run ball)
WED 1 /4: Guasave 6, MONTERREY 1 (Julian Ornelas hit 3-run homer for Cottoneers to back Jeff Klnley's 6 innings of 1R/2H/4K pitching; Ricardo Serrano homered for Sultanes)
THU 1/5: MONTERREY 5, Guasave 4 (Bat champ Roberto Valenzuela had 3 singles, 2 RBIs and scored once as Sultanes held off elimination)
FRI 1/6: MONTERREY 6, Guasave 1 (Kennys Vargas' 2-run HR keyed 3-run Sultanes 3rd en route to 3-hit night; Frank Duncan tossed 6 shutout innings for win)
SUN 1/8: Monterrey 3, GUASAVE 0 (Six pitchers combined on 4-hitter for Sultanes as Valenzuela, Vargas and Gilberto Galaviz had RBI singles to force Game 7)
MON 1/9: GUASAVE 8 Monterrey 4 (Kinley got his second win with 6 shutout innings while Orlando Pina's 3-run HR off Kurt Heyer in 3rd gave Guasave a 6-0 lead that held)

    The conclusion of the first round on Monday led to a second reinforcement draft on Tuesday. Hermosillo drew the first pick, followed by Obregon, Los Mochis and Guasave for the two-round selection process of picking reinforcements from among the four teams vanquished in the first round. As with the first such draft, one reinforcement will be allowed to be placed on his new team's active roster for the semifinals while the other will be placed on the Reserve List for that series.

    With their two picks, the Naranjeros took two catchers: Gabriel Gutierrez (Mazatlan) and Xorge Carrillo (Mexicali). Obregon chose LHP Braulio Torres-Perez (Mazatlan) and LHP Marcelo Martinez (Mexicali). Los Mochis selected IFs Roberto Valenzuela (Monterrey) and Christian Villanueva (Mazatlan) and Guasave picked OF Sebastian Elizalde (Mexicali) and 1B Reynaldo Rodriguez (Mexicali). Thus far, Gutierrez, Valenzuela and Elizalde have been activated by their respective new teams while Obregon has not made their roster add choice.

    The Final Four is scheduled to open Wednesday night. Guasave will send Gino Encina to the mound in Hermosillo while the Naranjeros have chosen Tyler Alexander as their Game One starter. In Los Mochis, the Caneros have tabbed Nick Struck as their opener against Obregon and veteran Manny Barreda.


MEX PAC BEGINS NAMING 2022-23 AWARD WINNERS

    As the postseason enters into its second stage this week, the Mexican Pacific League has begun naming its individual award winners for the 2022-23 season as selected by front office and media members in all ten LMP cities as well as an online fan vote.

    The first winner named was Hermosillo's Juan Gabriel Castro as Manager of the Year. Castro led the Naranjeros to the highest points harvest with 19.0 while their 43-25 record in the regular role was the best in the LMP, closing with 16 consecutive victories in Estadio Sonora, where they won all home series in the second half. In his second season at the helm of the Orangemen, Castro lead his team to victory 11 out of 12 times in the Mex Pac's Clasico against Culiacan.

    Castro collected 42 percent of the vote to be named winner of the Benjamin “Cananea” Reyes Trophy. The second most-voted-for skipper was Jose Moreno of Los Mochis with 33 percent, 14 percent went to Luis Carlos Rivera of Obregon and 11 percent was for for Oscar Robles of Guasave. All four will be managing in the semifinals.

    Jalisco outfielder Fernando Villegas has been chosen Rookie of the Year after finishing third in the LMP in batting percentage at .337 and in on-base percentage with a .399 mark, second in slugging percentage at .519, second in on-base plus percentage at .918 and tied for fifth in extra-base hits with 23.

    The 24-year-old Villegas, who was classified as a rookie despite two seasons in the Pittsburgh organization and 48 games for the Charros over the previous three winters, is the first Jalisco player to win the Baldomero “Melo” Almada Trophy in the nine-year history of the franchise. He took 42 percent of the vote to finish first ahead of Hermosillo reliver Luis Marquez (29 percent), starter Juan Pablo Tellez of Mazatlan (19 percent), Obregon hurler Faustino Carrera (7 percent) and Yaquis reliever José Carlos Medina (3 percent).

    And Colombian Elkin Alcala of Mazatlan has been selected as reliever of the Year for 2022-23. The right-hander finished as leader in the saves department, with 20 salvados in 22 opportunities while posting a 1.57 ERA, pitching a total of 34.1 innings in 34 games with 31 strikeouts. Alcala emerged as the winner by closing with 36 percent of the votes.

    Second place went to left-hander Luis Márquez from Hermosillo with 34 percent, followed by Jake Sánchez of Mexicali (12 percent), Guasave's Brandon Koch (10 percent) and Samuel Zazueta from Obregon (8 percent). The Reliever of the Year Trophy is named after Salon de la Fama member Isidro Marquez, the all-time saves leader in both the Mexican League and Mexican Pacific League who still had to wait until 2020 to be elected for enshrinement in Monterrey nine years after retirement. Marquez took himself off the shelf last winter to pitch a combined 29 times at age 56 for Navojoa and Monterrey, going 2-0 with one save and a 2.78 ERA.

    Other award winners, including Pitcher of the Year and Most Valuable Player, will be announced by the LMP league office in Guadalajara as the postseason progresses.


VERACRUZ CUP SEMIS, FINAL SET FOR JAN. 14-15

Estadio Beto Avila, Veracruz

    After more than 300 young Veracruzanos competed on 16 teams, Estadio Beto Ávila (home of the Mexican League Veracruz Aguilas) will be the scene of the Semifinals and Finals of the Veracruz Cup Winter League on January 14 and 15. The first game of the Semifinal will match the Chahuapan Águilas, directed by Fredy Ruiz, against the Papantla Voladores, managed by Noe Mata. In the other confrontation, the Chacaltianguis Mangueros (manager Adelaido Rodríguez) take on the Alvarado Pescadores (manager Juan Palacios).

    The first semifinal game at Estadio Beto Avila is scheduled for Saturday, January 14 at 12:00 pm and the second at 4:00 pm. The game for third place will be on Sunday, January 15 at 12:00 pm followed by the Grand Final at 4:00 pm.

    The tournament was divided into four venues: Deportivo Colon in Xalapa, Campo Anáhuac in Papantla, Campo Raciel Hernández in Otatitlan and Estadio Gustavo Burjois Fernández in Tierra Blanca. Sixteen teams saw action in 72 regular-day games, with an average attendance of more than 2,000 spectators per venue. The teams that participated in Xalapa were the Xalapa Tomateros, Emiliano Zapata Limoneros, Xico Vikingos and the Chahuapan Aguilas. In Papantla, the Papantla Voladores, Tampico Alto Cachorros, Poza Rica Tecnológicos and Coatzintla Maiceros did battle. Chacaltianguis and Alvarado also emerged from similar four-team groups in Otatitlan and Tierra Blanca.

    Copa Veracruz president Vladimir Cruz Acosta says he's satisfied that 300 young players were physically activated from various municipalities of the state and supported by the LMB Veracruz Aguilas. Tournaments such as Copa Veracruz are intended to increase the competitive level of Veracruz prospects sought by the Aguilas and/or other profesional baseball organizations as well as young players who like to practice the game recreationally. Outside the traditional hotbed of northwest Mexico, Veracruz has been the most fertile state in the country for developing ballplayers for years.

NARANJEROS TAKE LMP LEAD, ELIZALDE HITTING .429

Hermosillo OF Jose Cardona

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

MEXICO FALLS SHORT IN U-23 GOLD CUP BRONZE GAME

Angel Camacho at 13 in 2017

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

WHERE DO THIS YEAR'S LMP PLAYERS COME FROM?

    

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

MEXICO BLANKS COLOMBIA, 1-0 FOR FIRST CS WIN

  A standout start by Wilmer Rios and a solo homer from Felix Perez formed the keynotes in Mexico’s 1-0 shutout victory over Colombia Sunday in the 2022 Caribbean Series in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The win was Mexico’s first after suffering losses in the first two days playing in the Crown Jewel of Latin Baseball at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal.

Rios tossed 6.2 innings of scoreless ball, allowing just three hits and no walks while striking out five batsmen. He was followed on the mound by relievers Enrique Burgos (1.1 IP) and Roberto Osuna (1 IP) as the latter recorded the save with a one-hit ninth, striking out Mauricio Ramirez swinging to end a contest that took just two hours, 37 minutes to play.

The lone run of the ballgame came in the bottom of the second inning when Perez lined a 2-2 Porifirio Lopez pitch to right, as the ball cleared the fence by inches over the head of Colombian rightfielder Harold Ramirez. Neither team bothered the scorekeeper much as a combined nine hits were recorded. Besides Perez’ longball, Mexico received a pair of singles from leadoff batter Jose Juan Aguilar and one-baggers from Esteban Quiroz and Dario Alvarez. Quiroz and Alvarez also stole bases but Perez was the only Mexican batter to go beyond second base. Rios earned the win while Lopez was tagged with the loss for Colombia, who had won their first two games in their third appearance in the Serie del Caribe going into Sunday’s tilt.

Mexico’s opener was a 3-2 tripleheader nightcap loss against the hosts last Friday. The Dominicans were designated the “away” team and opened the scoring in the top of the first inning when Hanser Alberto stroked a triple and later came in on a Robinson Cano groundout. The Mexicans evened the score in the bottom of the first after Japhet Amador lined a two-out single to left and plated Joey Meneses. A sharply hit single by Meneses brought in Quiroz to give Mexico a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the third, but that would be the last run they’d record off starter Tyler Alexander and seven relievers. The Dominicans regained the advantage for good in the top of the seventh when Alberto’s Texas Leaguer to center field off reliever Tyler Wilson scored Moises Sierra and a Cano singleoff Samuel Zazueta brought Jose Siri in with the go-ahead run. Quiroz and Amador each singled and doubled for manager Roberto Vizcarra’s side but Mexico left nine runners on base as Brennan Bernardino’s good start (5.1 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 4K) went for naught.

Mexico dropped to 0-2 in the Caribbean Series on Saturday after a 5-0 shutout loss to Venezuela. Starter Manny Barreda gave up three runs in the third as Danry Vasquez doubled in Cade Gotta and Niuman Romero followed by an RBI single from Balbino Fuenmayor scored Vasquez. Barreda was replaced by Alemao Hernandez, who promptly plunked Pablo Sandoval but got the last two outs to end the frame. Venezuela scored once in the fifth when Sandoval scored on a Gabriel Noriega single and got a final run in the sixth when Sandoval homered down the right field line on a full-count pitch from David Gutierrez. Barreda took the loss for Mexico, who had just four hits, including a Fernando Perez double, and went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Yohander Mendez tossed five innings of one-hit ball (a first-inning single by Meneses) to earn the win for the Venezuelans.

With two days of first-round tripleheaders left, the unbeaten Dominicans have clinched a berth in Wednesday’s semifinals while winless Puerto Rico will need to win their final two games to even have a shot at the Final Four. Mexico’s 1-2 record has them tied for fourth with Panama going into games against Puerto Rico on Monday and Panama on Tuesday.

CARIBBEAN SERIES FIRST ROUND STANDINGS

Dominican Republic 3-0, Colombia 2-1, Venezuela 2-1, MEXICO 1-2, Panama 1-2, Puerto Rico 0-3.
REMAINING SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES LOCAL)

MONDAY, Jan. 31: Venezuela at Panama (10:30AM), Mexico at Puerto Rico (3:00PM), Dominican Republic at Colombia (8:00PM).

TUESDAY, Feb. 1: Colombia at Puerto Rico (10:30AM), Panama at Mexico (3:00PM), Venezuela at Dominican Republic (8:00PM)

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 2: Semifinal A - 3rd place at 2nd place (3:30PM), Semifinal B - 4th place at 1st place (8:00PM).

THURSDAY, Feb. 3: Winner Semifinal A vs. Winner Semifinal B (7:00PM).

JUAN CASTRO TO MANAGE DIABLOS ROJOS IN 2022

The Mexico CIty Red Devils of Mexico have named Juan Gabriel Castro as manager for the upcoming Mexican League season.

In seeking their 17th title in team history, the Diablos are handing the reins to Castro, who appeared in 17 seasons as a player in the Major Leagues during a 21-year career as an infielder and later managed in both the LMB and the Mexican Pacific League He also led the Mexican National Team to a Premier12 tournament qualification for last summer’s Olympic Games before being unceremoniously dumped in favor of Benji Gil weeks before the team was due to fly to Tokyo after criticizing Mexico’s CONADE national sports commission and head Ana Guevara (a political ally of president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador) for lack of financial or logistical support. Mexico was winless in four games under Gil.

“I am grateful for coming to this organization,” Castro said at a press conference at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu. “Yes, there were several proposals (from other teams) and in the end I came here to the Devils because it is a serious organization and has very good prestige and great principles, which are also in accordance with my principles. I really want to work, we come to add and we will do everything possible to bring the title to Mexico City.”

Castro comes from the Philadelphia Phillies organization, with whom he spent three years under manager Joe Girardi until his contract expired last October. The49-year-old Los Mochis native has been a coach in MLB with the Los Angeles Dodgers for skipper Dave Roberts before leaving that post for an ill-fated front office stint with the Tijuana Toros de Tijuana in 2018, where he was never given a clearly defined role (and was even going to manage the team at one point) before he parted company with the Uribe family and their team on less than amicable terms. He’s also managed winterball teams in Obregon, Mexicali and Hermosillo.

“The main message is 'we want to be champions,” added Castro. “The important thing is that we all work as a team to be able to achieve the goal we want, which is the title. One way of working with the players is to try to make everyone happy, but something that has worked for me and that I have done with the boys is respect: respect towards themselves, towards their teammates, towards baseball.”

With this appointment, work will begin on the construction of the Diablos coaching staff, where candidates will be interviewed while some current coaches will be kept on the staff. Similarly, it was confirmed that Miguel Ojeda, who managed the Diablos to first place in the South Division with a 41-23 record before losing to Yucatan in five games for the LMB South championship series, remains in the organization. 

Ojeda was named manager of the team after a front-office purge last year, replacing Sergio Gastelum (who was brought in from Oaxaca to run the team for the canceled 2020 season and let go last spring before ever managing a game in Mexico City). Gastelum was replacing Victor Bojorquez, who managed the Diablos to a 69-49 record and first place in the LMB South in 2019 before losing to Yucatan in four straight in the division finals. The more things change…

MAESTROS OF MEXICO: Houston Jimenez, SS (1974-2000)

Houston Jimenez was a top-notch shortstop in both the Mexican and Mexican Pacific Leagues who spent all or part of four seasons playing major league ball with three teams during a 25-year playing career before embarking on a managerial career that saw him manage seven clubs in twelve seasons.

Alfonso “Houston” Jimenez was born October 30, 1957 in Navojoa, Sonora.  Nicknamed as a child after a TV Western character, Jimenez broke into the Mexican League with the Puebla Angeles in 1974, batting .212 in 20 games as a 16-year-old. Despite his low average, he did well enough to be signed by the Chicago Cubs, who assigned the 5’8” 144-pounder to their Class A Key West affiliate in the Florida State League. After hitting just .212 for Key West, Jimenez returned to Puebla in 1976 and went on to play five seasons with the Angeles, topping the .300 mark in 1977 (.303) and 1979 (.305). He signed with Minnesota in 1981 and went on to play in the United States for the next twelve seasons.

Jimenez made his big league debut on June 13, 1983 with the Twins and ended that campaign with a .174 average in 36 games. In 1984, he had his best shot as a major leaguer, batting a career-high .201 in 108 games for the Twins. Jimenez later had cups of coffee with Pittsburgh and Cleveland and posted a career .185 average in 158 MLB games.

Jimenez returned to the Mexican League in 1993 with Campeche and also played for Saltillo, Mexico City and Quintana Roo over seven seasons.  He was a much better hitter south of the border, topping .300 two more times in the Nineties (with a career-best .337 for the Saraperos in 1995).  In all, Houston had a lifetime average of .282 over 13 Liga seasons, including four .300+ campaigns. Never a power hitter, the 6’1” 185-pounder hit 41 career homers.

Jimenez was an effective hitter over 25 winters in the Mexican Pacific League between 1975 and 2000.  He batted .259 with 73 homers, and is third on the MexPac’s all-time list in both runs scored (754) and hits (1339).  He is second to Hector Espino with 230 career doubles, and his 209 stolen bases trail only Matias Carrillo.

During the 1999 Liga season, his last full year as a player, Jimenez was manager-shortstop for Saltillo. He hit .299 as the Seraperos finished first in the Northern Division with a 74-45 record before reaching the playoff semifinals. Jimenez has gone on to manage seven teams for all or part of 12 seasons, leading Puebla to the Serie del Rey in 2010 and 2014. His teams posted an aggregate 735-584 mark through his last year as a dugout boss in 2018 with Tabasco.

Houston Jimenez, who turned 74 last October 30, was elected to Mexico’s Salon de la Fama in 2007 and the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013.

JUSTINE SIEGAL TO COACH FOR THREE LMP TEAMS

In what is her fourth time teaching at the Mujeres en el Diamante (“Women of the Diamond”) clinics with the teams of the Mexican Pacific League, baseball coach Justine Siegal has returned to the LMP this week to don the uniforms of the Hermosillo Naranjeros, Mexicali Aguilas and Guasave Algodoneros.

In a virtual press conference with the presence of the president of the circuit, Lic. Omar Canizales, United States Public Affairs Consul in Tijuana Kim Scrivner presented the agenda that the American will have from December 12 to 17 in the three stadiums of the clubs involved.

Siegal started his activities in Hermosillo yesterday with the tossing of the ceremonial first pitch and her activation as a Naranjeros coach for the game. She will give her Mujeres en el Diamante clinic today in the capital of Sonora. She will perform similar dual duties Tuesday and Wednesday in Mexicali before finishing up Thursday and Friday in Guasave.

"It’s a dream come true,” Siegal said during the virtual press conference. “I’m very excited to be with three organizations and wear their uniform. I am anxious that the time comes to participate again in this high-level league," said the 45-year-old Siegal, a coach with experience in organizations such as the Oakland A’s, Cleveland Indians and the Israel Men's National Team.

The Mexicali Aguilas are trying to overcome a ninth-place finish in the first half by collecting enough points to earn a playoff berth with a strong second half. So far, so good, as the Eagles have taken the Mex Pac lead with a 16-10 record, one game ahead of 15-11 Obregon. Although it’s been a tale of two seasons for the border team, one constant for the Aguilas throughout the campaign has been closer Jake “Checkmate” Sanchez.

The 32-year-old righty from Brawley, California now has 23 saves for the year after closing Mexicali’s 2-0 shutout against the defending champions in Culiacan, tying the LMP record set by Obregon’s Mark Zappeli in 1990-91 and matched in 2015-16 by Andres Avila of Los Mochis. Sanchez, who saved 21 games for the Aguilas in 2016-17 (a season that included a microscopic 0.28 ERA in 30 appearances), becomes the first pitcher in LMP history with two 20-save seasons.

Although Hermosillo is just a hare’s breath out of the lead, the Naranjeros haven’t had the easiest of times battling for second half supremacy. First, they lost former Chicago Cubs All-Star infielder Addison Russell went down with an injury when he strained a muscle in his left thigh legging out a ground ball in a November 23 game at Guasave. Russell began his rehab in Hermosillo before heading home to Florida, where he’s said to be working with his personal trainer with no timetable for his return.

As a result, the Naranjeros placed Russell on their Reserve List and signed Cuban outfielder Rusney Castillo. Castillo spent the summer season in Japan, where he hit .225 with a homer and three RBIs in 33 games for the Rakuten Golden Eagles, but is probably best known on this side of the Pacific for signing a contract with the Boston Red Sox that paid him $72.5 million over seven years, including $14.3 million in 2020 for the last year of the pact. In return, Castillo played 99 games for the Red Sox between 2014 and 2016, hitting .262 with seven homers. The 28-year-old batted .250 with no longballs and six RBIs in 22 games for Mexicali last winter.

Also, Hermosillo is on their third manager over the past month. After replacing Juan Navarrete following a so-so first half, former Mexican National Team skipper Juan Gabriel Castro was sidelined early last week after being the only person on the Orangemen squad to test positive for Covid-19 just prior to a midweek series in Navojoa. Castro was sent back to Hermosillo for quarantine purposes while bench coach Chico Rodriguez fills in on an interim basis. Unlike Navarrete, Castro is expected back.

Another Rodriguez got some press last week when Jalisco second baseman Manny Rodriguez drove in Alejandro Osuna (younger brother of Charros closer Roberto Osuna) with a run in the first inning of a 3-1 win over Los Mochis. The RBI was the 594th of the 39-year-old Rodriguez’ Mexican Pacific League career, which is in its 16th season, putting him one ahead of former slugger Andres Mora in fifth place among the LMP’s all-time leaders in that category. The late Hector Espino tops that list with 1,097 RBIs over 24 winters, 418 more than his nearest competitor, Matias Carrillo.

MEXICAN PACIFIC LEAGUE standings (as of December 12)
Mexicali 16-10, Obregon 15-11, Guasave 14-12, Hermosillo 14-12, Navojoa 14-12, Mazatlan 13-12, Culiacan 13-13, Jalisco 12-13, Monterrey 11-13, Los Mochis 6-20

LMP OFFENSIVE LEADERS

Batting: Tirso Ornelas (NAV) .361, Victor Mendoza (OBR) .350, Sebastian Elizalde (CUL) .332

Home Runs: Kyle Martin (NAV) 16, Felix Perez (JAL) 10, Nick Torres (HMO) 9

Runs Batted In: Jesse Castillo (GUA) 41, Kyle Martin (NAV) 40, Felix Perez (JAL) 40

Stolen Bases: Dairon Blanco (CUL) 21, Alonzo Harris (OBR) 17, 3 players tied at 14

LMP PITCHING LEADERS

Wins: Six pitchers tied at 6

ERA: Elian Leyva (HMO) 1.69, Wilmer Rios (HMO) 2.37, Arturo Lopez (OBR) 2.53

Strikeouts: Octavio Acosta (NAV) 60, David Reyes (MXI) 54, 3 pitchers tied at 51

Saves: Jake Sanchez (MXI) 23, Fernando Salas (HMO) 11, 2 pitchers tied at 11

MONCLOVA OVERCOMES 2-0 DEFICIT, WINS LIM PENNANT

Shawon Dunston, Junior’s solo homer in the bottom of the tenth inning Friday night completed an improbable comeback for his Monclova Acereros, who lost the first two games to Puebla in a best-of-five Mexican Winter League championship series before roaring back with three straight wins to cop the LIM’s Prince Series (Serie de Principe) and the AA winter league’s first pennant since the league suspended operations after its 2017 season. The Mexico City Diablos Rojos won all three LIM titles from 2015-17.

Dunston’s blast gave Monclova a 9-8 victory in the deciding game of a series in which the home team won every game. The first two contests were played in Puebla before the series moved to Coahuila for the final three games, although after the Pericos took a 2-games-to-0 lead, it didn’t seem likely that they’d need that many to clinch the title after defeating Veracruz-Yucatan in the LIM South Finals to advance to the Serie de Principe against the Acereros, who’d beaten Monterrey for the LIM North crown.

Puebla opened the LIM title set last Sunday with an 8-6 home win over the Acereros as Jesus Cordova made the most of his one hit by driving in two runs and scoring two more for the Pericos while Ahmad Galaz collected two hits and as many RBIs on the night. Despite allowing five runs in 6.1 innings, Puebla starter Joel Paula benefited from the 7-4 lead his offense had given him going into the seventh and was awarded the win.

The Parakeets took a two-game lead last Monday in a 9-8 knucklebiter over the Steelers that lasted eleven innings. Cordova was the man of the moments by lining a walkoff single against Monclova reliever Rolando Mora that drove in the game-winning run. Cristian Alvarado, who earned the save on Sunday, tossed the final three innings for Puebla and got the win out of the bullpen while Mora absorbed the loss.

After Tuesday’s travel day, the series resumed at Estadio Monclova with the Acereros’ collective backs against the wall. The Blue Fury responded with a pair of blowout wins to set up the deciding game, starting with Wednesday’s 9-3 laugher during which veteran third baseman Rodolfo Amador went 3-for-5 with three RBIs and two runs while another vet, first sacker Ricky Rodriguez, had two hits, scored twice and drove in a run. Monclova starter Jassiel Ochoa, who enjoyed the 9-0 fifth inning lead his mates had built for him, got the win after tossing 5.2 frames and allowing three runs (all coming in the top of the sixth after the winner had pretty much been decided).

Monclova got an even bigger win last Thursday, 13-4, as the Acereros did all their scoring in a three-inning stretch: four runs in the second, three in the third and six in the fourth. Dunston belted the first homer of the series for both teams in the second and ended up with two runs scored and three ribbies. Lost in the onslaught was the mound work done by 18-year-old Steelers starter Jose Miguel Martinez, who went seven entradas and allowed two runs on three hits, striking out nine Pericos and walking none.

That led to Friday’s deciding Game Five. The hosts were leading 4-2 after seven innings before Puebla put up four runs in the eighth and one more in the ninth to take an 8-4 advantage with three outs to go for the title. Instead, Monclova scored four of their own in the bottom on the ninth, including a Roberto Castro homer, to send the tilt into overtime. After Acereros reliever Jesus Valenzuela struck out the side in the top of the tenth, Dunston stepped up in the bottom of the inning and blasted a roundtripper to end the game, the series and the season for Monclova and manager Mickey Callaway, a former Mets skipper who earlier pitched in MLB, Korea and Taiwan.

MAESTROS OF MEXICO: Epitacio Torres, OF

Baseball fans in the USA are likely more familiar with shortstop Hector Torres, a Little League World Series hero in 1957 who went on to play Major League Baseball, his father was arguably the better player. Epitacio Torres was a right fielder comparable to Roberto Clemente (although Torres lacked Clemente’s power) and is considered by many to be Mexico's best-ever at that position. He had a rifle arm that few runners dared test and was a consistent .300 hitter for nearly twenty seasons.

Nicknamed “La Mala” (“The Bad”) as a player, Torres was born September 19, 1921 in Villaldama, Nuevo Leon and made his Liga debut as a 17-year-old in 1939 with the Monterrey Sultanes, for whom he would play 18 seasons. He hit .316 (with a .381 OBP) and was named Rookie of the Year that season.

Over his 19 Mexican League seasons, Torres topped the .300 mark twelve times, was awarded nine Gold Gloves in right field and had the highest career fielding percentage (.982) among all past and present LMB outfielders when he retired. The left-hander became the first player in league history to reach the 1,000 hit threshold and finished his career with 1,823 safeties, scoring 933 runs and driving in 855 more (despite only clubbing 46 career homers).

Torres helped the Sultanes win four pennants, including three in a row between 1947-49, and played in 13 All-Star Games between 1943 and 1956. Despite his usual lack of power, he struck the game-winning homer in the bottom of the tenth inning at the 1954 All-Star Game, giving the Mexican League a 1-0 win over the Texas League All-Stars in front of his home fans in Monterrey. He completed his final Mexican League season with two games for Nuevo Laredo (batting 1-for-7) in 1958, the year after son Hector led Monterrey to the Little League World Series title.

La Mala also played eight seasons of winter ball with Mazatlan, batting .300 or better five times (winning the 1947-48 batting title of the old Pacific Coast League), and is a member of the Mex Pac’s all-time team. Torres played one winter with future Hall of Fame pitcher Whitey Ford in Mazatlan and in his book “Slick,” Ford called Torres “the best player I’ve ever seen in my career.”

Torres was picked for the Mexican Salon de la Fama in 1964, one of the earliest players to be so honored. He died at age 49 on April 21, 1971 in Monterrey.