MEXICO CLINCHES SUPER ROUND AT U-23 WORLD CUP

Mexico pitcher Alemao Hernandez

    The World Baseball Softball Confederation's U-23 Baseball World Cup started last Thursday in Mexico. Twelve national teams comprised of players aged 24 or under (special dispensation for players who were 23 when last year's BWC was postponed) are taking part in tripleheaders at Hermosillo's Estadio Sonora and Estadio Yaquis in Obregon. The two six-team groups are competing in seven-inning, round-robin first stage games through Monday night, plus last Thursday's rained-out group A contest between Cuba and the Dominican Republic rescheduled for this Tuesday. Host Mexico won three consecutive games after dropping their opener to clinch a berth in the Super Round.

    Mexico got off to a bad Group A start with a 5-1 upset loss to the Czech Republic last Thursday in Obregon despite holding the Czechs to two hits. One of those was a bases-loaded double by Marek Chlup off Mexican starter Saul Castellanos in the top of the third that drove in three runs. Fabricio Macias singled and later scored from third on a Brandon Valenzuela groundout in the sixth for the lone Mexican score with 2,233 watching at Estadio Yaquis.

    Mexico came back Friday night with a 5-0 shutout over Cuba as 1,651 looked on in Obregon. Alemao Hernandez picked up the win by tossing 5.1 innings of two-hit ball with four strikeouts during the combined whitewash. It was a 2-0 until Macias belted the first pitch in the top of the seventh for a homer while Reivaj Garcia's two-run single capped the scoring for the night. Cuba starter Bryan Chi was tagged with the loss after allowing two runs in 5.2 innings.

    The Mexicans won Saturday's game against the Dominican Republic, 8-2, thanks to a six-run sixth inning that broke open a 2-2 contest. Kevin Zamudio sliced a two-run double while Valenzuela chipped in with a two-run single in breaking the game open. A gathering a 2,714 watched as Keven Lamas hit an early homer in support of starter Alejandro Chavez, who tossed five innings of two-hit, two run ball against the Dominicans.

Mexico outfielder Fabricio Macias

    Mexico then punched its ticket to the Super Round with a 3-0 win over Taiwan on Sunday. Javier Salazar scored from third on a first-inning wild pitch after singling earlier in the frame. Macias made it a 2-0 lead in the fourth by doubling to deep left, to bring in Lamas from second and Valenzuela completed the scoring in the fifth by singling and then motoring around to score on an Agustin Ruiz double to left center. Juan Tellez scattered three hits over four innings for the win as 2,177 took in the contest at Estadio Yaquis.

    The top three finishers in each group will advance to the Super Round in Hermosillo while the bottom three converge in Obregon for the Consolation Round starting on Wednesday. Each team will carry their first-round record into the next stage, where they'll play games against the three teams arriving from the opposite group. The tournament concludes on Saturday in Hermosillo when the third and fourth place Super Round finishers meet in the Bronze Medal game at 1:00PM local time, followed by a Gold Medal game between the top two Super Round finishers at 7:30PM.

WBSC U-23 BASEBALL WORLD CUP SCHEDULE/RESULTS

Thursday, September 23
Taiwan 7, Germany 0 (Zhuang-Chen Zhong-Ao 5 innings pitched, 6 hits, 9 strikeouts)
Colombia 7, Panama 1 (Elkin Alcala allowed 1 run on 4 hits in 7-inning complete game)
Cuba vs. Dominican Republic in Obregon rained out, rescheduled for September 28
Nicaragua 6, South Korea 4 (Luis Montealto doubled, homered and had 5 RBIs)
Czech Republic 5, Mexico 1 (Marek Chlup had 2 hits, including 3-run 2B in top of 3rd)
Venezuela 9, Netherlands 4 (Roberto Perez belted a 3-run homer in win)

Friday, September 24
Dominican Republic 8, Germany 4 (Francis Florentino, Fabian Sandro both hit 2-run Hrs)
Panama 13, Nicaragua 6 (Panama 7 runs in top of 8th, Abraham Rodriguez 2-run HR)
Taiwan 4, Czech Republic 1 (Chen Sheng-Ping's 2-run double keyed 4-run top of 1st)
South Korea 8, Netherlands 7 (Jung Min-Kyu walkoff run from 3rd on error in bottom of 8^th)
Mexico 5, Cuba 0 (Alemao Hernandez 5.1 shutout innings on 2 hits with 4 strikeouts)
Venezuela 3, Colombia 2 (Roberto Perez singled, doubled and scored 2 runs)

Saturday, September 25
Germany 6, Czech Republic 4 (David Grimes had two-run double in top of 3^rd)
Panama 5, South Korea 2 (Adrian Montero went 3-for-4, scored 2 runs and had an RBI)
Cuba 2, Taiwan 1 (Yuddiel Gonzalez' 2-run homer in bottom of 7th was enough for win)
Colombia 10, Netherlands 0 (Luis Moreno allowed 3 hits, had 7 K's in 6-inning shutout)
Mexico 8, Dominican Republic 2 (Kevin Zamudio's 2-run double aided 6-run 6th)
Venezuela 6, Nicaragua 3 (Juan Fernandez' 2-run HR keyed 3-run top of 3^rd)

Sunday, September 26
Cuba 10, Germany 3 (Marlon Vega allowed 1 run on 1 hit in 5 innings pitched, struck out 8)
Netherlands 4, Panama 1 (Tyriq Kemp hit 2-run homer during 4-run 4th for Dutchmen)
Dominican Republic 2, Czech Republic 0 (Jordan Sandoval hit 2-run HR in mercy rule win)
Colombia 10, Nicaragua 0 (Jordan Diaz socked 2-run HR, added RBI double in shutout)
Mexico 3, Taiwan 0 (Juan Tellez and two relievers combined on a three-hit shutout)
Venezuela 3, South Korea 0 (Roberto Perez' 2-run double aided 4 pitchers in 2-hit shutout)

Monday, September 27
Game 25: Cuba vs. Czech Republic (Group A) in Obregon
Game 26: Nicaragua vs. Netherlands (Group B) in Hermosillo
Game 27: Dominican Republic vs. Taiwan (Group A) in Obregon
Game 28: Panama vs. Venezuela (Group B) in Hermosillo
Game 29: Germany vs. Mexico (Group A) in Obregon
Game 30: Colombia vs. South Korea (Group B) in Hermosillo

Tuesday, September 28
Game 3: Cuba vs. Dominican Republic (rescheduled group A) in Obregon

STANDINGS (through Sunday, September 26)
GROUP A: Mexico 3-1, Cuba 2-1, Dominican Republic 2-1, Taiwan 2-2, Czech Republic 1-3, Germany 1-3.
GROUP B: Venezuela 4-0, Colombia 3-1, Panama 2-2, South Korea 1-3, Nicaragua 1-3, Netherlands 1-3.

MEXICAN PACIFIC LEAGUE ROAD TRIP: Monterrey, Nuevo Leon

    For the next ten weeks, BASEBALL MEXICO will be taking an updated virtual road trip to all ten Mexican Pacific League cities. We'll start in Monterrey, then cut across to Mexicali and head south through Mazatlan before wrapping up our online journey in Guadalajara.
    The Mexican Baseball Road Trip (which touched down in all 24 cities in both the LMP and Mexican League) was first carried in the old VIVA BEISBOL column and repeated during BBM's first year in 2009. Each stop on our Mex Pac tour will include some revised text:

Downtown Monterrey, Nuevo Leon

    Our Mex Pac Road Trip begins in Monterrey, home of the Sultanes (who also field a summer team in the Mexican League), capital of the state of Nuevo Leon, the leading city in northern Mexico and the industrial center of the nation. Monterrey sits in the Sierra Madre Oriental foothills and was founded in 1596 by Diego de Montemayor, but it wasn’t until after the War of Independence in the 1820’s that it started blossoming as an important business center.

    Present-day Monterrey is home to over five million metropolitan residents and is Mexico’s second-largest city behind Mexico City. Although daytime high temperatures regularly hit the 90's during summer, winters are actually quite pleasant, with daytime highs usually in the low 70's between November and February.

    Visitors will not be impressed by the factories, traffic and smog they’ll encounter here, but Monterrey’s city center is actually quite pleasant, with a combination of colonial elegance and modern architecture and statues. The heart of Monterrey, many say, lies in the Plaza Zaragosa (also known as the “Macroplaza”), which was created by the demolition of six complete city blocks in downtown Monterrey. The crown jewel of the Macroplaza is the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, or MARCO, a museum that is considered a “don’t-miss” experience for art lovers visiting Monterrey. While not as beautiful on an overall basis as some of the more colonial cities in Mexico’s south, Monterrey has much to offer those willing to look past the industrial congestion that creates the city’s wealth.

    Home to three past Little League World Series champions, Monterrey is also in some aspects the center of Mexican baseball. It is home of the Salon de la Fama, the Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame, which was originally opened in 1971 at the Cuauhtemoc Brewery grounds. After its 2012 closure at the behest of the brewery, Mexico City billionaire Alfredo Harp Helu provided over US$18 million in funding for a beautiful new facility that opened in 2019. Over 200 immortals from Mexican baseball are enshrined there.

Estadio Monterrey, home of the Sultanes

    In nearby El Carmen sits the Mexican Baseball Academy, where all 16 LMB teams share funding for the 100 young domestic athletes hoping to develop into pro ballplayers. The complex consists of 56 dormitory rooms, four baseball fields, four batting cages, a computer room, weight room, cafeteria, infirmary and a plaza where players can congregate. In the past, the Academia has operated an eight-team rookie league during the winter.

    The Monterrey Sultanes are one of the Mexican League’s flagship franchises and have won ten LMB championships since their founding in 1939. The Sultanes added a Mexican Pacific League team in the 2019 expansion, which has yet to reach the playoffs in two seasons. Both teams play home games in Mexico’s largest ballpark, the 22,000-seat Estadio de Beisbol Monterrey. It was the first venue in the country to have hosted Major League Baseball regular season games in 1996.

MAESTROS OF MEXICO: Ramon Arano, Pitcher

Ramon Arano at his peak with Diablos

    Ramon Arano is one of only two men to have pitched in six different decades in professional baseball history (the other is Hub Kittle), and is the only man to have won 300 or more games in one minor league. While Arano never reached 20 wins in a season, the workhorse hurler won 10+ games 18 times and holds LMB career record with 334 wins, 57 shutouts, 297 complete games and 4,773 innings pitched.

    The diminutive Arano made his Liga debut for Poza Rica in 1959, going 8-9 with the Petroleros with a 4.47 ERA. He spent the next three seasons with Veracruz, including a disastrous 1960 campaign in which he was mainly used out of the bullpen and lost all five of his decisions with a sky-high 6.53 ERA. Arano turned things around in 1961, turning in an 11-3 record to lead the LMB in winning percentage for the pennant-winning Aguilas. He then reeled off 46 wins over the next three campaigns and made his only journey to play pro ball north of the border at the end of the 1962 campaign with Oklahoma City of the American Association, going 1-1 with a 9.82 ERA in three appearances.

    Following a mediocre 9-8 season with the Mexico City Diablos Rojos in 1965, Arano went on another three-year skein of effective pitching between 1966 and 1968, showing a 48-32 record with 400 strikeouts and a sub-3.00 ERA each season. An injury-shortened 1969 saw him go 5-7 before yet another three-year run of double-digit victories despite pitching for three teams (the Diablos, Saltillo and Cordoba) in that span. After another shortened year with the Cafeteros in 1973, Arano went on an eight-year tear of solid pitching.

    Between 1974 and 1981, Arano won between 12 and 19 games every season while consistently registering sub-3.00 ERAs, winning 19 games in both 1978 and 1979. He spent the strike-split 1980 season with Reynosa and won 14 games for the Broncos and turned in a 14-5 mark for the Diablos Rojos in 1981.

Pitching for Veracruz at age 62

   Arano bounced around a bit after that, although he did go 11-9 for Veracruz as a 44-year-old in 1984. He retired in 1986 before coming back in 1995 with the Aguilas, throwing one game in 1998 with Cordoba, and finally made one three-inning appearance in 2001 as a 62-year-old pitching coach for Veracruz.

    In all, Arano played in a total of 32 seasons (a Mexican League record) with eight teams. He also played winterball in the Mexican Pacific League for 15 seasons, compiling a decent 89-84 record with a solid 2.81 ERA and a no-hitter. Among his career highlights, Arano shut out Cleveland 4-0 in a 1967 exhibition game, but he saved the best for the following year. In a game in Mexico City, Arano beat Jim Bouton and the New York Yankees, 5-3, striking out Mickey Mantle twice.

    Arano, a Veracruz native who passed away in 2012 at age 72, was inducted into the Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame in 1993. His nickname as a player was "Don Pantalones" (loosely translated, "The Man Who Wears the Big Pants"), a good name for the winningest pitcher in Mexican baseball history.

LAGUNA P DE LA CRUZ DIES AT 37 OF HEART ATTACK

De la Cruz in his 2019 All-Star form

    A former Major League Baseball pitcher who represented the Union Laguna Algodoneros in the 2019 Mexican League All-Star game died Sunday, March 14 of an apparent heart attach at home in his native Santo Domingo, Domincan Republic. Eulogio “Frankie” de la Cruz had turned 37 years old two days earlier.

    De la Cruz was signed as an 18-year-old by Detroit in 2002 and assigned to the Tigers' Gulf Coast League affiliate in Lakeland, Florida that summer. He was a reliever his first three years in the Detroit system (saving 17 games for West Michigan of the Midwest League in 2004) before splitting time between the starting rotation and bullpen by the time he made his MLB debut for the Tigers in 2007, making six relief appearances. According to de la Cruz, that was when he got his nickname because Detroit manager Jim Leyland couldn't pronounce “Eulogio” and started calling him “Frankie” instead.

    De la Cruz was one of six players traded to the Marlins the following offseason for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis. He made his lone big league start for Florida against San Francisco at home on May 25, 2008, giving up two runs on two hits in three innings during a 5-4 Marlins win. He was sent down to AAA Albuquerque shortly after that and was named the Pacific Coast League's Pitcher of the Week as a starter in June.

    The 5'11” righty went on to appear with San Diego in 2009, pitched in Japan with the NPB Yakult Swallows in 2010 and was a reliever for Milwaukee in 2011. In 26 MLB games, de la Cruz had a 0-0 record and an 8.16 ERA over 32 innings.

    De la Cruz resumed his globetrotting ways by playing in Asia again in 2012 (going 3-1 for the Uni-President Lions of Taiwan's CPBL), made his LMB debut with Monterrey in 2014 and turned in a 4-3 record in 12 starts for the Sultanes and then went to Italy in 2016 to pitch for Nettuno (3-4, 2.65 ERA).

   De la Cruz then spent the next three summers in the Mexican League, posting an aggregate 20-18 record for Saltillo, Mexico City and Union Laguna while appearing in the 2017 and 2019 All-Star Games. In the latter year, he won the Algodoneros' pitching triple crown by leading the team with six wins, 92 strikeouts and a 4.91 ERA on a team that allowed 8.05 earned runs per game and finished 37-79.

    Although he usually spent his winters pitching in the Liga Dominicana, de la Cruz did pitch one Mexican Pacific League game for Jalisco in 2014-15 and started seven games for Mexicali (3-1, 4.65) in 2018-19. He spent the last two seasons with the LiDom's Este Toros, turning in an 0-1 record and 2.35 last winter in seven appearances (with one start). The Toros won the pennant in 2019-20 but de la Cruz did not pitch in the Caribbean Series in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

    The Algodoneros had hoped to bring de la Cruz back to Torreon this summer but there were reportedly “some immigration procedures” to hurdle before he could return to the Estadio Revolucion mound in 2021 after missing all of last year's canceled season. He would've been reunited with Union Laguna manager Omar Malave, who was de la Cruz' winterball skipper in Venezuela with Magallenes during the 2017-18 season.

THIRD LMB PRESEASON TOURNAMENT SET FOR YUCATAN

    A third Mexican League preseason tournament has been scheduled on the heels of similar four-team events in San Luis Potosi and Puebla. The Copa Maya is slated to be played between May 13 and 16 at Merida's Parque Kukulcan, home of the Yucatan Leones. The Leones will be joined by the Quintana Roo Tigres, Campeche Piratas and Tabasco Olmecas in the four-day tournament.

    The Copa Maya will be the culmination of a larger effort during which the four clubs will form what they're calling the Southeast League (or Liga Sureste). The LMB South rivals will play each other in an 11-game miniseason with single evening contests between April 29 and May 12 at each other's home ballparks.

    The Copa Maya will feature day/night doubleheaders between Thursday, May 13 and Saturday, May 15, with games scheduled for 12PM and 7PM. The event will wrap up with two games on Sunday, May 16: A 12PM contest for third place followed by a 7PM title for the championship. Seeding for the final day will be determined by team record compiled during all Liga Sureste and Copa Maya matches up until then.

    Games will include typical training camp rosters of established players, foreigners and prospects. Two of the four teams will be playing under new managers. Former pitching great Francisco “Pancho Ponches” Campos will be Campeche's dugout boss, replacing Jesus Sommers, while Tabasco has brought in veteran skipper Pedro Mere filling out the lineup cards to take Ramon Orantes' place. Adan Munoz will be back for his first full season running the Tigres (he took the place of the fired Jesus Sommers in early 2019, with Sommers sliding over to take the Campeche job later that season) and Geronimo Gil will likewise be opening his first preseason with Yucatan after replacing Luis Carlos Rivera in June 2019.

    Now that there are the San Luis Potosi Cup (Aguascalientes, Durango, Guadalajara, Leon and Monterrey), Battle of Legends (Mexico City, Oaxaca, Puebla and Veracruz) and the Copa Mayo (Campeche, Quintana Roo, Tabasco and Yucatan) on the docket, that leaves the defending champion Monclova Acereros, Saltillo Saraperos and Tijuana Toros as the only Liga teams without a preseason tournament of their own. Give them time.

Mayan Cup Schedule (Kukulcán Park, Merida)

Parque Kukulcan, Merida

Thursday, May 13th
Yucatan Lions vs Campeche Pirates, 12 pm
Tabasco Olmecs vs Quintana Roo Tigres, 7pm

Friday, May 14
Campeche Piratas vs Quintana Roo Tigres, 12 pm
Tabasco Olmecas vs Yucatán Leones, 7pm

Saturday, May 15
Tabasco Olmecas vs Campeche Piratas, 12 pm
Quintana Roo Tigres vs Yucatán Leones, 7pm

Sunday, May 16
4th place vs 3rd place, 12 pm
2nd place vs 1st place, 7pm

LMP MVP SEBASTIAN ELIZALDE SIGNS WITH METS

2020-21 Mex Pac MVP Sebastian Elizalde

   Culiacan Tomateros rightfielder Sebastian Elizalde has signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets for the second year in a row. The 29-year-old Guaymas native, who was named Most Valuable Player for the Mexican Pacific League this winter, has been assigned to Class AA Binghamton and expects to report to the Mets' spring training complex in Port St. Lucie, Florida next month. He'd been slated to open the 2020 season with Binghamton before the pandemic led to all affiliated minor league baseball to cancel their seasons.

    That the Mets have assigned the veteran flychaser to their AA affiliate is somewhat curious because Elizalde had previously spent all or part of two seasons at AAA Louisville during his five-year stint in the Reds organization. After being an organizational All-Star in 2014 and playing in the 2015 Florida State League All-Star Game, Elizalde hit .297 with five homers for AA Pensacola in 2016 before putting up a .277 average and swatting eight longballs for Louisville in his AAA debut season of 2017. He then hit .254 with a pair of roundtrippers in 21 games in 2018 before the Bats loaned him to Monterrey for the rest of the year.

    Elizalde was no stranger to the Sultanes, for whom he made his professional debut in 2010 at age 18. He went 1-for-3 over 11 games with Monterrey while playing mostly as a defensive substitute in left field. After playing sparingly for the Sultanes the next two summers, Elizalde's contract was sold to Cincinnati early in the 2013 season and he was assigned to the Reds' Arizona Rookie League affiliate and placed on the 60-day disabled list twice, ending the campaign for him. He began his career north of the border with Class A Dayton in 2014 and worked his way up to Louisville over the next four years.

Elizalde as a Reds farmhand

   More polished when he returned to Monterrey, Elizalde hit. 297 and .333 with a combined 12 homers and 46 RBIs in 75 games over the two shortened 2018 seasons as the Sultanes defeated Oaxaca in the Serie del Rey to cop the Fall 2018 pennant under manager Roberto Kelly after falling to Yucatan in the Spring championship series. The six-foot, 190-pounder saw limited action with Monterrey in 2019, batting .319 with one homer and eight RBIs over 39 games. His LMB rights remain with the Sultanes.

    “El Predator” has experienced more stability playing winterball, where he has played ten seasons in the Mex Pac (five for Hermosillo, five for Culiacan). He's done well since becoming a regular for the Naranjeros in 2014-15 and gone on to bat .293 with 39 homers in 404 LMP regular season games. During his recently-concluded MVP season for the Tomateros, he batted .282 and was among the league leaders in doubles (13), homers (11), stolen bases (12) and RBIs (45). He's also represented Mexico in the last two Caribbean Series and gone 9-for-37 (.243) at the plate with a homer and five RBIs over 10 games.

LMB PRESIDENT DE LA VEGA ACCUSED OF FRAUD

Mexican League president Horacio de la Vega

The president of the Mexican League, Horacio de la Vega, is one of several people named in a criminal complaint alleging both fraud and patrimonial damage filed by a Mexico City-area mayor last week. According to the Mexidiario.com website, Iztacalco mayor Armando Quintero filed the complaint on July 30 with both the Mexico City attorney general and comptroller. Iztacalco is one of 16 boroughs within the Distrito Federal, with a population approaching 400,000 residents, and serves as the location for the Magdalena Mixihuca Sports City, which is where the complaint is focused.

The 227-acre complex opened in 1958 and was used when Mexico City hosted the Summer Olympics ten years later. The multi-sport facility underwent extensive renovations while de la Vega served as director of the Mexico City Sports Institute, which overees the Sports City, prior to his resignation from the post last year. The Magdalena Mixihuca Ciudad Deportes is the site of several sporting events throughout the year, and contains the Foro Sol and Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu, past and present home stadiums for the LMB Mexico City Diablos Rojos. Both structures sit within the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, a 2.76-mile long motorsports race track.

Quintero's complaint alleges that more than 26 million pesos (US$1.2 million) worth of fraud was committed by de la Vega and others in relation to the renovations, that were done while he headed the facility under former Mexico City mayor Miguel Angel Mancera, a former city attorney general and longtime figure in the Party of the Democratic Revolution, or PRD, a political rival of Quintero's Morena party (from which Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador formed a coalition with two other parties to win Mexico's 2018 presidential election).

Map of Magdalena Mixihuca Sports City

Quintero's complaint claims that substandard workmanship and materials specifically affected an unfinished and unused BMX bicycle racing track, which is currently the subject of ongoing litigation between two private companies involved in its construction, and a new artificial lake was judged "unsustainable" because of the 3 million peso cost of maintenance, after a children's baseball field and several trees were removed to make room for it. Quintero also states that there were instances in which contracted work was never performed. The complaint says that the resulting "patrimonial damages," in which taxpayers would be required to fund repairs or complete unfinished work from the renovations, exceeds 80 million pesos (US$3.6 million).

The 45-year-old de la Vega, who represented Mexico in the 1996 and 2000 Summer Olympics as a pentathlete, became director of the Sports Institute in 2013 and led the organization for six years. He is credited with bringing events connected with the NFL, NBA, MLB and Formula 1 racing to Mexico City during his time in the position before stepping down last October, two months after the Sports City held reopening ceremonies. De la Vega was named to succeed Javier Salinas as president of the Mexican League last November.

PERICOS SLUGGER ORTIZ TO PLAY WINTERBALL FOR MONTERREY

New Monterrey OF Danny Ortiz

Faced with the recalcitrance of one of their top hitters from last season, the Monterrey Sultanes signed another highly-rated batsman for the upcoming season when outfielder Danny Ortiz agreed to terms for the upcoming Mexican Pacific League season. Ortiz will presumably replace fellow outfielder Felix Perez in Monterrey's as one of three foreigners allowed on the roster.

A former Reds farmhand, the Cuban-born Perez led Sultanes regulars last season with a .270 average and 48 RBIs while whacking 10 homers for the LMP expansion team, but is refusing to return to Monterrey at a reduced salary. Since the Sultanes also own his Mexican League rights, things could be sticky for the 35-year-old Perez next spring.

Bringing in Ortiz will hardly be a downgrade for the Nuevo Leon-based team, who will play their home games in Mazatlan for the Wuhan virus-altered season to save on travel expenses. The 30-year-old Puerto Rican was a fourth-round draft pick for the Minnesota Twins in 2008, but made his Major League debut with Pittsburgh on April 29, 2017 after signing with the Pirates as a free agent one year earlier. Ortiz went 1-for-12 for the Buccos in nine games before returning to the minors. He spent 2018 with the Phillies' AAA affiliate in Lehigh Valley before signing with Puebla after the season. In ten MiLB campaigns with three organizations, Ortiz hit a collective .257 with 121 homers and 572 RBIs over 1,102 games.

Felix Perez taking batting practice last summer

His first year with the Pericos was a coming-out party of sorts, as the 30-year-old Ortiz exploded for career highs with 42 homers and 114 RBIs in 117 games for Puebla while batting .312 in 2019. He was selected to play in the Mexican League All-Star Game, his third after performing in the 2011 Midwest League and 2013 Eastern League midseason showcases, and finished second in homers to Monclova's Chris Carter (who hit 49) and came in fourth in ribbies. Ortiz also won the 2019 Home Run Derby during All-Star Weekend in Mexico City. Although his power numbers won't be aided by either Puebla's high altitude or the since-discarded Franklin ball in the pitcher-friendly Mex Pac, Ortiz is expected to be a middle-of-the-order force for new manager Gerardo Alvarez' Sultanes.

This will be his first season in the LMP, but Ortiz is no stranger to playing baseball in the winter months. The Caguas-born gardener spent all or part of ten seasons in his native Puerto Rico with the Mayaguez Indios between 2010 and 2019. Although his career winterball numbers aren't the most imposing (a .248 average, 15 homers and 132 RBIs in 332 contests), he's a two-time postseason All-Star and 2017 league MVP who's played on four pennant-winnters and in five Caribbean Series.

MLB: GONZALEZ MAKES DEBUT, URIAS EARNS FIRST WIN

Victor Gonzalez during first MLB outing

Victor Gonzalez became the 130th Mexican-born player to appear in a Major League Baseball game last Saturday when the Los Angeles Dodgers rookie made a relief appearance during their game in Phoenix against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

A 24-year-old native of Tuxpan, Nayarit, Gonzalez was sent to the mound the open the bottom of the fifth inning by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts with a 2-0 lead after starter Tony Gonsolin had tossed four frames of one-hit shutout ball. Although he showed good control by throwing 17 strikes in his 24-pitch appearance, Gonzalez did not come away unscathed.

Diamondbacks leadoff batter Christian Walker welcomed the recent call-up from the minors with a first-pitch single to shallow right field on a 96 MPH fastball, then advanced to second on David Peralta groundout to third. After getting Stephen Vogt swinging on a slider for the second out, Gonzalez plunked Jake Lamb on an 0-2 pitch to put runners and first and second before inducing Idelmaro Vargas into a groundout to short to end the threat with a scoreless entrada.

Things didn't go much better in the sixth for Gonzalez, who gave up a single to right by first batter Ketel Marte followed by a run-scoring double (also to right) by Kole Calhoun that cut the Dodgers lead to 2-1. That was enough for Roberts, who called it a night for Gonzalez by signaling to the bullpen for Tony Floro, who went on to end the inning with no further scoring. Arizona went on to a 5-3 comeback win, thanks to a four-run outburst in the eighth. 

A 6'0" lefty, Gonzalez signed with Los Angeles in 2012 as a 17-year-old after being scouted by Mike Brito. He struggled his first four summers in the Dodgers organization, going 11-20 before missing the 2017 season after Tommy John surgery. His future remained in doubt upon his return when he went a combined 1-4 for Class A Great Lakes and Rookie Ogden in 2018.

However, he turned things around last year by starting out 2-1 with a 1.65 ERA in eight appearances (five starters) at Class A Rancho Cucamonga. He then went 3-1 with a 2.23 ERA in eight starts after a May call-up to AA Tulsa before finishing the season with AAA Oklahoma City, where he had no decisions and a 3.86 ERA in 15 relief outings. Gonzalez was on the Dodgers taxi squad prior to being brought to the big club Thursday and making his MLB debut one night later.

Julio Urias earned first win in over a year

Although Dodgers moundmate Julio Urias is a year younger than Gonzalez, he's served as a mentor of sorts for the rookie lefty. It was Urias' turn to get into the act on Saturday with 11-2 triumph over Arizona for his first win of the year. Urias, 23, had a rocky start by throwing 28 pitches in the first inning and falling behind 1-0 on Eduardo Escobar's RBI single, but settled down enough to allow only one more run in the fourth before leaving the game with an 8-2 lead after allowing five hits on 90 pitches for his six innings of work. It was Urias' first win since June 25 of last year, when he put in another six innings in relief against the D-Backs, also in Phoenix.

A product of Culiacan, Urias shares four things with Gonzalez: He's from Mexico, he's a lefty, he was scouted by Mike Brito and he signed with the Dodgers in 2012. He was also the last Mexican to debut for Los Angeles before Gonzalez, making his first appearance in 2016.

SALTILLO P MITRE CHARGED WITH RAPE, MURDER

Sergio Mitre went 9-3 for Saltillo in 2019

Saltillo Saraperos pitcher Sergio Mitre, a California native who spent all or part of eight seasons in Major League Baseball, was arrested and jailed earlier this month on suspicion of the rape and murder of the 2-year-old daughter of his teenage live-in girlfriend. Mitre was initially arrested in downtown Saltillo early Monday, July 13 by members of the Criminal Investigation Agency, who booked him into the Strategic Operations Center for possession of two bags of marijuana, according to Saltillo's El Zocalo newspaper. The rape and murder charges were brought forth two days later.

The 39-year-old Mitre had been romantically involved for three months with with a 19-year-old woman, who had a two-year-old daughter from a prior relationship. Fansided's David Hill reports that the toddler was taken to a doctor due to excessive vomiting. She continued vomiting throughout the day, when it was discovered during an examination that she also had a rupture of her renal artery. The rupture caused the toddler to go into shock before she died on July 12, one day before Mitre was first arrested. A subsequent investigation by authorities resulted in the added charges on July 15.

Hill adds that this was not the first time Mitre (who was born in Los Angeles and raised in the San Diego area) has run afoul of the law. In August 2019, while pitching for the Saraperos, Mitre was arrested on an attempted femicide charge after allegedly trying to kill a former girlfriend in a hotel. He was suspended by the team, who'd signed Mitre three months earlier following his release from the Dos Laredos Tecolotes. Local law enforcement authorities eventually set him free with orders to wear an electronic tracking bracelet after Mitre paid a fine of 20,000 pesos (about US$1,000).

Mitre pitched for the Yankees in 2010 ALCS

The Saraperos issued an official statement at the time of Mitre's release decrying domestic violence, but the team brought him back for 2020 and had the 6'3" righthander making autograph-signing appearances and even a promotional video as one of their "faces" before his July 13 arrest. This time, both the Saraperos and Mexican League suspended Mitre shortly after the rape and murder charges were filed. The Septima Entrada website says "the Mexican League sent a statement explaining that 'based on the current regulations of the Mexican Baseball League, the pitcher Sergio Mitre is suspended indefinitely while he is under investigation for his alleged involvement in a serious crime.' In addition to that, in a brief statement the squad from Saltillo explained that they disapprove of any act of violence and atypical and unacceptable conduct against the values and principles of society."

Mitre pitched scholastically for Chula Vista's Montgomery High School (which also produced future MLB infielder Oscar Robles, who'll manage Guasave for a second Mexican Pacific League season this winter) and San Diego City College before being a seventh round draft choice by the Chicago Cubs in 2001. He debuted in MLB two years later and went on to post a 13-30 record with a 5.21 ERA in 143 outings (including 64 starts) for the Cubs, Marlins, Yankees and Brewers between 2003 and 2011. He appeared in the 2010 playoffs for New York, pitching in three ALCS games against eventual champions Texas and turned in a 10.13 ERA over 2.2 innings of relief work.

Mitre made his LMB debut with Leon in 2017 and subsequently bounced to Tijuana and Dos Laredos before landing in Saltillo in May 2019. He had an impressive combined record of 12-5 in 19 starts last year, going 9-3 for manager Roberto Vizcarra's playoff-bound Saraperos, but only had a 6.10 ERA to go along with it.

SULTANES TO PLAY IN MAZATLAN, PEREZ WANTS RELEASE

Mazatlan's ballpark will be busy in 2020-21

After weeks of speculation whether more far-flung Mexican Pacific League teams would choose to play designated "home" games closer to the LMP's traditional base near the Sea of California as a response to expected financial losses due to the Wuhan virus, the Monterrey Sultanes announced that they will indeed play half their 2020-21 games in Mazatlan's Estadio Teodoro Mariscal. And they may not be the last team to share a ballpark this winter. Monterrey is located in the northeastern state of Nuevo Leo, 446 miles by air to Culiacan, the Sultanes' closest Mex Pac rival.

The El Jonronero website reports that the Sultanes stand to save 4,000,000 pesos (US$179,488) in air travel expenses alone by setting up their winterball shop in the Pearl of the Pacific, where the hometown Venados only recently put their ongoing dispute with the City of Mazatlan on hold in order to use the 16,000-seat ballpark for the upcoming Mex Pac season and 2021 Caribbean Series. Monterrey's front office determined they would be better off cutting down travel costs should they only be allowed to play home games in front of 30% of Estadio Monterrey's 22,000-seat capacity, let alone if no fans will be let into ballparks this winter.

Estadio Teorodo Mariscal will get quite a workout with the Sultanes and Venados combing to use it six days a week throughout the regular season. A schedule is reportedly being worked out to avoid any conflicts on dates from the October 13 LMP opener through the end of December, but things could get interesting if the two teams qualify to play on the same side of the bracket for the January playoffs (e.g., both teams gain home-field advantage during simultaneous series).

According to Puro Beisbol editor Fernando Ballesteros, the Mexicali Aguilas may try to move home games from the border city to Hermosillo and share Estadio Sonora with the Naranjeros while the Guadalajara-based Jalisco Charros may attempt the same and shift home dates to Culiacan, splitting dates at that ballpark with the defending champion Tomateros. Ballesteros adds that Charros ownership is less likely to seek such a move, given their commitments to Guadalajara and support the team has already received from the state in order to stay put.

Felix Perez has asked for his release from Sultanes

Like all LMP franchises, the Sultanes are looking to save money where they can, and that includes on player payroll. One of Monterrey's best hitters from last winter's inaugural Mex Pac season, outfielder Felix Perez, is already balking at a pay cut for 2020-21 and has asked the team to release his rights so he might be able to seek a better deal somewhere else. Perez, who hit .270 with 10 homers and 48 RBIs in 69 games last winter, may have a hard time doing that in Mexico since most teams are hoping to slash salaries from 40 to 60 percent this season to help make up for the expected revenue shortfall. "Unfortunately, we are not on the same page," Perez told the Monterrey Board of Directors. "My family comes before money. If you don't respect that, I'm sorry to tell you that I decline the offer you made to me and await my release. You can find another player. Blessings."

A former Cincinnati Reds farmhand who played for the NPB Rakuten Golden Eagles in 2016, Perez may not have many options after originally accepting the Sultanes offer. The 35-year-old veteran is a native of Cuba, where salaries are guaranteed to not be on a par with even a slashed LMP paycheck, and other winter leagues in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and especially Venezuela were dealing with their own financial struggles and declining attendance even before the panicdemic began earlier this year.

ALONZO HARRIS TO OBREGON AS LMP TRADING HEATS UP

Navojoa has traded Alonzo Harris to Obregon

As Mexican Pacific League teams gear up for an anticipated 2020-21 season set to open October 13, the reigning Mexican League Most Valuable Player was one of four recognizable names involved in trades last week. Outfielder Alonzo Harris, who had a 2019 season for the ages with Oaxaca, was shipped by the Navojoa Mayos to Obregon for first baseman Xavier Scruggs, who can also play outfielder.

The 31-year-old Harris was named MVP for the LMB after batting .343 for the Guerreros with 39 homers, 45 stolen bases, scoring 135 times and driving in 117 runs over 119 games, narrowly failing to become the first player in Liga history with 40 homers and 40 steals in the same season. Harris did not do nearly as well for the Mayos last winter, posting a .237 average with four homers and 14 RBIs in 67 contests, although he did score 37 runs and swipe 19 bases. He's currently playing for St. Paul in the American Association, which just got its season underway last week.

Scruggs, 32, spent parts of three MLB seasons with St. Louis and Miami between 2014-16, batting .227 with one homer in 50 games. He had much more success in the Cardinals and Marlins minor league systems, belting a career 169 homers over nine seasons, topping 20 homers six times in seven years. Scruggs also played two seasons in South Korea with the NC Dinos, averaging 30 homers and 104 ribbies between 2017 and 2018 before joining the Mexican League's Yucatan Leones last year, posting .262/11/31 numbers over 57 games. Last winter, playing for both Mexicali and Obregon, Scruggs hit .208 with 8 homers and 18 RBIs in 45 outings.

Michael Wing, Romario Gil to swap places

In the other high-profile Mex Pac swap last week, the Monterrey Sultanes dealt infielder Michael Wing to Culiacan for left-handed pitcher Romario Gil. A 31-year-old Californian, Wing played with the Angels and Padres systems between 2007 and 2012 before spending another three summers playing independent ball in Frontier League and American Association. He was out of organized basaeball in 2016 before heading south of the border and hitting stride with the Mexican League's Aguascalientes Rieleros. In three years as the Railroaders' third baseman, Wing has hit .368 with 51 homers and 211 RBIs in 217 games while playing in last year's LMB All-Star Game. He struggled with the Sultanes last winter, batting .223 with four homers, and will go to Culiacan on loan while his rights are retained by Monterrey. Wing can also play second base and shortstop.

The only "youngster" involved in the two swaps, the 25-year-old Gil was traded by his hometown Tomateros after a disappointing 2019-20 season during which he only won one of six starts with an ERA of 5.92. He did not pitch for the LMP champions during the Caribbean Series in Puerto Rico, completing a remarkable drop in effectiveness after having been the Mexican League's 2018 Rookie of the Year for the Puebla Pericos. Gil was a combined 4-2 for the Parakeets over two short seasons that year. As happened with so many Pericos players when Gerardo Benavides owned both the Puebla and Monclova teams, Gil found himself with the Acereros last year. He had a winning record at 5-1 for Monclova and was named to the All-Star Game, but his ERA ballooned to 5.86 after being under 3.00 in 2018, he was placed on the Steelers' reserve list four times during the season and was dealt to Campeche during the offseason.

CHARROS NEARING FIRST FLAG; UNREST THREATENS CS

The Jalisco Charros shut out the Obregon Yaquis, 7-0, Saturday night in Obregon to take a 3-games-to-2 lead in the Mexican Pacific League championship series, putting the Guadalajara team one win away from capturing their first LMP pennant since joining the league five years ago.  The winner of the series will represent Mexico in the upcoming Caribbean Series...IF the CS is played after recent political events created even more chaos in Venezuela that likely necessitates the Serie del Caribe being moved from that country a second year in a row.  More on that in a few paragraphs.

Obregon Yaquis first baseman Victor Mendoza

The LMP title series started with last Monday's 8-3 win for Obregon in Guadalajara.  The Charros built a tenuous 2-0 lead going into the top of the fifth inning, when the Yaquis posted four runs to take what proved to be an insurmountable lead.  Yordanys Linares cracked a one-out solo homer off Jalisco starter Orlando Lara to put Obregon on the board but the real damage occured when Victor Mendoza stroked a two-run double off Lara and reliever Felipe Gonzalez walked both Anderson Hernandez and Carlos Sepulveda on 11 pitches to force in Isaac Paredes with the Yaquis' fourth run of the frame.  Paredes later cracked a three-run homer for the visitors as Arturo Lopez (5 IP, 2 R) got the win and Lara (4.2 IP, 4 R) took the loss.  Dariel Alvarez and Japhet Amador belted solo homers in defeat for Jalisco.

The Charros evened the series with a 6-4 win on Tuesday as Alvarez' three-run longball off a Carlos De Leon delivery keyed a four-run first inning for Jalisco.  Amadeo Zazueta punched a pair of doubles and scored twice for Jalisco while Gabriel Gutierrez singled twice and drove in two runs for the winners. Mendoza went 3-for-3 for Obregon, scoring one run and driving in another, but the Yaquis never recovered from the Charros' four-run first.  Jose Oyervides got the win for Jalisco with two innings of one-run relief while De Leon absorbed the loss.

After Wednesday's travel day, the series resumed with three games in Obregon.  Thursday's contest ended with a 10-9 Yaquis victory in a game when Jalisco pitchers gave up ten walks and twelve hits (with Charros starter Manny Barreda allowing five free passes in four innings).  Yaquis pinch-hitter Moises Gutierrez marked his first appearance in the finals with a grand slam in the fifth off Jalisco reliever Linder Castro as Obregon sent ten batsmen to the plate, but the game-deciding run was scored in the bottom of the eighth when pinch-runner Leo Heras scored from third on an Iker Franco sacrifice fly pop-up to Niko Vasquez at second base.  Paredes had three hits and scored twice for the winners while Agustin Murillo and Henry Urrutia hit solo homers for the Charros.  The win went to Yaqis closer Maikal Cleto and Jalisco reliever Chad Gaudin took the loss but with 19 runs between the two combatants, this was not a game distinguished by pitching.

Jalisco Charros pitcher Orlando Lara

Trailing two games to one, the Charros roared back with road wins both Friday and Saturday.  Friday's contest was a 5-3 Jalisco win, thanks in no small part to solo homers by Zazueta (first inning), Stephen Cardullo (fifth) and Alonzo Harris (ninth) in support of starter William Oliver, who allowed two runs on four hits before being pulled in favor of Gaudin with one out in the seventh.  Obregon opener Francisco Rodriguez, who'd turned in two standout performances in the Yaquis' semifinal win over Los Mochis, turned in a stinker on Friday by coughing up four runs on seven hits and two walks in 3.1 innings of work.  Even so, it was a one-run game until Harris poleaxed Cleto's first pitch of the ninth for a homer to left to provide more cushion for Charros reliever Sergio Romo, who retired the side to save the win for Oliver.  Zazueta paced Jalisco's 11-hit attack with three of his own (including his first-inning bomb off Rodriguez) while Paredes had two hits for the Yaquis.

Jalisco then took the series lead Saturday with a 7-0 shutout over the home team as the Yaquis only managed a Mendoza double and an Anderson Hernandez single off Charros starter Lara over eight innings.  Rafael Martin tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to close out the Jalisco victory as 16,714 disappointed Obregon fans filed out of Estadio Nuevo Yaquis, many leaving before the game ended.  The Charros picked up 13 hits off Obregon starter Lopez and four relievers as Harris finished with three hits on the night and Zazueta, Murillo and Cardullo each chipped in two safeties apiece.

The two teams took Sunday off prior to Monday night's Game Six in Guadalajara, which will begin at 9:15PM Eastern Time, with a Game Seven scheduled for Tuesday if needed.  Jalisco is seeking its first MexPac pennant since entering the league in 2014, although an earlier version of the Charros won Mexican League titles in the summers of 1967 and 1971 over the course of 21 summer seasons.  If Obregon comes back with two road wins, they'll win their eighth LMP championship (and the first since winning three in a row between 2010-11 and 2012-13).

2019 Caribbean Series: Will they or won't they?

The winner of the LMP title automatically advances to the Caribbean Series, but the status of that event was thrown into doubt last week by the ongoing political and economic unrest in Venezuela, which was due to host the CS in Barquisimeto, home of the Lara Cardinales (who conveniently won the Venezuelan League title in five games over the Caracas Leones, clinching the crown with a 9-2 win at Caracas on Sunday afternoon).  However, discontent over the rule of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro appears to be reaching critical mass, with protests last week turning fatal and opposition leader Juan Guaido claiming the presidency despite Maduro winning his disputed reelection bid last year in an election boycotted by Guaido's party.  Barquisimeto was slated to host the Caribbean Series last year before the country's instability led event organizers to move it to Guadalajara, where it was held before large crowds and without incident.

Those same organizers, led by Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation president Juan Francisco Puello, rescheduled this year's CS for Barquisimeto in the hopes that things would settle down by the time play was scheduled to begin Saturday, February 2.  Instead, things have gone from bad to worse and Major League Baseball has gone so far as to tell minor leaguers playing winterball to NOT travel to Venezuela, but it took the CBPC until last week to consider either moving the CS out of Venezuela again or cancelling the five-team tournament entirely, since it's becoming apparent Barquisimeto will not be hosting it.  Mexican Pacific League president Omar Canizales said last week that his league would NOT fill in as emergency host for a second year in a row, but has reportedly backtracked on that statement by holding an LMP-wide conference call Friday to discuss whether any league cities could step in on such short notice (both Guadalajara and Obregon are said to be the two potential sites).  The CBPC office said Sunday that a formal announcement would be forthcoming, but that they will, in fact, pull out of Venezuela.  An official decision will hopefully be made public Monday as to where the event will be moved to and BBM will post a special update if/when word comes down.


MONTERREY, GUASAVE TO JOIN LMP NEXT SEASON

AMLO announces baseball's return to Guasave

In a move that will surprise no followers of Mexican baseball, the Mexican Pacific League will be bringing back the Guasave Algodoneros for the 2019-20 season, fulfilling a campaign promise made by new Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (an avid baseball fan who told voters in Guasave that baseball would return to their city if he was elected).  Lopez Obrador himself made the announcement Sunday at a rally held in Guasave's 8,000-seat Estadio Francisco Carranza Limon, where the new Cottoneers will call home.

Billionaire Alfredo Harp Helu, who owns Mexican League teams in both Mexico City and Oaxaca and is bankrolling the new Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame in Monterrey (slated to open this spring) will operate the Guasave franchise.  The Algodoneros' ballpark, which was built in 1970, would be the LMP's smallest facility and join Navojoa's Estadio Manuel "Ciclon" Echeverria (also opened in 1970) as one of two in need of upgrades to keep up with amenities offered at the circuit's eight other ballparks.  It's expected that renovations will take place in Guasave over the spring and summer to ready it in time for next October's season opener.

If there is any surprise, it's that the MexPac also approved a new franchise in Monterrey that will begin play in 2019 and be operated by the Mexican League champion Sultanes.  This will be Monterrey's first foray into the LMP, although the city has been eyed by MexPac president Omar Canizales for some time now.  The team, which will apparently carry the Sultanes name into winterball, will play in 22,000-seat Estadio Monterrey, the country's largest baseball stadium even after last winter's renovations shaved capacity by five thousand seats.

Guasave originally joined the Mexican Pacific League in 1970-71 and played through the 2013-14 season before the Algodoneros were sold to investors led by Armando Navarro, moved to Guadalajara and renamed the Jalisco Charros for the following season.  The original Algodoneros were perennial MexPac also-rans, securing just one pennant in 44 seasons by copping the title in 1971-72 under manager Vinicio Garcia.  Guasave appeared in three other final series between 2006 and 2012 before the Cottoneers moved east.

Next winter marks the first time the LMP will play with ten teams since the 1990-91 season, after which both the Guaymas Ostioneros and Tijuana Potros were contracted (Guaymas for financial reasons, Tijuana for what Wikipedia calls "unfair competition").


LATIN AMERICAN SERIES OPENS IN VERACRUZ

Latin American Series ceremony in Veracruz

The seventh Latin American Series opened play Saturday in Veracruz, with a rather shocking upset to conclude the first day of action at Parque Beto Avila in the state capital.  After the Veracruz Winter League runners-up Xalapa Chileros topped the Panamanian champion Herrera Toros, 6-4, and Nicaragua's Leon Leones took a 5-0 victory over the Barranquilla Caimanes of Colombia, the LIV champion Acayucan Tobis were blanked by Argentina's Cordoba Condores, 1-0, over ten innings in the final game of Day One.

But it was the nightcap result that raised the most eyebrows when Acayucan fell to Cordoba, 1-0.  The Tobis went 18-3 in the regular season before winning two playoff series for their consecutive second league title (they were runners-up at last year's LAS), but Acayucan batters were shut down by Condores pitchers Yoimer Camacho and Victor Larez, who combined to give up just four hits over ten innings.  Acayucan pitchers Marco Quevedo, Rodolfo Aguirre and Esmerling De La Rosa were just as sharp in allowing only three hits to Cordoba, Argentina's first-ever representative in this winterball tournament.  Unfortunately for the Tobis, one of those hits was a Gonzalo Cabanillas single off De La Rosa to lead off the top of the tenth.  Cabanillas then stole second, moved to third on a passed ball and scored the eventual game-winner on a Leandro Juarez sacrifice fly.  Larez then came in to retire the Acayucan side in order to secure the win for the Condores as 7,000 fans looked on at Parque Beto Avila.

The Tobis rebounded Sunday with a 6-1 win over Barranquilla as Angel Francisco Rivera's two-run homer supported the two-hit, one-run pitching over five innings by starter Jorge Quinones (the Caimanes' lone run came on a first inning homer off Quinones by Angel Reyes).  After Acayucan evened their LAS record at 1-1, the Xalapa Chileros saw theirs fall to .500 after dropping a 6-5 game to the Leon Leones Sunday night.  No details were available at post time.  Acayucan and Xalapa will square off Monday night in the third game of Day Three.

The five national winterball champions and Xalapa (granted a berth after Curacao's league decided not to send their top team to Veracruz this year) will continue in round-robin play through Wednesday, followed by semifinals on Thursday and the Serie Latinoamericana championship game on Friday.  The two-time defending champion Chinandega Tigres of Nicaragua lost their league title series to Leon, 4 games to 1.