JALISCO TOPS CULIACAN IN 7, ON TO CARIBBEAN SERIES

The Mexican Pacific League’s championship series came down to a seventh and deciding game for the third year in a row but instead of Culiacan winning the rubber match as they did in 2020 and 2021, the Jalisco Charros crushed the Tomateros, 8-2, Saturday night in Guadalajara. The win punched the Charros’ ticket to the Caribbean Series in Santo Domingo, where Jalisco will represent Mexico in a Friday opener against the host Liga Dominicana champion Cibao Gigantes at 8PM local time. 

After Jalisco won the first two games in Guadalajara, the series shifted north to Culiacan for the next three contests. The Tomateros took a series lead last Monday by trimming the Charros, 7-3. Manager Benji Gil’s defending champions exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the first inning to chase Jalisco starter Brennan Bernardino. Jesus Fabela closed out the scoring with a two-run triple off Manuel Flores. The Charros scored in the third when ageless Manny Rodriguez hit a solo homer off Manny Barreda and again in the eighth when Feliz Perez crunched a two-run roundtripper off reliever Alejandro Chavez. Barreda got the win, the 10th of his LMP playoff career, by tossing six innings and allowing one run on two hits and a walk, striking out six.

Culiacan tied the series at two games apiece by slipping past the Charros, 3-2, in Tuesday’s Game Four. Starters Irwin Delgado of Jalisco and Tomateros opener Jose Bravo swapped zeros on the scoreboard until the bottom of the fourth when Alexis Wilson and Emmanuel Avila contributed RBI singles to give Culiacan a 2-0 lead. Jalisco scored their first run in the top of the fifth when Missael Rivera barely beat Sebastian Elizalde’s throw to the plate from right field on an Esteban Quiroz single. The Charros tied the game in the top of the eighth when Christian Villanueva singled home Jose Juan Aguilar, but the Tomateros went again for good in the bottom of the frame when Elizade came in from third on a Stevie Wilkerson infield single. Culiacan closer Alberto Baldonado struck out three batsmen in the ninth for the save.

Jalisco regained the series lead in Game Five by trouncing the Tomateros, 8-2, Wednesday night in Culiacan. The hosts went up, 2-0, in the bottom of the first on Victor Mendoza’s two-run double off Charros starter Orlando Lara, but the 36-year-old lefty settled down and allowed no more runs over his winning six-inning stint. Jalisco went ahead in the top of the second on an RBI double by Villanueva and a two-run single from Amadeo Zazueta. Villanueva’s two-run homer in the sixth made it a 5-2 game and a three-run bomb from Perez one entrada later closed the scoring for the night. The Charros outhit Culiacan by a 12-to-4 margin as Dariel Alvarez singled three times and scored thrice. Anthony Vasquez suffered the loss in his last start for the Tomateros after announcing his pending retirement, giving up four runs on six hits over five innings. Lara has yet to allow an earned run in the postseason.

After Thursday’s travel day, the title series resumed Friday with Game Six in Guadalajara as the visiting Tomateros stayed alive with a 5-3 win over the Charros. The two teams were knotted up at 3-3 in a see-saw battle before the defending champs went ahead for good in the eight when Efren Navarro led off with a grounder to Jalisco third baseman Agustin Murillo, who made a diving stop but threw the ball into foul territory, allowing Navarro to advance to second. Pinch-runner Randy Romero took third when Alexis Wilson singled and came home on an Avila sac fly to right. A Joey Meneses RBI single in the ninth closed the scoring for both teams as Tomateros closer Baldonado held Jalisco scoreless in the bottom of the inning to earn the save. Reliever Oliver Perez got the win while Jared Wilson suffered his second series loss out of the bullpen for Jalisco.

The deciding Game Seven was played Saturday in Estadio Charros and there was little doubt in this one after four innings. Jalisco broke open a scoreless tie in the bottom of the second with consecutive run-scoring doubles from Zazueta, Flores and Aguilar, then batted through the order in the fourth for four tallies, including consecutive RBI singles by Quiroz, Japhet Amador and Alvarez to make it a 7-0 game. Culiacan broke into the scoring column with a solo homer by Meneses in the top of the seventh but the hosts plated one more run in the eighth when Flores and Aguilar hit back-to-back doubles off Tomateros reliever Derrick Loop. Charros starter Bernardino tossed eight innings, allowing four hits (including Meneses’ roundtripper) and striking out four. Culiacan opener Barreda was racked up for six runs on eight hits and a walk in 3.1 frames as the Charros outhit the visitors by a 15-to-4 margin, with Aguilar contributing two doubles and a single.

Manager Roberto Vizcarra’s troops will load up on reinforcements prior to heading to the Dominican Republic, where the six league champions will likely reflect de facto all-star teams more than the rosters they ended their regular seasons with. 

AGUILAS’ SANCHEZ NAMED LMP MVP, RELIEVER OF THE YEAR

Mexicali closer Jake Sanchez has capped an extraordinary season by being voted the Mexican Pacific League’s Most Valuable Player, earning the Hector Espino Trophy. The 32-year-old righty from Brawley, California was also awarded the Isidro Marquez Trophy as the LMP Reliever of the Year.

By recording 26 saves for the Aguilas in as many opportunities (setting another Mex Pac record for consecutive saves) to augment a 1.69 ERA, Sanchez earned a measure of redemption after some relatively lean years following a 2016-17 season during which he led the LMP with 21 saves and posted a remarkable 0.28 ERA, then earned a pair of salvados during that winter’s Caribbean Series. He then bounced around the A’s minor league system for a couple years before landing in the Mexican League with Tijuana for the Fall 2018 season. In three years with the Toros between 2018 and 2021, Sanchez has only turned in 13 saves and a 3.54 ERA over 76 trips from the bullpen (although he was a member of TJ’s pennant-winning team last summer). 

Sanchez suffered through a tough 2020-21 season for Mexicali as well by finishing with five saves and a 4.24 ERA in 19 outings before taking a blunt instrument to the LMP record book this winter. He becomes the first hurler to win MVP honors since Mazatlan’s Francisco Campos won the pitching Triple Crown in 2002-03 and the first reliever ever to cop top honors. Sanchez won 36 percent of the vote among media members, ahead of Navojoa outfielder Tirso Ornelas’ 19 percent and the 16 percent of votes cast for Obregon’s Victor Mendoza as six players received at least 12 percent support as Most Valuable Player.

Sanchez had an easier time fending off competitors for Reliever of the Year, pulling down 91 percent of that vote while only Jalisco’s Alejandro Tovalin (8 percent) and Carlos Stiff Rodriguez of Monterrey (1 percent) joined him as vote-getters. The 6’1” product of Iowa Wesleyan College added an 0.84 WHIP and 48 strikeouts in 32 innings to rise to fifth in Mex Pac history with 72 career saves, four behind Oscar Villareal.

Hermosillo starter Elian Leyva staged his own comeback season by winning the Vicente “Huevo” Romo Trophy as Pitcher of the Year. Over 12 starts for the Naranjeros, the Cuban-born Leyva led LMP openers in four categories: wins (7), ERA (1.54), WHIP (0.99) and lowest opponent batting average (.205). He also posted a rare so-called “immaculate inning” when he struck out Los Mochis’ Jorge Rivera, Edgar Robles and Isaac Rodriguez on nine pitches during his first start on October 8. Leyva, who won the Romo Trophy two years ago after winning the Pitching Triple Crown with Jalisco, received 80 percent of the vote, well ahead of teammate Wilmer Rios (6%).

Ornelas received a measure of consolation by earning the Baldomero “Melo” Almada Trophy as Rookie of the Year. The Navojoa outfielder clinched that win by leading the league with a .353 batting average in 60 games on 77 hits, including 16 doubles and a pair of homers. The Padres prospect collected 84 percent of votes cast, well ahead of Mazatlan’s Randy Romero’s 12 percent. Ornelas becomes the ninth Mayos player to be chosen as Rookie of the Year.

To nobody’s surprise, Navojoa helmsman Matias Carrillo was named Manager of the Year after piloting the Mayos to the best regular season record (40-28) and top playoff seed after the team went 23-36 last winter and missed the playoffs. It marks the third time Carrillo, who was inducted into the Salon de la Fama as a player a year ago, has taken home the Benjamin “Cananea” Reyes Trophy after doing it in 2011-12 with Guasave and 2016-17 with Navojoa before Mayos owner Victor Cuevas fired him three months after suffering a first-round playoff loss. Carrillo won 73 percent of the media vote, followed by Guasave’s Oscar Robles at 13 percent.

MAESTROS OF MEXICO: Cornelio Garcia, 1B (1984-07)

The first player out of Mexico’s baseball academy near Monterrey to sign with an MLB organization, Cornelio Garcia went on to fashion a notable career in both the Mexican League and Mexican Pacific League as a good-hitting, fleet-footed outfielder and first baseman over 24 seasons.

Cornelio Garcia Chaidez was born January 23, 1955 in Ensenada, Baja California Norte, where he was a star track runner as a youth.  After playing in the Academia and batting .225 in 19 games for Yucatan as a 19-year-old in 1984, Garcia signed on with the White Sox that summer. He played minor league ball for seven seasons in their organization, including three stints at AA Birmingham. Garcia hit .277 with 20 homers, 134 stolen bases and 254 RBIs over 570 games while turning in an OBP of .324 or higher every season before returning to the Leones during the 1990 campaign.

 

After hitting .290 in 40 games for Yucatan in 1990, Garcia went on a tear during which he never hit below .300 for the next 16 seasons to set a Liga record. The 5’11” 154-pounder joined Monterrey in 1995, leading the LMB in 1997 with 171 hits and a .382 batting average.  He also led in stolen bases with 45 for Yucatan in 1993 and triples with 11 for the Sultanes in 1995. 

 

When he retired after one final turn with the Sultanes in the 2007 season, Garcia had a total of 2,095 hits for an LMB career batting average of .345, which is tied for fourth all-time with Teo Acosta and Oswaldo Olivares and is the highest among all Mexican-born players. His 1,174 runs scored are 14th among all Liga batsmen while Garcia’s 340 stolen bases rank fifth.

Garcia was also a hitting machine over his 20 winters for Hermosillo. While he never won a MexPac batting title, he did lead the LMP with 79 hits and 47 runs in 1993-94 and topped the circuit with 18 doubles in 1999-2000 en route to a Mex Pac career .288 hitting mark, fourth all-time. His 151 stolen bases in 1,010 LMP games ranks eighth all-time, while his 568 runs scored are sixth on the list.

Although never regarded as a power hitter, especially for a first baseman over his latter years (his career-high in homers was 15), Cornelio Garcia made his mark in Mexican baseball as a good instinctive hitter who was aggressive at the plate and on the bases plus a quality glove man in the field. Carlos Fragoso, who has scouted in Mexico for both the Yankees and Red Sox, compares Garcia to Vic Davalillo. He was selected to the Salon de la Fama in 2013.

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.

MEXICO SHOCKS JAPAN, 2-1, TO WIN U-23 GOLD CUP

Mexico: 2018 WBSC U-23 World Cup champions

Fabricio Macias' two-run single in the top of the tenth inning broke a scoreless tie and Erick Casillas got Kenji Nishimaki to fly out to right field to close a shaky bottom of the tenth to give Mexico a surprising 2-1 win over Japan in Sunday's championship game at the WBSC Under-23 Gold Cup in Barranquilla, Colombia.  A capacity crowd of 6,500 at Estadio Edgar Renteria looked on as the Verdes Grande won their country's first-ever title in international pro baseball competition.

As one might expect from a game with a 0-0 score after nine innings, pitching was the name of this game as Mexico starter Carlos Morales limited Japan to a sixth-inning Taiga Matsuo single over his eight innings of work.  The 21-year-old Morales, who spent both Mexican League seasons this year with Oaxaca (with a one-week stint in Mexico City during the Fall schedule), struck out six and walked none as he traded zeroes with Japanese starter Hiroki Kondo through the first eight frames before both were replaced.  Ex-Yankee minor leaguer Rafael Ordaz, who now pitches for Monterrey, held Japan hitless in the ninth to send the game into extra innings.

With WBSC tiebreaker rules in effect, pinch-runner Walter Higuera (Yucatan) was placed on second base and Orlando Pina (Oaxaca) was stationed on first to start the top of the tenth.  Both runners advanced one base on a Bernardo Heras (Puebla) groundout before Macias, a Pirates farmhand, stepped to the plate and sent a Kakeru Narita pitch up the middle to plate both Higuera and Pina with the go-ahead runs.  A Marco Jaime (Leon) single then put runners at the corners but the side was retired without any further damage. 

Japan came back with a run of their own in the bottom of the tenth.  Matsuo was placed on second while Ryosuke Kishisato on first for the Baseball Samurai before Ordaz' first pitch.  Yasuhito Uchida's sacrifice bunt moved Matsuo to third and a Hisanori groundout to second scored Matsuo to make it a one-run game, with Kishisato moving to third.  Ordaz then walked Kento Harasawa before being pulled by Mexican manager Che Reyes for Sergio Alvarado (Leon), who walked Kengo Horiuchi to load the bases with two out.  Enter Casillas (Oaxaca), who worked Kenji Hishimaki to a 2-2 count before Nishimaki sent a fly ball to Jose Carlos Urena (Oaxaca) in right for the final out of the game and tournament.

Mexico finished the first round of the World Cup with a 4-1 record in Group A round-robin play, one game behind 5-0 Japan (who beat Mexico, 7-2, on October 18).  The top three teams from Groups A and B advanced to the Super Round, where Mexico came in tied for second with Venezuela at 3-2 but earned the tiebreaker by topping the Venezuelans, 10-4, on October 25.  Japan entered the Gold Medal contest with a perfect 10-0 record over the first two rounds of competition.

The Mexican batting order was led by Norberto Obeso (Toronto A) with his .500 average on 13-of-26 work at the plate.  Roberto Valenzuela  (Monterrey) belted three homers and drove in nine runs to head the team list in both categories.  Francisco Haro (Campeche) and Luis Ivan Rodriguez (Quintana Roo) won both their World Cup starts, with Haro recording 18 strikeouts in 14 innings en route to a 1.93 ERA.  Haro, catcher Pina and leftfielder Obeso were named to the post-tournament All World Team.


LARA SPINS NO-NO IN JALISCO ROMP OVER MEXICALI 

Jalisco Charros pitcher Orlando Lara

Veteran pitcher Orlando Lara has largely been regarded as a quintessential Mexican mound journeyman.  The 33-year-old lefty was the Mexican League's Rookie of the Year in 2007 after going 6-2 with a 4.43 ERA for Mexico City (guess you had to be there) and also represented Aguascalientes in the 2014 and 2015 LMB All-Star Games in the midst of identical 5-5 campaigns, so the Cosamaloapan, Veracruz product is not without his bonafides.  His career record of 55-47 over 12 years in the Liga is not bad, although his career ERA of 5.02 is not awe-inspiring.

In other words, little in Lara's resume pointed toward his Mexican Pacific League no-hitter for Jalisco last Friday over a Mexicali squad with notable hitters like Ricky Alvarez, C.J. Retherford, Jason Bourgeault and Daniel Castro.  And the thing is, his gem wasn't really needed as Lara blanked the Aguilas on a night where his Charros lineup exploded for 17 runs on 21 hits in a 17-0 laugher before 10,521 aficionados at Guadalajara's Estadio Charros.  Lara threw 105 pitches (71 for strikes) over nine frames, allowing one walk and plunking Retherford while striking out six Aguilas batsmen.  In his prior two starts for Jalisco, Lara was knocked around by Mazatlan for four runs on seven his in four innings on October 14 and pounded at Los Mochis for eight hits and six runs (five earned) over 3.2 entradas on October 20.  Friday's outing lowered the 6'2" southpaw's ERA from 10.57 to 4.86.  It was the first no-hitter in the Charros' LMP history.

Lara's performance was the sole bright spot of the weekend for the Charros, who lost to Mexicali Saturday and Sunday to fall into a four-way tie for fourth place in the MexPac with Los Mochis, Culiacan and Oregon at 7-7.  The 7-6 Aguilas moved into a share of second with Navojoa, one game behind 8-6 first-half leaders Mazatlan.  League offices usually prefer pennant races with many teams involved and it's hard to beat a one-game separation between first place and seventh two weeks into the schedule.  Hermosillo has struggled out the gate at 5-9 but even then, the Naranjeros are only two games out of fourth.

Navojoa second baseman Alonzo Harris (an ex-Mets farmhand) leads the LMP with a .438 batting average, 30 points ahead of Mazatlan's Brian Hernandez' .408 mark, and his seven stolen bases heads that list as well.  Another Harris, Mexicali outfielder David, is tops with four homers and 13 RBIs over 14 games.  David Harris played four years in the Toronto system before hitting .331 with 23 homers and 15 steals for New Jersey in the independent Atlantic League this summer.

Obregon middle reliever Jesus Anguamea only needed to work a total of five innings to pick up wins in three consecutive appearances between October 18-24, but those three wins are the most in the LMP.  Anguamea pitched 1.2 hitless (and winless) innings against Jalisco and Hermosillo last week to stretch his season-opening scoreless streak to seven appearances spanning 8.2 innings.  Among starters, Jalisco's Elian Leyva (1-0) has the lowest ERA at 1.59 after tossing 17 frames over three starts.  The 29-year-old Cuban expat gave up no earned runs in six innings last Thursday in a 2-1 Charros loss at Obregon that took 11 innings to decide.  Mexicali's Vinny Nittoli struck out eight Jalisco batters one night later to take the LMP lead with 20 K's in 16.2 innings.  Los Mochis closer Andres Avila has earned saves in four straight trips from the bullpen between last Tuesday through Sunday to go to five saves on the season, most in the loop.


VERACRUZ WINTER LEAGUE REBOOTS FOR 2018-19 SEASON

LIV president Regina Vazquez Saut

After an absence of two seasons, Veracruz Winter League (Liga Invernal Veracruzana, or LIV) has been resurrected for 2018-19 with six teams playing 21-game schedules over seven weekends between early November and mid-December, followed by two best-of-3 playoff semifinals over two late December weekends and a best-of-5 finals over three weekends in January.  The LIV pennant winner will represent Mexico in late January's Latin American Series (more on that to come).

The rebooted LIV is headed by sisters Regina and Fabiola Vazquez Saut.  Regina, an attorney, is the league president while Fabiola is vice president.  The two are members of a family prominent in Veracruz' rough-and-tumble state political scene and to underestimate them may be at one's own peril.  The six teams under their watch are the Acayucan Tobis (managed by Felix Tejeda), Cordoba Cafeteros (Alberto Joaquin), Jaltex Astros (Miguel Garcia Rodriguez), Ursulo Galvan Caneros (Angel Utrera), Veracruz Rojos (Ramon Esquer) and the Xalapa Chileros (Pedro Mere).  Yes, THAT Pedro Mere, who led several LIV pennant-winners before hopping on the LMB and LMP managerial merry-go-round.

Acayucan won last winter's Veracruz State Baseball League title and went on to place second in the Latin American Series.  The Tobis and Xalapa are the two holdovers from last season's four-team lineup in the LVEB, which was the brainchild of former Brewers pitcher (and Veracruz native) Narciso Elvira.  The league ran on a shoestring for two winters and focused on young players from baseball-rich Veracruz state while trying to survive without government largesse covering payroll and other expenses.  The new LIV will allow four foreign players per team while requiring that each club has at least one first-year pro ballplayer under 20 years of age on the field at all times.  Women will be allowed on playing rosters as well.

The 2018-19 season actually started last weekend with a home-and-home series between Xalapa and Cordoba.  The visiting Chileros romped to an 11-1 win at Cordoba on Saturday in front of a crowd of 4,300 as Xalapa shortstop Hector Hernandez singled twice and drove in three runs.  The Cafeteros returned the favor on Sunday, taking a 9-5 win Sunday as 2,377 looked on in Xalapa as Cordoba's Efren Espinoza cracked a grand slam in the top of the ninth to break a 5-5 tie.

After the LIV's regular season and playoffs conclude, the Latin American Series will come to Veracruz' 7,782-seat Parque Deportivo Universitario Beto Avila, former home of the LMB Rojos del Aguila near the end of January.  Begun in 2013 as a competition between Class AA winterball champions of the LIV and similar leagues in Nicaragua, Panama and Colombia, the Latin American Series is undergoing changes in relation to the larger Caribbean Series.  Curacao was added as a conditional fifth member last winter while Argentina's champion is expected to join the fray in Veracruz for 2019.

The rebirth of the Veracruz Winter League comes at a time when the Mexican League has decided to not operate its own AA loop, the Mexican Winter League, after three seasons.  The Mexico City Diablos Rojos' affiliate team won all three pennants, the last two under manager Victor Bojorquez.  The Diablos topped the Oaxaca Guerreros, 4 games to 1, in last winter's finals.  The LMB has not even mentioned that the six-team LIM has gone dark this winter on their website.

MONCLOVA CLINCHES LMB NORTH, SOUTH A TOSS-UP

Monclova Acereros P Jason Gurka

To the surprise of nobody, the Monclova Acereros have clinched first place in the Mexican League North Division and will sail into the Fall season playoffs with the best record in the circuit.  The Steelers have led the LMB North practically since the second season opened in July and even the surprising midseason replacement of first-year manager Carlos Garcia with ex-Tijuana skipper Pedro Mere did nothing to halt the team's bid to become Monclova's first Liga pennant winners.  The Acereros will have home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

The Acereros ran their season record to 41-12 Sunday by clobbering Dos Laredos, 16-2, in front of 5,058 fans at Estadio Monclova as starter Jason Gurka (a former Rockies and Angels pitcher) tossed five innings of one-run ball to extend his ledger to 6-0 on the campaign.  Gurka had a 1-2 record with a 3.18 ERA in relief appearances for the Orioles' AAA Norfolk affiliate this year before coming to Monclova just as the Fall schedule opened.  After only one start since 2014, the 30-year-old lefty from Texas was inserted into Monclova's rotation August 3 and has won five times in six starts.  Gurka was given a lead Sunday when Cade Gotta smacked a leadoff homer in the bottom of the first inning off Tecolotes starter Alex Sanabia to launch a five-run opening entrada.  Reigning MVP Jesse Castillo went 4-for-6 with a double, three runs scored and another two driven in while Erick Aybar and former Nationals infielder Danny Espinosa each had three hits.  Espinosa, who had four RBIs, is with his fifth organization in 2018 after suiting up for Yankees, Blue Jays, Dodgers and Phillies teams since spring training.  He arrived in Monclova in mid-August after being released from the Phils' AAA Lehigh Valley affiliate.

With Sunday's blowout, the Acereros have won seven of their past ten game and enter their final three-game series of the regular season at home against Dos Laredos with a seven-game lead over Tijuana (34-19), who has won nine of their last ten contest to go two-and-a-half games ahead of third-place Monterrey (32-22).  The Toros need to win just once in their final home set with the Sultanes at Estadio Gasmart to clinch homefield advantage in the first playoff round against either Monterrey or Dos Laredos, who enters the week with a 31-23 mark.  Fifth-place Aguascalientes (24-29) was knocked out of mathematical contention Sunday by losing 8-7 to Saltillo when the Saraperos' Christian Zazueta scored the tiebreaking run on an Anthony Carter wild pitch in the top of the ninth.  Both teams, along with Durango and Union Laguna, will be done playing after Thursday night's season-ending games.

While the LMB North playoff participants (if not the seedings) have been determined, things are much hazier in the South.  Yucatan's 4-2 home win over Tabasco vaulted the defending champion Leones (30-23) past Mexico City (29-23) into first place by a half-game.  The Lions got a good start from Jose Samayoa (6 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 5 SO) while sending Olmecas opener Thomas Melgarejo to the showers with a three-run fifth inning.  Mexico City dropped out of first after the Diablos Rojos dropped a 1-0 heartbreaker at Puebla Sunday as the Pericos' Sergio Perez singled off Patrick Johnson to bring in Daniel Sanchez from third with the game's only run in the bottom of the third.  Puebla stater Josh Outman blanked the Diablos on two hits over seven innings for the win as the Parrots raised their record to 29-24, one game out of first.

Below the leaders, fourth-place Leon has faded over the past few weeks and the Bravos are now 25-26 after holding off Oaxaca, 8-7, Sunday.  Leon took an 8-4 lead into the bottom of the ninth before Dustin Geiger socked a leadoff homer off Bravos closer Joe Colon and Jaime Brena and Samar Leyva stroked run-scoring singles before Colon struck out Yuniesky Betancourt with the bases loaded to end the contest.   Leon is three games ahead of Oaxaca and Quintana Roo and while neither the Guerreros nor Tigres are likely to catch up the Bravos with only three games left, one of them might force a single play-in game with the Guanajuato club (who would serve as host).  Both Campeche and Tabasco are out of the running.

Needless to say, there are a few important midweek series starting Tuesday on the docket.  In the LMB North, Monterrey visits Tijuana to determine the second playoff seed in that division in a matchup of likely first-round opponents.  In the South, Yucatan will make the short hop from Merida to Cancun for three games with the Tigres, who have played well of late but are only 9-18 at home for the Fall season.  Mexico City visits Leon for three games and Oaxaca welcomes Puebla.  If a play-in game is required, it'll take place next Saturday with first round series set to begin Tuesday, September 10.


BETANCOURT HITTING .406, TAKES BAT RACE LEAD

Oaxaca Guerreros IF Yuniesky Betancourt

Former MLB shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt has taken advantage of a late performance dip by Yucatan centerfielder Leo Heras to gain the lead in the Mexican League batting derby.  Betancourt, who hit .367 with 11 homers in 56 games for Oaxaca during the Spring season, went 3-for-3 against Leon Friday to raise his current average to .417, was 1-for-8 the rest of the weekend to drop to .406, still good enough to lead the LMB by five points over Mexico City outfielder Yeison Asencio, a three-time postseason All-Star while playing in the Padres minor league system.  Heras has gone 7-for-35 over his last ten games to see his average plummet from .449 to .385 and now ranks fifth in the Liga, with Yucatan teammate Everth Cabrera just ahead in fourth at .386.

Monterrey first baseman Felix Perez homered against Tijuana last Tuesday and went deep Sunday in Durango to bring his season total to 16, two longballs ahead of Saltillo's Leandro Castro and Dustin Geiger of Oaxaca.  A native of Cuba, like the aforementioned Betancourt, the 33-year-old Perez spent five seasons in the Red Sox system (and was a 2014 International League midseason All-Star for Louisville) before coming to Monterrey one year later.  After only playing 28 games for the Sultanes in 2017, Perez was let go and signed by Aguascalientes in the offseason and immediately rewarded the Rieleros by leading the LMB with 15 homers in the Spring season.  After knocking out another 10 roundtrippers in 28 games for Aguascalientes this Fall, he was dealt back to Monterrey early last month in a five-player deal that send first baseman Ricky Alvarez and pitcher Nestor Molina to the Railroaders.

Perez' 52 RBIs rank third in the LMB behind Monclova's Francisco Peguero's 57 and the 54 of Puebla outfielder Delmon Young, who led in ribbies most of the season but drove in just one run over the Pericos' three-game weekend series at Mexico City.  After it looked like Aguascalientes outfielder Tony Campana might have an easy run to the stolen bases title much of the season, the former Cub has been surpassed by both Johnny Davis of Dos Laredos and Monclova outfielder Cade Gotta.  A Southern League postseason All-Star last year while in the Brewers organization, the 28-year-old Davis (who stole 52 bases for Biloxi in 2017) swiped four bases against Monclova last weekend, including three steals in Saturday's game, to lift his season total to 26 in 31 attempts.  Gotta, who won a Southern League Player of the Week award earlier this year with the Marlins' AA Jacksonville affiliate, stole six bases against the Tecos in the same series and now has 24 for the Fall.  Campana pilfered two bases against Saltillo over the weekend but now stands third behind Davis and Gotta in steals with 23.

Monterrey Sultanes P Edgar Gonzalez

One-time Diamondbacks starter Edgar Gonzalez gave up two runs in 5.1 innings to earn the win for is hometown Monterrey Sultanes in Sunday's 11-4 triumph in Durango to bring his season record to 7-2.  The 35-year-old Gonzalez is now tied with Mexico City's Patrick Johnson for the Liga lead in pitching wins.  Since picking up the W against Puebla on August 16, Johnson has lost two of his last three starts, including a 1-0 defeat at the hands of the Pericos on Sunday in which he allowed the game's only run and scattered six hits while striking out seven over six innings.  Six pitchers are tied for third with six wins apiece.

Monclova's Andre Rienzo pitched a scoreless inning in relief against Dos Laredos Sunday after tossing six shutout innings in his last start on August 26 against Aguascalientes to bring his league-leading ERA down further to 0.78, nearly a full run per nine innings fewer than teammate Wilmer Rios, who is second in the LMB at 1.76.  While he's been obscured on his own pitching staff by Rienzo and Josh Lowey, the 24-year-old Rios (son of Salon de la Fama member Jesus "Chito" Rios, who won 21 games for the Tigres in 1989) has cobbled together a breakout campaign with the Acereros by going 6-0 and leading the Liga with an 0.87 WHIP.  Rios has allowed just six walks in 56.1 innings pitched.

Campeche veteran Orlando Lara struck out eight Quintana Roo batters Saturday in six innings of a Piratas' 6-4 loss to the Tigres, running his season strikeout total to 64 over 61.1 frames and taking over leadership of the LMB in that category.  The 33-year-old Lara, who whiffed 12 Leon batsmen in seven innings on August 9, was one of three pitchers to overtake former strikeouts leader Enrique Oquendo of Puebla last week.  Oquendo hasn't pitched since August 26, when he struck out three Mexico City hitters in three innings to bring his season total to 57.  Jose De Paula of Monterrey (61) and Leon's Guillermo Moscoso (59) are second and third, respectively.  Monterrey closer Wirfin Obispo earned a save at Durango Saturday, giving him 14 in 15 opportunities this Fall.  That's two more saves than Leon's Joe Colon and Josh Lueke of Monclova.  Three other pitchers, including 2017 Reliever of the Year Chad Gaudin (who now pitches for Yucatan after being released earlier this year by Monclova) have 11 saves each.


THREE's (MORE) COMPANY: CARIBBEAN SERIES FIELD GROWS TO 8

Serie del Caribe is scheduled to be played in Puerto Rico.  The Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation, aka COPABE, made the announcement after holding their general convention last week in Miami.
Beginning in 2020, the Caribbean Series will expand from its current five-nation format to eight with the additions of Colombia, Panama and Nicaragua to the Crown Jewel of Latin Baseball.  The three new entrants will join the fun when the

Panama sent teams to the original Caribbean Series for twelve years prior to its discontinuation in 1960 after Cuba dropped out following their revolution and the ascension of Fidel Castro, a former pitcher who pulled his countrymen out of all pro baseball competition after taking power.  Panama hosted the CS three times (1952, 1956 and 1960) and won the event in 1950 with American manager Way Blackburn leading the Carta Viejo Yankees to a 5-1 record in that tournament.  When the Serie del Caribe resumed play in 1970, Panama was dropped from the competition and the Mexican Pacific League champion added as a replacement.  Last year, Panama was tentatively added by COPABE to the CS as a "guest" country for the February 2019 tournament planned for Barquisimeto, Venezuela.

Nicaragua and Colombia, who have competed along with Panama and Mexico in the Latin American Series, have never played in the Caribbean Series.  Mexico sends its champion from the winter league operating in the state of Veracruz to the LAS, which was played last January in Managua, Nicaragua and won by the host Chinandega Tigres (who were managed by current Saltillo Saraperos skipper Len Picota).  The Acayucan Tobis, champions of the Veracruz State League, were second.

COPABE president Juan Francisco Puello Herrera was quoted as saying the organization will meet in September to determine how the newcomers will be integrated into the Caribbean Series.  Speculation is that the champions from the three winter leagues would play each other in a preliminary competition to determine which one would join the existing five teams at the full CS.  When Cuba returned in 2014, it was on a conditional basis and that island nation's full membership has not been granted and nor have they been added to the rotation of host sites.  The future of the Latin American Series may be cast into doubt if three of its four participating national winterball leagues move up to the Caribbean Series.

The Caribbean Series has long been a centerpiece of Latin baseball but the event has struggled both artistically and financially the past few years.  The talent level of teams has dropped exponentially with fewer prospects being sent south of the border by Major League Baseball organizations, who instead have shown a preference for the more antiseptic and controlled atmosphere of the Arizona Fall League or even the lesser-quality Australian Baseball League.  As well, the combination of power attendance and political turmoil in some countries has made the CS less viable in those locations.  Barquisimeto had to drop out from hosting the event last February, with Guadalajara stepping in to fill the void, and while there's been much brave talk about Barquisimeto's readiness to host the upcoming Serie del Caribe, Venezuela's economy has not improved and continued political unrest there have people wondering if there will be another move.  Word for months has been that Mazatlan and its refurbished Estadio Teodoro Mariscal are preparing to welcome teams and fans should plans in Venezuela fall through again.

Toros stay alive; Serie del Rey moves to Tijuana

Roberto Lopez had a sub-.200 playoff batting average entering Monday night's Mexican League Championship Series Game Five in Puebla, but the Tijuana first baseman broke out of his slump in a big way to lead the Toros to a 9-2 win over the Pericos, staying alive in the Serie del Rey and sending the series back to the border city for Game Six on Wednesday.  The Toros trailed 2-1 before pushing eight runs across the plate in the top of the ninth, silencing the packed stands at Estadio Hermanos Serdan.

Lopez (pictured) cracked a double and homer in the ninth inning to the plate for the Toros, driving in three runs and scoring twice as Tijuana shaved Puebla's series lead to 3-games-to-2.  The Pericos had won the first two of three games played in Puebla, all before sellout crowds of 12,112.

Starting pitchers Horacio Ramirez of Tijuana and Orlando Lara of Puebla traded zeros until the top of the third inning, when Roberto Lopez crashed a solo homer to center off Lara to give the visitors a 1-0 nod.  The score stood until the bottom of the fifth, when Willy Taveras slashed a triple off Ramirez and later came in on Daric Barton's two-out single up the middle to tie things up for the host team.  The Pericos took the lead one frame later when Ruben Rivera led off the sixth with a single, moved to second on a groundout and scored on Rudy Amador's seeing-eye single into center to give Puebla a 2-1 advantage.

The score held until the crazy top of the ninth, during which the visitors sent twelve batters to the plate and put those eight runs on the scoreboard.  Dustin Martin, who's having a Playoff MVP-worthy finals for Tijuana, led off the inning against Puebla closer Chad Gaudin with a triple past a diving Nyjer Morgan in left field  Martin scored on third baseman Amador's throwing error on a Carlos Valencia grounder to knot the game at 2-2 and the Toros eventually filled the bases for Lopez, whose two-run double broke the deadlock for good.  Gaudin registered his first out of the inning when the sixth batter faced, Miguel Torrero, grounded out to second.  After Gaudin got Jose Guadalupe Chavez to ground into a fielder's choice out as Puebla shortstop Alberto Carreon threw Alex Romero out at the plate for the second out, the bottom really fell out for the eleven-year MLB vet.

Throwing to pinch-hitter Emmanuel Valdez, Gaudin uncorked a wild pitch that brought Lopez rumbling in from third to make it a 5-2 Toros lead, then let up a Valdez double to center that scored Chavez.  Puebla skipper Cory Snyder deduced that Gaudin maybe just didn't have it after eight batsmen and four runs and brought in Benny Suarez.  It only took nine pitches and consecutive walks to Olmo Rosario and Martin for Snyder to figure that Suarez might not have it either, calling in Julio Felix from the bullpen to face Edson Garcia, who'd pinch-run earlier and stayed in the game defensively in center field.  While working on Garcia, Felix unleashed a wild pitch of his own to move Valdez in from third to bring the score to 7-2.  Garcia then drilled a liner into right to bring in Rosario and Martin, making it a 9-2 TJ  lead before Valencia mercifully ended the onslaught by grounding out to second.  It was then left to Toros closer Jason Urquidez to post a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth against the shell-shocked Puebla batsmen to end the game and send the Serie del Rey back to Estadio Gasmart.

Urquidez pitched the last 2.1 innings, allowing no hits and whiffing three Pericos for the win.  Gaudin was tagged with both a blown save and the loss for Puebla.  Both teams put up eleven hits on the night, with Chavez and Lopez each contributing two hits for Tijuana while Taveras and Amador split six hits for Puebla, five of them singles.  Lara scattered seven hits but let in just one run over 6.2 innings for the Pericos; Ramirez lasted into the sixth and had a tougher time, coughing up all 11 hits and both Puebla runs but five relievers (including Urquidez) allowed no hits or runs the rest of the way.  The game was delayed by rain for over an hour, stretching the contest past 12:30am local time.

After a travel day Tuesday, the two teams will convene Wednesday night in Tijuana at 10:30pm ET.  Game Seven, if needed, would be played Thursday, after which many players won't have time to either celebrate or drown their sorrows.  Training camps in the Mexican Pacific League are already opening for the coming winterball season...another reason to love baseball in Mexico.

Tijuana 9-11-1, PUEBLA 2-11-2 (Puebla leads series, 3 games to 2)
W-Urquidez (1-0). L-Gaudin (0-1). HR-Lopez (R). T-3:30. A-12,112.

Martin walkoff homer hands Tijuana win in Serie del Rey opener

Dustin Martin has hit 130 home runs over his eleven-year pro baseball career, but none of them may have been bigger than the one he hit to end Wednesday's Mexican League Championship Series Game One.

The 6'2" Texan was 0-for-3 when he led off the bottom of the ninth inning for Tijuana, who were deadlocked in a 0-0 tie with Puebla.  With the count at 1-1, Martin launched a Carlos Bustamante pitch over the wall in left-center field for a walkoff homer to hand the Toros a 1-0 win over the Pericos in front of 17,399 delirious spectators at Tijuana's Estadio Gasmart.

As befits the score, the game was a pitcher's duel between Puebla starter Orlando Lara and Tijuana's Horacio Ramirez for six innings before Ramirez was replaced by Gerardo Sanchez after the ex-MLBer held Puebla scoreless on four hits.  Lara, whose playoff ERA was lowered to 0.67, sparkled over eight innings and let up just two singles and walked five until Bustamante came on to pitch to Martin in the fateful ninth frame.  Juan Sandoval pitched the final two innings in relief to earn the win for the Toros.

It's already been quite a year for Martin, who began 2015 with Sugar Land of the independent Atlantic League before landing in Tijuana for the last month of the Liga season, hitting .375 with 7 homers for the Toros in 26 games.  He then played winterball with Obregon of the Mexican Pacific League, turning in a .301 average for the Yaquis and playing a key postseason role in their ascension to the LMP title series against eventual champion Mazatlan.

This summer went even better for the former Mets/Twins/D-backs farmhand as he reached career highs in several offensive categories, including batting (.325), homers (19), RBI's (88) and even stolen bases (32) during the regular season.  That production has carried over into the playoffs, where he's hitting .302 with three homers and several key hits, including a go-ahead longball in Monday's LMB North Championship-clinching game at Monterrey.  And now this.

The two teams will lock horns for Game Two at 7:35pm local time Thursday night in the border city before the Serie el Rey moves to Puebla for Game Three on Saturday.

TIJUANA 1-3-0, Puebla 0-5-0 (Tijuana leads series, 1 game to 0)
W-Sandoval. L-Bustamante. HR-Martin. T-2:46. A-17,399.

LMB Division Championships results, highlights from Friday, September 2

Pitching was the name of both games Friday night in Mexican League Division Championship Series Game Five action in Puebla and Tijuana.

Yoanner Negrin rebounded from a pair of substandard playoff starts to carry a shutout into the seventh inning as his Yucatan Leones completed their three-game road sweep in Puebla's Estadio Hermanos Serdan, beating the Pericos, 9-1, to overtake the series lead, 3 games to 2.  The visiting team has won all but one game in the South DCS.

Meanwhile, in the LMB North DCS, Tijuana's Barry Enright (pictured) was just a little better than Monterrey's Edgar Gonzalez as the Toros blanked the Sultanes, 2-0, Friday to take a 3-to-2 lead in that series.  Dustin Martin scored twice for Tijuana, contributing a fourth inning solo homer.  Unlike the other set, the home side has won every game in this series.

Saturday will be a travel day with action resuming Sunday night in Merida and Monterrey.

Yucatan 9-14-0, PUEBLA 1-8-3 (Puebla leads series, 3 games to 2)
W-Negrin. L-O.Lara. HR-Serrano (Y). T-3:01. A-12,112.
Yoanner Negrin pitched 6.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing five hits and striking out four to post his third playoff win Friday to raise his overall season record to 21-2 as Yucatan copped their second straight game in Puebla, 9-1.  Jose Aguilar went 3-for-4 for the Leones, scoring once and driving in another run, while Ricardo Serrano socked a two-run homer in the second off Puebla starter Orlando Lara for his third longball of the postseason. Ruben Rivera had a pair of hits for the Pericos, including an RBI single in the eighth to drive in Jose Rodriguez with Puebla's lone run.

TIJUANA 2-6-0, Monterrey 0-7-0 (Tijuana leads series, 3 games to 2)
W-Enright. L-Ed. Gonzalez. SV-Urquidez. HR-D. Martin (T). T-2:56. A-17,362.
Tijuana starter Barry Enright carried a shutout into the sixth inning and three relievers took it from there as the Toros held off Monterrey, 2-0, with 17,362 looking on at Estadio Gasmart.  Enright scattered five hits and struck out three batsmen for his first playoff win of 2016.  Dustin Martin had a hand in both TJ runs, scoring on an Oscar Robles sacrifice fly in the second frame and clouting a solo homer off Sultanes starter Edgar Gonzalez in the fourth.  Gonzales went seven innings and pitched well enough to win, but his teammates took the night off at the plate.

Saturday's Schedule
No games

Sunday's Schedule
Tijuana (M. Pena) at Monterrey (M. Tovar), 6:05pm EDT
Puebla (M. Lara) at Yucatan (T. Solis), 7:05pm EDT

LMB Division Semifinal results, highlights for Tuesday, August 16

Tijuana 5-11-0, MONCLOVA 3-11-0 (Tijuana leads series, 1 game to 0)
W-Serrano (1-0). L-Oyervides (0-1). HR-Rosario (T), Peguero (M). T-3:26. A-6,508.
Dustin Martin doubled twice, scored 3 runs and drove in 3 for Toros.

PUEBLA 9-14-1, Quintana Roo 0-2-1 (Puebla leads series, 1 game to 0)
W-Lara (1-0). L-Arballo (0-1). HR-Barton (P), Tapia (P). T-2:53. A-10,418.
Orlando Lara scattered 2 hits in 7 innings pitched, Cesar Tapia hit HR and drove in 3 for Pericos.

YUCATAN 4-8-0, Campeche 0-5-1 (Yucatan leaders series, 1 game to 0)
W-Negrin (1-0). L-Castillo (0-1). HR-none. T-2:39. A-10,982.
Kevin Flores singled, tripled and had 2 RBIs for Leones as Yoanner Negrin tossed 7 shutout innings.

MONTERREY 5, Laguna 1
Sultanes scored 5 runs in bottom of 4th before game was postponed by rain until Wednesday

Amador goes deep as North beats South, 8-4, in LMB All-Star Game

While there's rarely been much surprise among followers of Mexican baseball when they see the stat line HR-Amador in a box score in recent years, there may have been a raised eyebrow or two among observers reading the box for Sunday's Mexican League All-Star Game in front of 23,421 fans at Estadio Monterrey.

Yes, that WAS an Amador who went yard for the North in the seventh inning off the South's Brazilian-born reliever Tiago da Silva, representing the Carmen Delfines. However, it wasn't 2015 Liga MVP Japhet Amador (who's in Japan this year), but Monclova infielder Jose Amador who launched da Silva's third pitch of the game over the wall in left-center field for a three-run homer as the North went on to clobber the South, 8-4, in a contest that lasted just 2 hours, 49 minutes despite a total of 23 pitchers trotting out to the mound for the two teams.

Jose Amador (pictured above) has done a lot to come out from under Japhet's considerable shadow since the latter signed with the Rakuten Golden Eagles during the offseason.  First, Jose (no relation) won Baseball Mexico's MVP award for last winter's Mexican Pacific League season (leading the MexPac with 11 homers and 39 RBI's and batting .323)  prior to embarking on an LMB season during which he's hit .281 with 12 homers in 53 games for the North-leading Acereros.  His Sunday bomb was enough to get him voted the All-Star Game MVP by media.

The North went up 4-0 early with four second-inning runs highlighted by a two-run homer by Juan Apodaca (Tijuana) off former big leaguer Travis Blackley (Puebla).  The South came back in the fifth off when LMP batting champion Jesus Valdez (Yucatan) socked solo homer off Hector Daniel Rodriguez (Saltillo), then plated two more in the top of the seventh when Jose Rodriguez (Puebla) whacked a two-run homer off Tony Pena, Junior (Laguna) to make it a one-run game.

The North had just gone ahead 5-3 in the bottom of the seventh when a pop single to center by Agustin Murillo (Monterrey) off Josh Judy (Quintana Roo) brought in Walter Ibarra (Monterrey) from third.  At that point, South manager Roberto Vizcarra pulled Judy for da Silva to pitch to Amador with Ibarra standing on first base and Zoilo Almonte (Monterrey) on second.  Da Silva seemed a worthy choice, bringing a 1.86 ERA with 15 saves in 16 opportunities for the 19-35 Dolphins heading into the break, but Amador changed that in one swing to extend the North lead from one to four runs in bringing the score to 7-3.  Each team scored once the rest of the way, but this one was decided by Amador.

Josh Lowey (Monclova) had been on the mound when the North scored their first four runs in the second and was awarded the win while Orlando Lara (Puebla), who was yanked by Vizcarra so Blackley could pitch to Apodaca, was tagged with the loss.  Ibarra and Ivan Terrazas (Mexico City) each had three hits for the North, including a double for Terrazas, while Valdez had three safeties for the South.

Before the All-Star Game, Quintana Roo third baseman Alex Liddi outlasted Tigres teammate Esteban Quiroz, 4-3, in the final round to take top honors in the Home Run Derby.  Liddi, a fomer Mariners prospect who has represented Italy in the World Baseball Classic, launched 12 homers over three rounds, some of them tape-measure shots that cleared the outfield fences easily.

MEXPAC SCOREBOARD for December 28, 2015

Mexicali 6-14-0, CULIACAN 4-13-0 (10)
W-Lopez (3-1). L-Arias (1-2). HR-Pena, Cul (8). A-20,860.
Tomateros starter Josh Lowey tossed six shutout innings but Culiacan's bullpen allowed six runs over the final four frames, including three in the top of the tenth.  Aguilas CF Chris Roberson went 3-for-5 with two RBI's and a run.  Ramiro Pena homered for the Tomateros.

NAVOJOA 4-9-1, Los Mochis 2-9-0
W-Bustamante (4-3). L-Patton (0-1). HR-Soto, Moc (11); Golson, Moc (1). A-7,531.
Caneros pitcher Luke Irvine shut out Mayos for five entradas, but relievers Carlos Fisher and Spencer Patton combined to allow four runs over the seventh and eighth innings. Navojoa's Nate Tenbrink doubled twice while Mayos starter Edwin Salas pitched 6.2 frames of one-run ball.

Hermosillo 4-7-1, OBREGON 2-6-1
W-Galvan (3-0). L-Reyes (6-3). HR-Amador, Her (11); Flores, Her (1). A-11,392.
Jorge Flores whacked a two-run homer off Yaquis reliever David Reyes in the seventh to break a 2-2 tie as relievers Rafael Martin and Jason Urquidez held Obregon hitless over the final two innings. The Naranjeros'  Jose Amador clubbed his own two-run homer in the fourth.

Jalisco 5-11-1, MAZATLAN 1-6-1
W-Lara (5-2). L-Meza (2-5). HR-Ortiz, Jal (1). A-14,017.
In just his third game this winter, Eliezer Ortiz cracked a three-run homer with two out in the second to give the Charros all the runs they'd need.  It was Ortiz' first hit of the winter.  Jalisco starter Orlando Lara allowed one run over seven innings. Yunesky Sanchez scored Venados' lone run. 

LMP STANDINGS: Obregon 20-12, Navojoa 18-14, Mazatlan 17-15, Hermosillo 16-15, Mexicali 15-16, Culiacan 15-17, Los Mochis 14-18, Jalisco 12-20.

NOTE: The regular season ends Tuesday night.  Obregon has clinched the second half title while Jalisco will finish in the cellar, but the other six positions in the standings remain unsettled.  Points and playoff pairings will be announced on BBM tomorrow.