HIRED, FIRED, REHIRED: GIL'S MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR

Past, present Culiacan manager Benji Gil

    Benji Gil had a most interesting month in November, even by Mexican baseball standards. First, the former Rangers and Angels infielder was picked to manage Mexico in next year's World Baseball Classic. Then he was fired as manager of the Mexican Pacific League's Culiacan Tomateros, only to be reinstated and back in the dugout within hours of being sacked. Even for someone like Gil, as voluble as he is volatile, that's a head-spinning series of events. Ready? Here we go...

    After leading Mexico to a sixth-place finish at last year's Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Gil will manage the Verdes Grande at the World Baseball Classic 2023. The 50-year-old Gil served as a coach with the Los Angeles Angels last summer under managers Joe Maddon and Phil Nevin after managing Guadalajara's expansion team in the Mexican League in 2021, earning Manager of the Year honors that season. As a player, Gil participated in the World Baseball Classic 2006. He played eight MLB seasons as a utility infielder and was on the 2002 World Series-winning Los Angeles Angels roster.

    "Benji Gil is a winner," commented National Team general manager Rodrigo Lopez, a starting pitcher and Gil teammate for Mexico in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. "As a player, he is on the list of World Series winners; as a manager, he's shown leadership, attitude and passion. He is fluent in English and Spanish and knows the Mexican Leagues as well as the Big Leagues."

    Ranked fourth in the world, Mexico will compete in Group C of the WBC and face host USA (ranked fifth), Colombia (#11), Canada (#12) and Great Britain (#23) in Phoenix from March 11 through 15 next year. So far, so good but as November drew to a close, things got weird.

    First, he was fired last Monday as helmsman in Culiacan, where he had managed the Tomateros to four pennants (but no Caribbean Series titles) in six winters. However, the team had a cumulative 16-25 record this current season, including a last-place finish in the first half with 14 wins over 35 contests. Bench coach Noe Munoz was also let go as the team's board of directors issued the usual thanks for professionalism to both as the door was hitting them on the way out. While MLB fans may be shocked over the dismissal of a manager who had been one win away from a fifth pennant since 2014 last season, as Culiacan lost the LMP championship series to Jalisco in seven contests last January, it's a common occurance south of the border. What happened next, though, is a bit rarer.

    In officially announcing the ouster of both Gil and Munoz last Tuesday at noon, a press release from the team stated that Tomateros bullpen coach and former pitching star Francisco Campos (who also manages Campeche in the Mexican League) would be Gil's replacement in the dugout beginning with that night's home game against Guasave. This brought an immediate response from the Culiacan players, who let the board know in no uncertain terms during an impromptu meeting that afternoon that they supported their deposed skipper. After the meeting ended, it was announced by Campos himself (alongside sports manager Mario Valdez) that both Gil and Munoz would be back that night.

    "Upon arriving at the stadium, the boys approached me and told me that it's nothing against me, that I shouldn't take it in that way, but they wanted to talk to Benjamín to let him know that they want him to return," said Campos, who remains as bullpen coach.

    "They asked for an opportunity to show that they can make a difference and that they can make positive results to obtain victories, they wanted Benjamin to return, Mr. Héctor (Ley, executive president) said that they should talk to him and if I accepted, go ahead."

    The Tomateros indeed went ahead and split their first six games after Gil's reprieve.


NARANJEROS WIN, PULL ONE GAME AHEAD OF LOS MOCHIS

Monterrey OF Roberto Valenzuela

    With just over three weeks remaining in the Mexican Pacific League's regular season schedule, there has not been a lot of separation between teams twelve games into the second-half standings. Los Mochis was in the driver's seat a week ago but first-half champion Hermosillo was never far behind and the two teams found themselves in a tie for first on Saturday before the Naranjeros pulled into a one-game lead by virtue of their 12-5 win at home over Monterrey while the Caneros dropped a 5-1 decision to visiting Jalisco Sunday.

    The Orangemen had to overcome an early 3-0 deficit after Ricardo Serrano socked a three-run homer off starter Jose Samayoa in the top of the first, but knotted the game up at 3-3 in the bottom of the frame, thanks in part to a two-run roundtripper by Luis Alfonso Cruz off Sultanes opener Frank Duncan.

    The two teams went back and for the the next few innings and the score was 5-5 in the bottom of the fifth when Cruz singled in Jasson Atondo and Scott Schebler scored on a fielding error by Monterrey second baseman Alberto Carreon to make it a 7-5 game. A five-run outburst in the eighth put the game away for Hermosillo as Ramon Mendoza stroked an RBI double and Cesar Salazar, Roberto Ramos (who'd homered earlier) and Atondo chipped in with run-scoring singles to end the scoring as 11,395 spectators watched at Estadio Sonora.

    Hermosillo now leads the LMP second half with a 9-3 record, just ahead of 8-4 Los Mochis. The Caneros fell at home to Jalisco Sunday, 5-1, as Julian Ornelas scored on a sacrifice fly in the top of the third to give the Charros a 1-0 lead that they'd build to 5-0 until Brayan Mendoza plated the Caneros' lone run of the night on a Justin Dean single. Ornelas went 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs, adding a two-run homer off reliever Daniel Duarte in the top of the seventh.

    Jalisco starter Brennan Bernardino and four relievers scattered 10 hits and four walks as Los Mochis went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position and stranded 15 on base. Nick Struck did not pitch badly for the Caneros, allowing one earned run on three hits in four innings, but his offense just couldn't put together enough support.

    Just off the Mex Pac pace are Mexicali and Obregon, who are tied for third with identical 7-5 records. The Aguilas lost a tough 6-5 game in Navojoa Sunday after trailing 6-0 heading into the seventh. Reynaldo Rodriguez (a former twins farmhand) just missed hitting for the cycle, delivering a double, triple and two-run homer for Mexicali. Likewise, Obregon fell a game back by losing on the road in Guasave, 4-2, Sunday. The Yaquis could only gather seven hits, two by Victor Mendoza, as Nico Tellache won his fifth for the Algodoneros.

    Tellache is one of five pitchers tied for second in wins in the LMP, one behind the six of Hermosillo's Wilmer Rios. Rios has won five games in a row with one no-decision since November 4, lowering his ERA from 7.84 to 2.24 in his last eight starts. Los Mochis' Luis Miranda, who'd given up one earned run in his first seven starts, allowed four against Jalisco last Friday and saw his ERA jump from 0.20 to 0.92 but that still leads the Mex Pac. Juan Pablo Oramas of Hermosillo is second at 1.28 while Mazatlan's Casey Harman's 1.83 ranks third. Two strikeouts separate the three league leaders as the 50 K's of Matt Pobereyko (Guasave) and Manny Barreda (Culiacan) lead the 48 by Luis Payan (Navojoa). Mazatlan's Elkin Alcala has recorded three saves since the start of December to bring his season total to 15, three more than the 12 each of Josh Leuke (Jalisco) and Brandon Koch (Guasave).

    Monterrey's Roberto Valenzuela saw his batting average drop from .380 to .363 over his last six games but he still enjoys a comfortable lead over Justin Dean (.339) and Yosmany Tomas (.330), both of Los Mochis. Mexicali's Anthony Giansanti belted a homer against Mazatlan last Tuesday to pull into a lead with Jesse Castillo of Guasave at 10 apiece. Obregon's Sebastian Valle is third with eight dingers. The Caneros' Tomas now leads in RBIs with 37, ahead of Obregon teammates Victor Mendoza (36) and Yadir Drake (35). A nice race in stolen bases (so to speak) has developed between Randy Romero of Mazatlan and Hermosillo's Jose Cardona, who have 18 and 17 swipes, respectively. Justin Dean (Los Mochis) and Jared Oliva (Monterrey) are tied with 14 each.


LIM: YUCATAN SOUTH CHAMP; MONCLOVA, PUEBLA IN FINALS

Puebla LIM P Hector Sepulveda

    In restructuring the Mexican Winter League for a second season after its revival last winter, the Mexican League created a somewhat-unwieldy circuit with ten teams representing 14 LMB clubs (including four combined squads) spread out over three divisions: Monclova, Monterrey and Union Laguna in the North; Mexico City/Oaxaca, Veracruz/Leon and Puebla in the Central; and Durango, Yucatan, Tabasco/Guadalajara and Tijuana/Aguascalientes in the South.

    The format made for uneven scheduling and at least one team sitting out every day during the regular season between October 12 and November 28. Teams in the LIM North and Central played 24 games each while LIM South clubs, all playing in Yucatan towns, took the field 28 times. It was determined at one time that the South Division playoff winner would serve as a stand-alone champion among their larger group of teams while North and Central playoff winners would meet in the Serie del Principe for the nominal LIM championship, which was won by Monclova last winter.

    Yucatan earned the LIM South title by defeating the combined Tijuana/Aguascalientes club in three playoff games, including last Thursday's 7-6 win in Uman. Leones starter Cesar Cervantes pitched seven innings to earn the win while closer Anhuar Garcia got the save. Garcia was the LIM's leader in salvados during the regular season. Toros prospect Porfirio Guerrero was tagged with the loss.

    "I'm very happy and very proud of the boys,” said Leones sports manager Santos Hernandez. “We're sure that they will continue to show great capacity for this sport and I'm very grateful to all those fans who have been supporting these future stars from day one."

    Meanwhile, Monclova and Puebla have already begun their Serie del Principe rematch from last season, which was won by the Acereros in dramatic fashion on Shawon Dunston, Junior's walkoff homer in the bottom of the tenth in the fifth and deciding game. Monclova is managed by Matias Carrillo while Hector Hurtado, who spent 22 seasons as a catcher in the Mexican League, is dugout boss for the Pericos, who he led to an LIM-best 16-7-1 record during the regular season.

    The first two games took place in Estadio Monclova, where Puebla won Saturday's opener in a 2-1 pitcher's duel. Pericos starter Hector Sepulveda contributed five shutout inning to earn the win while Parakeets reliever Jose Hernandez sparkled by striking out all five Acereros batters he faced in the seventh and eighth innings. Puebla took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second on Herman Alvarado's RBI single and the visitors added a run in the eighth on a run-scoring one-bagger by Giancarlo Servin. With runners at the corners and nobody out in the bottom of the ninth, the Acereros pulled off a double steal that brought Evan Carrillo home from third to break the shutout bid and narrow Puebla's lead to one. That was as good as it would get as Caleb Perez ultimately grounded to Luis Medina at third for the final out.

MEXICAN WINTER LEAGUE Final 2022 Standings
North: Monclova 14-8-2, Monterrey 10-12-2, Union Laguna 9-13-2.
Central: Puebla 16-7-1, Mexico City/Oaxaca 14-10-0, Veracruz/Leon 5-18-1.
South: Yucatan 14-10-2, Tijuana/Aguascalientes 15-11-1, Tabasco/Guadalajara 12-12-2, Durango 9-17-1.

OBREGON, NAVOJOA TIED AT TOP OF LMP STANDINGS

    At the halfway point of the Mexican Pacific League's first half schedule, two teams share the lead in the LMP standings with identical 11-6 records. The Obregon Yaquis and Navojoa Mayos find themselves in the driver's seat with three weeks remaining in the opening stanza of the 2021-22 season.

    Obregon did their part in breaking a three-way deadlock at the top Sunday by clobbering Mexicali, 8-2, in the border city. Jonathan Aranda broke a 1-1 tie with a solo homer off Aguilas starter Javier Solano in the top of the second inning, but it was a Reynaldo Rodriguez grand slam off Solano in the third that for all intent and purposes put the game away for the Yaquis. Obregon starter Hector Velazquez got the win with six solid innings, allowing one run on two hits with five strikeouts. Solano was tagged with the loss after giving up eight runs on five hits and four walks over four innings.

    Navojoa did Sunday's heavy lifting by topping Jalisco, 4-2, at home in Estadio Manuel “Ciclon” Echeverria after both teams entered the game with 10-6 records. The contest was knotted up at two runs apiece until Mayos third baseman Samar Leyva launched a solo homer over the left-center field wall off Charros starter Alex Delgado in the bottom of the fourth. Navojoa added an insurance run when Omar Renteria led off the seventh with a doubled up the middle off reliever Fernando Cruz, moved to third on an Omar Meza sacrifice bunt down the third base line and scored on Jorge Flores' single to right. Navojoa starter Raul Carrillo allowed two runs in 5.2 innings and five relievers surrendered one hit the rest of the way as the Mayos completed a three-game weekend sweep.

    At the other end of the spectrum, the Los Mochis Caneros have won just four of their first 16 games to bring up the rear after a disastrous 2020-21 campaign in which they went an aggregate 19-39 over two halves, worst in the LMP under manager Victor Bojorquez. Robinson Cancel is the Los Mochis helmsman this winter but thus far nothing much has changed, although the Caneros did salvage a series in Monterrey Sunday with a 2-1 win over the Sultanes behind a solo homer by Josuan Hernandez and 6.2 innings of one-run pitching by starter Carlos Viera.

    Heading into Sunday's games, Jalisco's Christian Villanueva was batting an even .400 to lead all LMP batters. Tirso Ornelas of Navojoa is second at .390 while Hermosillo's Nick Torres' .386 is good enough for third. Torres also tops the tables with five homers, one more than the four roundtrippers of Danny Ortiz (Monterrey), Missael Rivera (Jalisco) and Maikel Serrano (Navojoa). Serrano is first in RBIs with 17, ahead of Ortiz' 14 and the 13 of Torrez. Culiacan has three of the top five base stealers in the Mex Pac: Dairon Blanco leads the list with six swipes, one more than the five of teammate Sebastian Elizalde and Mazatlan's Ramon Rios and two more than Tomateros infielder Ramiro Pena and Venados outfielder Randy Romero.

    Among pitchers, Navojoa's Carlos De Leon has been a major reason for the Mayos' strong burst out the gate by winning his first three starts, making him the only LMP pitcher with a trio of wins at this stage of the season. Thirteen other pitchers have two wins, with two starters (Jalisco's Orlando Lara and Elian Leyva of Hermosillo) tied for the lead with 0.00 ERAs to augment their respective 2-0 records. Obregon's Luis Escobar has 24 strikeouts in 22.1 innings to lead the loop while Hermosillo veteran Juan Pablo Oramas is second with 20 whiffs over 23 frames. Jake Sanchez of Mexicali has four saves (plus a win) in seven outings for the most in that category, with Jalisco's Roberto Osuna and Carlos Bustamante of Navojoa tied for second with three salvados apiece. Sanchez has 14 strikeouts in seven innings with a 1.29 ERA.

    Off the LMP playing field, the expected sale of the Jalisco Charros has been finalized. The team, which has been marred by internecine front office squabbling for at least the past year, was sold by prime combatants Salvador Quirarte and Armando Navarro (who brought the team to Guadalajara from Guasave in 2014) to a group led by Jose Luis Gonzalez, his son Inigo and brother Juan Carlos, who also own the Mexican League Guadalajara Mariachis. Navarro was present at the press conference announcing the sale and said, “I wish the new owners every success and I thank all the fans.” The State of Jalisco is allowing the Charros to make fifty percent of Estadio Panamericano's 16,500 seats available for home games.

MEX PAC ROAD TRIP: Obregon, Sonora

    We’ll continue our virtual journey to all ten Mexican Pacific League franchise sites by driving south from Hermosillo on Highway 15 for three-and-a-half hours (155 miles) through former LMP city Guaymas to Ciudad Obregon, Sonora’s second largest city behind Hermosillo with a metropolitan population of 375,000 and home of the seven-time league champion Yaquis.

    While the city itself is less than 100 years old, the area it sits in had long been settled by the Yaqui Indian nation, after whom the baseball team was named. Originally known as Cajeme when it was given municipal status in 1927, the city was renamed in 1937 after Revolution hero General Alvaro Obregon, a Navojoa native who later became president of Mexico and initiated modern agricultural techniques to the Yaqui Valley that made the region one of the most prosperous in the country. In fact, the area is called “Mexico’s Grain Provider” thanks to wheat growing standards partly established by American Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. Norman Bourlaug.

    Present-day Obregon is the agribusiness center of a region whose countryside is liberally dotted with grain elevators, storage silos and cotton mills. While it is a working city and not tourism-oriented, there are some points of interest for visitors to take in. Laguna Nainari just west of town is a popular lagoon with restaurants, picnic areas and boats for water-skiing, while the nearby San Jose Beach features a spa. South of Laguna Nainari is the Parque Ostimuri, a tree-lined park geared towards young people (and the young at heart) with an amusement park, several refreshment stands and a zoo with animals ranging from deer and boars to turtles and gila monsters.

    The Museo del Yaquis celebrates the history of the valley and is doing its part to keep the culture of the Yaqui people alive. Moreover, the Mexican government designated the Yaquis as the first recognized tribe in the country, allowing them to continue their traditions overseen by a tribal government. There are four institutes of higher education in Obregon while the local airport receives flight from 13 Mexican and four U.S. cities.

    Professional baseball in Obregon debuted in 1947 as a member of the old Pacific Coast League. The Yaquis have won seven MexPac pennants (including three in a row under manager Eddie Diaz between 2010-11 and 2012-13) since 1965-66, winning Caribbean Series championships in 2011 and 2013. Past Obregon players whose numbers have been retired include Vinny Castilla, Roberto Vizcarra, Carlos Valencia and brothers Vicente and Enrique Romo.

.    The Yaquis play their home games in the state of the art Estadio Yaquis, a 16,500-seat facility on the outskirts of town that opened in time for the 2016-17 season. Estadio Yaquis co-hosted games for the WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup last month. Considered one of Mexico's finest ballparks, it's had a cool reception among local fans due to high ticket prices and a less-centralized location than Estadio Tomas Oroz Gaytan, which served the team for 36 years and (like Hermosillo's Estadio Hector Espino) has been purchased by the federal government to serve as a baseball academy.

MAESTROS OF MEXICO: Nelson Barrera, 3B/1B/DH

    One of the most beloved and admired figures in Mexican baseball history, Nelson Barrera Romellon was a mainstay at third base in the LMB for 26 seasons. Nicknamed El Almirante (“The Admiral”) by fans, Barrera was born October 17, 1957 in Ciudad del Carmen, Campeche and grew up to be a six foot,180-pounder. Surprisingly, given his career power totals, Barrera was not considered a home run hitter for the first few years of his Liga career. In fact, he hit just 48 roundtrippers over his first seven campaigns between 1977 and 1983.

    Barrera posted his first big season as a 26-year-old in 1984 with Mexico City, cracking 23 homers while hitting .354 and driving in 101 runs. That led to an invitation to spring training by the Chicago White Sox in 1985. After batting just .176 with two homers for Class AAA Buffalo, Barrera was sent back to the Diablos Rojos and never played outside Mexico again.

    He went on a three-year tear between 1986 and 1988 for Mexico City, belting 110 homers and driving in 383 runs while posting batting averages of .350, .349 and .372. Although he never approached those kinds of numbers the rest of his career, The Admiral remained one of the most respected and feared batters in Mexico through the rest of the 20th century.

    Barrera retired with 455 career homers, two more than all-time great Hector Espino’s 453. His 1,928 career RBIs is also the Liga’s all-time best, as are his 972 extra-base hits and six 100-plus RBI seasons. He finished with 2,938 career hits (second behind Jesus Sommers) and a lifetime batting average of .298. Along with Sommers, he had 19 seasons of 100 or more hits. Barrera hit three homers in a seven-inning game, and once had a streak of seven bombs over a five-game stretch.

    He was a fairly marginal batter in the winter Pacific League, hitting .254 over 15 seasons with Culiacan and Mexicali although he was the LMP’s MVP for the Tomateros in 1984-85 with 15 homers and 68 RBIs. Barrera made his hits count in the winter, however, and stands sixth in career homers with 131 and 9^th in RBIs with 479. His eight career grand slam homers are a MexPac record. He played in five Caribbean Series between 1983 and 1988, winning a title with Mexicali in 1986 in Venezuela.

    Barrera was respected as a manager, too, leading the Oaxaca Guerreros to the LMB crown in 1998 while turning in 15/110/.321 numbers as a player. He was managing the Campeche Piratas in his home state when he died tragically in 2002 after he was electrocuted by a live hanging wire while doing repairs on the roof of his home following a severe windstorm. The ballpark in Campeche was renamed in his honor.

TIGRES IN FIRST, WIN STREAK SNAPPED AT EIGHT GAMES

Quintana Roo 1B Reynaldo Rodriguez

Even though the Quintana Roo Tigres saw their eight-game winning streak snapped Sunday in a 3-2 loss at home to the Tabasco Olmecas, the Tigres have gotten off to a hot start in the second half of the Mexican League schedule and now sit alone in first place in the South Division standings with a 20-7 record.  As 3,975 fans looked on at Estadio Beto Avila in Cancun, Tabasco's Daniel Carbonell lofted a sacrifice fly to Quintana Roo centerfielder Yordanys Linares to bring Roel Santos from third to break a 2-2 tie with the game-winning run.  Despite the loss, the Tigres have a three-game lead over 17-10 Yucatan, who topped Campeche, 9-4, Sunday in Merida as Leones starter Yoanner Negrin got the win to go to 10-3 on the season.

It's been an unexpected rise for the Tigres after a tepid first half in which they finished sixth in the LMB South at 25-35 (13-17 at home) and Salon de la Fama member Jesus Sommers was fired as manager 28 games into the season.  New skipper Adan Munoz has seen an entirely different Tigres team since coming back from the All-Star Break for the second half of the season. Quintana Roo has won 10 of 15 home games and gone 10-2 on the road en route to the best record in the LMB in the second half. 

One revelation for Munoz has been Colombian first baseman Reynaldo Rodriguez, a former Yankees and Red Sox minor leaguer who joined the team in late May and has since hit .366 with 14 homers in 40 games.  Third baseman Brian Hernandez is batting .333 with nine homers and 53 RBIs and catcher Francisco Cordoba has 14 homers and 48 homers but the Tigres are not a team that will batter opponents into submission.  The pitching is little better so it remains to be seen how long the team will remain atop the table, but no doubt they're enjoying the ride.

Even though they're in second, things have not been so sanguine in Yucatan, where the defending LMB South champions fired manager Luis Carlos Rivera Friday following a 5-3 home loss to Campeche.  The Leones finished fifth in the division for the first half with an uninspiring 26-32 mark but the Merida squad began the second half by winning eight of their first nine games and was second in the standings at 16-9 when the axe fell for Rivera.  Geronimo Gil, who was hired as a bench coach during the All-Star Break at Rivera's request, was named interim manager. 

While the Tigres and Yucatan are 1-2 in the South (surprising Tabasco and Mexico City are virtually tied for third at five games behind Quintana Roo, things are a bit murkier in the LMB North, where two games separate the top four teams and two more sides are less than four games out of fourth.  Tijuana is in first at 17-10 but another surprise team, Saltillo, is hot on the Toros' heels at 16-10 after sweeping a weekend road series in Aguascalientes.  It was a good weekend for road teams in the North as Monclova (16-11) took all three big games at defending champion Monterrey (12-13) while Dos Laredos (15-12) won two of three at Tijuana to pass the Sultanes into fourth place.   Even moribund Union Laguna staggered into Durango with a 3-20 ledger and managed to post 35 runs in three wins over the Generales.

Oaxaca's Alonzo Harris (r) joins the 30-30 Club

Leon's Felix Pie went 4-for-28 over his last ten games before going on the 7-day injured list July 9 (he still hasn't reappeared), but still leads the Mexican League in batting with a .410 average.  Mexico City's Emmanuel Avila is second at .388.  Chris Carter of Monclova has socked five homers in nine games to bring his season total to 39, eight more than the 31 of Oacaxa's Alonzo Harris, who also has 36 stolen bases over 86 games in what is becoming an MVP-style season.  He has become the third member in the LMB's 30-30 Club, joining James Steels (1991) and Luis Terrero (2011).  Harris is second in steals, trailing only Dos Laredos' Johnny Davis, who has 48 swipes.

Yucatan's Cesar Valdez has won three games since suffering his lone loss of the season June 28 at Durango, bringing his season record to 12-1.  Yoanner Negrin of Yucatan and Monterrey's Edgar Gonzalez (both 10-3) are tied for second in wins.  Valdez also leads the LMB with a 2.32 ERA.  Yasutomo Kubo of Leon's 116 strikeouts top the whiff list and Dos Laredos closer Ramon Mendez' 25 leads the league after the Dominican converted his last eight save opportunities beginning July 4.

Among the more important midweek series opening Tuesday night will be when Monterrey visits Dos Laredos while Oaxaca hosts Mexico City in a big LMB South matchup.  Next weekend will see Monclova at home for three against the Sultanes and Tijuana on the road at Dos Laredos.


DIABLOS SIGN BRANDON PHILLIPS, VARGAS TRADED TO MONCLOVA

Brandon Phillips playing for another Rojos team

A pair of recent major players transactions have strengthened two Mexicna League teams battling for playoff seeding within their respective divisions.  The Mexico City Diablos Rojos signed three-time MLB All-Star second baseman Brandon Phillips as a free agent on July 15 while the Monclova Acereros traded with Aguascalientes for All-Star third baseman Jose Vargas three days later.

Now 38, Philiips was drafted by Montreal in 1999 and played in the Expos system before he was traded to Cleveland in June 2002 as part of a six-man swap that also sent Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore and Lee Stevens to the Indians for Bartolo Colon and Tim Drew.  After limited success with the Tribe, with a .206 average in 135 MLB games over four seasons mostly spent in AAA, Cleveland traded Phillips to Cincinnati in April 2006 for a player to be named later (pitcher Jeff Stevens).  The Reds gave the Stone Mountain, Georgia product their starting job at second base and Phillips' fortunes turned.

Over the next eleven years, Phillips would be awarded four Gold Gloves and play in the 2010, 2011 and 2013 All-Star Games, garnering MVP votes in 2007 and 2012 (ironically, neither were All-Star seasons).  Between 2006 and 2016, he played 1,616 games for Cincinnati and batted .279 with 191 homers and 194 stolen bases while leading National League second sackers in fielding percentage three times. 

However, the Reds traded Phillips to Atlanta prior to the 2017 season.  He hit .291 for the Braves in 120 games before he was dealt to the Los Angeles Angels, for whom he batted .255 the rest of the season. Phillips was released that November.  Boston picked him up last year and he played nine games in September for the Red Sox, batting .130, but was left off the eventual World Series champion's postseason roster and granted free agency after the season.  In his first four games with Mexico City, Phillips was 2-for-15 with a double while handling 19 chances flawlessly at second.

New Oaxaca DH/1B/3B/RF Jose Vargas

Vargas was in the middle of an MVP-worthy season for Aguascalientes before the financially-strapped Rieleros shipped him to Monclova for pitcher Juan Carlos Perez and two players to be named later on July 18.  A 2008 White Sox 22nd round draft pick out of Ventura (CA) College, Vargas hit .255 with 25 homers over three years in the Chisox system, then spent six years with Traverse City in the independent Frontier League (belting 29 homers with 110 RBIs in 2012) before coming to Aguascalientes in 2017. 

In 59 games with the Rieleros prior to last Thursday's trade, Vargas hit .366 with 29 homers and 70 RBIs before being shelved in late June with a broken hand.  While Vargas is naturally a third baseman, the Acereros have perhaps the best defensive third sacker in the LMB with Rodolfo Amador holding down the position.  First base? Well, there's Chris Carter (who has 38 homers and 90 RBIs, both tops in the Liga) and veteran Jose Amador and ex-LMB Rookie of the Year Ricky Rodriguez, so opportunities are limited there.  Since Vargas has played just 46 games in the outfield during his 12 pro seasons, that's not a likely option but also not out of the question. The Californian's bat has been too hot to keep out of the lineup, so expect Vargas to mostly be in the designated hitter's slot for new Monclova manager Pat Listach, who replaced Pedro Mere at the helm July 1, but he'll also likely fill in at the infield corners and perhaps even right field.


NEW MEXICAN PROSPECTS LEAGUE OPENS PLAY IN JALISCO

Edgar Gonzalez (l) and LMP prez Omar Canizales

Mexico's Office of the President for Development and Promotion of Baseball, aka ProBeis, has created a new league for promising players age 14 through 17. The Mexican Prospects League opened play earlier this month in Guadalajara, Jalisco and will continue through August 22.

"It will be eight intense weeks," said ProBeis commissioner Edgar Gonzalez, "with daily workouts and two games daily at 4 and 7 from Thursday through Sunday.  Four teams will be formed with 28 players each plus reserves."  Each team is carrying the name of former Mexican major league players while jerseys will contain elements of the MLB team to which each player belonged. 

LPM players will be evaluated over the course of the short season to determine their ability to land pro contracts or college scholarships.  "We are very happy to start this great project that will be one of the pillars of the new way to promote Mexican youth talent of excellence, "Gonzalez explained, adding that this marks the first time in history that there will be a showcase of international stature with the scope and support of the Mexican government.  "The key to this project is inclusion, in which we have invited young people from all over the country with diverse backgrounds and histories. It's the jewel in the crown of ProBeis." Players were recruited in part via invitations to different professional and semipro leagues, private academies, and both MLB and local scouts.

Gonzalez thanked the Mexican Pacific League and Jalisco Charros owner Salvador Quirarte for their support, including the use of Estadio Charros for games and training. He also cited the Mexican League's role in coordinating the nascent league, which is an outgrowth of new president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's desire to raise the profile of his favorite sport.  Gonzalez is a former MLB and NPB second baseman who more recently managed LMP teams in Mexicali and Jalisco before being tabbed by AMLO to oversee the development and growth of baseball on a national level.  The longterm goal inludes the creation of several government-subsidized academies throughout the country.

Mexican Prospect League doubleheaders began July 10 and will continue four times per week until the 32-game season concludes on August 22.