TIJUANA, SULTANES ADVANCE TO LMB NORTH FINALS

Felix Perez, Monterrey Sultanes

It took them six games to do it, but the Tijuana Toros took one step closer to repeating as Mexican League pennant-winners by defeating 2020 champion Monclova in their Northern Division semifinal series. Tijuana clinched their 6-games-to-2 set victory last Friday with a 12-5 pounding of the Acereros at home before 17,193 fans in a jam-packed Estadio Nacional.

The Toros led 5-0 after two innings after Leander Castro’s two-run homer capped a three-run first against Monclova starter Eduardo Vera. Castro then rapped a bases-clearing double off Wilmer Rios, who came on in relief, in the second. Efren Navarro’s three-run roundtripper in the fourth off Ernesto Zaragosa, who took over for Rios, made it an 8-0 contest and TJ’s win was all but assured. 

The Acereros did score three runs in the sixth as 13-year LMB veteran Chris Roberson contributed an RBI single while former Cubs All-Star Addison Russell’s two-out homer in the eighth off Tijuana reliever Sam Dyson accounted for Monclova’s final two runs. Humberto Mejia got the win by pitching five innings of three-run ball while the loss went to Vera.

The Acereros had actually taken a 2-games-to-1 lead last Monday with an 11-7 win thanks to a six-run seventh featuring homers by Chris Carter and Keon Broxton after trailing 5-0 earlier in the tilt. Tijuana then won the next three games, starting with Tuesday’s 15-2 drubbing in Monclova as Junior Lake, Felix Perez and Castro each had three hits and three RBIs. Perez then clubbed two more homers one night later, driving in four runs in a 9-2 Toros win as a third straight sellout crowd of 8,500 looked on at Estadio Monclova, setting up Friday’s series-closing game in TJ.

Monterrey won the first two games of their LMB North semi set with Dos Laredos before dropping a 4-2 contest last Monday as Balbino Fuenmayor’s two run homer in the top of the 13th off Sultanes reliever Miguel Aguilar held up to give the Tecolotes their lone win before 15,062 onlookers at Estadio Monterrey. Tuesday’s starter Cristian Castillo gave Monterrey skipper Roberto Kelly five innings of one-run pitching while Orlando Calixte singled, doubled and scored twice in a 5-1 Sultanes win with 15,395 in the stands at home and Monterrey ended the division semi set on Wednesday with a solid 7-2 triumph with Zoilo Almonte’s RBI double in the second giving the Sultanes a 2-1 lead that they would never relinquish. The midweek date and a rain delay dropped attendance to 12,160 but co-owner Jose “Pepe” Maiz had to be happy with the three-game turnout exceeding 42,000 in Mexico’s largest ballpark.

The Sultanes and Toros were scheduled to open the LMB North championship series Monday night at Tijuana in what has become perhaps the most bitter rivalry in the Mexican League over the past few years. Monterrey owner Maiz (a firm believer in relying on homegrown talent) has taken deep exception to Toros owner Alberto Uribe and family paying large amounts of money to import foreign players to the border city, a sentiment the 1957 Little League World Series champion likely harbors towards Monclova’s similarly free-spending owner Gerardo Benavides.

Whatever the front office methodology, Tijuana and Monterrey finished 1-2 in the LMB attendance derby this year and it would surprise nobody if more than 50,000 fans attend the first four games of this series, which marks the sixth time in the Toros’ nine years of existence that they have met the Gray Ghosts in the postseason. Monterrey holds a 3-2 lead in that context but Tijuana’s LMB North title wins in 2016 and 2017 were what touched off the rivalry that transcends the playing field.

DIABLOS BASH PUEBLA, FACE YUCATAN FOR SOUTH TITLE

Julian Leon, Mexico City Diablos Rojos

The Mexico City Diablos Rojos won the Mexican League South Division regular season title in no small part to an offense that produced 7.3 runs per game (highest in the LMB) with a .320 team batting average, which ranked fourth in the circuit as the Red Devils were the only LMB South club among seven who topped the .300 mark. That the capital city congregation’s playoff hopes would sink or swim on the strength of their bats was a foregone conclusion, but Mexico City has put on a postseason fireworks that has been nothing short of awesome.

In sweeping both their first round and division semifinal series, the Diablos outscored Veracruz and Puebla by an aggregate 94-45 score, an average of 11.75 per game. The Aguilas were able to hold Mexico City to 8 and 4 runs over the final two games of their opening round set, but the Pericos allowed 57 runs (14.25 per game) during the Diablos’ broom job in their series. To their credit, Puebla averaged 7.5 runs in their division semi but when your pitchers allow 63 hits (including 13 homers) over four games, you’re not likely going to win many games.

The Diablos closed out their dominant series win last Wednesday by throttling the Pericos, 15-5, in Puebla. After a scoreless first inning, Mexico City torched Pericos starter Kurt Heyer and reliever Braulio Torres-Perez for nine runs on nine hits, including Julian Leon’s fourth homer of the series (a two-run bomb off Heyer) and a three-run shot by Juan Carlos Gamboa off Torres-Perez in the fourth. Danny Ortiz, who has hit 94 longballs in 265 games over three seasons in Puebla, captured the spirit of the thing with solo homers off starter William Cuevas in the fourth and reliever Edgar Torres in the sixth but the visitors were up 12-1 when the latter shot came and the outcome of both game and series were no longer in doubt.

After going 1-for-8 over the first two games against the Pericos, veteran slugger Japhet Amador went 7-for-9 (including a homer and a double) with five runs and five RBIs to finish the semis with a .477 average. The hottest bat, however, belonged to Diablos catcher Julian Leon. A 28-year-old former Dodgers and Angels minor leaguer, Leon followed up a decent but unremarkable regular season (.301 with 8 homers in 48 games) and an 0-for-7 performance over two games against Veracruz in the first round with a dominant series against Puebla, batting 10-for-18 (.556) with four homers, 13 RBIs and 6 runs.

It’s unlikely that Leon and the Diablos will match their output against Yucatan in the LMB South divisional finals. Since joining the Liga in 1954, the Leones have built their reputation on pitching and defense. Both were on prominent display in their series-ending 6-0 Game Five win over Quintana Roo last Thursday in Cancun. Starter Henderson Alvarez, a 2014 All-Star with Miami who led the National League with three shutouts that year, tossed a complete game shutout for the Leones, scattering five singles over nine innings, striking out five and walking none while his defense played errorless ball and turned a pair of double plays as he won his second game against the Tigres. Thirteen-year veteran catcher Luis Juarez socked a three-run homer in the top of the first and that was all Alvarez would need.

Alvarez won Game One as well, a 9-1 laugher on August 20 that featured a three-run homer by Art Charles. Game Two on August 21 was more of the same, with another Charles three-run blast keying a 5-4 win. The series shifted to Cancun for the next three games, starting with a homer-filled (8 HRs between the two teams) 11-8 Yucatan win last Tuesday in which the Leones were their own worst enemies, with the visitors batting 5-for-19 with runners in scoring position and leaving 13 runners on base. The Tigres showed some fight with a 6-4 Game Four win last Wednesday as Ramon Bramasco lined a dramatic two-run walkoff homer to right center off reliever Tim Peterson on a 1-2 count with two out for the triumph. A  former University of Washington shortstop, Bramasco hit one regular season homer for the Tigres after hitting no roundtrippers in three collegiate seasons. All three games at Cancun’s refurbished Estadio Beto Avila drew in excess of 9,000 fans, nearing the facility’s listed 9,500-seat capacity.

Like their counterparts to the north, the Diablos and Leones have a long history of facing each other over the past seven decades, albeit without the intensity that marks the Tijuana-Monterrey rivalry. Despite both clubs being in the Mexican League for so long, Mexico City and Yucatan have met only 12 times in the playoffs. Although the Diablos have a 7-5 overall advantage, the Leones have topped Mexico City twice (2019 and 2021) for the LMB South championship. This year’s South Division title set will open Tuesday night in Mexico City.

All division championship series games will be available via streaming. The Tijuana-Monterrey LMB North title set is being carried on various ESPN and Star+ channels while the Mexico City-Yucatan LMB South series can be watched on Fox Sports 2, Claro Sports, TUDN, AYM, ViX+, Azteca Deportes, and Sipse. Both series will be streamed live and on-demand on Jonron.TV, as will next month’s Serie del Rey between the two division champions.

ROBERTO OSUNA NOW PITCHING IN JAPANESE LEAGUES

Roberto Osuna, Chiba Lotte Marines

One pitcher who started the 2022 season strong for Mexico City but is not likely to pitch for the Diablos Rojos during the playoffs is former MLB All-Star closer Roberto Osuna.

A nephew of one-time reliever Antonio Osuna, who pitched in 411 games over 11 major league seasons between 1995 and 2005, the younger Osuna had established himself as one of the game’s top closers by averaging 31 saves over a five-year period, gaining an All-Star Game selection in 2014 with Toronto and leading the American League with 38 saves in 2019 for Houston, although a domestic violence charge that was settled out of court hastened his exit from Canada. 

However, the Sinaloa native came down with an elbow injury that erased his 2020 season after just four appearances and the Astros placed him on waivers following the campaign after he turned down Tommy John surgery in favor of a rest-and-rehab approach. After holding a showcase in the Dominican Republic the following March but receiving no offers from an MLB team as a free agent, Osuna then signed with the Diablos Rojos two months later. He spent the rest of the abbreviated 2021 Mexican League season in Mexico City, going 3-0 with 12 saves in 24 appearances and turning in a 1.09 ERA (striking out 27 batters with just three walks in 24.2 innings).

After spending the winter pitching for his hometown Jalisco Charros in the Mexican Pacific League (5-2/11 saves/1.26 ERA in 28 appearances) and making four scoreless outings in the Caribbean Series, Osuna was back in Diablos Rojos togs this season. He got off to a hot start for the Red Devils and was 2-0 with six saves and a 1.35 ERA after his first 12 appearances when he got a call from Japan’s Chiba Lotte Mariners of NPB’s Pacific League and signed a contract with the team on June 11. Terms were not available.

Osuna, who turned 27 in February, has since pitched for both the Marines’ Eastern League affiliate, giving up a pair of runs over three innings in as many relief appearances, but has spent most of the past ten weeks with the big club, where’s he’s been teammates with Mexican National Team member Brandon Laird, former Rangers center fielder Leonys Martin and one-time Marlins infielder Adeiny Hechavarria. 

After 20 games out of the bullpen for the Marines (who are fifth in the Pacific League with a 56-59 record), Osuna is 3-0 with five saves, nine holds and a 0.90 ERA. Continuing to exhibit the pinpoint control he showed in Mexico City, the righty has struck out 23 NPB batters and issued just two walks over 20 innings pitched. The NPB regular season lasts into the first week of October, meaning Osuna’s return to the Diablos Rojos for the playoffs is highly unlikely.

PEREYRA: MEXICAN LEAGUE A HAVEN FOR ABUSERS

            While Major League Baseball is relentless and vetoes violent players, Proceso writer Beatriz Pereyra has written an extensive column that says the Mexican Baseball League opens its doors to them regardless of the complaints they have faced. So far there are eight baseball players who have been kicked off major league teams and their subsidiaries for sexual assault and family violence, mainly, who have been hired by Mexican League teams.             In an interview with Pereyra, LMB president Horacio de la Vega acknowledges that they currently lack protocols to deal with the issue, but advances measures to uproot violent behavior. The following is a recent Proceso column by Pereyra, given the Google Translate treatment:

The Mexican Baseball League has become a refuge for players and managers expelled from Major League Baseball for having engaged in sexual harassment and abuse of women, as well as as domestic violence perpetrated against their partners and children.

From 2018 to date there are at least eight documented cases: Yasiel Puig (Veracruz), Addison Russell and Mickey Callaway (Monclova), Danry Vásquez (Campeche and Aguascalientes), Luke Heimlich (Dos Laredos), Roberto Osuna (Mexico City), Sergio Mitre (Tijuana and Saltillo) and Omar Vizquel (Tijuana).

Of those, only Vasquez, Russell and Callaway have admitted guilt. The rest deny having committed the abuses and there is no evidence that they have been in rehabilitation. There is also no sign that the clubs they come from or joined have clear policies on how to deal with these people, beyond simply firing them or hiring them to give them a second chance.

In February 2021, five women who spoke on condition of anonymity reported to sports information website The Athletic that they were sexually harassed by Mickey Callaway when he served as pitching coach with the Cleveland Indians (2013-2017), manager of the Mets (2018-2019) and pitching coach for the Los Angeles Angels (2020).

According to the accusations, Callaway sent emails, text messages and on social networks in which he even asked them to send him nude photos. He also used to make comments to them about their appearance, making them uncomfortable, and on one occasion he “brought his genitals close to the face of a female reporter” when she was interviewing him.

Following a three-month investigation, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred's Office announced that it has placed Callaway on its list of ineligible managers, meaning no team can sign him. “Having reviewed the evidence, I have come to the conclusion that Mr. Callaway violated MLB policy. Harassment has no place in Major League Baseball and we are committed to providing an appropriate work environment for everyone involved in our game," Manfred said.

Callaway accepted the sanction and limited himself to issuing a statement: “I apologize to the women who shared with the investigators any interaction that made them feel uncomfortable. I never intended to make anyone feel this way and I didn't understand that these interactions could do that or violate MLB policies. I take responsibility for the consequences,” he said.

But Mickey Callaway has nothing to worry about. In Mexico he already has a job. In 2022 he will be the manager of the Monclova Acereros. It is not the first time that this club hired a man who has no place in the Major Leagues.

For the 2021 LMB campaign, one of Monclova’s most striking signings was that of Addison Russell, a former Chicago Cubs infielder who was suspended 40 games for violating the MLB's domestic violence policy.

In October 2018, Manfred announced the punishment when Russell was on administrative leave – he couldn't play, but was paid – while allegations of domestic abuse made by his ex-wife were investigated.

"My office has completed its investigation into allegations that Addison Russell violated MLB's domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy." The player accepted the punishment and decided not to appeal the suspension.

Domestic violence allegations against Russell were posted by a third party on social media in 2017, but the player's then-wife refused to speak to MLB. In September 2018, the victim confirmed that she did suffer physical and emotional abuse during her two-year marriage.

Not only did the Monclova Acereros resort to hiring former major league players who, unable to get a contract in the United States, saw in Mexican baseball the opportunity to continue playing.

The Campeche Piratas did it with Danry Vásquez, who in August 2016 attacked his partner on the ballpark steps of the Corpus Christi Hooks, a Class AA minor league affiliate of the Houston Astros.

When the images were made public in March 2018, they were used as evidence to open a case against him. After he was arrested, Vasquez was released on bail and reached a plea deal. The case was later dismissed, the player paid a fine and promised not to attack a person with whom he was in a romantic relationship again.

Vasquez apologized in court to fans because his behavior "was unprofessional." By then, he was under contract to a team in Pennsylvania, the Lancaster Barnstormers who fired him as soon as the video was made public.

“As soon as the nature of the incident became apparent, the Barnstormers decided to sever the link. There’s no other option but to end the relationship. Neither I, nor the Barnstormers as an organization, can condone or be associated with this behavior," Lancaster manager Ross Peeples said.

The video shows how Vásquez slaps his girlfriend, knocks her down with the blow, drags her down the stairs. In a break he hits her in the face again, she falls from her and picks her up violently. The images were captured by the stadium's security cameras.

After having played in 2018 with Campeche, the player has been on the roster of the Aguascalientes Rieleros in the 2019 and 2021 campaigns.

From Heimlich to Mitre

The first LMB team to start signing players with a history of violence against women was the Dos Laredos Tecolotes. In March 2019 they announced the hiring of Luke Heimlich, a pitcher who shone at Oregon State University and was considered one of the best prospects in college baseball in the United States.

Despite his talent, he was not drafted by an MLB team when it became known that in 2012 he pleaded guilty to sexually abusing his six-year-old niece when he was 15 years old. In statements to the press, Heimlich has denied that he committed the abuse and that if he pleaded guilty, it was because of the poor advice he received.

In an interview for the Hitazo baseball website, the president of the Tecolotes, José Antonio Mansur, declared that his intention was to give the player a second chance. “The LMB has all his criminal records, in addition to a letter from MLB indicating that he is not suspended; so it is a matter of seeing if we are going to crucify a man for life or give him a second chance, as it should be.

“It would be a good example of how someone who is already free, who has already paid for his mistake, can rejoin. After discussing it with my family, I think he deserves it. We shouldn't close the doors to a 23-year-old boy for his own good and to show that the LMB is open to reincorporating people,” said Mansur.

In May 2018, 23-year-old pitcher Roberto Osuna was arrested by Toronto police while playing for the Blue Jays. The arrest was due to a complaint from his partner, who accused him of having beaten her. After serving a 75-game suspension, Osuna was traded to the Houston Astros.

The case remained in limbo when the complainant stated that she would not appear in court to testify. The parties signed a peace bond and the charges were dropped. In August of that year, Osuna gave an interview to USA Today in which he assured that the fans have judged him without really knowing what happened. He did not talk about the details of the case, but anticipated that the truth would be known soon, which never happened.

In April 2021, the Veracruz Águilas announced that former major leaguer Yasiel Puig would wear their uniform. After spending time with the Dodgers, and a brief stint in Cincinnati and Cleveland, the player did not get a contract for the 2020 season.

Puig arrived in Mexico with the shadow of the accusation of a woman who denounced him for having sexually violated her during a basketball game, accusations that he has denied and for which he considers that the doors to return to the MLB have been closed.

An investigation by the Washington Post revealed last December that since 2017 two other women had signed confidentiality agreements with Puig: they received money in exchange for not making public that they were sexually assaulted and beaten by the player.

Puig denied all three accusations and clarified that having paid does not imply that he is responsible for what he is accused of. The Cuban will not return to Mexican baseball in 2022, as he signed a contract with a South Korean league team.

In October 2020, when there was no LMB season as a result of the pandemic, Blanca García, wife of Omar Vizquel, announced that the former major league player, an 11-time Gold Glove winner, was physically and psychologically abusing her. The Venezuelan was then serving as manager of the Tijuana Toros.

In the multiple complaints she made in different media and on her social network accounts, García also aired an incident that Vizquel had when he was manager of a team in the Minor Leagues: “It made me very disgusted and very indignant and that was the point of breakup that I couldn't take anymore, because the abuse wasn't just me. That was a big part of what led me to make the decision to divorce.”

In August 2021, two weeks after the Toros removed Vizquel as manager,the complaint was made public that one of the bat boys of the Birmingham Barons, the double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, filed for sexual conduct aggressive. The young man, who suffers from autism, recounted how Vizquel exposed himself naked to him, forced him to rub his back and deliberately showed him his member.

In a statement, the club reported: "After first becoming aware of an alleged incident in late August 2019, Chicago conducted an internal investigation that resulted in termination of employment with Vizquel."

On December 27, Vizquel announced that the divorce process with his wife had already concluded and that the judge dismissed the charges of gender violence. Regarding the bat boy's lawsuit, he said that, since the case is still open, he cannot comment, but he denied the facts and announced that "it will also be clarified."

Sergio Mitre, 41, is currently being tried for the femicide of Inés, one year and 10 months old, the daughter of his ex-partner Liliana, who points out that he had beaten the girl until she died (NOTE: Mitre has been found guilty and faces up to 60 years in prison). However, the player carries a history of violence from the United States, where he has attacked ex-partners, minors and animals.

In Mexico since September 2019, a video has been made public where the player is seen running naked from a hotel room in Saltillo chasing a woman, also without clothes, whom he dragged back to the room in front of security personnel.

As a result of what happened that night, Sergio Mitre was arrested, spent four days in jail, was prosecuted for domestic violence and the case ended in a conditional suspension. The process consists of the aggressor acknowledging his responsibility and agreeing to comply with a series of reparations and protection measures for the victim.

The Saltillo Saraperos, who initially condemned the violent acts and suspended the player indefinitely, rehired him for 2020. At the beginning of that year he met Liliana and Inés, and while the LMB was inactive – as a result of the pandemic – the girl's murder happened.

Code of ethics

The president of the LMB, Horacio de la Vega, tells Proceso that while Mitre's trial is over, the league has permanently suspended him.

“In the case of players or managers who’ve had this type of unacceptable behavior and who are currently active in the league,” said de la Vega, “it is for such individuals to take responsibility for their actions and reinsert themselves into professional sports in an impeccable way, with exemplary behavior in all aspects of his life, in particular his behavior towards women, and that his activity in professional sports serves as a second chance to make up for his faults.”

The president acknowledges that the LMB lacks a policy to act in this type of case, but that "it is respectful of the autonomy of its clubs and the hiring of personnel."

However, he anticipates that for the 2022 season a Code of Ethics will come into force, "an unprecedented effort in the almost 100 years of existence of the league" which will include precautionary measures and the uprooting of violent behavior against women. He also said that the LMB will develop permanent campaigns for the prevention of gender violence and will teach courses to suppress "incorrectly normalized behavior in our society."

The central task, he adds, "will be prevention, awareness and education to have players with social awareness, gender and values ​​that promote inclusion and equality. We will be very respectful of authority, and if there are players who are legally impeded to participate in our circuit, what is available will be followed.

“The position of the LMB is that any offender be prosecuted, in accordance with all applicable laws in Mexico, as well as with the legal systems of other countries. In the event that the authorities require the support of the LMB, it will be granted.

"Similarly, at the time there are accusations of any kind against personnel of any of the clubs, the league will proceed accordingly with exhaustive investigations."

MEXICO BLANKS COLOMBIA, 1-0 FOR FIRST CS WIN

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

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

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

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

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

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

CARIBBEAN SERIES FIRST ROUND STANDINGS

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

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

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

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

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

JUAN CASTRO TO MANAGE DIABLOS ROJOS IN 2022

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

OSUNA DOMINANT WITH DIABLOS, EYES RETURN TO MLB

Mexico City closer Roberto Osuna

    Former MLB All-Star relief pitcher Roberto Osuna has made the most of what he hopes will be a short stay in the Mexican League this year. Heading into the weekend, the 26-year-old righthander had yet to allow an earned run on seven hits over twelve appearances for the Mexico City Diablos Rojos, winning one game and saving six more while striking out twelve batters and walking none in 12.1 innings of work.

    While much of that was undone by one awful outing on Saturday night against Guadalajara, in which Osuna gave up three runs in one-third of one inning (including homers by Jesse Castillo and Anthony Garcia) and took the loss in a 6-3 defeat at the hands of the visiting Mariachis, the Sinaloa native appears to be back from an elbow injury that derailed his 2020 season with the Houston Astros and may be back in Major League Baseball sooner rather than later.

    Osuna has been a big part of the Diablos' strong start to the 2021 season as Mexico City leads the LMB South with a 22-15 record, although they've dropped five games in a row after being swept at home by the Mariachis over the weekend. Red Devils manager Miguel Ojeda, himself a former major league catcher, thinks it's just a matter of time before an MLB organization brings Osuna back across the border. “He's shown that he's healthy and ready to return,” says Ojeda. “It's just a matter of days and I think he's going to be back in the major leagues. We talk a lot and he tells me he has two real offers.”

    The 6'2” 217-pounder spent six seasons in the big leagues with Toronto and Houston, posting a 14-18 record with 155 saves to go along with a 2.74 ERA in 314 appearances. Osuna was chosen for the 2017 All-Star Game while with the Blue Jays and led the American League with 39 saves as the Astros closer, appearing with Houston in that season's World Series. While an alleged domestic violence incident that never went to trial resulted in a 75-game suspension to close the door on his time in Toronto before being traded in 2018, Osuna headed into the 2020 campaign as a 25-year-old star with one year left on his contract for $10 million and a strong future seemingly ahead of him.

    Instead, Osuna came down with pitching elbow miseries, appearing in only four games before being shut down for the campaign in August. The Astros recommended Tommy John surgery, but Osuna refused and the team placed him on waivers after the season, making him a free agent. When a showcase in the Dominican Republic drew no offers, he signed a one-year contract with the Diablos, the team he made his pro debut with in 2011 at age 16.

    Now that he's showing signs that his arm is recovered, Osuna says he's going to concentrate on getting the job done in Mexico City until an acceptable offer from an MLB organization is made. “I do have a couple of offers out there which I'm still analyzing to see which is the best one,” he said at a press conference last week. “My priority is to stay healthy because I know what I'm capable of when I'm healthy. I've been enjoying every day being with the Diablos and my goal is to help as much as I can.” He added that he'd enjoy pitching for Mexico and Benji Gil at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo if that opportunity arrives.

    The Diablos' recent tailspin has allowed Yucatan to pull to within a half-game at 21-15. The Leones have gone 7-4 since Geronimo Gil was fired last month and have yet to announce the ex-MLBer's replacement. It's assumed that bench coach Chico Rodriguez, a Salon de la Fama member hired the day Gil was canned, is calling the shots, but who knows? Puebla is one game behind the Diablos in third place with a 21-16 mark while Veracruz is right behind in fourth at 21-17. With six teams per division reaching the playoffs this year, there's a spirited three-way battle for the final two LMB South berths between Tabasco (18-20) and both Leon and Quintana Roo (18-21 each).

Bartolo Colon now tied for LMB wins lead

   The LMB North is a two-team race right now, with 26-9 Guadalajara one game ahead of 27-12 Tijuana. Saltillo has won eight of their last ten games to pull into a tie with defending champion Monclova, four games behind the Mariachis with identical 24-15 records. Dos Laredos (17-21) is in fifth place while Laguna (16-20) is sixth. Monterrey (15-21), where expectations are high, continues to struggle. The Sultanes have already brought back third baseman Augie Murillo from de facto farm team Leon (the two clubs are co-owned by Grupo Multimedios) and it would no be out of the question that Monterrey could engineer another player swap with the Bravos to bolster their roster.

    Bartolo Colon's comeback continued as the former Cy Young winner by picking up his fifth win for Monclova last week, tying him with Guadalajara's Masaru Nakamura for the LMB lead. The 48-year-old Colon has tossed a league-leading 50.1 innings over eight starts, striking out 34 while walking just nine batters. Former Mariners minor league reliever Rafael Pineda has been converted to a starter with Union Laguna and the former Texas A&M hurler has a 2.31 ERA after seven starts to lead all qualifying pitchers. Aguascalientes' Erick Leal (3-1, 4.22) ranks first with 43 strikeouts in 32 innings, or 12.1 per nine innings for the former Cubs farmhand. Tijuana closer Fernando Rodney, who saved 318 games in 17 MLB seasons (ranking 18^th all-time), now leads the Mexican League in salvados with 11. The 44-year-old Rodney has struck out 20 over 18 innings while lowering his ERA to 1.00 for the Toros.

    Four players are still batting above .400, led by Saltillo's Henry Urrutia at .439. Xavier Batista, who came to Leon in the Murillo trade is tops with 13 homers (all hit during his 25 games for the Bravos after hitting none over 13 games with the Sultanes). Batista belted 62 homers over 261 games for Hiroshima in NPB between 2017 and 2019. Tijuana's Leandro Castro is ten RBIs ahead of his nearest competitor with 48 RBIs and Toros teammate Isaac Rodriguez (a .407 batter) leads with 15 stolen bases.

WRITER ACCUSES DE LA VEGA, CONADE OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Lopez Obrador, Pasquel and de la Vega

   Mexican League president Horacio de la Vega is finding himself embroiled in another controversy. According to Alejandra Crail of the EME/EQUIS digital news site, a fledgling company in which the former two-time Olympic pentathlete is majority owner was awarded a no-bid contract worth almost 11 million pesos by the federal Commission of Physical Culture and Sports. CONADE is headed by another ex-Olympian, Ana Guevara, who represented Mexico in the 2000 Sydney Summer Games as a track athlete along with de la Vega.

    De la Vega's company, Hype Fund, was formed in May 2019, six months after being replaced as director of Mexico City's Sports Institute (INDEPORTE), a job he'd held for six years, to succeed Javier Salinas as president of the LMB. Hype Fund received a contract of 10.994 million pesos to refurbish a pavilion at the National Center for Development of Talent and High Performance (CNAR) in which basketball, volleyball and team handball are played, including replacing vinyl flooring on a multisport playing surface and installing a portable wooden basketball court.

    The contract, which was the highest awarded by CONADE in 2020, was signed at approximately the same time it was announced that the Mexican League had awarded Veracruz an expansion team for this year at a ceremony in the National Palace overseen by Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and attended by de la Vega along with representatives of both new franchises in Veracruz and Guadalajara, including Aguilas owner Bernardo Pasquel (pictured above). A related story in Proceso says the Veracruz team fulfilled a campaign promise by AMLO to facilitate the return of the Mexican League to the port city.

    In her EME/EQUIS story, Crail says the contract “represents a conflict of interest given the closeness that exists between Horacio de la Vega and Ana Guevara, director of CONADE, as well as with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, with whom de la Vega has close relationships.” Guevara was appointed by AMLO shortly after he took office in late 2018 to serve as CONADE's executive director, a position de la Vega had been considered for prior to his selection and LMB president.

    The CONADE contract represents the only such deal between Hype Fund and a federal or local governmental entity, although the company has also inked a pact to represent the MONDO sports flooring of Italy. MONDO presumably will play a role in replacing the playing surfaces at the CNAR facility in Mexico City, which was opened in 2006 by former Mexican president and houses over 500 young athletes in several sports.

Pavilion due for Hype Sports renovation

    In an interview with EME/EQUIS, de la Vega denied that his role as a supporter has opened doors for him to obtain contracts with the AMLO administration. “It has nothing to do with it, I openly tell you. The government people have no idea that I am the legal representative. There is a work team that does it...I do not influence it at all and there is no relationship. We are all trying to work on various things, to make our way.

    “I was fortunate that they hired me in some other places: the Pan American Games in Lima as general advisor, in Chile, and then I brought the representation of MONDO in Mexico, which is a most important sports equipment company, characterized by making the running tracks from Montreal 76. You scrub and work your best. There is no relationship between these situations.”

    De la Vega is also one of three people facing criminal complaint charges from the mayor in Mexico City borough Iztalcalco of “fraudulant administration” stemming from his leadership at the National Sports Institute between 2013 and 2018, including allegations that he awarded contracts far exceeding the value of work done on projects within the Sports City complex.

    Among those were construction of an artificial lake for 15 million pesos to be used for swimming, diving and water skiing. The lake, which displaced five soccer fields and four basketball courts, is currently inoperative. In all, de La Vega and former Mexico City mayor Miguel Angel Mancera are rumored to have privatized 70 percent of the Sports City complex with no appreciable benefit to the government that owns it.

RAMOS SUFFERS SPINAL INJURY, RELEASED BY KBO TEAM

Roberto Ramos is out in South Korea

    After last year's standout Korea Baseball Organization debut with the LG Twins, Roberto Ramos has seen his 2021 KBO season cut short after suffering an injury to fifth spinal nerve in his lower back. The Hermosillo native had been struggling in his second season with the Twins, but was still reportedly under consideration as a first baseman for the Mexican Olympic Team in Tokyo later this summer.

    Ramos was hurt on Tuesday, June 8 in Seoul during the eighth inning of a game against the NC Dinos. While fielding a grounder hit in the hole between first and second by the Dinos' Lee Myung-ki, according to South Korea's News1, Ramos wrenched his back when he attempted to throw the ball to first base to beat Lee to the bag.

    Ramos was pulled from the game and did not appear again in the Twins lineup up to his June 29 release by the Twins, who two days earlier signed former Marlins first sacker Justin Bour, who hit .213 with six homers in 33 games for AAA Sacramento this year before the parent San Francisco Giants released him from his contract so he could play in Korea.

    It was a frustrating end to a frustrating season for Ramos, who was batting .243 with eight roundtrippers and 25 RBIs in 51 games for the Twins this year. The former Rockies minor leaguer had gone 2-for-4 in the game against the Dinos before getting hurt and went 2-for-3 with a homer and three RBIs two nights before against the KIA Tigers to raise his average 13 points over his last two games.

    In 2020, Ramos burst on the KBO scene by swatting 38 longballs to shatter the Twins' previous single-season record of 30 homers by Lee Byung-kyu in 1999 while topping Karim Garcia's old standard for Mexicans playing in Korea of 30 homers. Garcia set the mark in 2008 with the Lotte Giants.

    Ramos' performance translated to a large raise from the Twins in 2021 after he'd explored playing in Japan, where salaries are higher. After being paid a reported $500,000 last year, Ramos came to terms with the Twins for a $600,000 salary plus a $200,000 signing bonus and performance incentives that would have paid up to another $200,000.

    Instead, the former College of the Canyons star (who hit 62 homers over his last two seasons in the Rockies system before heading overseas) is now a free agent. There's a chance Ramos will play an eighth Mexican Pacific League season for hometown Hermosillo Naranjeros this winter after some rehab time but for now, the 6'3” 220-pound free agent is weighing his options.

“JUGAR A LA PELOTA!” LIGA OPENS 2021 SEASON

Monclova Acereros P Bartolo Colon

    The Mexican League played its first regular games since September 2019 over the weekend, starting last Thursday night when defending champion Monclova bopped visiting Monterrey, 9-3, behind the arm of Bartolo Colon and the bats of Erick Aybar and Chris Carter. Colon, the American League's 2005 Cy Young Award winner, tossed five innings for the Acereros, throwing 91 pitches (57 for strikes) while giving up one earned run on five hits before being replaced by Zach Phillips in the sixth frame.

    Despite allowing a solo homer by Sultanes centerfielder Jose Cardona to lead off the top of the third, Colon (who turns 48 on Monday) pitched well enough to earn the win in the first game of the 2021 LMB season. After the contest the 21-year MLB veteran said, “The hills are old but they still turn green.” Aybar aided the Monclova cause with three hits and an RBI while Carter (who led the Liga with 49 homers in 2019) socked a solo blast.

Tabasco OF Jovan Rosa

    The rest of the LMB swung into action Friday with a full slate of games. One of them, the Dos Laredos Tecolotes opening series against Tijuana had to be shifted from Nuevo Laredo's La Junta Park across the border to Texas' Laredo Ballpark after a rainstorm with winds topping 90 MPH swept through the Mexican border city last Monday, causing flooding and electrical problems. The Toros ended up winning Friday night's opener, 8-3, behind homers by Peter O'Brien and Leandro Castro while Balbino Fuenmayor launched a roundtripper for the Tecos.

    Among Friday's other LMB lid-lifters, Adrian Gonzalez drove in five runs as the expansion Guadalajara Mariachis topped the Durango Generales, 12-3; Roberto Osuna tossed a 1-2-3 ninth inning to seal the Mexico City Diablos' 8-4 triumph over visiting Veracruz at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu; Henry Urrutia went 4-for-5, driving in two runs and scoring twice as Saltillo overwhelmed Aguascalientes, 10-2; Michael Choice collected four hits and two runs as every Laguna batsman had at least one hit in the Algodoneros' 15-7 triumph over Leon in Torreon; Puebla clobbered Oaxaca, 16-9, as David Olmedo-Barrera and Danny Ortiz combined for six RBIs as the Pericos posted 19 hits on the night; and Tabasco slipped past Quintana Roo, 2-1, in 12 innings at Villahermosa on Jovan Rosa's walkoff RBI single. The entire Campeche-Yucatan series in Campeche was rained out.

    Following Sunday's games, four LMB North teams ended the weekend without a loss. Monclova, Guadalajara and Laguna are all 3-0 as of Monday morning while Tijuana is 2-0. Conversely, Monterrey, Durango and Leon show 0-3 records and Dos Laredos is 0-2.

LMB LAUNCHES JONRON TV, EXPECTS UP TO 10K SUBSCRIBERS

    The Mexican League unveiled another facet of their expanded digital presence for the 2021 season last week when they unveiled their new Jonron TV, from which subscriptions to view LMB games this year are now available. Proceso's Beatriz Pereyra filed this translated report:

    The Mexican League announced the implementation of its channel for subscribers from the season which will allow it to generate revenues of between 50 million and 100 million pesos during the next three years.

    At a press conference, the president of the LMB, Horacio de la Vega, presented Jonrón TV, a platform to which fans will be able to subscribe for 449 pesos (with a discount) and a 549 pesos regular price per season.

    According to their estimates for the 2021 campaign, they expect between 5,000 and 10,000 people to subscribe, a figure that by 2024 should increase substantially.

    “Other platforms have between 50 thousand and 100 thousand subscribers. Our goal is that in three years we'll have between 50 and 100 million pesos of profits. There is a free pre-registration on Jonrón TV for people to experience,” de la Vega explained.

    Likewise, de la Vega said that the names of two other television channels where LMB games will be broadcast will be announced shortly, and that they will join ESPN, Channel 11, Multimedios and Azteca Digital: “On all these platforms we will reach more than 32 million homes on open television and another 20 million on pay television models where the 594 games of the regular season plus the playoffs can be seen.

   “We are going to have four or five times more income from the sale of television rights than in 2019 and since the agreements we signed are for more than three years for the most part, almost all of them have an increasing scale so that they are more productive until reaching 40% more than what we generate right now,” he explained.

    According to LMB figures, in 2019, five million people attended LMB games at a baseball stadium and the league has 4.9 million followers on social media.

    “We will reach more than 30 million people on the different platforms. If you don't see baseball, we are not going to grow in fans. We have to position our stars and carry out a very powerful marketing project,” emphasized de la Vega.

    For his part, the director of Marketing and Communications of the LMB, Alberto Guadarrama, asserted that the league's project is aimed at “offering baseball both to traditional audiences and to new generations who have different forms of consumption such as more short videos (highlights) and thus hook these new baseball fans.”

LIDDI DEALT TO MEXICALI IN SIX-PLAYER LMP SWAP

Former Mazatlan IF Alex Liddi

   Former MLB infielder Alex Liddi has been sent by the Mazatlan Venados to Mexicali as part of a six-player Mexican Pacific League trade last week. Relief pitcher Felipe Arredondo and first baseman Fernando Diaz were packaged with Liddi to the Aguilas while infielders Hector Hernandez and Alex Valdez went to Mazatlan along with pitcher Juan Pablo Tellez. The 6'4” Liddi (who turns 33 in August) played parts of three seasons for Seattle between 2011 and 2013, batting .208 with six homers and 16 RBIs over 61 MLB games after debuting in the Mariners organization as a 17-year-old in 2006.

    Liddi was traded to Baltimore during the 2013 season, starting an eight-year odyssey that saw the native of San Remo, Italy play in four big league minor league systems, Taiwan, Mexico and winterball stints in both the LMP and Puerto Rico. Liddi spent two seasons with Mazatlan, struggling to a .187 average over 39 games with the Venados in 2019-20 after batting .278 with four homers in 63 games the previous season. Last winter, he hit .242 with one homer over 17 games with Manati in Puerto Rico. The only native Italian to play in both MLB and the CPBL, Liddi will play this summer with the Mexican League's Yucatan Leones in Merida, where he now lives year-round.

    Arredondo, a 34-year-old righty, is a former Angels minor leaguer who has pitched in the Mexican League since 2011 (currently with Quintana Roo). He pitched briefly for his hometown Culiacan Tomateros in 2010-11 and has pitched for three LMP teams the past two winters. After going 2-0 with a 2.75 ERA for Jalisco last winter, he was traded to Mazatlan during the season and was 0-1 with a 13.50 ERA in two appearances. Diaz is a 19-year-old Ensenada product who hit .270 with six homers in 54 games for the Cardinals Dominican Summer League rookie team in 2019 before becoming one of the hundreds of victims of MLB's minor league purge last year.

Aguilas trade vet IF Hector Hernandez

     Hernandez is a longtime veteran infielder in both Mexican leagues. The 38-year-old Cosamaloapan product is capable of playing both left side positions as well as second base. He debuted in the LMB with Veracruz and played for Los Mochis that winter. He's gone on to play for nine LMB teams in 15 years, his last two for Yucatan in 2018 and 2019, and has a career .278 batting average over 1,234 games. In the Mex Pac, Hernandez appeared for three clubs in ten winters (the past five for Mexicali). As a utilityman for the Aguilas in 2020-21, he batted .268 in 83 plate appearances during 24 games.

    Valdez spent nine years in the Athletics organization and has also played with minor league teams in the Nationals and Red Sox systems. The Dominican corner infielder (who can also play second base) came to the Mexican League in 2011 and has hit .302 with 14 homers in eight seasons, splitting the 2019 campaign between Yucatan, Oaxaca and Mexico City. Valdez is a 13-year veteran of winterball, mostly in the Liga Dominicana. He hit .455 in seven games for the Aguilas 2019-20.

    Tellez is a 21-year-old right-hander who was a reliever in the 2019 Latin American Series for the old Xalapa Chileros and is now on the roster of the Mexican League's expansion Veracruz Aguilas.