ORANGEMEN HOLD OFF MOCHIS, WIN 1ST HALF CROWN

Hermosillo pitcher Elian Leyva

    Schedule makers have rarely been as prescient as those who cobbled together the Mexican Pacific League's first-half schedule for the 2022-23 season. As luck (or “something”) would have it, that first half came down to its final day on Sunday before a champion could be crowned and given the 10.0 playoff points that come with finishing in first place.

    The Hermosillo Naranjeros, who had led the LMP standings most of the season, showed a 20-14 record and a one-game lead over 19-15 Los Mochis heading into Sunday's showdown between the two clubs at Estadio Sonora. If the Caneros prevailed, they'd have vaulted into a tie for first with the Naranjeros and the first-half championship by virtue of having more wins than losses against the Orangemen. In fact, the Mex Pac standings were so tight that a four-way tie for first was mathematically possible, which would've led to calculators (or slide rules for stubborn traditionalists) being brought out to determine just who DID finish first.

    Fortunately, the mathematicians have been spared as the Naranjeros recorded a 6-1 win over Los Mochis in front of 10,808 spectators. Hermosillo starter Elian Leyva, who has become one of the top pitchers in Mexican baseball, turned in a solid performance over six innings, allowing one run on three hits while striking out nine Caneros and throwing 63 strikes on his 95 pitches to even his record at 2-2.

    The game was tighter than the final score implies, however, as the score was knotted at 1-1 until the bottom of the sixth inning when veteran Tomas Solis replaced starter Luis Miranda on the mound for Los Mochis. It took three pitches for slugger Roberto Ramos to send a Solis delivery over the right-center field wall to give Hermosillo the lead and the Naranjeros went on to score four more runs in the frame, two coming in on a Jose Carmona single off another reliever, Miguel Vazquez.

    After that, it was left to ex-Padres starter Cesar Vargas and former Mets prospect Thomas McIlraith to shut down the Caneros on one hit over the final three innings to clinch first place and the points. Roel Santos, Ramon Mendoza and Jasson Atondo each had two hits for the winners (Atondo contributing an RBI single in the fourth to give Hermosillo a 1-0 lead). Isaac Rodriguez' game-tying single in the fifth was one of three hits on the night for the Caneros' leadoff hitter and second sacker. Miranda allowed his first run of the season in his seventh start on Atondo's single but it was Solis who took the loss for Los Mochis.

    Elsewhere in the winter circuit Sunday, Guasave snuck past Navojoa, 2-1, on Erisbel Arruebarrena's walk-off RBI single to overtake Los Mochis for second place (and 9.0 points) with a 20-15 record. The Mayos finished the half at 16-19 and in a three-way tie for sixth with Mexicali and Monterrey. Monterrey scored five times in the seventh as Alex Liddi stroked a two-run double to beat Mexicali, Mexicali, 8-3.

    Mazatlan and Obregon joined Los Mochis in a tie for third with 19-16 records. The Venados dropped a 5-0 shutout against visiting Jalisco (15-20) as U-23 World Cup star Alemao Hernandez blanked the Deer over five innings while Obregon snuck past Culiacan (14-21) by a 5-4 count when Juan Carlos Gamboa scored all the way from first on Allen Cordoba's walk-off single in the bottom of the tenth to send 10,228 fanaticos at Estadio Yaquis home happy.

    Monterrey's Roberto Valenzuela leads the batting race with a .385 average, well ahead of Jalico's Fernando Villegas (.348) and veteran third baseman Rudy Amador of Los Mochis (.341). Anthony Giansanti of Mexicali has nine homers to lead four other players with six longballs apiece. Obregon's 1-2 puch of Yadir Drake and Victor Mendoza share the RBI lead with 26 each, one more than Christian Villanueva of Jalisco. Hermosillo's Jose Cardona stole his first base in seven games to take a one-pilfer lead over Randy Romero of Mazatlan, 15 to 14. Romero swiped five bases in one seven-game stretch earlier this month.

    It remains crowded at the top of the pitching wins list with a cast of thousands (okay, okay, a cast of seven) showing four victories each. Among those hurlers, Nico Tellache of Guasave (1.66) and Juan Pablo Oramas of Hermosillo (1.69) trail only Los Mochis' Luis Miranda (0.24) in the ERA derby after the latter allowed his first run Sunday in Hermosillo. Oramas' Naranjeros moundmate, Touki Toussaint, leads the LMP with 41 strikeouts, just ahead of the 40 by Matt Pobereyko of Guasave while Culiacan vet Manny Barreda is third with 39 whiffs. Colombian closer Elkin Alcala of Mazatlan had two saves last week to bring his season total to 12, followed by the 10 of Guasave's Brandon Koch and Jake Sanchez of Mexicali.

    With everyone's slate wiped clean, six weeks of second-half action will begin Tuesday night with the first of five three-game midweek series.


LMB AWARDS: TOROS' PEREZ NAMED MVP FOR 2022

Mexican League 2022 MVP Felix Perez

    Tijuana Toros designated hitter Felix Perez has been named the Mexican League's Most Valuable Player for 2022. He becomes the second consecutive Tijuana player to be accorded MVP honors after outfielder Leandro Castro won in 2021 and first Cubano to win it since Monterrey's Michel Abreu in 2012. Perez was also named the Liga's Comeback Player of the Year.

    Perez, who celebrated his 38th birthday last week, is a Cuba native who played three seasons for his hometown Isla de la Juventud Toronjeros in the Cuban National Series before defecting from the island nation in 2008. He subsequently signed with Cincinnati and spent five seasons in the Reds system between 2010 and 2014, including two years in AAA Louisville, batting a combined .281 with 33 homers and 241 RBIs in 532 games.

    The 6'2” lefty hitter known as “El Nino” south of the border made his LMB debut in 2015 with Monterrey and hit over .300 for the Sultanes two years before signing with the Rakuten in Japan's NPB for the rest of the 2016 campaign, hitting .238 in 24 games. Perez returned to Mexico for good in 2017 and has also spent time with Aguascalientes and Leon before coming to Tijuana this year after only batting .200 with three homers over 17 games for the Bravos in 2021.

    Perez made the most of his first season in the border city in 2022 by hitting .323 with 38 homers and 109 RBIs over 87 games and missing just three contests for the Toros, who finished the regular season under manager Homar Rojas with an Liga-best 62-28 record before falling to rival Monterrey in the LMB North finals. Perez tied Saltillo's Rainel Rosario for most homers, was second to Rosario's 116 ribbies, finished in the top ten for total bases, slugging percentage and on-base+slugging and came in eleventh with 73 runs scored.

    Beyond the numbers, Toros sports manager Ricardo Williamson says the veteran Perez served as a team leader and mentor to younger TJ players. “He is a very important pillar for veterans and young people for their journey in baseball,” Williamson states. “He pushed others to be better. He is a great player and a great human being of good mood and happy.” Toros press officer Armando Esquivel confirmed Williamson's assessment of Perez. “He was an immediate leader,” said Esquivel. “There are natural leaders and Felix was integrated from the first days. He teamed up and was one of the most appreciated.”

    Other Mexican League postseason honorees include Yucatan skipper Roberto “Chapo” Vizcarra as Manager of the Year after leading the Leones to the 2022 pennant, Monterrey closer Neftali Feliz (24 saves) as Reliever of the Year, Sultanes starter Yohander Mendez (7-0, 2.78 ERA) as Pitcher of the Year, Veracruz pitcher Luis Marquez (9-1, 2.38) as Rookie of the Year and Union Laguna center fielder Edgar Robles (.990 fielding percentage) as Defensive Player of the Year.


LIGA RELEASES 2023 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE

Tabasco Omecas to host 2023 LMB All-Stars

    The Mexican League has announced its official schedule for the 2023 regular season. “Play ball!” will first be heard on Thursday, April 20 at Estadio Domingo Santana when the current champion Yucatan Leones visit the Leon Bravos.

    The regular season will open for the remaining 16 teams one night later (including when the Quintana Roo Tigres are welcomed by their longtime rival Mexico City Diablos Rojos at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium in the nation's capital) on Friday, April 21. The rest of the Friday night inaugurals will be Tijuana at Veracruz, Aguascalientes at Monclova, Saltillo at Guadalajara, Durango at Nuevo Laredo, Monterrey at Union Laguna, Tabasco at Oaxaca and Campeche at Puebla.

    The weekend of the All-Star Game, to be played in Villahermosa, Tabasco, will be from June 16 to 18. The Olmecas finished a surprising 47-37 under manager Pedro Mere in 2022 (who coaxed .311/7/24 numbers over 43 games from ex-MLB star Pablo “Kung Fu Panda” Sandoval), while playing home games at makeshift Estadio Angel Toledo Meza in Macuspana while renovations were being done on Parque Centenario de Febrero 27 in Villahermosa.The latter was opened in 1964 and served as home to Tabasco's Mexican League teams from 1975 until the federally-funded facelift began in late 2021. The ballpark will seat 16,500 spectators when it's reopened next year to house a team that averaged 1,911 in attendance for 2022.

    As in 2022, the LMB schedule will be 90 games per team (equivalent to 810 games in total for the regular season), and when the postseason is added there will be about 900 matches in all. The same competition system of 2020 and 2021 will be maintained, with a continuous season (no first or second halfs) and six qualified teams per divison based on the percentage of won and lost will qualify for the postseason.

    The regular circuit campaign will end on Sunday, August 6. The postseason will begin on August 8 in the South Zone and on August 9 in the North Zone. The “lucky loser” system will be used again in which winners of each of three first round series in each division will be joined in their respective Division Semifinals by a fourth club that fared the best among the three losing teams.

    In all, there will be four playoff stages, all in a best-of-7 format:
DIVISION FIRST ROUND (1v6, 2v5, 3v4) between August 8 and 16
DIVISION SEMIFINALS between August 18 and 27
DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIPS between August 28 and September 6
LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP (Serie del Rey) between September 8 through 16

    Here is a link to the complete Mexican League schedule for 2023:
    https://bit.ly/3XfMn1l

Alvarez shipped to Yucatan; Vaqueros fans talking boycott

LMB All-Star first baseman Ricky Alvarez

Syndicate baseball.  While ownership of multiple teams in the same league is something not allowed in Major League Baseball since the Robison brothers' transfer of top players from their Cleveland team to their St. Louis franchise led to the disastrous 20-134 Spiders of 1899, the Mexican League has no such problem.  In fact, incoming LMB president Javier Salinas has said he approves of such arrangements, stating that it's better to have one financially capable owner of two teams than an underfinanced owner of one.  Although there's some logic behind that viewpoint, fans in Puebla and now Laguna would be hard-pressed to agree that they're being well-served by owners who consider their local team as the lesser part of their respective equations.

We've already seen the core players of Puebla's 2016 Liga championship team shifted to Monclova prior to this season by owner Gerardo Benavides, whose grandfather founded the Acereros and desperately wants his hometown to fly its first LMB pennant this year.  Although the Pericos have brought in enough decent replacements to hold third place in the South Division standings at the All-Star Break, that is more the result of belonging to a division in which only Yucatan has a winning record.  With their current 32-33 record, the Parrots would be looking up at six teams in the LMB North rather than trail second-place Quintana Roo by just a half-game in the LMB South.  Not so coincidentally, attendance at Puebla's Estadio Hermanos Serdan has dropped from an average of 4,314 in 2016 to 3,241 per opening in 2017, a decline of 25 percent.  Then again, the Pericos were last in the LMB attendance derby in 2015 with a 2,316 per game average so one could say it's all relative, but it's been made clear to people in the colonial city who DO follow baseball that their team is not a priority to their team's owner.

Now let's shift attention to the Union Laguna Vaqueros.  The Mexican League has had a presence in the Torreon-Gomez Palacio area as far back as 1940, with Hall of Famer Martin Dihigo leading the Algodoneros to the region's first pennant in their third season.  Union Laguna won another title in 1950, but it would turn out to be their last.  The Vaqueros were purchased in the offseason by brothers Jose Juan and Erick Arellano, who also own the South-leading Yucatan Leones.  The Arellanos would love to place an LMB team in their own hometown of Mazatlan, but stalled development of a new ballpark there has put that desire on hold for now.  Unlike Benavides in Puebla, the brothers had largely left their Union Laguna team untouched and the Vaqueros have been in the midst of a battle for a playoff berth in the LMB North with a 35-31 record at the All-Star Break, one game out of the fourth and final postseason slot with one of the Liga's more potent offenses.  Until Monday.

That's when the Arellanos decided to ship the Vaqueros' best player, All-Star first baseman Ricky Alvarez, to Yucatan as part of a six-player swap clearly designed to load the Leones up for the playoffs.  Laguna also sent pitchers Edgar Osuna and Maikel Cleto to Merida in exchange for hurlers Tomas Solis, Alejandro Martinez and Leo Rosales, who have 50 innings pitched between them this year.  Alvarez is the main prize, with the 28-year-old Tijuana product having a season bringing him some support in MVP talks with a .330 average, 13 homers and an LMB-best 75 RBIs.  The former Angels minor league has hit 37 homers and driven in 166 runs over 177 games for the Vaqueros since coming to Torreon in a trade with Tabasco prior to last season.

Then there's Osuna, who set the Liga on fire in April by winning his first five starts but hasn't won a game since to see his record level off at 5-4 while his ERA (which had been 1.61 entering May) ballooned to 5.37 with no quality starts in his last eight outings.  Still, the 29-year-old from Mazatlan will give the Leones pitching staff a lefty with 12 years experience, much of it in the Braves and Royals organizations, and a former Texas League All-Star.  As well, Cleto (who previously pitched in MLB for both the Cardinals the White Sox) has had a good half-season in the Laguna bullpen, with a 3.20 ERA and 4 saves in 5 opportunities over 19 appearances, and will likely replace former Leones closer Jairo Asencio, who was released earlier this month despite being among the LMB leaders in saves.  The team also last Friday released Brad Snyder, another ex-MLBer who was batting .268, was second to Alvarez on the team with 12 homers and third with 41 RBIs while playing errorless ball in the outfield.

While this swap (which has not been officially announced by the Liga office) doesn't have the seismic effect that last winter's mass exodus from Puebla to Monclova, fans in Laguna have already let their opinions be known.   A group of six aficionados released a public letter posted on the Puro Beisbol site calling on others to boycott attending Vaqueros games, at least temporarily, at 86-year-old Estadio Revolucion, where the club is sixth in LMB attendance at 5,206 per opening.  The Vaqueros drew just 2,000 people in Tuesday night's 10-7 loss to Puebla (irony duly noted).

It's hard to believe this is the sort of syndicate ownership Salinas has envisioned for the troubled league he's taking over after current president Plinio Escalante retires following the season.  Then again, with franchise problems in places like Leon, Tabasco and now Quintana Roo (that's another story for another day), among others, perhaps Salinas has no choice as long as the Arellanos pay the bills and Benavides is heading the Assembly of Presidents who sign his paycheck.

LMB Division Championships results, highlights for Wednesday, August 1

Travis Blackley (pictured) picked up where he left off when rain delayed Tuesday night's game and went on to pitch seven strong innings as Puebla defeated Yucatan, 5-3, Wednesday at Estadio Hermanos Serdan extend the Pericos' Mexican League South Division Championship Series lead over the Leones, 3 games to 0.  In the LMB North DCS, Olmo Rosario had a big night for Tijuana as the Toros broke Monterrey pitchers' 33-inning shutout streak in a big way, pounding the Sultanes, 9-1, in Estadio Gasmart to hand the visitors their first loss of the postseason.

PUEBLA 5-12-0, Yucatan 3-7-1 (Puebla leads series, 3 games to 0)
W-Blackley. L-T. Solis. SV-Gaudin. HR-J. Valdez (Y). T-2:56. A-12,112.
Former big leaguer Travis Blackley returned to the mound after tossing one scoreless inning Tuesday night and put in six more frames of work Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits to pick up his first win of the playoffs.  Tomas Solis, who allowed the first run of the game Tuesday, did not reappear but was handed the loss for the Leones.  Ruben Rivera had three hits for the winners while Nyjer Morgan singled and scored twice while driving in another run for Puebla.  Jesus Valdez cracked a solo homer for Yucatan, who face elimination by the Pericos in Thursday's tilt in the colonial city.

TIJUANA 9-11-0, Monterrey 1-5-3 (Monterrey leads series, 2 games to 1)
W-Sanabia. L-O. Villareal. HR-Rosario (T), Sappelt (M), Apodaca (T), R. Lopez (T). T-2:45. A-15,018.
Olmo Rosario went 3-for-5 with a grand slam as Tijuana doused Monterrey, 9-1, in front of 15,018 home fans at Estadio Gasmart Wednesday night.  Sultanes pitchers had extended their playoff shutout string to 33 innings (including four straight shutouts) into the third inning, when Alex Romero's single off Cesar Carrillo drove in Edson Garcia with the game's first run.  Tijuana had a 3-1 lead when Rosario's quad shot put the game out of reach four entradas later.  Toros starter Alex Sanabia allowed one run in six innings for the win.  The two teams meet again tonight in TJ.

THURSDAY'S SCHEDULE
Yucatan (J. Castellanos) at Puebla (H. Garcia), Estadio Hermanos Serdan, 8:00pm EDT
Monterrey (J. Solano) at Tijuana (H. Ramirez), Estadio Gasmart, 8:35pm EDT

LMB Division Championships results, highlights for Tuesday, August 30

This won't take long.

One Mexican League playoff game was scheduled for Tuesday, with the Yucatan Leones in Puebla to face the Pericos in the LMB South Championship Series (Puebla leads, 2 games to 0).

Pericos starter Travis Blackley escaped the top of the first inning unscored upon after inducing a two-out comebacker groundout by Luis Alfonso Garcia with runners on second and third.  In the bottom of the frame, Puebla pushed a run across the plate when LMB vet Jose Rodriguez doubled off Yucatan hurler Tomas Solis to bring in former big leaguer Nyjer Morgan from third. Solis got the final two outs of the inning to limit the damage, but he couldn't keep the rain from falling at Puebla's Estadio Hermanos Serdan and umpires halted play before the second frame could get underway.

Game Three in Puebla is scheduled to resume Wednesday at 1:00pm EDT.  In the LMB North Championship Series, the Tijuana Toros will host the Monterrey Sultanes at 7:35pm EDT Wednesday.  Monterrey leads that set, 2 games to 0. Sultanes pitchers are on an incredible postseason run, stringing 31 consecutive shutout innings together including four straight shutouts.  They defeated the Toros by identical 3-0 scores last weekend at Estadio Monterrey.

LMB Division Semifinals result, highlights for Tuesday, August 23

YUCATAN 7-10-0, Campeche 1-6-0 (Yucatan wins series, 4 games to 2)
W-T. Solis (2-0). L-Campos (0-2). HR-none. T-2:54. A-12,000.
Tomas Solis allowed 1 run in 7 innings; Jesus Valdez was 3-5 with 1 run, 1 RBI for Leones


Division Championship Series
North: Monterrey Sultanes (1) vs. Tijuana Toros (3)
South: Yucatan Leones (1) vs. Puebla Pericos (2)

MexPac Playoff Scoreboard: MON, Jan. 18. 2016

The Mexican Pacific League's 2016 championship series is set after a pair of tight games decided the semifinals Monday night, with a pair of Mexican baseball veterans playing lead roles.

Mazatlan held off Obregon, 2-1, behind the pitching of 39-year-old Walter Silva while Navojoa and Mexicali carried their 3-3 tilt through six hours and 16 innings until 36-year-old Chris Roberson (pictured) crossed the plate on a disputed tag play to send the Aguilas to the title set against the Venados. The visiting team had won all encounters in both seven-game semifinal series before Mexicali's win.

The championship series will begin Wednesday night in Mexicali.

MEXICALI 4-12-1, Navojoa 3-10-1 (16)  
W-Lozoya (1-0).  L-T. Solis (1-1).  T-6:02.  A-17,000.

The two teams played past 1:30 in the morning until the score was finally settled in the bottom of the sixteenth inning when Roberson lined a one-out single into left field, moved from first two third on a Yuniesky Betancourt single, then scored the winning run when C.J. Retherford tapped a sacrifice bunt that dribbled down the first-base line.  Mayos first baseman Jesse Castillo tagged Retherford out before throwing to catcher Fernando Flores, who put the tag on the incoming Roberson.  Home plate umpire Jaime Gutierrez ruled Roberson safe with the game-winning run, which drew a protest from Navojoa manager Enrique "Che" Reyes.  Video replays were determined to uphold the call on the field, ending the six-hour marathon and sending the Aguilas to the final series.

Jose Amador opened the scoring for Navojoa by driving in Carlos Moncrief with a two-out double in the bottom of the first inning.  The Aguilas evened things up in the bottom of the entrada when Roberson singled, stole second and scored on Betancourt's single to left field.  Navojoa regained the lead in the third on a Quincy Latimore sacrifice fly that brought Moncrief in from third and it became a 3-1 Mayos advantage in the fifth as Nate Tenbrink scored on Jesse Castillo's sac fly.

Mexicali leveled the score in the sixth after Retherford was plunked by an Eddie Gamboa pitched when Luis Juarez then launched a 2-and-1 Gamboa pitch over the center field wall to bring the score to 3-3.  Then it was an exchange of zeroes for both sides into the sixteenth.

Tomas Solis, ordinarily a starter, was pressed into late duty and ended up taking the loss even though he'd been replaced by Ruddy Acosta when Roberson charged in from third.  Yair Lozoyo pitched two scoreless innings to get the win for the Aguilas.
__________________________________________________________________

Mazatlan 2-12-1, OBREGON 1-4-0
W-Silva (1-1).  L-D. Reyes (1-1).  T-2:58.  A-14,517.

Veteran pitcher Walter Silva and three relievers combined to carry a three-hit shutout two hits into the ninth inning as Mazatlan defeated Obregon, 2-1, to win Game Seven of their LMP semifinal series in a set in which the visiting team won every game.

The Venados scored twice in the top of the second inning when Jesus Fabela and Jeremias Pineda hit RBI singles off Yaquis starter David Reyes, giving Silva all the support he'd need. The right-hander, who turned 39 on January 4, gave up singles to Daniel Castro and Carlos Valencia over 6.2 innings of work, striking out five and walking none.  Of Silva's 97 pitches, 61 were for strikes.  

Closer Steven Hensley allowed a two-out solo homer to Obregon's Alex Liddi to spoil the whitewash bid, but then induced dangerous Dustin Martin to tap a comebacker to the mound that Hensley tossed to Cyle Hankerd at first for the final out of the series.  It was a tough night for the Yaquis, who only advanced one baserunner as far as second base before Liddi's longball broke their scoreless spell.

Fabela, Esteban Quiroz and Erick Rodriguez each had two of Mazatlan's 12 hits on the night as Reyes lasted just two innings, giving up six safeties and both Mazatlan runs.  The Yaquis bullpen did a splendid job over the game's final seven frames, butthe cavalry didn't make it to the plate until the battle was all but done.

MexPac Playoff Scoreboard: THU, Jan. 14, 2016

Fans were treated to two close games Thursday night in Mexican Pacific League semifinal action, with attendees at Mazatlan's Estadio Teodoro Mariscal getting a bonus of heart-stopping, run-scoring plays in the ninth AND tenth innings as Carlos Valencia (pictured for the second day in a row, a BBM first) continued to swing a heroic bat for the Obregon Yaquis, although not in his expected fashion of late. The Navojoa-Mexicali was another knucklebiter, just not quite as dramatic.

Obregon 5-8-1, MAZATLAN 4-9-2 (10)
W-Judy (1-0).  L-S. Valenzuela (0-1).  T-3:36.  A-7,849.
This may have been the wildest game of the 2016 playoffs thus far, as one infield error lifted Mazatlan into a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the ninth inning to send the contest into overtime and  another infield error pushed the winning run across the plate for Obregon in the top of the tenth. This was not a textbook win for the Yaquis but it did put them in the driver's seat of their series with the Venados.
With Obregon leading, 4-3, in the bottom of the ninth, Mazatlan's Esteban Quiroz lined to third baseman Alfredo Amezaga for the second out, but Amezaga's throw to double up baserunner Jeremias Pineda at first instead sailed into right field and Paul Leon motored in from third with the tying run.  In the top of the tenth, Venados first baseman Cyle Hankerd misplayed a two-out Carlos Valenica grounder, allowing Alex Liddi to come steaming in from third for the Yaquis. Closer Josh Judy pitched a 1-2-3 tenth to nail down the win for Obregon.
Justin Greene had three hits for the Yaquis while Olmo Rosario had a trio of singles for the Venados, who now trail Obregon, 3 games to 1.  Game Five is Friday in Mazatlan.  The Venados will start 2015-16 ERA champ Alejandro Soto while Arturo Lopez gets the nod for Obregon.

NAVOJOA 3-7-1, Mexicali 2-9-0
W-Solis (1-0).  L-Marin (0-1).  T-3:11.  A-9,681.
Jesus Castillo bashed a three-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning and that was all the Mayos would need for the win.  Mexicali put the first two runs of the game on the board in the second when Chris Roberson doubled in Yuniesky Betancourt with the game's first run; Roberson then came in on an error by Navojoa second baseman Carlos Orrantia.  Quincy Latimore and Carlos Moncrief were on base two innings later when Castillo went deep on Aguilas pitcher Terance Marin, who'd been working on a shutout before being rudely interrupted.
Marin had an otherwise flawless outing over six innings, small solace to a hurler who's been dogged by hard luck during the postseason and was tagged for the loss.  Tomas Solis earned the win with a good start for the Mayos, letting in one earned run over five frames of work.
The series is now tied at two games apiece.  Game Five is Friday night in Navojoa, when the Mayos send Juan Oyervides to the mound against the Aguilas and Javier Solano in what looks to be a great matchup.

MexPac Playoff Scoreboard: THURS, Jan. 7, 2016

Obregon and Navojoa have advanced to the Mexican Pacific League playoff semifinals after both pulled off tight first round series-closing wins Thursday night.  They'll join Mexicali, who swept their opening round series over Jalisco, and wildcard team Mazatlan, who had the best showing among the three losing sides by winning two games, as did Mochis, but posting a higher run percentage than the Caneros in their respective series as part of the LMP's tiebreaker formula.

Navojoa will play Mexicali in one semifinal series while Mazatlan meet Obregon in the other, with Final Four action beginning Sunday.

OBREGON 4-8-2, Los Mochis 3-6-1
W-Adr. C. Ramirez (1-0).  L-T. Solis (1-1).  T-3:19.  A-14,631.

Max Ramirez (pictured) ripped a two-run double in the bottom of the first inning to give Obregon an early lead and the Yaquis went on to beat Los Mochis, 4-3, to win their series in six games.  Los Mochis tied the encounter at 2-2 by scoring on errors by Yaquis' LF Leo Heras and SS Daniel Castro in a wild fifth inning, but Castro received a measure of absolution with an RBI single in the Yaquis' two-run sixth. Said Gutierrez scored on Justin Greene's sacrifice fly to right to make it a 4-2 Obregon lead.  The Caneros put one last run on the board in the top of the eighth when Antonio Lamas' two-out single to left drove in J.C. Linares from third, but that was the end of the scoring and ultimately the series for Mochis.  

Obregon starter David Reyes fared well, going 5.1 innings and allowing two runs on four safeties, but reliever Adrian Ramirez was credited with the win.  Tomas Solis took the loss after pitching 5.1 frames and giving up three earned runs.  The Yaquis finished with eight hits from eight different batsmen, four of them doubles.

Navojoa 5-13-1, MAZATLAN 4-11-1
W-de la O (1-0).  L-Barradas (0-1).  T-3:32.  A-11,023.

After falling behind by two runs after the first inning, Navojoa settled down and showed pluck by fighting back for a 5-4 win in Mazatlan to close out the Venados, 4 games to 2.  That first frame was tough for the Mayos defensively as Mazatlan scored on Cyle Hankerd's single, a bases-loaded walk to Erick Rodriguez and an infield single to deep short by Heber Gomez on a bang-bang play the Mayos appealed (and lost).

Navojoa fought back with single runs in the third, seventh, eighth and ninth innings, with Carlos Moncrief capping the Mayos' scoring with a solo homer to left. Jesus Castillo drove in Moncrief with up-the middle singles in the first AND eighth. Jeremias Pineda scored on a Hankerd single in the bottom of the ninth, but ex-MLBer Mike Jacobs struck out swinging on a 2-2 pitch by Mayos closer Daniel Moskos to end the game and series.  Luis de la O got the win as one of six relievers to limit Mazatlan to hold the fort after starter Edwin Salas survived the first and survive into the sixth.  Arturo Barradas allowed Castillo's go-ahead single in the eighth, earning the loss.  

MEXPAC PLAYOFF SCOREBOARD: Saturday, 1/2/16

Mazatlan and Mexicali have taken command of their respective Mexican Pacific League playoff series, but Los Mochis rode the pitching of Tomas Solis, the legs of D'Arby Myers (pictured) and the bat of Jesus Arredondo to even their series with Obregon at a game apiece Saturday night.  A total of 83,431 attended games Friday and Saturday for an average of 13,905 per opening.

Sunday will be an off day for all six playoff teams, with sets resuming Monday when Obregon travels to Los Mochis, Mazatlan visits Navojoa and Mexicali heads to Guadalajara for the next three games, if needed.

Los Mochis 6-8-0, OBREGON 1-7-2
W-Solis (1-0). L-Dav. Reyes (0-1). T-3:16. A-14,304.
Solis carried a shutout into the sixth inning before allowing Max Ramirez' two-out homer, but Los Mochis scored early and often enough to come away with a 4-1 triumph in Obregon Saturday. Myers staked the Caneros a 1-0 lead in the first by scoring on Saul Soto's sacrifice fly, but it was a three-run second frame highlighted by Arredondo's two-run roundtripper than gave Solis a solid lead to protect. Sebastian Valle added his second homer in as many nights for the Caneros.

MAZATLAN 6-13-1, Navojoa 2-7-2
W-A. Soto (1-0). L-H. Velazquez (0-1). T-3:35. A-13,905.
MexPac ERA champion Alejandro Soto tossed 6.1 innings of four-hit shutout ball for Mazatlan as the Venados converted another strong start into a home win in a second night in a row.  Back-to-back RBI singles by Cyle Hankerd and Olmo Rosario put Mazatlan up 2-0 in the first and ex-Marlins DH Mike Jacobs' run-scoring single in the third made it a three-run advantage for the Deer.  Hankerd finished with three hits and two RBI's while Diego Madero went 2-for-2 with a double, RBI and run scored for Navojoa.

MEXICALI 5-9-1, Jalisco 2-7-1
W-H.D. Rodriguez (1-0). L-Nix (0-1). T-2:42. A-16,302.
Hector Daniel Rodriguez (1-0) pitched six-plus solid innings for Mexicali, scattering two runs on seven hits and striking out seven Charros. Alex Liddi's RBI single in the top of the first gave Jalisco an early lead, but C.J. Retherford smoked a two-run homer to key the Aguilas' four-run second frame and Mexicali never looked back. Charros starter Michael Nix let in five runs on eight hits and three walks in a shaky five-frame outing.