JALISCO KAYOS DEFENDING CHAMPS WITH ONE BLOW

Jalisco Charros catcher Gabriel Gutierrez

Usually when you're batting with two out in the top of the ninth inning and your team has yet to secure their first hit in the game, you're in survival mode, simply trying to break up the no-no and avoid being on the receiving end in the record book.  That's enough to worry about right there.

Jalisco's number nine batter, catcher Gabriel Gutierrez, faced such a situation last Tuesday in Culiacan, with the added pressure of his plate appearance coming late in a scoreless Game Six playoff contest.  With Stephen Cardullo standing on second after drawing a walk from Tomateros closer and LMP saves champion Casey Coleman and then stealing a base, Gutierrez lofted a Coleman delivery to right that Sebastian Elizalde couldn't reach and motored into second for the first Charros safety of the night, driving in Cardullo with the go-ahead run.  Sergio Romo then came in for Jalisco and retired the Culiacan side on eleven pitches to seal the 1-0 win for Chad Gaudin (who pitched a scoreless eighth) and send the Charros on to the Mexican Pacific League semifinals with the 4-games-to-2 series win.  On the other hand, the defending champion Tomateros face many questions heading into the offseason after entering this edition of the playoffs as the top seed and instead firing manager Robinson Cancel after falling behind, 3 games to 1, and failing to score a run in their final game after winning a 5-2 Sunday contest in interim skipper Ramon Orantes' debut. More on that in a few paragraphs.

Los Mochis third baseman Rodolfo Amador

Los Mochis also closed out their series with Hermosillo in six games by taking a 3-1 road win last Tuesday night as Rodolfo Amador's two-run homer off Naranjeros starter Dennis O'Grady in the top of the second to give the Caneros a lead they'd never relinquish.  Jaime Lugo and three relievers combined on a four-hitter to carry Los Mochis into the semis while Hermosillo packed their bags for the season.  The coup de grace to the surprising early playoff exits for Culiacan and Hermosillo (a combined 27 MexPac pennants) was delivered last Tuesday with Obregon's 6-5 win over Mazatlan, courtesy of Yaquis pinch-hitter Leo Heras' walkoff RBI single in the bottom of the ninth off Venados' closer Brandon Cunniff.  The Obregon triumph evened the series at three games apiece, assuring Wednesday's Game Seven loser a semifinal berth as the lucky loser by virtue of those three wins.  By the way, Mazatlan won Game Seven, 3-2, as Justin Greene's three-run homer in the top of the third gave Venados starter Irwin Delgado and four relievers enough cushion for a somewhat anticlimactic series win.

Diory Hernandez homered for Los Mochis Friday

The LMP Final Four opened Friday in Los Mochis, where the Caneros were hosting Obregon.  The home team overcame a 4-3 deficit with four runs in the bottom of the third frame with Diory Hernandez belting a two-run homer off Yaquis starter Arturo Lopez as Los Mochis went on to cop a 10-6 win.  Hernandez had blasted a three-run bomb off Lopez in the first to put the Caneros ahead 3-1 and he went on to lead off the fourth with a double before coming in on an Esteban Quiroz longball.  Los Mochis went up by two games by topping Obregon, 5-2, Saturday night. The Caneros broke an 0-0 tie in the fifth with four runs, two on Jonathan Jones' double and two on Josuan Hernandez' single, in support of Yoanis Quiala's (7 IP, 1 R, 2 H) third quality start of the postseason.  Quiala is now 2-0 with an 0.90 ERA in 20 innings after going an unremarkable 3-5 and 4.37 for the Caneros during the regular season.  The series will shift to Nuevo Estadio Yaquis in Obregon for Monday's Game Three.

Friday's Jalisco-Mazatlan series opened about a half-hour after the Caneros-Yaquis tilt, with the visiting Charros picking up single runs in the first, fourth and sixth innings to help Orlando Lara and the Jalisco bullpen shut out the home Venados, 3-0.  Manny Rodriguez went 3-for-4 for the Charros, socking a solo homer in the first off Mazatlan's Casey Harman to give Lara & company all the runs they'd need.  Saturday's game resulted in another Jalisco shutout, this time by a 2-0 count as the Venados scoreless streak reached 24 innings (including the final six entradas of last Wednesday's win in Obregon).  Once again it was Rodriguez providing the key blow as the Charros' MVP candidate's single in the top of the third scored Gabriel Gutierrez and Alonzo Harris with the game's only runs.  The two teams moved to Guadalajara for Monday's Game Three with Jalisco holding a 2-games-to-0 advantage.


TOMATEROS FIRE MANAGER CANCEL DURING PLAYOFF SERIES

Former Culiacan manager Robinson Cancel

It's not unusual in baseball for a team's offseason housecleaning after a disappointing season to begin with the firing of their manager.  It's quite another thing when the skipper is canned in the middle of a first-round playoff series while the season is still very much alive, if only for a couple more days.  The latter was the case when the defending Mexican Pacific League champion Culiacan Tomateros jettisoned helmsman Robinson Cancel following an embarrassing 11-1 loss to Jalisco in Guadalajara on Saturday, January 5.  The win gave the Charros a 3-games-to-1 lead in a series they'd close out three nights later with a 1-0 Jalisco win to send over 19,000 disappointed Culiacan fans home until next October.

The 42-year-old Cancel was a Major League catcher for Milwaukee, the New York Mets and Houston over four callups in a 20-year professional career.  He spent his first eight summers in the Brewers system before moving on to stints in five other MLB organizations, two independent leagues and Mexican League stops in Monterrey and Minatitlan before his retirement in 2014 after a season of winterball with the Carolina Gigantes in his native Puerto Rico.  He began his managerial career in 2015 with the Gulf Coast League Braves, finishing 11th with a 27-33 record for Atlanta's Rookie league entry.  Cancel then led the Danville Braves to a fourth-place finish in the Appalachian League's East Division in 2016 with a 31-36 mark before spending 2017 coaching in the Rockies system.  Cancel returned to managing with the Asheville Tourists in the Class A South Atlantic League last summer, taking the team to a 64-73 record and fifth in the Southern Division.

Cancel raised the Tomateros' fortune after being hired November 3 to replace Lorenzo Bundy as manager.  Bundy's first term in Culiacan lasted eighteen games, during which the champions started 8-10 out the gate and struggled to find cohesion under the veteran skipper.  Culiacan went 13-4 the rest of the first half to finish first at 21-12, then posted a 12-11 record for fifth place in the second half to end the regular season with a 33-23 overall ledger, tied for best with Hermosillo.  The Tomateros picked up 12.5 playoff points, most in the LMP and good for a number one playoff seeding.  Culiacan won the opener of their first-round series with Jalisco, but then the Charros won the next three and that was all for Cancel.

His successor, former Mexican League star infielder Oscar Robles, managed the Tomateros to a 5-2 win over the Charros on January 6 in Guadalajara before dropping a 1-0 heartbreaker at home before a packed house in Estadio Tomateros to end the series and season.  Robles, who was fired as Obregon's manager in late October after only nine games, was subsequently hired on as a bench coach in Culiacan.  He manages the Tijuana Toros during the summer.


XALAPA ONE WIN AWAY FROM VERACRUZ WINTER LEAGUE FLAG

Xalapa Chileros shortstop Kristian Delgado

The Xalapa Chileros crushed defending champion Acayucan, 8-1, Sunday in the Veracruz Winter League championship series as a reported 3,000 fans at the Chileros' Parque Deportivo Colon looked on.  Shortstop Kristian Delgado led the victors with a two-run double in the first inning and a solo homer in the third en route to a four-RBI night.  The win gives the Chileros a 3-games-to-1 lead in the best-of-7 finals heading into Monday afternoon's Game Five in Xalapa.


Xalapa opened the title set with a pair of wins in Acayucan, starting with a 7-5 triumph on January 5 as Eduardo Arredondo and Yancarlo Angulo each had two hits and two RBIs for the Chileros.  Rogelio Noris homered for the Tobis in a losing cause.  The Chileros took another road win one day later, 8-6, as Angulo singled, homered and drove in three runs, although he did get caught stealing a base.  Angel Francisco Rivera led Acayucan with a pair of hits, including a late two-run homer, but Kevin Lamas' two-run longball in the top of the ninth broke a 6-6 tie and Xalapa held on for the win.

Acayucan fought back with an 11-5 win last Friday in Xalapa.  Luis Angel Santos' bases-loaded triple with two out in the top of the third gave the Tobis a 5-2 lead, but it took a five-run ninth to give the defending champions some breathing room in the end.  Veteran outfielder Eliseo Aldazaba's three-run homer opened up an 11-4 Acayucan lead and while the Chileros did score on Oscar Soto's leadoff homer in the bottom of the ninth, Tobis closer Jose Wilfredo Ramirez retired the next three batters to close out the game and close the gap with Xalapa at 2-games-to-1.

The Chileros opened the gap by a game with Sunday's 8-1 win.  Besides Delgado's heroics at the plate, Kevin Flores (a longtime Yucatan Leones infielder during the summer) drove in Angulo with a first-inning single and doubled home Alan Garcia in the fifth.  Another longtime LMBer, Marco Quevedo, earned the win in relief for the Chileros, tossing five-and-two-third innings after coming in for starter Daniel Lobato with one out in the first and allowing one run on two hits, striking out six.  Acayucan reliever Jose Almarante raised an eyebrow or two in the seventh when, with two out, he hit three consecutive Xalapa batsmen to fill the bases.  Almarante not only avoided any charged mounds, he stayed in the game, retired Alan Espinoza on a fielder's choice grounder to escape unscored upon and then pitched a scoreless eighth (although he plunked a fourth Tobis batter).

If the Tobis win Monday's Game Five at Xalapa's Estadio Colon (and they did, 14-4, as Heber Gomez hit a grand slam for the winners), the series will shift to Acayucan for Game Six on Saturday afternoon at Estadio Luis Diaz Flores.  If needed, a Game Seven would be played Sunday afternoon at Estadio Emiliano Zapata.

Caribbean Series to open Wednesday; Crucial LMB meeting in Houston set; Xalapa 0-3 in Latin American Series

Mexicali begins CS play tonight

The Mexican Pacific League champion Mexicali Aguilas have held a couple practices at Estadio Tomateros in Culiacan in preparation for their Wednesday night Caribbean Series opener against the Caguas Criollos, Puerto Rico's Roberto Clemente League kingpins.  

The Aguilas had a 37-31 overall record in the MexPac, finishing fifth in the first half schedule and fourth in the second half before going 12-7 in playoff series wins over Navojoa, Hermosillo and Los Mochis.  Mexicali posted 113 playoff runs on the scoreboard for an average of 5.9 per game, so scoring hasn't been a problem.  An already-potent daily lineup featuring LMP batting champ Luis Juarez, Yuniesky Betancourt, C.J. Retherford and Chris Roberson has been augmented by reinforcements Jason Bourgeois, Sebastian Valle, Agustin Murillo and Ronnier Mustelier.  Their starting pitchers were a bit inconsistent at times in the postseason, although manager Roberto Vizcarra appears to have addressed that concern by bringing in Hector Daniel Rodriguez, Tyler Alexander, Barry Enright and Manny Barreda as reinforcements to go with holdovers Javier Solano and Miguel Pena.  The Eagles' bullpen appears to be in great shape, with Sergio Romo added to share the closer's role with Jake Sanchez.

Caguas finished third in the five-team Roberto Clemente League during the regular season, going 19-21 in the seven-week regular season prior to topping Mayaguez and Santurce in the playoffs, winning 9 of 14 postseason contests.  The Criollos' everyday lineup featuring infielders Ruben Gotay and Andrew Velazquez, outfielders Rusney Castillo and Jorge Padilla plus catcher Rene Garcia.  Caguas' team batting average of .249 with 11 homers over 40 regular season games won't scare anyone, but it was a down winter for batters in Puerto Rico, with four teams finishing the regular season with ERAs below 3.00.  The Criollos came in fourth at 2.78, well below Santurce's incredible 1.78 team ERA.  Former MLBer Joel Pineiro has been added to a staff that includes another reinforcement, Pitcher of the Year Adalberto Flores, whose 0.95 ERA for Santurce led the Clemente League, along with the circuit's saves leader, Ricardo Gomez (15 saves with a 1.66 ERA). Having won their 17th Puerto Rican pennant, Caguas has had some powerful teams in the past with three Caribbean Series championships, but this year's edition appears somewhat nondescript.  However, never count out a team with good pitching and it does look like the Criollos do have that.

Game time in Culiacan is set for 8:00PM MST (0300 UTC) following opening ceremonies scheduled for 6:30 local time.  Hector Daniel Rodriguez gets the start for Mexicali while Adalberto Flores will likely get the nod from Caguas manager Luis Matos. 

Mexican League to hold important presidents' meeting in Houston 

While the Caribbean Series will be getting underway in Culiacan, the Mexican League will hold an Assembly of Presidents meeting Wednesday in Houston, far from the Liga offices in Mexico City and the kind of scrutiny that past meetings have received from Mexico's baseball writers.  The LMB meeting's venue and timing do not seem coincidental after their January meeting in the D.F. brought the troubled league attention that they would rather not have after president Plinio Escalante resigned or was fired (depending on whose version one chooses to believe) while rumors swirled that the Liga will either split into two eight-team loops or shut down altogether for 2017.

The primary issue between the two warring factions of owners and/or team presidents is the number of Mexican-American players each club will be allowed to carry this year.  One faction of so-called Old Guard owners want to limit the number of such players (who do not count as "foreigners" against the six-man cap in that category) to nine while the opposing New Breed owners want no restrictions on Mexican-American players.  The imbroglio has led to Escalante's exit and the exclusion of Reynosa Broncos team president Eliud Villareal (whose franchise is in flux while seeking a new home) from discussions to give the Old Guard, led by Monterrey owner Jose Maiz, an 8-7 advantage in voting among team presidents.  However, this issue is just a tipping point in a longstanding clash between the Old Guard and New Breed regarding the overall philosophy of how the LMB should be structured and operated.

If the Liga does indeed split into two divisions or even separate leagues, it would likely be along these lines:

Old Guard - Campeche Piratas, Durango Generales, Mexico City Diablos Rojos, Monterrey Sultanes, Oaxaca Guerreros, Quintana Roo Tigres, Saltillo Saraperos, Tabasco Olmecas.

New Breed - Aguascalientes Rieleros, Laguna Vaqueros, Monclova Acereros, Puebla Pericos, Reynosa Broncos, Tijuana Toros, Veracruz Rojos del Aguila, Yucatan Leones.

Underneath all this is the uncertain status of the Durango franchise (which may end up sharing Estadio Monterrey with the Sultanes after ballpark renovations promised in Durango when the team initially moved there from Carmen have not materialized), the somewhat lame-duck status of the Reynosa club (Villareal originally moved the team to Leon, only to face ballpark issues similar to Durango's, and now reportedly wants to move the team to Nuevo Laredo but instead finds himself and his franchise in limbo), declining attendance throughout much of the LMB (while the western LMP has prospered at the gate with no restrictions on Mexican-American players) and an overall murky future with nobody replacing Escalante at the helm.  

The Mexican League is currently at best described as a "hot mess" and it remains to be seen if any accord can be reached in Houston with both sides of the debate apparently entrenched in their positions.

Xalapa Chileros go winless at Latin American Series in Colombia

Speaking of leagues with uncertain futures, the shutdown this winter of the Veracruz Winter League and the resulting rise of the Veracruz State Baseball League has concluded with the latter's Xalapa Chileros being swept in three games at the Latin American Series in Monteria, Colombia.

The Chileros were one of six former LIV teams to take part in the new LBEV, which was organized by former Brewers pitcher Narcisco Elvira in the wake of the decision among LIV owners to not operate in 2016-17.  The LBEV played a one-month, weekends-only regular season schedule of ten games per team, followed by a two-weekend playoff with four teams playing best-of-3 series.  Clubs were allowed to field only players from the state of Veracruz.  While Elvira deserves credit for keeping winterball alive in his home state, there appears to have been a sense of impermanence to the new organization which resulted in the LAS being moved in early January from Xalapa, where it was planned to be staged as Mexico's turn in the four-nation rotation came up in 2017, to Colombia.  The results from the fifth annual tournament, in which champions from what are considered AA leagues (whereas Caribbean Series leagues are regarded as AAA in quality) convene, were likely not envisioned by Elvira, who also managed the Chileros in the LAS.

In losing all three games, Xalapa was outscored by a 19-3 margin.  The Chileros opened the tournament on Thursday, January 26 with a 3-1 loss to the Panama City Metros in which Xalapa shortstop Kevin Flores (a veteran of several Mexican League seasons) had his team's only hit, wasting a strong outing from starter Tony Cordoba, who allowed one run on five hits in five innings.  That was followed by a 7-2 loss to Nicaraguan champion Chinandega on January 27.  The Chileros did outhit the Tigres, 11 to 8, but former Padres shortstop Everth Cabrera socked a homer for the winners as Rene Coss absorbed the loss for Xalapa.  Cordoba was inserted into the batting order as a designated hitter and had two safeties for the Veracruzanos.  The Chileros wrapped up their round robin schedule January 28 with a 9-0 blanking at the hands of Colombian League champs (and LAS hosts) Monteria.  Flores and third baseman Eduardo Santos each had two of the Mexican club's five hits. Chinandega shut out Monteria, 4-0, one day later to claim the LAS title for Nicaragua.

Overall, the Chileros hit only .181 as a team, collecting a total of 17 hits in three games, while Xalapa pitchers registered a 4.32 ERA to finish fourth in that category.  It was an inglorious conclusion to the season for the LBEV, whose future is uncertain.  Baseball has a long and proud history in Veracruz, which was home to 1940's baseball magnate Jorge Pasquel, but this was not a winterball season that will be looked upon fondly in the future.

Three teams ticketed for CS; Generales to Monterrey(?); LAS underway

THREE WINTERBALL CHAMPS CROWNED

Three of the five national winterall champions who will converge on Culiacan next week for the 2017 Caribbean Series have been determined.  Puerto Rico's Caguas Criollos will be joined in the Sinaloa city by Venezuela's Zulia Aguilas and the Granma Alazanes of Cuba.

Caguas defeated Santurce, 5 games to 3, to win the championship series and pennant for Puerto Rico's five-team Roberto Clemente League.  The Criollos had to go 12 innings to beat the Cangrejeros, 6-5, on Henry Blanco's walkoff RBI single.  Another former MLBer, Joel Pineiro, earned the win in relief.  Prior to the game, the Creoles retired the number 7 worn by their former catcher Ivan Rodriguez, one of three recent Cooperstown inductees.  Caguas has won 17 flags in the Puerto Rican League, winning the Caribbean Series in 1954, 1974 and 1987 (the latter two were played in Mexico).

Zulia topped Lara, 5-2, Wednesday to end the Venezuelan League finals with a 4-games-to-1 victory over the Cardinales.  Mitch Lively, a former Giants farmhand who saved eight games with a 1.72 ERA for Reynosa of the LMB last summer, pitched seven innings for the Aguilas and allowed one run on two hits for the win as Jose Pirella contributed a two-run homer and Endy Chavez went 2-for-2 with an RBI.  Chavez and Caguas' Blanco were teammates on the 2013 Seattle Mariners.  The championship is Zulia's first since 2000 and sixth overall.  The Aguilas were CS winners in 1984 and 1989.

Granma (which is not a city but Cuba's national newspaper...think Pravda in Spanish) won this winter's Cuban National Series final by completing a four-game sweep of Ciego de Avila Monday with a 3-2 win. Longtime star Alfredo Despaigne was the first of three Alazanes batters to reach base on a walk in the eighth inning of the deciding game, breaking a 2-2 tie by scoring on a sacrifice fly.  Granma has been a member of the Serie Nacional since 1977-78, but this is their first Cuban title.  Security is expected to be on hand in Culiacan to help discoourage potential player defections.

In other CS-related league playoffs, the Licey Tigres and the Cibaenas Aguilas are tied at four gamies apiece in their best-of-9 Dominican League final going into Saturday night's deciding game.  The Aguilas beat Licey, 7-3, Saturday as Orlando Sixte drove in three runs for Cibaenas while Irwin Delgado allowed two runs in 6.1 innings pitched.  The Carolina Gigantes finished first in the LiDom regular season with a 27-23 record but were knocked out of pennant contention during the first playoff stage in which the top four finishers in the six-team loop played an 18-game round robin format.  Cibaenas advance with a 14-4 record, five games ahead of second-place Licey at 9-9.

And you've probably read somewhere that the Mexican Pacific League championship series between Mexicali and Los Mochis is still being played, with Mexicali holding a 3-2 series lead over Los Mochis going into Game Six at Mochis Saturday night

The Caribbean Series gets underway on Wednesday, February 1 at Culiacan's Estadio de los Tomateros.


GENERALES TO MONTERREY INSTEAD OF DURANGO?

The turmoil that has marked the Mexican League offseason appears to be taking another turn, with rumors floating that the would-be Durango Generales (who are the used-to-be Carmen Delfines) may end up spending the 2017 season sharing Estadio Monterrey with the Sultanes.  As noted in previous BBM missives, Delfines owner Virgilio Ruiz Isassi had planned to shift to Durango due to declining attendance in Ciudad del Carmen, a city of fewer than 200,000 in the southern state of Campeche.  However, promised renovations to Durango's 8,000-seat Estadio Francisco Villa to reach LMB ballpark standards have not materialized and now Ruiz is said to have been discussing the possibility of moving the team to Monterrey instead with Sultanes owner Jose "Pepe" Maiz.

Contrast that with the problems the proposed Leon Bravos have been having with their proposed move from Reynosa, where the Broncos consistently struggled with small crowds due to violence related to drug cartels operating in the city across the USA border from Brownsville, Texas.  Owner Eliud Villareal's transfer of the team to Leon was approved by the Liga Assembly of Presidents last November but, as in Durango, the newly-rechristened Bravos (the name used by Leon's earlier LMB franchise) are running into problems with the 3,000-seat Estadio Domingo Santana, where promised upgrades have likewise failed to occur.  Villareal has reportedly sought to instead move the Broncos to Nuevo Laredo, another city on the Texas border with cartel problems but with a nicer ballpark than Leon's (albeit one sitting out of town), but has not received any support from the Presidents since his initially-planned move to Leon was approved.

In fact, although Ruiz has been accorded a seat and vote among the Presidents, Villareal has been kept out of meetings among the governing body altogether.  The reason?  Ruiz has sided with the "Old Guard" group of owners led by Maiz seeking to limit the number of Mexican-Americans per team (anywhere from three to six, depending on the source) and otherwise keep things where they've been, while Villareal has aligned with "New Breed" owners wanting no limits on Mexican-American players (who do not apply to the LMB's six-man limit on foreigners) and otherwise representing change in how the circuit moves forward.  After Plinio Escalante resigned, or was fired, from his league presidency, Maiz' group of eight owners have been able to outvote the seven "New Breed" owners in matters thanks to Villareal's exclusion.

A previously unscheduled Presidents' meeting is said to be set for next Wednesday, interestingly in Houston and not at Liga headquarters in Mexico City.  Wherever they convene, these men are presiding over a mess that threatens to split the LMB into two leagues or division or even shut down the Liga entirely in 2017.


LATIN AMERICAN SERIES UNDERWAY

The "other" international pro baseball winter tournament opened earlier this week and while Mexico is being represented as usual, it's been anything but a usual season for what are considered AA-level teams based in the state of Veracruz.

The fifth annual Latin America Series, an event featuring champions from Colombia, Nicaragua and Panama along with a Mexican representative, began Thursday in Monteria, Combia's 11,000-seat Estadio 18 de Junio. The Panama Metros topped Veracruz' Xalapa Chileros, 3-1, in the tourney opener Thursday, followed by a 5-2 win for Nicaragua's Chinandega Tigres over the host Monteria Leones.  That the Chileros are representing Mexico is not unusual in itself, but how they (and the LAS itself) got from Xalapa to Monteria is.

The Veracruz Winter League (aka the LIV) was formed in 2005 and operated with six teams last season, four in Veracruz and two in Chiapas, with Acayucan winning the title and playing in the 2016 LAS in Managua, Nicaragua.  However, a combination of LIV financial problems and political turmoil in Verazruz during the offseason led the circuit to suspend operations for this winter.  In its place, former pitcher Narciso Elvira (a Veracruz native who had a cup of coffee with the 1990 Milwaukee Brewers) created the Veracruz State Baseball League, aka the LBEV, arose to take its place.

All six of the new circuit's teams are from within Veracruz State and all players are required to be Veracruz natives. The LBEV played a weekend-only regular season with a mix of prospects and LMB veterans, followed by a January four-team playoff from which Xalapa defeated Minatitlan in the championship series for a berth in the LAS.  Among the Mexican League veterans playing for the Chileros in Monteria are infielders Kevin Flores, Heber Gomez and player-manager Francisco Rivera, catcher Humberto Sosa, outfielders Eliseo Aldazaba and Eduardo Arredondo, and pitchers Rodolfo Aguirre, Abraham Elvira and Jose Cobos.

The series itself had been slated to be played in Xalapa's 5,000-seat Parque Deportivo Colon as part of a rotation among participating countries similar to the Caribbean Series format.  However, the venue was shifted from Xalapa to Sincelejo, Colombia on January 21 for unclear reasons before the LAS was moved again two days later to Monteria after the Leones beat Sincelejo in the Colombian League title series.  The four teams will play a three-day round robin with a championship game between the two sides with the best first-round records set for Sunday.

Tobis win LIV crown, berth in Latin American Series

The Acayucan Tobis defeated the Xalapa Chileros, 2-1, Tuesday night to clinch the Veracruz Winter League championship series, 4 games to 1, and punch their ticket to next week's Latin American Series at Dennis Martinez National Stadium in Managua Nicaragua.  This marks the first pennant in the ten-year LIV history of the Tobis, a Tabasco Olmecas farm team, while breaking a string of four straight pennants for the Los Tuxtlas Brujos under manager Pedro Mere.

In Tuesday's deciding game, Jose Castaneda put Acayucan on the scoreboard in the top of the second inning by doubling in Pedro Diaz with the first run of the tilt.  Luis Fonseca tied it up at 1-1 by belting a solo homer for Xalapa in the bottom of the fourth.  The teams then swapped zeroes until Castenda cracked a bases-empty homer of his own in the top of the ninth off Chileros reliever Jon Sintes to put the Tobis on top, 2-1.  Raul Barron then tossed a scoreless ninth for Acayucan for the win and the flag.

Veteran Cristhian Presichi, who homered for Mexico against Cuba in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, won the LIV regular season batting title with a .420 average for the first-place Paso de Ovejas Campesinos, who finished with a 19-10-1 record (two games up on Acayucan's 15-10-1 mark) while Tuxtla Gutierrez' Carlos Rodriguez tied for the league lead with 7 homers and led the circuit with 32 RBI's.  Campesinos hurler Angel Araiza and the Tobis' Juan Grijalva topped the loop with 4 wins each, Los Tuxtlas' Joel Payamps turned in an 0.82 ERA and Raul Carrillo of Palenque posted 39 strikeouts.

The fourth Latin American Series will open in Managua on Tuesday, January 26 at 1:30PM local time when Acayucan faces either the Lorica Caimanes or Monteria Leones, who are locked up in the Colombian League title series (the Caimanes lead, 3 games to 1).  Nicaraguan host Rivas Gigantes will take on the Panamanian champs in the nightcap.  The Panama Nacionales lead the Metrolotican Aguilas, 2 games to 1, in their best-of-five battle for that berth.

The four teams will play a three-day, six-game round robin next Tuesday through Thursday.  After a day off on Friday, January 29, the second and third seeds will play a semifinal game on the 30th for the right to play the top seed Sunday the 31st for the Serie Latinoamericana crown.  Colombia's Monteria Leones the defending champion. The 2017 event will be held in Xalapa.

CAMPESINOS LEAD VERACRUZ WINTER LEAGUE, TEN GAMES LEFT

The Paso de Ovejas Campesinos have a one-game lead over the Acayucan Tobis in the Veracruz Winter League standings with ten games left in the regular season.

The 12-6-1 Campesinos have six players batting .314 or better, including DH Ruben Agramon's .385 and veteran 1B Cristhian Presichi at .377.  LF Marcos Vechionacci hits .347 and provides pop with five doubles, five triples and a pair of homers in 19 games.   Five Paso de Ovejas pitchers have two wins apiece.  Roberto Ramirez (2-0/2.05) has been the most effective.

Acayucan has two outfielder hitting over .360: Daniel Nunez is raking at .367 while Jerry Puentes has a .364 average.  Longtime Mexican League hurler Jaciel Acosta is the 10-6-0 Tobis' number one pitcher with a 3-0 record and 14 strikeouts in 23.2 innings.  Juan Grijalva has gone 2-0 with a 0.87 ERA and has recorded 11 whiffs over 10.1 frames.

The Xalapa Chileros are third in the LIV standings at 9-9-1 and the defending champion Los Tuxtlas Brujos hold the fourth and final playoff berth with a 9-9-0 mark.  Manager Pedro Mere's Brujos are loaded with veterans like RF Luis Terrero, 1B Emmanuel Valdez and DH Karim Garcia.  The 7-12 Chiapas Tucanes are fifth while the Pelanque Guacamayas bring up the rear at 5-10-0.

Winter league ball has been played in Veracruz for decades, although this edition dates only to 2005.  The LIV has four teams in the state of Veracruz and two in Chiapas.  Unlike the independent Mexican Pacific League, all LIV teams are affiliated with Mexican League franchises.  The 30-game regular season opens December 1 and closes January 3, followed by two best-of-five semifinal series and a best-of-seven Championship series with Game 7 (if needed) scheduled for January 20.

The postseason winner will advance to the Latin American Series against fellow winter league champions from Colombia, Panama and host Nicaragua, with games slated in Managua between January 28 and February 2.  Colombia's Monterio Leones are the defending champions after defeating the Urraca Indios of Panama, 1-0, in the title game.  Los Tuxtlas has represented Mexico in all three Serie Latinoamericas, winning the inaugural event at Veracruz in 2013.  Xalapa will serve as host in 2017.

CHILEROS TOP TUXTLAS, 3-2, TO WIN LIV PENNANT

The Xalapa Chileros defeated the Los Tuxtlas Brujos, 3-2, Tuesday night to clinch the 2010 Veracruz Winter League championship series. The Chileros beat the Brujos, 4 games to 2.

Humberto Montemayor bested Roberto “Machine Gun” Ramirez in a pitching battle between two longtime Mexican League veterans. Xalapa got all the runs they needed in the first two innings of the contest. Edgar Quintero stroked an RBI single in the top of the first to give the Chileros a 1-0 lead, while Jesus Romo and Valentin Gamez each registered RBI safeties in the second to stretch Xalapa’s advantage to 3-0. Ramirez settled after that, but the mortal wounds had been delivered.

Montemayor sailed through seven innings with little trouble, although Tuxtlas player-manager Pedro Mere drove in one run in the second and Javier Robles rapped a run-scoring single in the sixth to make it a 3-2 game, but the defending champs couldn’t get any closer as relievers Daniel Baca and Eddy Candelario pitched the final two innings to seal the win and the title for Xalapa.

The pennant is the second for the Chileros, who were managed this year by Shamar Almeida.

XALAPA ONE WIN AWAY FROM LIV PENNANT

Francisco Cordova (pictured) turned in a strong pitching performance Sunday as the Xalapa Chileros tripped the Los Tuxtlas Brujos, 7-1, to take a 3-games-to-2 lead in their best-of-7 Veracruz Winter League championship Series. Cordova tossed seven shutout innings for the Chileros, allowing three hits and no walks while striking out five Brujos batters as Xalapa tries to prevent Los Tuxtlas from winning a third straight pennant.

Xalapa opened the scoring in the first when Jesus Romo scored on an Edgar Quintero single. The Chileros got what was to be the deciding run one inning later when Valentin Gamez launched a solo homer over the left field fence to make it 2-0. The home team would eventually stretch their lead to 7-0 before the Brujos’ Pedro Iturbe stroked a homer to right in the ninth inning to avert the shutout.

The two teams had split the first two games in Xalapa prior to Sunday’s contest. The series now shifts back to San Andres Tuxtla for Game Six on Tuesday night at 7:00 local time.

LOS TUXTLAS AND XALAPA SWAP SHUTOUTS IN LIV FINALS

The Los Tuxtlas Brujos and Xalapa Chileros took turns shutting each other out in the first two games of their Veracruz Winter League championship series in San Andres Tuxtla.

In Game One on Tuesday, Los Tuxtlas bombed the visitors, 9-0. The Brujos started out with four runs in the bottom of the first inning and put the contest in their hip pockets when Francisco Rivera launched a seventh-inning three-run homer. Daniel Perez combined with Leo Perez and Erubiel Gonzalez for the win.

In Game Two on Wednesday, Xalapa starter Humberto Montemayor outdueled Los Tuxtlas’ Roberto Ramirez. The only runs of the game came in the second when Xalapa’s Edgar Quintero led off the frame with a double, Joel Galarraga walked and Jose Manuel Espinoza advanced both with a sacrifice bunt. Quintero scored on Omar Mendoza’s grounder to short and Galarraga plated a run on Roberto Valencia’s single to center.

Game Three will be Friday night in Xalapa. Los Tuxtlas is seeking its third straight LIV pennant.

XALAPA TOPS SANTA ROSA, 3-0, SUNDAY; LIV FINALS SET

The Xalapa Chileros shut out the Santa Rosa Gallos, 3-0, Sunday to win their best-of-7 Veracruz Winter League semifinal series, 4 games to 2. The win sends Xalapa to the LIV championship series, where they’ll take on the two-time defending champ Los Tuxtlas Brujos.

Los Tuxtlas is loaded with Mexican League veterans, including former Kansas City Royals third baseman Kit Pellow. Other notable Brujos include infielder Javier Robles, outfielder Serafin Rodriguez, starting pitcher Roberto Ramirez and closer Isidro Marquez, the Mexican League’s all-time leader in saves and games pitched.

Likewise, Xalapa has a roster with a number of Liga vets. Outfielder Edgar Quintero and infielder Valentin Gamez (who filled in admirably for Puebla slugger Willis Otanez during the LMB playoffs last summer) head an offensive lineup backing up pitchers Humberto Montemayor and Francisco Cordoba.

The LIV title series opener is set for Tuesday night in the Brujos’ Parque Aurelio Ballados.

FINANCIAL PROBLEMS FORCE EARLY VERACRUZ WINTER LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

A difficult economy made worse by game cancellations caused by pounding rains this fall have forced the Veracruz Winter League (or LIV) to cut its regular season short and go into its playoffs early. The LIV schedule originally projected the regular season to run from August 26 through November 18, with teams playing a record 70 games each. However, the LIV website reports that the league office decided to conclude the regular season on October 14 with playoff games to begin two days later.

Defending champion Los Tuxtlas took first place (and the top playoff seed) with a 29-9 record while Santa Rosa came in second at 24-11. Originally, a six-team playoff field was envisioned for the LIV, but with the shortened regular season, the league revised the format to include the top eight clubs in the 12-team standings. Los Tuxtlas topped Veracruz in five games to win their semifinal series and reach the Finals, while Xalapa leads Santa Rosa by a 3-2 margin in their semi set.