B a s e b a l l
M e x i c o
August
29, 2 0 1 6
The Puebla Pericos won their second straight road
game Sunday in the Mexican League's South Division Championship Series,
shutting out the Yucatan Leones, 4-0, at Parque Kukulkan in
Merida. Mauricio Lara pitched seven innings of the shutout and
got the win while onetime Yankees outfielder Ruben Rivera (pictured)
cracked a two-run homer for Puebla.
While the Pericos were taking a 2-games-to-0 lead in their series, the
Tijuana Toros and Monterrey Sultanes saw their Game Two at Estadio
Monterrey suspended by rain Sunday with the home team eventually
prevailing, 3-0, after action was resumed Monday to take a 2-to-0 lead
in that series. Agustin Murillo's two-run homer in the sixth put
the contest away for the Sultanes.
Puebla 4-13-1, YUCATAN 0-5-2 (Puebla leads series, 2 games to 0)
W-M. Lara. L-Negrin. HR-Rivera (P). T-2:41. A-11,000.
The Pericos benefited from seven innings of strong pitching by starter
Mauricio Lara, who scattered four hits and walked two batters to post
his second win of the postseason. Lara has now allowed one earned
run in 13.1 innings pitched as his playoff ERA dropped to 0.68.
The Pericos took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second innings when
Issmael Salas and Rudy Amador lofted back-to-back, two-out RBI singles
to centerfield off Leones starter Yoanner Negrin, who suffered only his
second loss of the entire season. Ex-MLB outfielder Ruben Rivera
launched a two-run homer with two out in the eighth to seal the win for
Puebla.
MONTERREY 3-9-0, Tijuana 0-3-0 (Monterrey leads series, 2 games to 0)
W-Ma. Gonzalez. L-M. Pena. HR-Murillo (T). T-2:43. A-25,896.
Agustin Murillo's two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning all
but put the finishing touches on the Sultanes' 3-0 whitewash of Tijuana
in their rain-delayed Game Two of the LMB North championship series in
front of nearly 26,000 fans at Estadio Monterrey Monday. The
Sultanes had taken a 1-0 lead over the Toros at the bottom of the
second frame Sunday afternoon when a cloudburst caused the umpires to
suspend the contest for a day. Five Monterrey pitchers combined
on the three-hitter. with Mario Gonzalez credited with the win and
Wirfin Obispo collecting the save.
Guadalajara awarded 2017 WBC first round games
Major League Baseball has awarded Guadalajara, Jalisco with four days
of Pool D first round games in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
The games will be played at Estadio Charros de Jalisco on March
9-12. Other cities awarded first round play are Tokyo, Seoul and
Miami. Tokyo and San Diego will host second round action while
Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles will be the site of the championship
round.
Landing the WBC is another feather in the cap of Jalisco Charros owner
Armando Navarro, who bought the Guasave Algodoneros in 2014 and moved
the Mexican Pacific League franchise to Guadalajara. There was
some risk involved, as baseball had never really gained traction
locally in previous forays in the summer Mexican League despite two LMB
pennants. One obstacle has been the phenomenal popularity of the
CD Guadalajara soccer team, commonly known as Chivas. Chivas is
Mexico's most popular sports franchise, with 44 percent of the country
surveyed counting themselves as supporters. In addition, baseball
facilities in Guadalajara had previously been lacking, to say the least.
However, Navarro has thrown himself into rebuilding baseball's image
since bringing the LMP to town. He purchased Estadio Telmex de
Atletismo (an 8,000-seat ballpark built for US$28 million to host the
2011 Pan American Games) from the City, renamed it and expanded it
twice to its current 13,000 capacity. Unlike previous
incarnations of the Charros, this edition has proven quite popular
among local sports fans. The team drew an average of 8,543
spectators during the MexPac regular season last winter. Navarro
has also looked into bringing the Caribbean Series to the Jalisco
capital, but he'll certainly settle for the plum that is the WBC.
Mexico will be the host team for Pool D after qualifying for the WBC
earlier this year in Mexicali. The Verdes Grande have played in
every WBC since its 2006 inception, but had to play qualifiers after
finishing last during the 2013 WBC first round in Phoenix.
Despite holding home field advantage in the opening stage, manager
Edgar Gonzalez' team won't have a cakewalk in Pool D, where they'll be
joined by Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Italy. Venezuela is
currently ranked seventh in the world by the World Baseball &
Softball Confederation, Mexico is eighth, Italy rates ninth and Puerto
Rico holds the eleventh position.
LMP finalizing return of All-Star Game in November
Mexican Pacific League president Omar Canizales and LMP team owners met
in Hermosillo to discuss, among other issues, the return of the MexPac
All-Star Game this winter after an absence of nearly two decades.
The All-Star Game will be held Sunday, November 27 at Obregon's new
16,500-seat ballpark, which is being built at a cost of approximately
US$28 million to replace Estadio Tomas Oroz Gaytan, which was built in
1971 but has become obsolete in recent seasons. The new ballpark
should open in time for the Obregon Yaquis' October 12 season opener
against rival Hermosillo.
The All-Star format will include North and South teams, with the North
squad consisting of players from Mexicali, Navojoa, Hermosillo and
Obregon and the South lineup coming from among Mazatlan, Culiacan,
Jalisco and Los Mochis. Prior to the All-Star Game, a celebrity
softball game will be held. The LMP says invitations will be
extended to past MexPac greats such as Adrian Gonzalez, Fernando
Valenzuela, Teddy Higuera, Erubiel Durazo and Karim Garcia along with
well-known Mexican entertainment figures. Following the softball
game, a Home Run Derby featuring players from the North and South teams
will take place prior to batting practice and the All-Star Game itself.
The last LMP All-Star Game was played on November 24, 1997 in Navojoa.
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