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B a s e b a l l
M e x i c o
Monday,
December 19, 2022
CULIACAN, JALISCO RISK MISSING LMP PLAYOFFS
With nine games remaining in the
2022-23 regular season, most of the intrigue over the Mexican Pacific
League's
final week will be at the bottom of the standings rather than the top.
Two Mex
Pac powers of recent winters, Culiacan and defending champion Jalisco,
are in
danger of missing the postseason altogether this season after meeting
in a
thrilling LMP championship series last January that required the
maximum seven games
to decide.
How times have changed.
Now, instead of their usual
jockeying for playoff seeding over the last ten days of the schedule,
both the
Tomateros and Charros are fighting to simply keep playing when the
first round
opens in January. If the regular season had ended yesterday, the two
clubs
would be out of the running due to a projected total of 8.5 playoff
points and
a ninth-place finish for Culiacan while Jalisco projects to a
last-place
overall finish with 7.5 playoff points. Their respective front offices
have
noticed, with manager Benji Gill barely avoiding his ouster in Culiacan
while
the axe fell on Roberto Vizcarra in Guadalajara days ago.
The two teams played each other over
the weekend in Guadalajara with the Charros sweeping all three games
over the
Tomateros as over 25,000 fans were in the stands between Friday and
Sunday.
Jalisco broke out the brooms Sunday with a dominant 8-1 win over the
visitors
as starter Yoennis Yera scattered three hits over seven innings of
one-run
pitching with six strikeouts. Veterans Jose Aguilar and Agustin Murillo
each
had two hits and scored twice for the winners while Alexis Wilson
singled in
Joey Meneses with Culiacan's lone run in the top of the second as new
Jalisco
manager Gil Velazquez went to 3-0 after his hiring on Friday.
Gil Velazquez? This being the
“what-have-you-done-for-me-lately?” world of Mexican baseball, the
season-long
struggle for the Charros proved too tempting for Jalisco ownership to
resist
firing manager Vizcarra last Friday, less than a year after leading the
team to
their second pennant in four years and Caribbean Series appearance
(both times
under his leadership). Velazquez, who was canned himself in Mexicali
after this
season's first half, was named the new Charros manager before the
series opener
on Friday night. Along with ex-MLBers Vinny Castilla and Tony
Perezchica,
Velazquez was named as a coach for Mexico in next year's World Baseball
Classic
under manager Gil. All were named by team general manager Rodrigo
Lopez, a former
Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher.
Meanwhile, in the more rarefied air
at the top of the standings, Hermosillo holds a one-game lead over Los
Mochis
despite dropping a 6-2 game at Navojoa Sunday while the Caneros pounded
out a
12-8 decision over Monterrey at home. Both teams are playoff shoe-ins
due to
finishing in first and third, respectively, in the first half. Obregon
and
Mexicali are tied for third in the second-half standings three games
behind Los
Mochis. The Yaquis came in second in the first half and have punched
their
ticket to the quarterfinals but Mexicali (who finished seventh) will
have to
maintain their current spot to hold off Mazatlan, Monterrey and Navojoa
among
the middle-tier teams fighting for postseason seeding berths.
Monterrey's Roberto Valenzuela is
batting .369 and, barring a precipitous late collapse at the plate,
stands to
beat out Los Mochis teammates Yasmany Tomas (.336) and Justin Dean
(.329) for
the batting title. Tomas socked three homers last week to bring his
season
total to 10, tying him with Mexicali's Anthony Giansanti and Jesse
Castillo of
Jalisco for the league lead.Tomas has also brought his RBI total to 52
to take
a commanding lead over Obregon teammates Victor Mendoza (45) and Yadir
Drake
(41). Jose Cardona of Hermosillo and Mazatlan's Randy Romero are tied
for the
stolen bases lead at 20 swipes each, five ahead of the 15 pilferages by
Los
Mochis' Dean.
Among pitchers, the numbers for wins
leaders remain unchanged from last week as Hermosillo's Wilmer Rios'
seven
victories are one more than the six apiece for Nico Tellache (Guasave),
David
Reyes (Mexicali) and Juan Tellez (Mazatlan). Los Mochis' Luis Miranda
rebounded
from two bad starts to post seven shutout innings at Obregon last
Wednesday to
lower his ERA to 1.02, ahead of Braulio Torres-Perez of Mazatlan at
1.33 and
Guasave's Matt Pobereyko's 1.94 mark. Pobereyko's 60 strikeouts trail
only the
62 of Culiacan's Manny Barreda while Gusave moundmate Gino Encina's 56
K's rank
third. Elkin Alcala of Mazatlan hasn't posted a save since December 9
but his
17 still lead the LMP, with Guasave's Brandon Koch's 14 and the 13 each
of Joe
Riley (Monterrey) and Jake Sanchez (Mexicali) good for the next three
slots on
the list.
MEXICAN
PACIFIC LEAGUE STANDINGS
Hermosillo
16-7 (10.0), Los Mochis 15-8 (7.0), Obregon 13-10 (8.0), Guasave 11-12
(9.0),
Mexicali 12-11 (5.0), Culiacan 10-13 (3.5), Monterrey 10-13 (4.5),
Navojoa
10-13 (5.5), Mazatlan 9-14 (6.0), Jalisco 9-14 (4.0). Note:
First-half playoff points
in parentheses.
REMAINING
REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
Dec. 20-21-22: Los Mochis at
Mazatlan, Mexicali at Guasave, Culiacan at Hermosillo, Navojoa at
Obregon,
Jalisco at Monterrey.
Dec. 23-24: No games scheduled
Dec. 25-26-26: Obregon at Culiacan,
Guasave at Navojoa, Monterrey
at Mexicali, Hermosillo at Los Mochis, Mazatlan at Jalisco.
Dec. 27-28-29: Navojoa at
Mazatlan, Mexicali at Hermosillo, Los Mochis at Guasave, Jalisco at
Obregon,
Culiacan at Monterrey.
MANNY RODRIGUEZ RETIRING AFTER MEX PAC SEASON
One of Mexico's best (and most
popular) ballplayers over the past two decades will hang up his mitt at
the
conclusion of the current Mexican Pacific League season at age 40.
Jalisco Charros second baseman Manny
Rodriguez was honored during a pregame ceremony Saturday night in
Guadalajara,
where the Charros hosted Culiacan in a crucual weekend series for both
clubs.
Rodriguez is in his ninth season for the Charros, all as team capitain,
after
playing eight winters for his hometown Guasave Algonoderos before the
franchise
was sold and shifted to Guadalajara in 2014.
He's never played for another
Mex Pac team and has compiled a very respectable. 295 batting average
over 17
seasons with 123 homers and 611 RBIs in 1,037 regular season games.
Rodriguez
was a member of title-winning Jalisco teams in 2019 and 2022 and is a
three-time LMP Most Valuable Player. His 233 doubles are second only to
Hector
Espino in league annals while he ranks fifth on the all-time Mex Pac
list with
595 runs scored.
Receiving applause from over 9,000
fans at Estadio Pan Americano as well as members of both teams,
Rodriguez
addressed those assembled: “I would like to thank my family and my
teammates.
Thank you very much for so much support to all the fans. Thank you for
being
here. I have no words. Thank you, Culiacan Tomateros, for so many years
of
competition and respect. I admire you and I wish you all the best. I
did not
know how this farewell was going to be and it exceeded all my
expectations.
Thank you very much, Jalisco.”
Rodriguez had received a
Culiacan jersey with his number 13 moments earlier from Tomateros
manager Benji
Gil, who himself escaped involuntary “retirement” weeks ago after a
meeting
between Culiacan players and ownership reversed the ex-MLB infielder's
firing.
Born Jose Manuel Rodriguez (but
known as “Manny” to fans south of the border), the 5'10” 187-pounder
played for
Chillicothe of the indepedendent Frontier League in 2004 and 2005,
batting an
even .300 with 17 homers in 114 games over two years for the Paints
(and
leading the loop with a .380 average in 2005), before signing with
Saltillo of
the Mexican League in 2006.
He hit .344 in 55 games for the
Saraperos that year and then batted .333 in his first winter for
Guasave in 36
games. He's gone on to top the .300 mark nine times in the Mexican
League,
where he has a career .307 average with 149 homers over 1,037 games
while
playing in four All-Star Games and winning Comeback Player of the Year
in 2014.
Rodriguez represented Mexico in the 2008 Summer Olympics and 2017 World
Baseball Classic.
After hitting .250 with six homers
in 48 games for Saltillo last summer, Rodriguez has a .181 average with
one
homer for the Charros over 19 contests this winter.
VERACRUZ AGUILAS TO HOST THREE GAMES IN LA PAZ
The Mexican League's Veracruz
Aguilas will face the Puebla Pericos de Puebla in the so-called "Baja
Series" between March 31 and April 2 at Arturo C. Nahl Stadium in La
Paz,
Baja California Sur, prior to the start of the 2023 regular season. The
Aguilas
will host the event and serve as home team.
Friday's official presentation of
the Baja Series was headlined by Gilberto Garciglia, General Director
of La
Paz' Instituto Sudcaliforniano del Deporte, representing the Governor
of Baja
California Sur; Aguilas general director Hector Fitch, Pericos sports
manager
Enrique Lopez and members of the event's organizing committee, where
they gave
details of what they hope will become a tradition for the people of
Baja
California Sur.
According to a press release from Veracruz, all three games will be of high caliber, as several players will have the opportunity to show their talent to the fullest to seek a place with both the Aguilas and Pericos for the 2023 Mexican Baseball League season. "We are very excited to be able to come and play,” said Fitch. “We have a great rival in the Pericos so what better way to start the preseason with some games in La Paz?
"The players are very excited to be able to come to La Paz for the preseason, to be able to live with the children and with the people. A big part of being here is seeing the new prospects and making a mark here."
In addition to a full Veracruz roster headed by stars such as Alexi Amarista and Jesús "Cacao" Valdez, the press release states, Veracruz team mascot Pachi Aguilar will also attend La Baja Series to infect the children of Sudcalifornia with his “jarocha joy.”
La Paz has a team called the Delfines (“Dolphins”) that competes in the Northern Mexico League during the summer after being awarded a franchise in 2019, becoming the first city in Baja California Sur to field a professional ballclub. However, the LNM's shaky fiancial situation following the withdrawal of formal Mexican League support and the arrival of the Wuhan virus in Mexico led to a two-year hiatus for the loop between 2020 and 2021.
Play in the Liga Norte resumed this year as the Ensenada Marineros won their fourth pennant since 2012 by defeating San Quintin, 4 games to 1, in the championship series. A second BC Sur team, the Los Cabos Bucaneros, has been added to the LNM. The Delfines and Bucs will open the 2023 season on April 27 in La Paz at Estadio Arturo C. Nahl, a 4,200-seat ballpark opened in 1967 and renovated a number of times over the years.
