Author: Sports Radio Service

Sports Radio Service is the only Bay Area outlet covering the 2018 Caribbean Series

Photo credit: @ZagaDeporte

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: 4 | 8 | 2

VENEZUELA: 15 | 20 | 1

By Lewis Rubman

Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico
February 3, 2018

Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico–The second day of the Caribbean Series opened with a blast as Venezuela’s Caribes de Anzoategui overwhelmed the Dominican Republic’s Aguilas Cibaenas 15-4 this afternoon in game three of the 13-game tournament that features the champions of the five major winter leagues in the Western Hemisphere, the Cuban National Series, the Dominican League, the Mexican Pacific League, the Puerto Rican Roberto Clemente Porfessional Baseball League, and the Venezuelan League of Professional Baseball.

The Dominican Reppublic’s defeat would have been even more devasting if the victors had observed baseball’s unwritten rules and tried to score at every easy opportunity.

Venezuela’s Balbino Fuenmayor launched two blasts of about 420 feet each. The first, in the bottom of the second inning, landed just to the right of the centerfield score board. The second, which came one inning later, was a mirror image of its predessor, landing just slightly to the left of the score board. Fuenmayor must have run out of steam, because all he could achieve in his next plate appearance was a deep fly to right center that bounced into the bleachers on one hop for what is erroneously called a ground rule double but really is a rule book double. In the sixth, the Caribes’ first baseball hit a grounder to short, where Abiiatal Avelino was stationed so deep that the slugger had no difficulty beating it out of a single. He rounded out his five for five day with a fly ball single to center.

Fuenmayor wasn’t the only hitter who validated Charros Stadium’s Reputation as a batters’ paradise. In the home half of the sixth, his teammates Rafael Ortega and Rene Reyes parked one of Rafael de Paula’s pitches in the center and right field bleachers, respectively. It was in that inning that Fuenmayor varied his act with an infield single.

The Aguilas (Eagles) got their runs in the fifth and sixth innings. The first and seventh innings were the only ones in which the Caribes (the name of the nation that inhabited the area before the colonization of the Caribbean basin) didn’t score. The put up crooked numbers in the third, fifth, sixth, and eighth frames. It goes without saying that they didn’t bat in the ninth.

Major League veteran Freddy Garcia started for Venezuela but didn’t last long enough to get credit for the victory, having been pulled after pitching four and two-thirds innings.

He was followed on the mound by Cesar Jiimenez, who got the win, Carlos Navas, who pitched last year for the A’s farm teams in Stockton and Midland, Mayckol Guaipe, and Ricardo Gomez for the Caribes. The Aguilas’ left handed starter Raul Valdes got the loss. Ulises Joaquin, Cesilio Pimentel, Rafael de Paula, Angel Castro, and Esmerling de la Rosa comosed the parade that followed him. Of that list, Pimentel was the only one to turn in a respectable performace, facing two batters without allowing a hit and forcing one one of them to hit into a double play.

Besides Fuenmayor, five members of Venezuela’s line up had a mutliple hit afternoon, Rafael Ortega, Rene Reyes, Williams Astudillo, Alexi Amarista, and Cesar Valera. Christian Bethancourt account for three of his team’s hits. Hector Gomez hit a two run homer ln the fifth off Garcia for the Dominican. The Eagles’ third baseman made a spiffy play on Luis Sardinas’ liner in the bottom of the third, and second baseman Alexi Amarista made a sparkling play on pinch hitter Luis Valenzuela’s grounder to second in top of the ninth.

Host team Mexico will be the visiting squad for the purposes of tonight’s game against Puerto Rico. Game time is 8:00 pm (6:00 Pacific).

Sports Radio Service is the only Bay Area outlet covering the 2018 Caribbean Series

Photo credit: @mexbaseball

Puerto Rico 7 | 15 | 0

Mexico 4 | 10 | 0

By Lewis Rubman
Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico
February 3, 2018

Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico–The 19th century Puerto Rican poet Lola Rodriguez de Tio is famous for her lines, “Cuba y Puerto Rico son/de un pajaro las dos alas.” Translation: “Cuba and Puerto Rico are two wings of the same bird.” If that’s true, that bird must be soaring because both country’s teams won their first game in this year’s Caribbean Series.

Following the Cubans’ 6-4 triumph over the Venezuelans, Puerto Rico’s Criollos de Caguas overcame host Mexico’s Tomateros de Culiacan by a score of 7-4 in a game featured a couple of surprises.

The first came before the game even began, when Bill Clinton came onto the field and was treated to a thunderous ovation when he was introduced as a friend of Mexico. More cheers followed when the ex-president proclaimed himself a lover of baseball.

The second surprise occurred in the top of the third inning with two outs and an 0-2 count on the Criollos’ Johnny Monell, Anthony Garcia attempted a straight steal of home. He was called out, and a long review was inconclusive, so the ruling was allowed to stand. But Garcia’s daring dash to the plate certainly was unexpected. He didn’t even get a good jump on starter Edgar Gonzalez’s pitch, and many spectators speculated that the play might have been a botched suicide squeeze attempt. In any case, Garcia definitely gave the crowd a jolt.

In spite of the failure of his act of daring do, he had a very successful night, going 3 for 5, hitting two doubles, and driving in two runs, Four other Caguas batters had multiple hit nights. Shortstop Jesmuel Valentin and thirdbasman David Vidal went 2 for 5, and first baseman Ruben Gotay and leftfielder Dayron Varona each got two hits in four at bats.

Puerto Rico opened the scoring in the top of the second with succesive singles by Vidal, Gotay, and Varona, followed by a walk to catcher Jonathan Morales off of Gonzalez.

Mexico closed the gap to one run in their half of the inning with a two out single to center by Dominican thirdbaseman Ronnier Mustellier, a walk to shortstop Issmael Salas, and a single in right by catcher Gabriel Gutierrez.

The Islanders tacked on another run in the third, only to see Mexico add another in the bottom of the frame and take the lead in the fourth when Criollos started Adalberto Flores hit Mustellier and Salas, who each moved up a base on Gutierrez’s sacrifice bunt. After Rico Noel struck out swinging, Sebastian Elizalde singled both runners home only to be caught stealing; 2-4-3-6.

After a walk to Irving Falu, who had replaced Rey Navarro at second base, followed by a wild pitch by Gonzlez that advanced him a base, and Garcia’s RBI single helped Puerto Rico retie the game at four apiece.

Thing stayed like that until the top of the eighth, when Casey Coleman, now pitching for Culiacan, gave up a double to deep left field to Garcia, who scored on Vidal’s rule book double to center. Vidal advanced one base on Gotay’s single to right.

At this point, manager Benjamin Gil replaced Coleman with Nick Struck, who proceeded to deliver a wild pitch on a 2 and 2 count to Varona, who tripled on his next offering, driving in both runners, and sealing Culiacan’s doom.

Elizalde and Gutierrez were the Mexicans’ leading hitters, with two apiece.

Lefty Luis Cruz got the win in relief. The save went to Miguel Mejia, who pitched a scoreless ninth. Coleman was charged with the loss.

This afternoon’s game will pit the Dominican Republics Aguilas Cibaenas against the Anzoategui Criollos of Venezuela. Game time is 2:00 pm (noon PT).

The 8:00 pm (6:00 pm PT) match up will see Mexico face Cuba.

Sports Radio Service is the only Bay Area outlet covering the 2018 Caribbean Series

Photo credit: @Territorioscore

CUBA 6
VENEZUELA 4

By Lewis Rubman

Zapopán, Jalisco, Mexico

February 2, 2018

Zapopán, Jalisco, Mexico–Cuba’s Alazanes de Granma won the opening game of the sixtieth Caribbean Series by defeating Venezuela´s Caribes de Anozátegui this afternoon by a score of 6-4 in a contest that wasn’t decided until a badly shaken Raidel Martínez got Venezuela’s designated hitter Luis Jiménez to swing and miss on a 1-2 count with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the ninth inning. Granma jumped out to an early lead when Yordan Manduley singled Roel Santos in from second and was in turn driven in by

Yurisbel Gracial’s double off Anzoáregui’s starter, righty Daryl Thompson, in the bottom of the first inning.

Venezuela chipped away at Cuba´s lead in the top of the third, when Luis Sardiñas crossed the plate while Nieuman Romero grounded into a double play, short unassisted to first çagainst the Alazanes’ starting pitcher, right hander Lázaro Blanco. They evened the sccore on Luis Jiménez’s blast into the right field seats in the following frame.

Carlos Navas relieved Thompson with runners on the corners and one out in the bottom of the fifth. Gracial notched his second RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly to center that broke the tie and gave the Cuban’s a 3-2 lead.

They took a commanding lead in the seventh, mounting a two run, two out rally against Felipe Paulino , with two walks, an infield single and and a pinch hit single to left by Alexander Ayala.

Venezuela came roaring back in the top of the eighth on René Reyes’s double to right, followed by a single, also to right, by Balbino Fuenmayor, both off Miguel Lahera.

With two outs in the Cuban half of the inning, a two-base throwing error by shortstop Luis Sardiñas allowed pinch runner Yulián to score, putting the Cubans ahead with a commanding 6-3 lead.

But the Venezuelans put a scare into them. Alexis Amerista led off against Lahera with a single. After Sardiñas forced Amerista at second and Ortega flied out to right, Sardiñas stole second. Romero then worked a full count and walked. Reyes singled to right to load the bases, putting the tying run on base and bringing the potential leading run to the plate in the person of Fuenmayor, the clean up hitter. Granma manager Carlos Martí brought Martínez in to relieve Lahera. Martínez promptly balked Sardiñas home with the Caribe’s fourth run and advancing Romero and Reyes. A rattled Martínez walked Fuenmayor, wherre he represented the possible tying run. That’s when Martínez notched his clutch strike out.

Blanco got the win. Thompson was charged with the loss. The save went to Martínez.

This afternoon´s game will be followed at 8:00 pm this evening. (6:00 pm Pacific) between the winners of last year’s series, the Caguas Crollos of Puerto Rico, and the champions of the Mexican Pacific League, the Tomateros of Culiacán. Taking the mound for Caguas will be right hander Adalberto Florers. Another righty, Edgar González, will pitch for the Mexican team.