Acereros Advance to Zona Norte Finals; Defeat Tecolotes 4 Games to 1

MONCLOVA SCORES 3 RUNS ON 4 HITS IN 3-1 WIN

Josh Lowey

The pitchers duel in this game was a good one. Josh Lowey (1-0) threw 4 hit ball over 7 2/3 innings, with 2 of those hits coming in the 8th inning, allowing 1 run, walking 3 and striking out 4 in the win. He walked a batter and gave up 2 singles in the 8th resulting in a run for Dos Laredos. Josh Lueke worked the 9th inning to record his 2nd save of the series.

The Tecolotes starter, Terance Marin (0-1), pitched a complete game allowing 3 runs on 4 hits over those 9 innings. The one pitch he would like to have back is the one that Juan Perez took deep in the 7th inning. Marin walked 1 and struck out 2 in his outing.

Terance Marin

The game was scoreless until Monclova scored their runs in the top of the 7th. Erick Aybar singled to lead off the inning and moved to second on a fly ball to center by Jesus Castillo. With 2 outs, Danny Espinosa doubled to left to score Aybar. Wild pitch advanced Espinosa to third but Juan Perez launched his home run to bring in Espinosa and give the Acereros a 3-0 lead.

Dos Laredos attempted to mount an offense against Lowey in the bottom of the 8th. Juan Apodaca opened the inning by drawing a walk and moved to second on a single by Enrique Osorio. One out later, a single by Juan Martinez scored Apodaca and signaled the end to Lowey's night. The Tecolotes loaded the bases against 2 relievers but Balbino Fuenmayor struck out to end the threat and the scoring for Dos Laredos.

Juan Perez

There would be no rally in the 9th as Josh Lueke shut down the Tecolotes and Monclova won the game and the series to advance to the Zona Norte finals against either Monterrey or Tijuana. Monterrey currently leads their series 3 games to 2.

Venados Bounce Back With 4-2 Win In Game 2

TIE SERIE FINAL AT 1 GAME APIECE

The Venados de Mazatlán tied the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico Serie Final against the Aguilas de Mexicali at 1 game each last night with a 4-2 win in Mexicali.

Winning Pitcher Alejandro Soto

3 runs in the 4th inning by the Venados gave them the 3-1 lead and the Mazatlán relief pitchers did the rest. Alejandro Soto, the starter for Mazatlán went 5 innings for the win, scattering 4 hits (2 hits after the 1st inning), allowing 1 run, walking 1 and striking out 2. Steven Hensley struck out 1 batter while working a 1-2-3 ninth inning to pick up the save...his 4th of the playoffs.

Terance Marin, the Aguilas starter, took the loss giving up 4 runs on 5 hits although only 1 of the runs was earned. Marin walked 2 and struck out 1.

Agustin Murillo went 2 for 4 at the plate for the Venados with an RBI. Justin Greene, Esteban Quiroz, Cyle Hankerd and Olmo Rosario were all 1 for 4 on the night with Quiroz and Rosario driving in runs. Mike Jacobs had a sac fly RBI for Mazatlán.

Chris Roberson was 2 for 4 for the Aguilas with a run scored. Wellington Dotel had a pinch hit double with a run scored. Yuniesky Betancourt had a triple with an RBI for Mexicali and Luis Juarez had an RBI on a sac fly.

Roberson led off the bottom of the 1st for the Aguilas with a single, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Roman Urias and scored on a triple to left center by Betancourt as Mexicali took a quick 1-0 lead.

Mazatlán struck back in the top of the 4th inning With one out, Esteban Quiroz reached base safely on a fielding error by the Aguilas third baseman. Cyle Hankerd followed with a double to left that put runners at second and third with 1 out. Murillo singled to score Quiroz and put runners on the corners. Mike Jacobs, the Venados DH, hit a sac fly to center that scored Hankerd as Murillo took second on the throw. Rosario singled to score Murillo and the Venados led 3-1.

The Venados added an insurance run in the 6th on a one out single by Greene that was too tough for the shortstop to handle. Greene stole second and scored on a double by Quiroz and the 4-1 Mazatlán lead.

Mexicali would score a run in the bottom of the 7th when pinch hitter Wellington Dotel hit a double to center and went to third as the Venados center fielder misplayed the bounce for an error. Juarez drove in Dotel with a sac fly to right that cut the lead to 4-2 but the Aguilas could muster no more offense and the Venados took game 2 of the Serie Final by that score.

The win in Mexicali ensures that all 3 games scheduled for Mazatlán will take place. After a travel day on Friday, the series resumes with game 3 on Saturday. Game 4 of the series will be played on Sunday with game 5 scheduled for Monday the 25th of January. 

Charros Swept by Aguilas; Lose game 4 by a 7-4 Score

AGUILAS SCORE 6 RUNS IN THE 7th TO PUT AWAY CHARROS

The Charros de Jalisco were officially eliminated from the Liga Mexicana del Pacifco playoffs on Wednesday night. The Aguilas de Mexicali used a 6 run outburst in the 7th inning to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 7-3 lead from which the Charros would not recover.

Terance Marin on the Mound

Terance Marin, the Jalisco starting pitcher, took the loss working 6 innings and left the game after scattering 5 hits, giving up 1 run and striking out 2. Marin had thrown 83 pitches in those 6 innings.

I give these stats because the Charros manager, Homer Rojas, replaced Marin with reliever Manuel Flores to start the 7th inning. Flores walked the first batter he faced and gave up singles to Jon Del Campo and Roman Urias that allowed the Aguilas to cut the Charros lead to 3-2. Rojas replaced Flores with reliever Ivan Salas. After a sacrifice bunt moved the runners up a base, Salas unleashed a wild pitch that scored Del Campo and tied the score at 3 all. Mexicali went on to score 4 more runs in the inning to bury the Charros.

Should Rojas have left Marin in the game? The answer is a resounding yes! Marin had thrown 83 pitches in 6 innings, an average of 14 pitches per inning, and held the Aguilas in check. Even using a 110 pitch count, Marin should have been able to pitch 8 innings. This was an elimination game. Lose and go home. Rojas should have allowed Marin to pitch until he proved ineffective. Marin could not have pitched worse than Flores and Salas. He deserved the chance as did the 8,800 plus fans that hoped for a victory to extend the Charros season.

Cacao Scores the 1st Run

Jalisco jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the 1st inning. Cacao Valdez drew a 2 out walk and moved to second on a one hop fly ball to center by Alex Liddi. Valdez scored on a single to center by Agustin Murillo and Liddi came home on a single to left by Miguel Olive that gave the Charros a 2-0 lead.

Liddi Scores on a Single by Olivo

Asael Sanchez singled to lead off the 4th for Jalisco, stole second, went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Luis Medina and scored on a throwing error by the Aguilas catcher to extend the Charros lead to 3-0.

Mexicali struck back in the top of the 5th inning on a walk to Luis Juarez, a single by Xorge Carrillo and a line drive single to center by Chris Roberson that scored Juarez and cut the Charros lead to 3-1.

The Aguilas scored all the runs they would need in the 7th inning and the Charros entered the bottom of the 9th inning behind 7-3. Asael Sanchez doubled to lead off the inning and scored, one out later, on a double by pinch hitter Ivan Araujo. That would be all the scoring and the Aguilas move on to the next round of the LMP playoffs with the 4 game sweep of the Charros under their belts.

Ex Charros player, CJ Retherford, went 3 for 5 on the night for Mexicali while teammate Wellington Dotel was 2 for 4.

Jesus "Cacao" Valdez and Miguel Olivo were both 2 for 4 for the Charros and Asael Sanchez was 2 for 3 with 2 runs scored.

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Charros Drop Game 1 to Aguilas 2-1

ALEX LIDDI HOME RUN LONE JALISCO OFFENSE

In a pitchers duel worthy of the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico Championship playoffs, Terance Marin squared off against Javier Solano to produce one of the more entertaining games in the Charros season.

Charros starter Terance Marin

Marin pitched 7 strong innings for the Charros giving u just 2 runs while scattering 6 hits, striking out 6, walking 3 and throwing 1 costly wild pitch.

The Charros offense sputtered once again, getting just 5 hits, two of them by Liddi and scoring 1 run in support of Marin.

Jalisco had runners on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs in the 3rd inning but failed to score. They wouldn't get runners in scoring position again until Liddi led off the top of the 7th with a double. Again the Charros were unable to score.

Yunesky Betancourt, of the Aguilas, singled to lead off the bottom of the second, advanced to second on a fly ball to center, moved to third on a ground out by Wellington Dotel and scored on a wild pitch by Marin to put Mexicali up 1-0. Luis Juarez followed the wild pitch with a singl and scored on a double to left center by Xorge Carrillo with what proved to be the winning run and a 2-0 lead.

Alex Liddi, given the green light on a 3-1 pitch, drilled a fast ball over the wall in left center to cut the lead to 2-1 in the 4th inning but the Charros would score no more.

Liddi HR in the 4th

Marin was charged with the loss. Javier Solano went 7 innings for Mexicali allowing 1 run on 4 hits and striking out 7 Charros. Esmailin Caridad picked up the save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning in relief.

Game 2 of the first round series continues on Saturday the 2nd of January on Mexicali before returning to Guadalajara foe game 3 on Monday the 4th of January.

Serie de Caribe To Begin February 2nd

5 CHARROS CHOSEN TO JOIN TOMATEROS

The World Series of Caribbean Baseball is set to begin in San Juan, Puerto Rico on the 2nd of February. The Tomateros de Culiacan, by virtue of their championship season in the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico, will represent Mexico.

The other countries participating in the series are Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and The Dominican Republic. The rosters are expanded for the 5 teams and the Tomateros have chosen 5 Charros to help fill out their team. Manny Rodriguez, Marquez Smith, Terance Marin, Juan Delgadillo and Carlos Vasquez were selected to join the team in Puerto Rico.

The games begin on the 2nd of February and the finals are held on the 8th.

Mexico opens play against Cuba at 10:05 AM on the 2nd. They play again on the 3rd at 4:30 PM versus Puerto Rico. The team is off on the 4th but resumes play against the Dominican Republic at 4:30 PM on the 5th. The team's final game is with Venezuela at 10:05 AM on the 6th.

The 1st Semifinal game will be held at 10:05 AM on the 7th with the 2nd Semifinal game beginning at 4:30 PM.

The winners of those two games will meet in the Finals to be played at 2:30 PM on the 8th with the winner of that game crowned the Champions of the Caribbean.

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Charros Even Championship Series At 1 Game Apiece

SHUTOUT TOMATEROS 5-0 BEHIND JUAN DELGADILLO

The Charros used strong pitching from starter Juan Delgadillo and relievers Terance Marin and Manny Acosta to shutout the Tomateros de Culiacan in the 2nd game of the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico last night and even the Championship series at 1 game apiece.

Delgadillo got the win by tossing six complete innings of 5 hit shutout ball, striking out 2 and keeping the Tomateros off balance all night. Terance Marin pitched 2 innings giving up 2 hits while holding Culiacan scoreless and Manny Acosta, who pitched the 9th inning for Jalisco, put a little scare into the fans, allowing 2 hits before getting the last out to preserve the win for Delgadillo.

The Charros scored in the bottom of the 1st on a single to left by Eduardo Arredondo, a walk to Leo Heras and a single to left by Japhet Amador that scored Arredondo for the early 1-0 Jalisco lead.

With two outs in the Charros half of the 4th, Jesus Lopez drew a walk and went to second as Eduardo Arredondo also drew the base on balls. Manny Rodriguez singled up the middle to load the bases on a ball that the Culiacan second baseman got to but couldn't turn into a force play at second. Leo Heras followed with a single to right that scored Lopez and Arredondo to open the lead to 3-0 Charros.

Jalisco scored twice in the 7th as Jon Weber singled with one out and scored in front of a home run to left by Marquez Smith as the Charros increased their lead to 5-0. When Manny Acosta got the third out in the top of the 9th, the Charros had the victory.

After a travel day on Friday, the series shifts to Culiacan for game 3 on Saturday, game 4 on Sunday and game 5 on Monday. If necessary, games 6 and 7 will be played in Guadalajara beginning Wednesday the 28th of January

Caneros Shutout Charros 6-0 On Excellent Pitching By Terance Marin

The Caneros de Los Mochis took the third game of the three game series with jalisco, 6-0, behind the outstanding pitching of starter Terance Marin and reliever Andres Avila.

Orlando Lara, of the Charros had a one hitter through four innings. Lara gave up a lead off walk to Yancarlo Angulo to lead off the 5th. Angulo moved up on a sacrifice bunt by Sebastian Valle and scored two batters later on a single by Justin Christian. The Caneros led 1-0.

Terance Marin was pitching a no-hitter until Eduardo Arredondo singled with two outs in the bottom of the 6th. The Charros could not take advantage of the base runner as Manny Rodriguez struck out to end the inning with the Caneros still leading 1-0.

The Caneros added to their lead in the top of the 8th. Greg Golson singled to center to lead off the inning. Juan Gamboa advanced Golson on a sacrifice bunt. Juan Pedroso walked. Adrian Ramirez replaced Mario Mendoza for the Charros and walked Ramon Orantes to load the bases. One batter later, Gloson scored on a single by Yancarlo Angulo. Sebastian Valle then cleared the bases on a grand slam home run to deep center to give the Caneros a 6-1 lead that would hold for the victory.

Jalisco managed just three hits off of Terance Marin and reliever Andres Avila and Eduardo Arredondo had two of them, going 2 for 4 in the loss. The Charros struck out 7 times and didn't receive a free pass all game. Marin picked up the win to move to 1-1 on the year, while Orlando lara took the loss to fall to 4-2 on the season. Lara went 6 2/3 innings giving up just three hits but walking 4 and striking out 4. Charros reliever Adrian Ramirez gave up the grand slam to Sebastian Valle.

The Charros fall to 26-18 overall and 5-4 in the second half of the Liga de Mexicana del Pacifico while the Caneros climb to 24-20 overall.