México Verde defeats the Dominican Republic and takes away its undefeated record in the Caribbean Series

GUADALAJARA, Mexico — The Tomateros de Culiacán came back at the end of the eighth inning with a six-run attack to beat the Leones del Esgido 10-7, who suffered their first defeat in the current edition of the Caribbean Series.

The runners-up of the Mexican Pacific League, identified in this tournament as México Verde, are already classified for the semifinals, as are their Dominican rivals. The victory of the Tomateros will lead them to face the Lions again in the next phase.

The Dominican Republic took the lead in the first inning, when Sócrates Brito led a three-run attack with a two-run double. The Tomateros closed the gap with a two-run home run by Allen Córdoba in the third inning, but the Dominican offense took off again with solo home runs by Franchy Cordero in the fourth and sixth innings, in addition to a home run by Jimmy Paredes also in the sixth inning.

Down by two runs in the eighth inning, México Verde put together its final six-run attack. Rodolfo Amador drove in the first with a single, Yadir Drake produced two more with another hit, Joey Meneses added a sacrifice fly and Estevan Florial capped the rally with a two-run home run to establish the final score.

“We couldn’t execute at the key moment. Our bullpen failed us today, but we must turn the page and be ready to play tomorrow,” said Dominican manager Ramón Santiago, after his team’s first loss in the tournament. “All credit to them, they have a tremendous team and they executed. We have to fully focus on the semifinals. I trust our relievers and I know they will do a better job tomorrow.”

The first round ended with the Dominican Republic in first place with a 3-1 record, followed by México Rojo (3-1), Puerto Rico (2-2), México Verde (2-2) and Panama (0-4).

The semifinals were set for this Friday. The Lions will face México Verde again in the first duel, and the Charros de Jalisco, identified as México Rojo, will face the Cangrejeros de Santurce from Puerto Rico to define the second finalist.

“We know that we didn’t play as well as we could in this first round, especially on offense, but I think today the boys realized what they are capable of doing,” said Tomateros manager Lorenzo Bundy. “Now we have a great opportunity. If tomorrow we can beat them again, we will have the option of playing for the championship. I trust this team and I ask the Mexican fans for their support.”

Puerto Rico sneaks into the semifinals with a victory against Panama

The Cangrejeros de Santurce scored four runs in the sixth inning, to complete a comeback and beat the Federales de Chiriquí 8-3, thereby securing their place in the semifinals of the Caribbean Series.

Former Major League player Johan Camargo put the Federals, representatives of Panama, ahead with a run-scoring single in the first inning and added a sacrifice fly in the fifth.

From the mound, Harold Araúz retired the first five innings with a scoreless score, but later problems arose.

In the sixth inning, the Puerto Rican champions scored four times to turn the score around. Nelson Velázquez and Isan Díaz hit RBI singles to tie the game, and Christian Vázquez added a hit with the bases loaded that drove in two more to put the duel 4-2 in favor of the Cangrejeros.

Although José Ramos once again brought Panama closer by the minimum with an RBI single in the seventh inning, Christian Vázquez drove in one more run with a single in the eighth and Rubén Castro drove in two additional runs with another hit, to seal the victory and the pass to the semifinals.

“The team showed what it’s made of. We started down on the scoreboard, but we knew how to respond in a game of life or death,” said Cangrejeros manager Omar López. “We had to be aggressive with the use of the relievers, who did a great job, and the offense lived up to what we know it can do.”

With the loss, Panama finished the tournament with a 0-4 record and was the only team eliminated in the first round.

“Things didn’t happen to us. I have a team that never gives up and this helps us to continue learning and get to know my players better,” commented Federales manager José Mayorga. “We know it wasn’t the best performance. It was a complicated tournament, but we have the opportunity to continue improving ahead of the commitment we have next month in the World Baseball Classic.”