12/22/16 Venezuela Standings 12/22/16 Dominican Standings

12/22/16 - Pantoja, Gonzalez and Aguilar stay hot

DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE

Erik Gonzalez (Leones del Escogido, SS): 2-4, R, HR (3), 2 RBI, 2 K, SB, E – Gonzalez now has two dingers in his last four games and three in 21 games this offseason. He’s also driven in five in his last seven games and has 10 overall, and he’s hitting .273 through 77 at-bats.

Michael Martinez (Estrellas Orientales, 2B): 2-4, 2 R, 2 2B, 2 RBI – Martinez now has a six-game hitting streak going, and he’s driven in four runs over that span. The infielder is hitting just .237 in 16 games with the Estrellas Orientales this offseason.

Ronny Rodriguez (Aguilas Cibaenas, 1B): 0-3, R, 2 BB, 2 K – Rodriguez is now hitless in two games (six at-bats) after a two-game stretch where he collected three hits in eight at-bats. He’s still having a solid season, hitting .306 in 160 at-bats over 43 games.

Abraham Almonte (Toros del Este, CF): 0-1, 2 BB, SAC, CS – Although he didn’t register a hit on Thursday, Almonte still found a way to be productive with a pair of walks and a sacrifice bunt. Almonte is still putting up a solid offseason with a .329 average.

VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE

Jesus Aguilar (Leones del Caracas, 1B): 2-3, BB – Aguilar has been red hot lately, hitting in seven straight and batting a ridiculous .448 (13-for-29) with nine RBI, 10 walks and just five strikeouts in his last 10 games. He’s put up four multi-hit games in his last seven and is batting .328 in 38 games this offseason.

Yandy Diaz (Leones del Caracas, CF): 0-3, R, HBP – Despite going hitless on Thursday, Diaz is hitting .429 (15-for-35) in his last 10 games with four RBI, five walks and three strikeouts. He's only struck out 23 times in 136 at-bats this offseason and has 17 walks, two figures that look very nice together on Diaz’s stat sheet.

PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE

Alexis Pantoja (Tiburones de Aguadilla, SS): 3-3, R – Pantoja now has five hits in his last seven at-bats (two games) and has compiled 12 hits in his last eight games (29 at-bats). In that span, he has bumped his offseason average up to .324 through 25 games (71 at-bats).

With the signing of EE, looks like Aguilar has no future with the Tribe.

What about trading him and some excess pitching and either Naquin or Chisenhall for Charlie Blackmon? Aguilar might thrive in Colorado and they had Mark Reynolds at 1B and he did not have that much power for them. Blackmon is hardly ever talked about by the media but the few times I saw him he looked really good.

NOTES

Yandy Diaz extended his on base streak to 36 games matching the mark held by Daniel Mayora for the club record.

Bad Timing: Leones lost 4 of their best players for the rest of the season, Luis Diaz, Juan Carlos Gutierrez (in US signing contract with Houston), Fernando Nieves, and Gregorio Petit

Aguilar has no future anywhere in MLB, IMO. Dude hit 247 with a 319 OBP in AAA. He'll be in Japan soon.

12/23/16
Only four games today; one rained out

JHOULYS CHACÍN WILL RETURN TO TAKE ON BRAVOS

Caracas.- The management of the Lions of Caracas obtained the permission from the Padres so that Jhoulys Chacín returns to the country to help the team in the final stretch.

"Jhoulys will start in the series against Bravos," confirmed Jose Manuel Fernandez, sports manager of the Lions. "We still do not know if he will be here on the 28th or 29th (December at the University Stadium) to take the mound, but he comes back to the team."

Chacín, who traveled on December 18th to complete medical examinations and signd with San Diego on Tuesday, hopes to be here in time to get his team into the January party.

The ace of the rotation of the Lions exhibits a record of 2-2 and an era of 2.54, in 28.1 innings of work, distributed in five starts.

Lions stay alive

Felix Perez Villain To Hero -
Hidden Ball To Game Winning Triple.

If there is a phrase that seems cliche in baseball, it is that this sport always gives you revenge, and Felix Perez gave it and how.

The Lions' outfielder went from villain to hero with one swing of the bat after connecting a triple with the bases full in the bottom of the eighth inning that gave Caracas a 4-2 victory against the Sharks of La Guaira.

This victory for Caracas is very important, because it keeps them alive in the fight for a place in the playoffs.

Felix Perez had become the "bad guy" in the third inning when trying to make a big play. Perez hid the ball hit by Heiker Meneses under the right-field fence. After a review requested by manager Oswaldo Guillén, the hit was ruled as a homer and signifyed the only two runs that the Sharks would score the whole game.

"I tried to make a play but the cameras discovered me," said the Cuban Perez on that play.

"Thank God baseball gave me the opportunity to redeem myself and I was able to hit the ball," Perez concluded with great excitement.

Now Caracas is a half game from classification.

NOTES

* Yandy Diaz extended his on base streak to 36 games matching the mark held by Daniel Mayora for the club record.

[ Yesterday's (Thursday) loss to the Cardenals ended the Caracas winning streak at six games; The loss also ended Yandy Diaz's 36 game on base streak. ]

* Ronny Rodriguez would win the batting title with a hit tonight (Thursday). If he goes 0-4 he would lose, as he would be at .304 and Ramon Torres was .306. Beware of Sosa, who has a .303 average

* The Giants did not start Torres tonight (Thursday). The Giants qualified earlier this week. Torres' batting average remains .306

[ Looks like that one backfired.......Rodriquez would go 0-3 with a pair of walks. Ronnie Rodriguez wins the batting title with an average of (.30625). Ramon Torrez ends up with an average of (.30573). Sosa ended up batting (.299) ]

12/23/16

VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE (LVBP)

Yandy Diaz (CF) - 0-3, 1 BB, 2 K - Diaz is proving to be mortal as he is currently in a mini-slump following back-to-back hitless games and three hitless games in his last four heading into Christmas.

Jesus Aguilar (1B) - 0-3, 1 R, 1 BB - Aguilar saw a seven-game hitting streak come to an end, but is still hitting very well going into the holiday break, batting .414/.564/.862 with 4 HR, 8 RBI, and a 5:10 K:BB ratio in his ten most recent games.

Yhoxian Medina (PR) - no plate appearances - Medina can't even get a plate appearance as a Christmas present.

PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE (LBPRC)

Alexis Pantoja (Tiburones de Aguadilla, SS) - 3-4, 1 RBI, 1 Sac Bunt - Pantoja continues to hit well as he now has a four-game hitting streak and is batting .441/.457/.441 in his last ten games before Christmas.

LIDOM REGULAR SEASON IN REVIEW

Tigres del Licey (26-24) - Qualified for Playoffs

Ordomar Valdez (INF) - .500/.500/.500, 4 G, 2 AB, 1 H, 1 K - Valdez only appeared in four games (with three of them coming on consecutive days November 20-22) and only came to the plate in two. Thus, it is very hard to draw any conclusions from his offseason. While the Tigres did qualify for the playoffs, Ordomar will likely be replaced on the postseason roster by a refuerzo (a reinforcement drafted from one of the non-playoff teams).

Jose Medina (OF) - Did Not Play - The other Indian on the Tigres is even harder to evaluate as he never played a game the entire regular season.

Aguilas Cibaenas (25-25) - Qualified for Playoffs

Ronny Rodriguez (INF) - .306/.362/.463, 44 G, 160 AB, 24 R, 49 H, 10 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 33:14 K:BB ratio, 1 IBB, 2-for-2 SB, 2 SF, 3 Sac Bunts, 1 HBP, 3 GIDP - Ronny-Rod's regular season was very good for the most part, but he ended the season mired in a slump, with his last ten games' slash line standing at only .211/.326/.289. The one plus side to his late-season form was improved plate discipline, as evidenced by his .115 isolated plate discipline and 9:7 K:BB ratio in those ten games.

Leones del Escogido (25-25) - Qualified for Playoffs

Erik Gonzalez (INF) - .273/.329/.442, 21 G, 77 AB, 11 R, 21 H, 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 17:6 K:BB, 2-for-2 SB, 1 SF, 1 Sac Bunt, 1 HBP, 1 GIDP - While his average and plate discipline could have been better, he did have solid power numbers, including 12 RBI in 21 games and .169 isolated power. Like Ronny-Rod, Gonzalez will likely see postseason playing time.

Nellie Rodriguez (1B) - .146/.364/.293, 15 G, 41 AB, 3 R, 6 H, 3 2B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 17:12 K:BB, 1 IBB, 2 HBP - Nellie-Rod did not hit well at all in the regular season, but when he got hits, they were big ones. Two-thirds of his hits (4 of 6) were of the extra-base variety and he drove in more runs (7) than he had hits (6). I don't see him starting in the playoffs as the Leones will likely look to internal options or a refuerzo to replace him in the lineup, but he may see time as a pinch hitter in situations where a clutch extra-base hit is needed.

Toros del Este (24-26) - Did Not Qualify for Playoffs

Abraham Almonte (OF) - .329/.402/.388, 22 G, 85 AB, 9 R, 28 H, 5 2B, 12 RBI, 12:11 K:BB, 5-for-8 SB, 1 SF, 2 Sac Bunts, 1 GIDP - While Almonte showed some rust from his postseason suspension and late start to his LIDOM campaign in his first few games, he improved significantly as his regular season continued. His strong showing in the regular season and lack of fatigue from joining the team midseason make him a prime candidate to be picked up by a playoff team as a refuerzo.

Jordan Smith (OF) - .143/.294/.143, 10 G, 28 AB, 1 R, 4 H, 2 RBI, 9:3 K:BB, 2-for-3 SB, 3 HBP - Smith also joined the Toros roster midseason but did not play nearly as well as Abraham and is likely headed back to the States for the remainder of the offseason.

Estrellas Orientales (23-26) - Did Not Qualify for Playoffs

Francisco Mejia (CA) - .227/.217/.227, 9 G, 22 AB, 5 H, 1 RBI, 7 K, 1 SF, 2 Sac Bunt - Mejia's offseason may not have been as bad as Smith's, but it also isn't likely to earn him a refuerzo nod from one of the playoff teams, either.

Michael Martinez (INF) - .237/.262/.390, 16 G, 59 AB, 9 R, 14 H, 4 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 6:1 K:BB, 1-for-2 SB, 3 Sac Bunts, 1 HBP, 1 GIDP - While Martinez will likely not play in the postseason, his power numbers and lack of wear and tear from joining the team later in the season may cause a playoff team to take a flyer on Michael as a bench option because of his versatility.

Close fight for the MVP prize

Ronny Rodríguez, Rubén Sosa, Juan C. Pérez and Ramón Torres are disputing the main award of the Lidom

Although he missed a step in the final stretch of the season, Ronny Rodriguez is leading the way for the Most Valuable Player of the Dominican Republic's winter fall baseball tournament.

In the last ten games, the infielder from the Aguilas Cibaenas only batted .211 (38-8), with two extra bases, six runs scored and one rbi.

Despite that, "El Felino" led the circuit in the main offensive batting departments (.306.73), OPS (.824) and SLG (.463) and total bases reached (80) with 49 base hits, 10 doubles, and three triples.

The 11 errors he made, mostly as a shortstop, put him at the tip of an unwanted box.

Rubén Sosa, of the Leones Escogido, joined the list of four candidates, which also includes the outfielder Juan Carlos Perez, a fundamental core part of the Aguilas, and rookie Ramon Torres.

Coincidentally, they occupied the first four positions for the batting title during the regular series. Torres had a record of (.305.75), Sosa (.299) and Perez (.291).

These last two lead the league in runs scored with a total of 24.

The popular Sosa averaged .333 in the last ten games, when the Lions returned to make another memorable run to the playoffs. His greatest strength was batting .436 (39-17) with people in scoring position (s) and his OBP (406). "El Bambino", meanwhile, also led the Dominican League in hits (50) and doubles (13) even though he had a slow start both on offensive and defensive.

Torres, in turn, was the most productive player of the first month of the season, but little by little he was giving way. However, he had a batting average of .306, four homers, Co-leader along with teammate Rhys Hoskins, Dylan Cozens of the Eagles, and Marco Hernandez of the Tigers. Also, his 26 runs scored was the most of the tournament.

COLUMN: Unjust One Year suspension to Caguas narrator

President Héctor Rivera Cruz punished Ralph Pagán Archeval for some comments he made in his Facebook profile

As a member of a team in the league, Pagan Archeval must know that he is not in the position to criticize the management of another team

I do not think we have to be an expert to correctly answer the following question: what is more relevant, the compliance in the payment of the salary of the players and employees by the owner of a franchise of the Professional Baseball League Roberto Clemente (Lbprc ) Or the critic of a narrator of a team through the social networks towards the management of another team?

The answer is obvious: paying workers' salaries is the most important thing. Or, it should be.

But in the bosom of the Professional Baseball League Roberto Clemente, the thinking is totally different. I just confirmed it with the one-year suspension imposed on veteran Caguas narrator Ralph Pagan Archeval for "criticizing" the management of the Santurce Crabs who, before starting the 2016-17 tournament, announced that the players Of major leagues Carlos Correa, Javier Báez and Francisco Lindor would play this season, only to inform later that none of them would be in uniform.

The president of the (Lbprc), Héctor Rivera Cruz, announced the suspension on Thursday. Which leads me to ask myself again: how is it possible for a narrator to receive a one-season suspension for comments on social networks and the owner of Aguadilla Sharks, Israel Roldan, was not penalized in the same way by breaching a Series of payments to players and other staff of the team?

Rivera Cruz and the remaining members of the League's Board of Directors passed Roldán's hand and came to his rescue by lending him money to meet the wages of the players. They even gave him a term until August next year to give the money back to the league. Roldan's breach cost the team a defeat by confiscation - when players refused to play in Mayagüez in the face of uncertainty about the payroll of the first payroll in November - and the league awarded him with a loan. How is it possible? It was embarrassing that such confiscation took place due to Roldan's default. It was a shame and the league did not handle this issue seriously.

And in the process, Roldán left to travel to Cuba and never gave the face to the players to talk about the lack of funds in the franchise. He simply left without paying. That was a lack of respect and professionalism on the part of Lic. Roldán, the former president of the local Baseball Federation. Roldán seemed to reach the professional league with the mentality of attorney of baseball Double A.

And in his return to the Island, Roldán offered multiple versions that were denied by the own personnel of his team and by a legislator of the area west. Roldán never dealt with this issue seriously and President Rivera Cruz and the Board of Directors gave him a boost. Roldan's actions affected the credibility and weakened image of the league - which urgently needs improvement. It was a very commented news in and outside of Puerto Rico. Not forgetting the money that Mayagüez lost by the confiscation of the meeting. Roldán had to be suspended immediately from the league. If you do not have money to operate a professional franchise, then retire. But in the league they treated him with silk hands and we still have him active in the league depending on the money of the institution to continue operating the franchise.

And now, Rivera Cruz suspended Pagan Archeval without pay for statements on social networks. I understand that the expressions of Pagan Archeval were unnecessary. As a member of a team in the league, Pagan Archeval must know that he is not in the position to criticize the management of another team. He is not a fan, but a representative of a team. But Rivera Cruz's decision was exaggerated. A caution or fine was enough, as in other leagues in the world when a leader, owner or player criticizes the agency or an officer.

But, above all, I understand that the suspension is unfair to Pagan Archeval, especially when Roldán continues to sit on the Board of Directors pretending to have "taste of champagne with pocket maví", as one exfederativo of the Island would say.

The Dominican baseball league postpones the draft of Reinforcements Until Sunday

Santo Domingo.-

The Dominican Baseball League (LIDOM) postponed until Sunday the draft of Dominican and foreign players of the two teams that were eliminated, with a view of strengthening the remaining teams headed to the post season.

The Gigantes del Cibao, Licey Tgres, Cibaeñas Eagles and Lions of Escogido will be able to choose players from Estrellas and Toros del Este.

In total there are 48 available players, although the best of the two teams will not participate in the semifinal.

Among the baseball players who will not see action in the next phase are the members of Estrellas: Junior Lake, Gustavo Núñez, Michael Martinez and Gabriel Guerrero.

Raul Valdés, Cristhian Adames, Teoscar Hernandez and coveted outfielder Abraham Almonte (Toros) decided not to play in the competition.

Teams like Aguilas were all in for the sights of Almonte, to generate more offense Manny Acta's team.

However, the executives of the four teams will have the option to choose closers Wirfin Obispo (Estrellas) and José Rafael Díaz.

They will also be able to choose the position players, Yordani Valdespín and Orlando Calixte, both Estrellas.

The four qualifiers will play a series of 18 matches, from which two teams will emerge to face each other in the finals.

Ronny Rodriguez may have a future as a major league utility player. He used to make the lower part of our Top 10 list until some struggles and injuries in AA. He's hit better the past year and a half although he now rarely plays SS so his defensive ceiling is somewhat limited. Hits for average and power, rarely walks and doesn't steal bases. So his future in the majors is nothing too high, but plenty of guys of similar ability have made a reasonable living as AAAA utility men, see: Martinez, Michael, e.g.