Dominican Republic (Escogido) 3, Venezuela (Caracas) 2

With the game tied 2-2 in the seventh inning, Phillies center fielder Freddy Guzman stole home for what proved to be the winning run yesterday, keeping Escogido's record a perfect 3-0 in the Caribbean Series. Guzman, 29, stole three bases, going 1-for-2 with a pair of walks. Braves 22-year-old lefthander Jose Ortegano pitched well in his start for Venezuela, limiting Escogido to one run over five innings with three strikeouts and three walks.

Puerto Rico (Mayaguez) 5, Mexico (Hermosillo) 3

Mets center fielder Jesus Feliciano went 2-for-4 with a double and a walk and Blue Jays catcher Randy Ruiz went 1-for-3 with a walk and two RBIs to give Puerto Rico its first victory in the Caribbean Series.

[...] Continue Reading »

The annual Caribbean Series is underway in Venezuela, featuring the league champions from the Domincan League, Venezuelan League, Mexican Pacific League and the Puerto Rican League. The team with the best record at the end of the six-day, round-robin tournament wins the championship.

Dominican Republic (Escogido) 7, Mexico (Hermosillo) 1

Mets left fielder Fernando Martinez went 2-for-4 with a first-inning home run, two runs scored and two RBIs for Escogido, which also got a complete-game, eight-strikeout performance from Mets righthander Nelson Figueroa. Reds third baseman Juan Francisco had a difficult day at the plate, striking out three times and grounding into a double play.

[...] Continue Reading »

The playoffs for each of the four major winter leagues are under way, with the champion of each league slated to head to the Caribbean Series in Venezuela from Feb. 2-7. Here's a quick look at each league's playoff picture.

Dominican League

Mets outfielder Fernando Martinez went 5-for-6 with a three-run homer for Escogido in the Leones' 13-4 victory yesterday over the Gigantes, who lead the best-of-nine championship series 2-1 after squeaking out a 2-1 and a 1-0 victory to open the series.

Twins lefthander Francisco Liriano allowed one run (unearned) in five innings for Escogido while striking out six in the Leones’ Game One loss, keeping his ERA at 0.00 through 27 playoff innings with a 30-5 K-BB mark. Reds outfielder Wladimir Balentien also fueled Escogido’s playoff push, hitting .403/.452/.522 in 17 postseason games.

Reds third baseman Juan Francisco struggled in the postseason, but hit .302/.352/.566 with 11 home runs for the Gigantes in 46 regular-season games. Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz was a standout for the Gigantes in the postseason, hitting .273/.407/.682 with three home runs in eight playoff games.

[...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–There is an exhibit here in Santiago on the history of baseball in the Dominican Republic and even if you’re in the D.R., yet nowhere near this city, you have to go.

It’s like someone picked up a wing of Cooperstown and sent it to this country. The exhibit itself was Hall Of Famer Juan Marichal’s idea initially, and right now it sits in Santiago’s art museum called Çentro Leon. It chronicles Dominican baseball from the early 1900′s to the turn of the century, teaching novices like myself the true meaning behind winter league rivalries and the like. [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–As the 2008 Caribbean Series came to a close, the birth of the next one, to be held in Mexicali in 2009, might change . . . a lot.

1) Lacking players outside the Domincan Republic with big league experience, officials are considering moving the 2009 Series up to the end of January. This way, more players from Venezuela–Miguel Cabrera was out for this year’s Caribbean Series (again) to prepare for spring training–Mexico and Puerto Rico would certainly increase the competition level of the event. And with the starting date of the Series pushed up, more major league players might be more willing to play. Ï’m not sure why Mexican big leaguers refuse to play,"said Mazatlan general manager Chino Valdez. "Spring training, sure. But each player from each different country in this Series loves to play for the people they represent. That’s why I respect (Mexico shortstop) Alfredo Amezaga so much. He didn’t have to play in this Series–he’s a big leaguer. But he loves his country and wanted to see Mexico do well. And a guy like that could come out and go through the motions, but he didn’t. Amezaga played hard every day."Of the 33 players currently on 40-man rosters in the big leagues that played in this year’s Caribbean Series, 30 were from the Dominican. [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–I just wanted to say thank you to the over 200 e-mails from random readers and subscribers wishing me well with my new opportunity. I really appreciate the kind words, and given the time frame and everything, I’m not certain I will be able to respond to you all.

All I can say is, as my time as Baseball America comes to a close, I thank them for giving me a chance over five years ago and you shouldn’t worry. Matt Eddy and Ben Badler are going to pick up where I left off in terms of prospects coverage and I know Ben is going to take the international stuff to a completely different level.

CK

SANTIAGO, D.R.–The chants were deafening. And Aguilas fans tried not to hear them, steaming toward the exit after Miguel Tejada, who was ice cold after homering twice in the opener, flew out to left field with two runners on in the eighth.

Licey tacked two runs an already substantial lead, and cruised to an 8-2 win over the home team.

This for a club who decided to fire its manager (Tim Tolman) and pitching coach (Mark Brewer) after the Tigres went down 3-0 to Aguilas in the Dominican League finals. New manager Hector De La Cruz has only been on the job a few weeks, but now he has a Caribbean Series trophy as the club celebrates its history–this is Licey’s 100th anniversary.

"Management decided to make a change and . . . that’s all I can say about that," Licey catcher Matt Tupman (Royals)  said. "They just won the Caribbean Series, so they obviously felt like they were doing the right thing." [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–Licey absolutely manhandled the heavily favored Aguilas club for a second straight game, defeating them, 8-2, and locking down the 2008 Caribbean Series.

The Tigres rattled out 15 hits in the game, and never trailed. Aguilas second baseman Rafael Furcal hit a two-run home run early to tie it, but Licey scored four runs in the fifth and added two more in the ninth for good measure.

We’ll have more on the final Series game later.

SANTIAGO, D.R.–I was so excited to tell my story about getting accidentally tackled by two police officers on stones and broken glass that I forgot to mention the early game, as Mexico (2-4) wound up knocking off Venezuela, 7-5.

Mexico rallied for five runs in the top of the ninth inning and held on as Venezuela (2-4) answered with three runs in the bottom half, but it wasn´t enough.

¨To win two games here isn´t what we came for,¨Mexico shortstop Alfredo Amezaga said. ¨But we got ourselves in a hole early and had to dig ourselves out. You have to give a lot of credit to the guys on this team because we never gave up. We never stopped trying and we beat two very good teams.

This was the first time Mexico left a Caribbean Series with two wins since 2005. They were swept in 2006 and won just one game, also against Venezuela, last year.

SANTIAGO, D.R.–And so is Jose Capellan, apparently. The Licey righthander has yet to allow a hit midway through the third inning, as the Tigres lead Aguilas, 2-0.

We might not need that one-game playoff after all. But if we do, Licey won the coin toss earlier today and would be the home team–in the Aguilas´home park. If Licey loses tonight, that game would be played Friday at 8 p.m. local time.

So anyway, yeah, the photographer´s pit is tough work. Especially between innings. I was surrounded by police and military personnel, and some cheerleaders went on the field in front of where I was standing to shoot free tee-shirts into the crowd. Well, one misfired and I got completely tackled by two policemen fighting for the free shirt.

Protect and Serve . . . wow. [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–In addition to the names we dropped earlier this week as potential big bonus players when the international signing period begins, here are some more who were featured in the same showcase as righthander Michael Inoa: [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.

Click-Click-Click . . .

Nothing’s happening, dude.

Last night, after returning from Venezuela’s upset win over Aguilas, I went to the hotel restaurant to get something to eat. As I walked in, a rat–not like a New York City subway rat, but nice-sized; let’s call it ‘pleasantly plump’–stood up on its hind legs and looked at me for a second before scampering back into the kitchen. [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–Home-field advantage? Check. More big leaguers than any other team in the tournament? Check. Dominican League champions? Check. Best team in the 2008 Caribbean Series? Well, not so far.

Aguilas, heavily favored to repeat as Caribbean Series champions heading into the tournament, has looked very ordinary over the first five games. Their defense is shoddy, the pitching has been inconsistent and their bats haven’t woken up since the club’s opening night, 13-6 win.

Let’s start with the outfield defense. Aguilas manager Felix Fermin started 43-year-old Luis Polonia in left field against Licey on Monday, and Polonia hasn’t seen left field since. Polonia got late jumps on balls he should have gotten to, which helped Licey knock off the defending champs, 5-2. Bernie Castro hasn’t been much better, and his routes to balls have been terrible at times. Left field is a revolving door of sorts, as Fermin even put utility infielder Hector Luna–a well-below-average runner–in left last night briefly. [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–First it was Mexico upedning Licey in the Wednesday opener, and then it was Aguilas getting raked over the coals by Venezuela in an 8-5 victory, completing a day of upsets at El Stadio Cibao.

Venezuela (2-3) doesn’t have much punch in their offense, but it was more than enough against the lackluster performance of Aguilas’pitching staff Wednesday. Starter Bartolo Colon, who is without a contract and was auditioning for a big league job, allowed two runs on five hits and was chased in the fifth inning.

"He was OK, but there is no stamina there; he doesn’t maintain anything for more than two-inning stints,"said a scout with a National League club. "He started to lose it in the third–the velocity slowed some and he was leaving his sinker up in the zone–and then he was done.

Venezuela racked up 15 hits in the victory, setting up a much more meaningful game tonight between Aguilas (3-2) and Licey (4-1). If Aguilas knocks off Licey, there will be a one-game playoff Friday to decide the Caribbean Series winner. If not, Licey will be crowned champion tonight.

SANTIAGO, D.R.–Licey’s undefeated Series run ended with one swing of the bat on Wednesday.

Mexico designated hitter Robert Saucedo launched a three-run blast in the top of the 10th inning to hand Licey (4-1) its first loss of the Series. It was Saucedo’s second home run of the game, after hitting just seven homers all winter for Mazatlan. The first came off Omar Beltre in the second inning, but the crushing blow came against Oneli Perez.

"He’s got power, but he’s a straight pull hitter," Mazatlan general manager Chino Valdez said. "Next to Vinny Castilla, he’s had the best power in Mexico the last few seasons. In Mexico, they know how to pitch him–soft away. The pitch from Perez was soft, but he left it in the middle of the zone. He can handle that pitch all day." [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–And on, and on, and on . . .

Licey closer Carlos Marmol started the ninth inning against Mexico. Even though he had to wait forever between his last warmup pitch and his first offering to a live hitter.

The Mariachi band in center field kept playing while everyone, Marmol, the umpires, etc., were ready to go . . . for a full two minutes.

Licey led 4-1 against arguably the toguhest closer in the tournament. After having to stand around in the stretch with his right foot on the rubber unsure of when he would actually get the sign from the home plate umpire to begin, Marmol blew up in the frame.

Mexico rallied for three runs against the Cubs righthander . . . and now Licey is batting in the bottom of the ninth.

SANTIAGO, D.R.–If Licey and Aguilas both win today and Aguilas knocks off Licey Thursday, the two would meet in a one-game playoff to decide which Dominican team is the Caribbean Series champion.

But no one’s getting ahead of themselves.

"Thursday’s a lifetime away," said Licey catcher and Royals farmhand Matt Tupman, who’s finishing up his first season in winter ball. "We can’t think about Thursday at all. We have to focus on now. We’re in the driver’s seat in the Series, but nothing is close to over."

Licey and Mexico are currently tied 1-1 in the third inning of the early game, but there’s more focus, at least among big league clubs in the States, on tonight’s matchup. [...] Continue Reading »

SANTIAGO, D.R.–The first workout I went to in the Dominican Republic last week, there were at least 50 scouts present, most of which were there to see 15-year-old outfielder Ezdra Abreu. On Wednesday that number multiplied significantly since 15-year-old righthander Michael Inoa is currently considered the top arm available when the July 2 signing period begins.

Wednesday, however, was a little different. There were no catered meals. There were no large groups of scouts. The only thing this workout, which took place in the Tirena Alta section of Santiago, had in common with the others was the sound of roosters crowing and goats babbling at one another off in the distance.

This workout had just one international scouting director and his scouting staff present to see somewhere between 50 and 70 players. It took a while to get on the field, as each player came forward to the scout, who gathered information on his position, name and birthdate. The scout judged weights roughly by sight, and did the same thing with heights, standing up and looking them in the eye, pausing and then saying simply, ‘OK.’ [...] Continue Reading »

If you want even more coverage from the Caribbean Series, check out Chris Kline’s podcasts recorded in press boxes, on fields and at showcases around the Dominican Republic.

In the first podcast, Kline talked with Pirates Latin American scouting director Rene Gayo and Yankees English teacher Ron Anderson. In the second podcast, Kline saw down with Luis Polonia–he’s still playing in the Caribbean Series–and Mariners righthander Justin Lehr. Kline also checked out a showcase and got a glimpse at one of the better teenage pitching prospects in the country.

The podcasts can be listened to or downloaded from here, or you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes.

SANTIAGO, D.R.–The fans of the Dominican Republic will celebrate a Caribbean Series victory no matter what. It’s just a matter of figuring out which team–Aguilas or Licey–will be crowned champion.

Aguilas downed Mexico 4-1 on Tuesday night, making their Thursday night rematch against Licey crucial.

But Aguilas needs to get past Venezuela today, and has Bartolo Colon on the mound.

I will blog more from the ballpark, but I received another cryptic text message early this morning to be at the same hotel, as another workout takes place at 10 a.m. local time. Hopefully we’ll have some more July 2 information . . .