Caribbean Series Semifinals Defined in Guadalajara

GUADALAJARA, Mexico.– The stage is set for the Caribbean Series semifinals, which will be played this Friday at the Pan American Baseball Stadium in Guadalajara, with two high-voltage duels that will define the finalists of the Caribbean classic.

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The first matchup, scheduled for 3:00 PM (Eastern Time), will revisit the clash between the Tomateros de Culiacán (Green Mexico) and the Leones del Escogido (Dominican Republic), just 24 hours after facing each other at the end of the round robin. In that game, the Tomateros staged a spectacular comeback by scoring six runs in the eighth inning, driven by a home run from Estevan Florial, to win 10-7.

Although the result didn't alter the final positions —Culiacán finished 2-2 and Escogido 3-1—, the offensive explosion represented a turning point for the Mexicans, who had barely scored nine runs in their first three matches.

"We know we hadn't played at our level, especially offensively. That game showed what we are capable of," said the Tomateros manager, Lorenzo Bundy, who reaffirmed his confidence in the potential of his team. For this semifinal, Bundy will entrust the ball to right-hander David Reyes, who in his first start of the tournament pitched 4.1 innings of two runs against the Cangrejeros de Santurce, leaving without a decision. For his part, the Lions' manager, Ramón Santiago, announced right-hander Oscar de la Cruz as the starter. The pitcher allowed three runs in 4.1 innings against the Charros de Jalisco, in a game that ended with a Dominican victory 5-4.

Charros and Cangrejeros, for the other ticket

The second semifinal will pit the Cangrejeros de Santurce (Puerto Rico) against the Charros de Jalisco (Red Mexico), the host team of the event. In their only previous match in the tournament, Jalisco shut out Santurce 3-0 with a solid performance by Luis Fernando Miranda, who pitched six innings of just two hits. The Charros' leader, Benji Gil, will hand over mound responsibility to the left-hander Manuel Bañuelos, former Major League pitcher, who will seek to recover after allowing five runs in his previous outing against the Escogido. Despite registering the lowest collective round robin average (.235), Jalisco had the hottest bat of the tournament in Michael Wielansky, who is 16-10, with two doubles, four RBIs and four runs scored, being a key piece in the Mexican team's 3-1 record. In the case of Santurce, their manager Omar López did not announce a starting pitcher after eliminating the Federales de Chiriquí (Panama) with an 8-3 victory. The Panamanian team said goodbye to the tournament without victories in the initial phase.

Television Coverage

All Caribbean Series games are broadcast live on MLB Network, as well as the digital platforms MLBN Direct-To-Consumer and MLB.TV.