Viva Beisbol

by Bruce Baskin
Published on July 6, 2005 under Mexican League (ML)

Despite the loss of two of their key offensive components, the Tijuana Potros have managed to maintain the leadership of the Mexican League's Northern Division. The Colts have a four-game lead over second place Monclova in the LMB North although they are missing first baseman Randall Simon and outfielder Luis Landaeta from their lineup. Simon has left Mexico to play in Japan's Pacific League with the Orix Buffaloes after hitting .363 with 19 homers and 71 runs-batted in over 64 games for Tijuana, while Landaeta was sidelined with an injury while hitting .321 with eight homers over 65 contests. Second baseman Carlos Valencia has more than picked up the slack with 28 homers, and is a mortal lock to break Moi Camacho's LMB record for second sackers of 29 with Puebla in 1963.

In the LMB South, the Puebla Mexico Tigres are still holding on to the top slot as Tabasco has replaced Campeche in the runners-up position and the Piratas have dropped to fourth place behind Oaxaca. Tigres shortstop Carlos Alberto Gastelum continues to lead the Liga with a .393 batting average. In general, the South teams have been beating up on each other, with Veracruz rapidly falling out of contention with a recent eight-game losing skid. The Red Eagles have only dropped as far as seventh because the Cancun Langosteros are continuing their freefall with an LMB-worst second half record of 10-22 (including a moribund 2-16 mark on the road).

Meanwhile, the Mexican Pacific League held their annual player draft for the upcoming winter season on July 1. The eight MexPac teams selected players from the National Baseball Academy in Monterrey and current players in the LMB not already affiliated with a MexPac team. Among the familiar names picked were Carlos Sievers by Mexicali, Matias Carrillo by Culiacan, George Arias and Francisco Cordova by Mazatlan, Willis Otanez and Eduardo Rios by Guasave, Eric Knott by Navojoa and Steve Bourgeois by Los Mochis. The Mexican Pacific League (or LMP) will begin their 2005-06 season on October 11 when Hermosillo visits Mexicali.

Finally, baseball cards for Mexican League players are being issued for the first time in the Liga's 80-year history. The cards are standard size with full-color photos of current players. For information, contact the Liga office by email at or by phone (in Spanish) at 01 (55) 55 5710 07.

NORTHERN DIVISION

1) TIJUANA POTROS (23-12)

The Potros have the best road record in the LMB in the second half, going 11-7 away from home so far. Even though Randall Simon has said "sayonara" to Tijuana, the Colts still lead the Liga in homers with 156 while hitting .321 as a team. OF Derrick White is fifth in the LMB with a .375 batting average. The pitching has settled down after a shaky start and now ranks sixth in Mexico with a 5.42 ERA. Leonardo Gonzalez leads the team with eight wins.

2) MONTERREY SULTANES (18-14)

Monterrey has won three straight to pull into a second-place tie with Mexico City. The Sultanes are just 15th in the Liga with 76 homers (Bubba Smith has 18), but the pitching has been strong. Middleman Sergio Mora is 8-1 with a 3.88 ERA, while Pablo Ochoa (7-6) and Edwin Hurtado (7-9) are the winningest starters. Edgar Quintero (.335/12/54) has hit consistently all year, with fellow OF Demond Smith right behind at .328.

3) MEXICO CITY DIABLOS ROJOS (19-15)

If the Red Devils could win at home, they'd be right up there with Tijuana. Mexico City is a Liga-best 11-6 on the road, but only 8-9 at Foro Sol. OF Roberto Mendez (.352/18/57) leads the Diablos in hitting, while C Robert Saucedo (.332/29/92) is in the middle of a great season. While the hurlers are shaky (a team ERA of 6.08), Roberto Ramirez (10-6/5.66) and Claudio Moreno (9-7/5.71) have managed to combine for 19 wins.

4) SALTILLO SARAPEROS (17-17)

The SarapeMen are playing fair to middling in the second half, but the pitching needs to step it up a little. Beyond Rigo Beltran (10-4/3.97) and Steve Bourgeois (6-4/3.79), this is a very ordinary staff and Bourgeios has been getting touched up of late. Saltillo's batters are doing just fine, with a team BA of .317. OF Mario Valenzuela (.374/22/81) is sixth in the LMB batting race, and OF Jayson Bass has raised his average to .368.

5) AGUASCALIENTES RIELEROS (17-17)

The Railroaders have pulled into a fourth-place tie with Saltillo despite a so-so pitching staff allowing 6.22 runs per game. OF Rontrez Johnson (.367) continues to be the catalyst of the Aguascalientes offense, but it's still 3B Eduardo Rios (.323/27/96) in the driver's seat. Edgar Perez (7-6/5.12) has been the best of a bad lot among hurlers, but the recent pick-up of reliever Ben Rivera (5-5/3.75/14 saves) from Laguna should help greatly.

6) SAN LUIS TUNEROS (15-18)

After a decent start to the second half, the Tuneros are fading with just a 3-7 record over their last ten games. The team is batting .302 (led by OF Darryl Brinkley at .363), which looks good until you realize that puts them 12th in the Liga. Humberto Montemayor (6-5/5.47) and Gabe Molina (6-8/5.56) lead an overmatched pitching staff, which is coughing up 6.23 tallies per opening. Expect San Luis' fade to continue.

7) MONCLOVA ACEREROS (14-20)

A team with decent pitching but saddled by an anemic offense, Monclova is sliding towards the LMB North cellar. The Steelers' 5.63 ERA is not bad by Liga standards, although nobody is calling Jesus Rodriguez (5-4/5.45) a "stopper." Then again, the Acereros pitchers haven't received much run support. Monclova is the only North club batting below .300. Don't blame Guillermo Garcia (.336/26/89), who'd be an MVP candidate on a good team.

8) LAGUNA VAQUEROS (13-21)

Then you have Laguna. A team with the LMB's worst ERA by far at 7.41, the Vaqueros made a bad situation worse by dealing their best pitcher, Ben Rivera, to Aguascalientes. Maybe they ran out of white flags. The batters aren't all that bad, with Laguna hitting .308 on the season. Cornelio Garcia leads the team at .344, while 2B Abel Martinez (.320) and IF Jose Amador (.313) are having decent seasons, but you can break out the forks on these guys.

SOUTHERN DIVISION

1) MEXICO TIGRES (22-9)

Averaging 7.58 runs per game with a .347 batting average, the Tigres are easily the best offensive team in the Liga. They have the top three batters in the LMB with SS Carlos Gastelum (.393), IF Javier Robles (.387) and 1B Guilermo Velazquez (.383), while C Jorge Vazquez is seventh at .374. With eight players hitting .330 or better, there are simply no holes in this lineup. P Alejandro Armenta (13-1/4.38) leads the LMB in wins. Wonder why?

2) TABASCO OLMECAS (19-12)

The Olmecas slipped past Campeche and Oaxaca into second place in the LMB South. While their .288 team batting average is 15th in the Liga, their 4.94 ERA is competitive. IF Carlos Sievers (.353/15/81) has been the linchpin of the batting order, with only C Mario Santana (.310) and OF Donzell McDonald (.301) joining him in The .300 Club. P's Juan Delgadillo (8-2/3.46) and Joel Vargas (7-5/3.63) are enjoying excellent campaigns.

3) OAXACA GUERREROS (18-16)

Oaxaca has been chugging along near the .500 mark all season long, having neither the offense nor pitching to be a real factor. OF Felix Jose (.273/21/93) is eighth in the LMB batting race and would be posting criminal numbers for a better team, although Christian Quintero (.353 with 21 steals) has had a solid season. Though Carlos Pulido (6-7) and Eleazar Mora (6-2) have more wins, Francisco Madero (5-3/4.70) has been the best Guerreros pitcher.

4) CAMPECHE PIRATAS (16-15)

After posting the Liga's best record in the first half, the defending LMB champs are just 5-5 over their last 10 games to drop to fourth place in the South. IF Roberto Vizcarra (.344) leads Campeche batters, OF Ruben Rivera (.338/16 homers) has been impressive, and underrated SS Flavio Romero (.334/18 homers/20 steals) is doing well. Still, the pitching (led by 8-4 Francisco Campos and 8-2 Juan Alvarez) is strong. Don't count the Piratas out.

5) PUEBLA PERICOS (16-17)

Following a horrible start to the second half, the Pericos have gone 7-3 over their last ten games. Puebla has hit fairly well all year and are currently at .312 as a team. Manny Martinez (.344/19/77) and Lorenzo Buelna (.344/11/61) lead the offense. However, the Parrot pitching has gone sour as Puebla's 6.33 ERA of 6.33 is only exceeded by Laguna. Eric Knott (12-3/3.20) has really stood out on the mound with this crew.

6) YUCATAN LEONES (14-18)

This is a club that should be doing better. The Lions' 4.56 team ERA is best in the LMB, and their team batting average of .315 ranks fourth. So what's wrong? They just don't score enough runs. This is not a team with a lot of extra-base power and too many baserunners are being left stranded. OF Willie Romero (.368) is having a strong season, but P's Alfredo Aceves (8-7/4.35) and Juan Palafox (8-5/4.74) need more runs to work with.

7) VERACRUZ ROJOS AGUILAS (11-19)

The Red Eagles have fallen on hard times, losing eight straight games and nine of their last 10 contests. Willis Otanez (.379/24/95) has gotten hot again, while Amaury Garcia (.359), OF Luis Garcia (.349) and 1B Raul Lopez (.343) have been swinging the hot bats. Pitching is another story, though. Emigdio Lopez (7-3/3.91) is having a very good year and Aaron Acosta (6-8/4.16) has been effective, but they can't pitch every other day. More arms are needed.

8) CANCUN LANGOSTEROS (10-22)

Last in the LMB in batting (.280). Last in homers (66). Last in runs scored (411). See where this is going? Cancun just doesn't have the offense to be competitive in the Liga, even though their pitching is decent enough to rank ninth with a 5.98 ERA. Eduardo Salgado (5-10/5.54) is the only Langostero pitcher with more than four wins while both starting and relieving. Rudy Pemberton is batting a team-high .337, but that's not nearly enough.

MEXICAN BASEBALL ROAD TRIP: Torreon/Gomez Palacio

The Liga's Laguna team represents a region of north central Mexico centered around the cities of Torreon, Coahuila and Gomez Palacio, Durango. Laguna consists of 16 counties in both states and has about 1.3 million residents, including a workforce of nearly 400,000 people in mostly induatry and commerce. Torreon, a city of 500,000 where the Vaqueros actually play their home games, was named after a large tower built by Don Leonardo Zuluoaga in 1850 to watch over the Nazas River. The Laguna region was devastated by the heavy fighting in the last Revolution, but has become a notable nationwide center for cotton, livestock, mining and the wine industry.

While Laguna is not considered the most tourist-friendly area of the country, it is one of the most-visited areas due to the presence of highways connecting drivers with Matamoros, Mazatlan, Mexico City, Juarez and Saltillo. Although travelers often bypass the region to go elsewhere, Laguna has a mixed bag of history, culture and entertainment to offer visitors, including a number of museums, the Isauro Martinez Theater, the Campestre la Rosita golf course, and the internationally-known "Cotton & Grape Fair" held annually in September.

Laguna has a long history of baseball in the Mexican League, with the Union Laguna team winning Liga pennants in 1942 (under Hall of Fame player-manager Martin Dihigo) and 1950. Presently, the Vaqueros play their home games in Torreon's 8,500-seat Estadio de la Revolucion, which is one of the smaller ballparks in the LMB. T he Vaqueros presently show an unofficial attendance average of 3,368 fans per game.

NEXT VISIT: Saltillo

MAESTROS OF MEXICO: Ramon Bragana, Pitcher-Infielder (1938-55)

One of the most versatile players in Mexican baseball history, Ramon Bragana was one of the Liga's brightest stars in the 1940s. Bragana had a 1942 season that stands as one of the most remarkable one-year performances in pro baseball history regardless of level of play. Playing for Veracruz, Bragana went 22-10 with a 3.74 ERA and 136 strikeouts over 265 innings pitched while batting .299 with 17 homers and 82 RBIs in just 88 games splitting his time between the mound and the infield. Two years later, Bragana became the only pitcher in LMB history to win 30 games in a season, going 30-8 with a 3.29 ERA and a league-high 144 whiffs (batting .277 with 44 RBIs over 80 contests).

Bragana was born May 11, 1909 in Havana, Cuba. He did not make his Liga debut until 1938 as a 29-year-old for Agrario (going 8-5 with a .303 batting average in 37 games). After playing the 1939 season for Anahuac, Bragana went to Veracruz the next year and went on to play 12 seasons in the Gulf Coast seaport. As a pitcher, the 5'11" 180-pound righty won 179 games for Veracruz between 1940 and 1951 (an LMB mark for wins with one team), reaching double figures nine times. As a batter, he hit well enough to sock 39 homers and knock in 304 runs in just over 700 games during that same period. After the 1951 season, Bragana played for Jalisco, Monterrey, Yucatan and the Mexico City Diablos Rojos before coming back to Veracruz and retiring in 1955.

He lost the first LMB All-Star Game in 1938, losing a 1-0 knucklebiter. The man called "El Profesor" went on to win the 1942 and 1945 All-Star Games and also managed Veracruz to the title in 1944 (the year he won 30). Bragana played all nine positions in one game during the 1939 season, and defeated a touring team of National League all-stars that same year.

Besides his single-season wins record, Bragana also hold the Liga one-year mark with 325 innings pitched in 1944. On the LMB's all-time pitching leaderboard, Bragana ranks fourth in innings pitched (3376.1) and complete games (219), and eighth in both wins (211) and losses (162). He ended up batting .243 with 50 homers and 355 RBIs over 18 seasons even though he did not play the field regularly after 1945.

Bragana was selected to the Salon de la Fama in 1964, and is remembered as one of the most committed and professional players in Mexican baseball history. He died on May 11, 1985 after marking his 76th birthday that day.

NEXT MAESTRO: Oscar Rodriguez, 0utfielder-Third Base-Catcher

VIVA BEISBOL TRIVIA QUIZ

This issue's Quiz: Can you name the 1979 Mexican League Rookie of the Year who went on to an all-star career in the major leagues before returning to Mexico to finish his career in the 1990s?

Answer to last issue's Quiz: Al Pinkston was a 31-year-old minor league veteran outfielder when he came to the Mexico City Diablos Rojos in 1959 after winning the Provincial League's triple crown for St. Hyancinthe in 1952 and the Sally League batting title with Savannah in 1954. The 6'5" 225-pound Alabama native won four consecutive Liga batting titles between 1959 and 1962, batting .369 and .397 for Mexico City before turning in .374 and .381 averages for Veracruz. He had a superb year for the Diablos Rojos in 1960, augmenting his .397 average with 26 homers and a Liga-best 144 RBIs in 138 games. Pinkston played seven years in Mexico, and his career batting average of .372 is tied with Willie Mays Aikens as the all-time best in the LMB. Over his 15-year pro career, Pinkston hit .352 with 250 homers and 1335 RBIs. He never played a game in the major leagues.

NOTE TO READERS:

Viva Beisbol is produced for OurSportsCentral.com, and is the only known source of information on Mexican pro baseball written in the USA. It is available free of charge to online subscribers by e-mailing us at vivabeisbol@hotmail.com. Carlos "The Latin Insider" Fragoso from BaseballGuru.com contributed to this issue.

Mexican League Stories from July 6, 2005

• Viva Beisbol - OSC Original by Bruce Baskin

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.