With the score still tied in the bottom of the 11th inning and Luis Ayala still on the mound for his 3rd inning of work, Julio Luga batted for Francisco Pena and single with one out. Jose Ramirez was down in the count 0-2 but worked the count full fouling off several pitches before lining a basehit to rightfield, Julio Lugo holding at secondbase. Luis Ayala intentionally walked Jordany Valdespin to load the bases for Hanley Ramirez. Hanley bounced into a force out, Lugo out at home. Jose Ramirez advances to third and Valdespin to second. Ricardo Nanita with the count 2-2 lined one off the wall in rightfield batting home Jose Ramirez with the walkoff knock. The Dominicans win in extra innings 6-5. How about Jose Ramirez !?!?!

I think Jose Ramirez had his best outing of the year. An outstanding performance. Jose hit out of the leadoff position this evening going 3-5 with 1 double, 2 singles, 1 walk, 1 stolen base, 2 runs scored, 1 strikeout (which came on a 3-2 pitch and according to strikezone graphic should have been another walk), and raised his average for the series to the .300 mark.

Overall, for the 3 series games, Ramirez is 3-10 with 1 double, 2 singles, 2 stolen bases, 4 runs scored, 2 strikeouts, 5 walks, and is perfect in the field with 10 chances.

As I've repeated, this kid is just fun to watch.

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The celebration begins after Ricardo Nanita's bases loaded single of the wall in left centerfield batted in Jose Ramirez with the winning run in the bottom of the 11th.
Jose Ramirez streaking in from the left in front of Hanley Ramirez after scoring the winning run in the bottom of the 11th on Ricardo Nanita's bases loaded single off the wall in leftcenter
Jose Ramirez joins in the celebration. That's him #15 next to #37. Hanley Ramirez on the far right and Ricardo Nanita being pummeled by teammates

Venezuela Defeats Puerto Rico 3-1

Hermosillo.

Again, timely hitting of the Caguas Criollos conspicuous by his absence at the Estadio Sonora, in Hermosillo, Puerto Rico and fell, 3-1, to the Navigators of Venezuela to stand at the precipice in the Caribbean Series (0-3).

It was the third straight loss for the Puerto Ricans in as many outings. However, with the new format that includes a decisive match, the Creoles are still have minimal mathematical hopes of staying alive.

Magallanes starter, Ken Ray, seemed to grow stronger with each passing inning and fellow Toledo Jean, Gabriel Moreno and Victor Alfaro gave continuity to his work pitching. In total, Venezuelan pitchers handed out 15 strikeouts of the 27 batters outs and left eight runners stranded.

Ray allowed six hits and struck out nine in six innings for Magallanes.

"As I told my wife this morning (yesterday): 'If we do not win, I can not get home'. We have to win, we have to start producing with men in scoring position. Today it was not to be. "said Pedro Lopez, manager of Puerto Rico, at the end of the game.

"Today (Zack) Segovia did not pitch that bad, just made two mistakes. We have to keep fighting, this is not over, "continued Lopez.

And indeed, the imported one only had two weak moments in the game allowing one run in the second and one run in the sixth.

The first homer by Jose Castillo blew over the 400-foot fence in center field and gave Magallanes the initial lead, 1-0.

Puerto Rico tied, 1-1, when Johnny Monell homered in the fourth inning.

However, luck was for a second day on the Mariners side, who took lead for good in the sixth inning after Jose Yepez hit the second homer of the afternoon off of Segovia to the area of ​​the bullpen in left field.

The imported Reggie Corona fled out to left before Renny Osuna had an infield single. He then took second on a wild pitch by Segovia. Alex Romero Castillo connected a hit to left and changed the board to 3-1. Segovia left the game after allowing three runs, five hits, two walks and struck out five batters.

Puerto Rico seemed they were about to react in the seventh and eighth, but first, a double play ball hit by Miguel Abreu finished the seventh and in the eighth round, two strikeouts against Ramon Castro and Johnny Monell ended any possibility of a breakthrough that would tie the game.

Now, the Criollos are risking their lives today against the Dominican Republic at 4:00 pm, Puerto Rico time.
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Jose Yepez Homers

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Jose Castillo Homers

VEN: Ray, Toledo (7), Alfaro (8), Moreno (8) with Yepez;

PR: Segovia, Espinoza (6), Gómez (7), Rivera (9) with Castro.

PG: Ken Ray (1-0)

PD: Zack Segovia (0-1)

SV: Víctor Moreno (1)

JONRONES

VEN: José Castillo (1), José Yepez (1)

Dominican undefeated, beats Mexico 6-5 in 11 Innings


Marlon Byrd Tagged Out At Home
RBI Double by Hanley Ramirez
Miguel Tejada Two Run Homer Gives the Dominicans The Early Lead

MEX: Gonzalez, De Reyes (5), Da. Reyes (5), JA Lopez (7), Navarro (7), Ramirez (7), Cobos (7), Ayala (9) with Felix, Franco (8)

DOM: Barcelo, Lebron (5), Rodriguez (5) , Garcia (6), Jailen Peguero (7), Pena Jr. (8), Rodney (9), Nunez (10), Payano (11) with Peña.

PG: Nelson Payano (0-1)

PD: Luis Ayala I (1-0)

HOME RUNS

DOM: Miguel Tejada (1)

Thus far, Jose Ramirez has had Miguel Tejada as a keystone partner for the first three games of the series, today Tejada moved to third and Hanley Ramirez became Jose Ramirez's new partner at shortstop. Jose had 5 chances at secondbase, all routine, all fielded cleanly.

Everything was fine and dandy through 7 innings of play. In the bottom of the 7th, with one out, Alberto Rosario homered to give the Dominicans the 4-2 lead. Jose Ramirez walked. Jordany Valdespin singled and Ramirez advanced to third on the basehit. Hanley Ramirez bounced into a double play ending the threat.

The 8th inning turned into disaster for the Dominicans and Hanley Ramirez. Tony Pena Jr fanned the first two batters he faced. Luis Mateo singled. Jesus Feliciano grounded one up the middle. Jose Ramirez was heading to second for the force out which would have ended the inning, but Hanley booted the ball behind second. The ball rolled into the outfield. Mateo advanced to third and Feliciano ended up on second. Rey Navarro singled to center driving in Mateo and Feliciano to tie the game at 4.

Puerto Rico went on to score two runs in the top of the 10th to take a 6-4 lead. The Dominicans could not answer in the bottom of the 10th. Final score Puerto Rico 6 Dominican Republic 4. The Dominicans lose their first game while Puerto Rico notches their first win.

Jose Ramirez had another solid outing. He was 1-4 with a ground rule double, a walk, a strikeout, and a .286 batting average for the series. Jose cleanly fielded his 5 opportunities.
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Valdespin Homerun
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PR: Nix, De la Torre (6), McCurry (7), Mejía (7), Ramos (8) with Castro;

DOM: Richardson, Pimentel (6), García (7), Lebrón (7), Peña Jr. (8), Payano (9), Peguero (9) with Rosario.

PG: Eddie Ramos (1-0)

PD: Jailen Peguero (0-1)

SV. Saúl Rivera (1)

JONRONES

DOM: Jordany Valdespin (1), Alberto Rosario (1)

Miguel Tejada add to home run record

Monday February 4, 2013 00:45

MEXICO -

With his home run against Edgar Gonzalez in the second inning of Sunday's game between the Leones del Escogido (Dominican Republic) and the Yaquis de Obregon (Mexico), Miguel Tejada extended his own home run record for the Caribbean Series .

Tejada, playing in his 12th Caribbean Classic representing the Dominican Republic, homered to left field at Sonora Stadium to reach 14 homers in these tournaments.

The so-called "Baseball Player of the Fatherland" and "Guagua", 38 years old, also has 44 RBIs in the Caribbean Series, to move within one of the all-time mark held by his countryman and former teammate the Cibao Eagles, Tony Batista.

Magellan claimed revenge Over Yaquis

Amezaga homer in the first inning defined the game for Mexico.

The offensive of the Navigators had just three hits

HERMOSILLO. -

Venezuela had frozen timbers throughout the Caribbean Series, but last night was the last straw. Barely collected three hits as the local Yaquis de Obregon got revenge by the score of 2-0 . Now the Venezuelans and are tied for second place with a record of two wins and two losses in the battle for a spot in the final.

The game was defined early. In the first inning Obregon collected their two runs. With the American Austin Bibens-Dirks on the mound, the leadoff batter for the Yaquis, Chris Roberson, reached base on error by first baseman Jose Castillo. Immediately the major leaguer Alfredo Amezaga went to the street and launched a two run homer. The Mexican champions needed no more offensive to win the game because the pitching was responsible for the timid silence of the Navigators bats.

The collective average of the series so far is (.168) "I think the pitching by Bibens was good but the the homer by Amézaga was not to be overcome, "said manager Luis Sojo at the end of the game. "The offense has not been there, this is no secret. To win you have to produce and we did not. "

Magallanes defeated the Yaquis in the first meeting between the two, and now the Aztecs struck back. Rolando Valdez right handed starter for Mexico, was impressive on the mound with seven innings of work, no runs, just five hits, no walks and six strikeouts.

Then the bullpen of the Aztec would be responsible for completing the shutout. Between Hector Navarro, Dennys Reyes and Oscar Villarreal the three allowed just two hits.

Bibens-Dirks met with a great game of seven innings, two runs with a walk and five strikeouts. But he received no help from the offense.
Rolando Valdez
Amezega Homerun
VEN: Bibens, Díaz (8) with Molina

MEX: Valdéz, Navarro (8), Reyes (8) with Franco.

PG: Rolando Valdéz (1-0)

PD: Austin Bibens (0-1)

SV: Oscar Villarreal (1)

JONRONES

MEX: Alfredo Amézaga (1)

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Former Major Leaguers keep playing in Caribbean ball

Tatis still active in Dominican Republic; Garcia plugging away in Mexico

By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com | 2/4/2013 11:56 P.M. ET

HERMOSILLO, Mexico --

It's an interesting spectacle, this Caribbean Series, where local beer flows, salsa music blares, wrestling masks abound, stadium seats vibrate and reliable stats elude. Every year -- as this decorated tournament rotates through the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Puerto Rico and, this time, North Mexico -- it serves as the Super Bowl equivalent for its host nation, rightfully being called the "Fiesta del Caribe."

But it's also the stage where ex-Major Leaguers, holding onto baseball dreams by the skin of their teeth, remind us that there are other ways to make a living playing this game.

And this year, Fernando Tatis and Karim Garcia help personify that.

You remember them, right -- Tatis for hitting two grand slams in one inning in 1999, Garcia for calling out Pedro Martinez in 2003? In this alternate universe, they're still hounded for autographs, overwhelmed by reporters and making key plays for sold-out crowds in important games.

The conditions may be worse, the stadiums may be smaller and the resources may be limited, but it's baseball, for money, and it's all they know.

What they can't figure out is why Major League teams have stopped calling.

"That I don't know," Tatis says, solemnly. "I just don't know. Baseball has changed a lot. There's a lot of people with a lot of talent in Mexico, in Venezuela, in the Dominican, but they just don't find work. The question is: Why? Because if you look at the talent of a player who's out of organized baseball and you look at players who are inside organized baseball, the difference sometimes is big. You can have a player who has five tools outside of baseball, and then you have a player who has three tools inside of baseball. It's just not right."

"When you've been out of the states for so long," Garcia added, "they just kind of forget about you."

Hanley Ramirez and Fernando Rodney headline this year's Caribbean Series, but in no way do they epitomize it.

This is an event made up of former stars in the final stages of their Major League careers (Miguel Tejada), veterans trying desperately to extend it (Ramon Castro and Dennys Reyes), fringe players recently signed to Minor League deals (Marlon Byrd and Alfredo Amezaga), prospects seeking reps (Luis Jimenez and Jordany Valdespin), and those who have carved reputations playing for the professional leagues of their native countries (Mario Lisson and Ricardo Nanita).

Then there's Garcia and Tatis, two guys the majority of Americans probably didn't know still played.

"It's a little bit of everything," Garcia said, "and they have a chance to show their abilities -- that they can still play in the big leagues."

Tatis, now a 38-year-old third baseman on Leones del Escogido, spent 11 years in the Majors, most recently with the Mets in 2010. From 1998-99, he batted .287 with 45 homers and 165 RBIs. As recently as '09, he was good enough to appear in 125 games for the Mets, batting a respectable .282 with a .339 on-base percentage.

Over the last three years, though, his baseball career has been made up of winter stints in the Dominican Professional Baseball League.

Garcia, a 37-year-old outfielder for the Yaquis de Obregon, famously helped the Yankees reach the World Series as their starting right fielder in '03, batting .305 with six homers in 52 games. He played 10 years in the big leagues, batting .241 with 66 homers in 488 games, but his last season came in 2004. And since then, he's been a baseball nomad.

The next two years, he played in Japan. In '07, he returned to Mexico. The following three years, he made a living in Korea. And since 2011, Garcia has mostly plugged away in Mexico's winter and summer leagues.

"It's been unbelievable for me," Garcia said. "I love different cultures and I've just been trying to adjust to different styles of baseball."

Asked about the biggest difference between Latin professional baseball and Major League Baseball, Tatis doesn't point to the conditions or the acclaim or even the money.

He raves about the passion.

Tatis lives that through his kids, who go to school in San Pedro and have to hear it every day from their classmates because their dad instead chooses to play in Santo Domingo. And he experiences it from the locals, who will go out of their way to criticize him if he messed up in a game the night before.

For three years, Tatis played in St. Louis, home to what many say are the best baseball fans in the United States.

But they're a lot nicer in the Midwest.

"In the Dominican, everybody knows you," Tatis said. "Everybody's there, every day. They live for this stuff, man. We're crazy about baseball. Everyone knows about baseball in the Dominican, and everywhere you go, people talk to you about the same thing -- over and over again. And if you screwed up, watch out.

"They love you, but they'll criticize you, because they want you to win. No matter what, they want you to win. At all costs."

Royals' Navarro comes up big for Puerto Rico

By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com | 02/04/2013 8:41 PM ET

HERMOSILLO, Mexico --

Royals prospect and Puerto Rico native Rey Navarro picked a good time to come alive in this Caribbean Series.

At Estadio Sonora on Monday, his team one loss away from being mathematically eliminated and facing an undefeated Dominican Republic powerhouse, the young infielder homered, had two hits, drove in four runs and finished as the hero.

When Navarro stepped to the plate for a big at-bat in the top of the eighth -- his Criollos de Caguas down two, with two outs and runners on second and third -- he was 1-for-10 in this series and had left seven runners on base in the game.

The 23-year-old switch-hitter then proceeded to line a game-tying single up the middle. Two innings later, Navarro gave his team its second lead of an ugly, back-and-forth game with a two-run homer to right-center field, propelling Caguas to a 6-4 victory and its first win in four tries.

The Dominican's Leones del Escogido, seeking back-to-back Caribbean Series titles, moved to 3-1 and will wait another day to clinch a spot in Thursday's championship game.

"In baseball, anything is possible," said Navarro, who batted .257 with four homers, 48 RBIs and 10 steals while playing mostly in Double-A last year. "We had lost three in a row and didn't receive the big hit, but today we played with a little more confidence and got the job done."

HERMOSILLO, Mexico --

Lugo will likely retire following Caribbean Series

Julio Lugo's professional baseball career is down to a matter of days.

The 37-year-old middle infielder -- who played 12 Major League seasons, was the Red Sox's starting shortstop when they won the World Series in 2007 and was a part of seven organizations -- is expected to hang up his cleats when the Caribbean Series comes to an end on Friday.

"It might be [the end], unless something comes that changes my mind," Lugo said. "But I think this is going to be it for me."

Lugo, who last played with the Braves in 2011, compiled a .269 batting average and .333 on-base percentage in the Majors, where he was deemed a strong defensive shortstop and valuable clubhouse presence. In 2012, a Minor League deal with the Indians fell apart and he wound up out of pro baseball in the United States.

At Estadio Sonora, he's suiting up for the Dominican Republic's Leones del Escogido, which has won three of the past four Caribbean Series titles and began the tournament 3-0.

Once he's finished, Lugo will dedicate more time to his kids and a construction business he has in the Dominican Republic.

"I played good and had a good career," Lugo said, "and I just think it's the right time now."

HERMOSILLO, Mexico --

Ayala enjoying Caribbean Series with job security

While pitching in the Caribbean Series for his native Mexico the last couple of years, Luis Ayala has been on the mend, still unsigned and hoping to use this stage to secure a Major League job and keep his career in the United States afloat.

Now, thanks to that club option the Orioles picked up this offseason, he can breathe a little easier.

"I'm a little more relaxed this time," Ayala said in Spanish. "I have to be at Orioles Spring Training in [seven] days, but everything else is the same -- I put on my uniform for Mexico and I give it 100 percent. I try to give my best for my country and try to represent the best I can. That's what's given me results. The confidence I have in my abilities, my potential, is what has paid great dividends for me in my career."

In 2011, Ayala starred for the Yaquis de Obregon at the Caribbean Series, tossing five shutout innings while notching two saves, and signed a Minor League deal with the Yankees shortly thereafter. In 2012, he pitched for Obregon again -- giving up a run in 3 2/3 innings -- and promptly secured a $925,000 contract with a 2013 option from the Orioles.

Then the 35-year-old right-hander made that $1 million option a relative no-brainer, posting a 2.64 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) in 75 innings for a dominant relief corps in Baltimore.

But the security that came with it didn't change his plans. Ayala still played for Obregon in winter ball, appearing in 10 games, and is once again at the Caribbean Series after a third straight Mexican Pacific League title.

At this point, it's routine.

"Part of my success in the big leagues has been the work I've done in the winter -- the work I do to be active and stay active," said Ayala, who has given up a run in 3 2/3 innings for a Mexico team that's 1-2.

"For me, it's an honor to put on this uniform. I was born in Mexico and I came up in this league. One of the conditions to sign with the Orioles was that they'd let me play in this league. Of course, I have to take care of myself and stay healthy. I still feel strong. I feel like my arm is in good shape."

Ayala's Mexico team earned a much-needed win Monday night, beating Venezuela, 2-0, to move into a second-place tie with them at 2-2 and keep their championship hopes alive.

The 2013 Hermosillo Report: Mid-Series edition (I.P.I.)

By Arthur Kinney

February 5, 2013 ShareThis

Okay, the timing isn't all that perfect, but I spent Sunday (midpoint of Round Robin) trying to stay minimally alert enough to watch the Super Bowl (hey, it's no Pro Bowl, but it's televised football so it's still better than nothing) while recovering from the flu. Still, here is your four-game look back at the Wahoo contingent taking part in this year's Serie Del Caribe in Hermosillo, Mexico (more on Hermosillo itself later in this report).

First, let's start with who's not here: Ezequiel Carrera. You may ask: Isn't he on the Navegantes del Magallanes roster? Didn't Magallanes win the Venezuela Winter League (LVBP)? The answers to these questions are yes and yes. The problem is in the Caribbean baseball practice of allowing teams advancing to a later round of the playoffs to add "reinforcements" from the eliminated teams. The Navegantes kinda went carzy with this idea and replaced two-thirds of their roster, including Ezequiel Carrera. Is this the Caribbean ball World Series or a seven-day, 13-game All-Star tournament?

On the flip side, one Indians farmhand benfited from this rule as Jose Ramirez, whose Toros Del Este team was eliminated after the Round Robin stage of the Dominican Winter League (LIDOM) playoffs, was picked up by the Dominican champs Leones del Escogido for the Caribbean Series. Speaking of Jose...

Jose Ramirez

2B, Republica Dominicana (Leones del Escogido)

4 GP 4-14, 4 R, 2 2B, 6 BB, 4 K, 2 SB

While the hits to at bats line in the above header may not appear impressive, keep in mind that it represents a .286 batting average. Not world-shaking, but not terrible either. The more disconcerting fact about the batting average is that most of it comes from a 3-for-5 outing against Mexico (Yaquis de Obregon) on Sunday. Outside of that game, Ramirez is batting only .111 for the Series. Where Ramirez has been masterful, though, is capitalizing on walks. Despite being held hitless in his first two games, he scored a run in each with both runs coming after he had reached first base on four balls. Also, the sheer number of walks he has drawn in the tournament have helped soften the blow to his on-base percentage from his mediocre batting average, raising it all the way to .500. The .214 spread between batting average and on-base percentage is pretty significant, even for such a small sample size. For those wondering, his slash line closes out with a .429 slugging percentage and .929 OPS (not bad for a guy batting .286) Ramirez has also been perfect in his two stolen base attempts so far and was elevated to the leadoff spot (from the 2nd spot) after the second game, which seems to coincide perfectly with an increase in his offensive production. While he has failed to get an RBI in any of the four games, that is not as big of a deal as he is batting at the top of the order and is expected to be the one driven in rather than the one doing the driving in most of the time.

It is also important to keep any stats from this short competition in the context of the big picture of the entire winter season. His slash line over the entire winter is a very healthy .313/.394/.382/.776. While the on-base is lower without the inflationary effect of six walks on a small sample size, the batting average is much better and more truly indicative of the dominant nature of his winter season.

With all of this "reinforcing" going on, it may come as a shock that there is an Indians organization player who made it to the Series in the normal fashion: playing the Regular Season/League Playoffs for the league champion. Of course, I am talking about relief pitcher Rob Bryson of the Liga Beisbol Professional Roberto Clemente (Puerto Rico, phew!) champions Criollos de Caguas...

Rob Bryson

RHR, Puerto Rico (Criollos de Caguas)

1 GP, 0.1 IP,, 1 H, 3 R (all earned), 2 BB, 1 HR

Bryson has only taken the mound for one game in the Series (a 6-2 loss to the Republica Dominicana on Saturday) and it wasn't pretty. Needless to say, Bryson's unblemished winter ERA is now history. In an odd way, though, Bryson's bombing on Saturday serves as a sort of testament to his dominance the rest of the winter as the unmitigated disaster of a pitching line posted above only raised his ERA to 1.33, his WHIP to 1.03, and lowered his K/BB to 1.77. This one trainwreck of an outing in no way invaildates what has otherwise been a superhuman winter on Rob's part.

Bottom line: Both of these players are proving to be mortal after seemingly superhuman league seasons. In the case of Ramirez, some rust was to be expected as he sat out LIDOM's Series Final. Bryson's terrible outing was a simple matter of a reality check that was bound to happen at some time. I would not be surprised if he dominates if he gets another chance to take the mound. in Hermosillo.

NOTAS DESDE HERMOSILLO

- First off, from what I have seen on TV, the new stadium in Hermosillo (Estadio Sonora) is extremely impressive. While many Caribbean winter ball stadiums clearly look like the product of a different time and culture, Estadio Sonora would not look out of place as a AAA stadium (according to MLB.com, the stadium is under consideration as a Spring Training home for the Diamondbacks and a future World Baseball Classic or overseas Opening Day site. Who knows, maybe Hermosillo will come up one day in a Pacific Coast League relocation rumor.

- Finally, congratulations to Former Indians shortstop Ever Magallanes (Kinston Indians 1997-98, Canton-Akron Indians 1989, Colorado Springs Sky Sox 1989-91, Cleveland Indians 1991, 1995 replacement team), who was inducted into the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday alongside Fernando Valenzuela, Houston Jimenez and former Liga Mexicana del Pacifico presidents Renato Vega and Dr. Arturo Leon Lerma.

For Joez and anybody else that cares.

Odds to win the 2013 World Baseball Classic

Dominican Republic 2/1
United States 5/2
Japan 5/2
Korea 10/1
Venezuela 10/1
Cuba 12/1
Chinese Taipei 12/1
Canada 15/1
Mexico 18/1
Puerto Rico 20/1
Panama 35/1
Field 15/1

I'm surprised about Cuba. I have them listed as one of my top picks along with the US, the DR, and Japan. In fact, these are my final four selections.