Cleveland Sports Forum

Well Civ! When he gets the call, he's got to produce. The last couple of Septembers, he's done nothing to establish himself in the minds of the front office and the manager. If he's got any chances left at all, he has to produce this spring.

12/14/16

DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE

Michael Martinez (Estrellas Orientales, 2B): 0-3, SAC – Martinez has struggled this offseason, hitting just .188 (6-for-32) in nine games. He’s scored five runs, homered once and driven in three, and although he’s only struck out five time, he has also walked just once.

Abraham Almonte (Toros del Este, CF): 2-5, R, K – Almonte has been hot as of late, collecting 17 hits in his last 10 games. He’s driven in seven over that span and has scored eight runs, and he’s got more walks (five) than strikeouts (four) in that stretch as well.

Erik Gonzalez (Leones del Escogido, 3B-SS): 1-3, R, 3B, BB – Gonzalez has been consistent all offseason and recorded his fourth extra-base hit in his 13th game on Wednesday. He is now hitting .277 with seven RBI, but he’s only walked once to nine strikeouts.

Ronny Rodriguez (Aguilas Cibaenas, 1B): 1-3, RBI, SF – Rodriguez, like Gonzalez, has been consistent all offseason. He is still hitting well over .300 at .338 through 37 games and 133 at-bats, and has scored 22 runs and has driven in 12.

VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE

Giovanny Urshela (Aguilas del Zulia, 3B): 1-4, RBI – Urshela has been a great run producer in Venezuela, driving in 33 runs in 42 games with the Aguilas del Zulia. His average now sits at .339 through 165 at-bats, but he’s still only walked five times. He’s only struck out 16 times, though, so the walk look doesn’t look as bad as it could.

Randy Valladares (Bravos de Margarita, RP): 0.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R/ER, WP – Valladares didn’t have the best outing of his career on Wednesday. He hadn’t given up more than one hit in any of his outings this offseason and has now allowed two earned runs in 10 appearances total (four innings).

PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE

Alexis Pantoja (Tiburones de Aguadilla, SS): 2-4, CS, PO, E – Following a stretch of four hitless games (eight at-bats), Pantoja has now collected three hits in his last two games (eight at-bats). He is hitting .280 this offseason with three RBI, but like many other Indians minor leaguers in offseason leagues, he is struggling with his K:BB ratio (9:1).

12/15/16

DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE

Erik Gonzalez (Leones del Escogido, Game 1 3B): 0-4, K – In the first game of a doubleheader, Gonzalez had just his third hitless game in his last nine. This game snapped a streak of five straight games with a run scored for the 25-year-old, but…

Erik Gonzalez (Leones del Escogido, Game 2 SS): 3-6, R, RBI, 2 K – The infielder had more success in his second game on Thursday, collected a hit in half of his at-bats. He has driven in six runs in his last seven games and now has eight RBI in 15 games this offseason.

Michael Martinez (Estrellas Orientales, 2B): 2-4, 2 RBI, CS – Martinez had his first multi-RBI and multi-hit game since his first game with the Estrellas Orientales this offseason. He’s now got five RBI through 11 games, and his average rose from .171 to .205 with this outing.

VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE

Giovanny Urshela (Aguilas del Zulia, 3B): 1-4 – Urshela now has a six-game hitting streak and has collected exactly one hit in each game. In fact, the third baseman has a hit in eight of his last nine games and has exactly one hit in all of them as well. He is hitting .337 in 43 games this offseason.

Jesus Aguilar (Leones del Caracas, 1B): 0-4, K – Aguilar suffered through a rough night at the dish, grounding into two double plays and failing to extend his five-game hitting streak. He still has collected at least one hit in eight of his last 10 games and is hitting .283 in 31 games overall.

Urshela will not continue with Zulia

CARACAS

Las Aguilas del Zulia was given notice that Thursday would be the last day Giovanny Urshela would be playing with the team. Urshela was ordered to stop playing by the organization of the Cleveland Indians.

Urshela, who is in his second season with the Eagles, must attend a weight training program with the Cleveland team, however, Luis Amaro, sports manager of Zulia, reported that they are in talks with the Indians so that the native Of Cartagena can continue to play with the organization for the remainder of the season.

"Urshela played until today (Thursday). He must attend a weight training program with Cleveland, however we are talking to them to extend the permit, "said the manager through the phone.

"We'll probably have Cleveland's response over the course of the weekend," he said.

Magellanes shot a heavy blow to Caracas

The Navigators won 6 runs to 2 over the Lions to sink them into eighth place in the standings, two and a half games behind for a playoff spot.

[ That photo just about sums up the Caracas Leones season. Not a good time to go on a 4 game losing streak with two weeks left to go in the season. The streak started when Yandy Diaz injured his wrist and was not able to play this week. Prior to Diaz's injury, Leones won 7 out of their last 10 games and 3 in a row. Coincidents? Maybe! ]

Yandy Diaz is back in the Caracas lineup along with Asdrubal Cabrera but I think it's too little, too late.

12/16/16
3B: Diaz, Y (2, Moreno)
HR: Aguilar (7, 3rd inning off Guerra, P, 2 on, 0 out)
SF: Almonte
RBI: Pantoja (4); Aguilar 3 (17); Diaz, Y (15)
2-out RBI: Diaz, Y
E: Diaz, Y (4, fielding)

Lara Cardinals secure their postseason ticket

The Cardinals of Lara became the first team to qualify for the postseason after beating the Tiburones de La Guaira 5-2 in the Antonio Herrera Gutierrez Barquisimeto Friday night.

The Cardenales took advantage of the good performance of Jorge Martinez on the mound and two home runs from Carlos Rivero to score victory no. 33 on the campaign.

Also, the red birds accumulated their sixth victory in a row.

Martinez worked for about 5.0 innings with three strikeouts. The Cuban, reached his 5th win against two setbacks - despite allowing seven hits and a run to the shark.

Carlos Rivero was the main ally of Martinez with a two run homer in the first inning.

Then in the sixth, Rivero repeated the dose with his second two run shot to reach seven in the campaign.

In a cat duel, Tigres defeat Lions in Maracay

The Aragua Tigers gave Leones del Caracas a painful defeat which complicated their aspirations of qualifying for the postseason. In a duel played at the Estadio José Pérez Colmenares , the Bengalis prevailed 8-6 in a tense ballgame.

Avisail Garcia was the top performer for the Tigers going 3-4 with three runs scored and five runs batted in. Alberto Callaspo also was 3-4 with two RBIs.

Top offensive performer for the Lions was Jesus Aguilar who went 2-2 with three RBIs that was not good enough to Defeat the Tigers.

The winning pitcher was Jean Machí. (2-3) while the defeat went to Brian Grening (1-4.) The game was saved by Ronald Belisario (8).

[ After being AWOL this past week, Yandy hasn't skipped a beat collecting 2 hits and a walk in 5 official trips to the plate. That 1 hit was a triple. Aguilar's and Yandy's efforts were not enough though. The setback virtually eliminated the Lion's chances of qualifying for the playoffs. ]

EXCITED LINDOR IN HIS PUERTO RICO UNIFORM

Special and beautiful year for Lindor

Francisco Lindor attended yesterday the clinic offered by the Association of Major League Players in Carolina P.R. (Photo / David Villafañe)

Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor was all smiles in his first public appearance on the Island after his outstanding performance this year in the Major Leagues.

The brilliance of his eyes was comparable to that of the hundred children who participated yesterday in the clinic conducted by the Major League Baseball Association at Roberto Clemente Walker Stadium in Carolina.

The children shared time with several Major League players and former players, including Cooperstown Hall of Fame member Roberto Alomar; The Chicago Cubs, Javier Baez; The Seattle Mariners closer, Edwin "Sugar" Diaz; The catcher of the New York Mets, René Rivera; And second baseman of the Houston Astros, Jose Altuve.

The activity at the venue was the end of a dream year for Lindor after seeing action for the first time in a World Series, winning his first Golden Glove and being named "The Ascending Star of the Year" by the prestigious Sports Illustrated magazine .

"It has been a year of many blessings. It was a special and beautiful year not only for me, but also for my family and the city of Cleveland. It has been spectacular and I am grateful to God. We hope in God that we can continue to do the same. This year we did not win the World Series, but we won many other series and getting where we arrived is something special, "assured the star of the Indians.

Lindor, 23, has excelled throughout his career as a professional because of his excellent work ethic and a total commitment that makes him leave his heart on the field.

As the season went by, the statistics were accumulating and the Indians advanced to the top spot in the division.

Lindor hit this season for .301 with 30 doubles, 15 home runs and 78 RBIs in 158 games.

"If I say that I never dreamed of those things (the awards for my performance) I lie to you. But, at the same time, I do not play for that. If that comes, it's something special. A nice moment for my dad, my mom and my family who have worked all my life for that, helping me. But, the truth is that I do not play for that, "Lindor said.

"I want to win"

As happened in the winter of 2015, Lindor said he will work hard to reach the World Series. But, this time, he only thinks about winning it.

"I want to win. We lost the World Series. I want to win it. But above all else, I want to continue to help my team. I want to keep doing the small things and at the end of the day, what will happen, it will happen. But I definitely want to win, "Lindor said.

12/16/16
VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE (LVBP)

Yandy Diaz (CF) - 2-4, 1 R, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 E - Diaz has reached base safely in each of his last ten games and has at least one hit in nine of them. He is batting .366/.435/.439 in those ten games and .363/.439/.509 in 30 games this season.

Jesus Aguilar (starting 1B) - 2-2, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 BB - Aguilar's three-run homer, his seventh of the season, in the third inning increased The RBI Machine's season total to 17 in 32 games. He also continued to show solid plate discipline (22:20 K:BB ratio and .119 isolated plate discipline this winter season).

Asdrubal Cabrera (2B) - 0-3, 1 BB - Cabrera followed up his hitless season debut on Thursday with another such effort. At least the ex-Indian (now a Met) replaced Thursday's hat trick with a walk on Friday.

DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE (LIDOM)

Abraham Almonte (Toros del Este, starting CF) - 1-3, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SF - Almonte extends his hitting streak to four games but sees a slight drop in his batting average (from .355 to .354).

Ronny Rodriguez (Aguilas Cibaenas, 1B) - 1-5, 2 K - Ronny-Rod now has a four-game hitting streak and hits in five of his last six as he continues to recover from his early December slump.

Jose Constanza (Aguilas Cibaenas, PH-backup LF) - 0-1 - Constanza, who now plays in the Mexican League, continues to have an uneventful LIDOM season as he is now 0-for-3 in four appearances.

PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE (LBPRC)

Alexis Pantoja (Tiburones de Aguadilla, SS) - 3-4, 1 RBI - Pantoja's recent form is so good that, even with a four-game 0-for-8 mini-slump in the middle of said sample, he is batting .345/.387/.414 in his last ten games.

Urshela has a chance to return

The fans of the Aguilas del Zulia received a blow when they learned that the Colombian Giovanny Urshela had been told by the Cleveland Indians to stop his participation in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League .

But Luis Rodolfo Machado, team president does not lose hope of seeing the native of Cartagena once again back in the uniform this season. "We are waiting for the Cleveland Indians' decision to see if January 1 they allow Urshela to come back and play two weeks more with us. "

The third baseman, for now, left with a line this season of .337 in batting percentage thanks to 57 hits in 169 innings, including sixteen doubles (leading the league), three homers, 33 RBIs (seventh ) And 23 runs scored.

Urshela, who could not play in the Major Leagues this year, played 104 games at the third base in Columbus triple A branch of the Cleveland Indians where he had a .970 fielding percentage, making just nine errors in 300 defensive opportunities. With the Eagles, he became one of the best third baseman in the league, committing only two errors in the hot corner.

Bailey, Torrealba or Malavé will try to perform the miracle

Saturday 17 | 9:54 am

Jesús Ponte jponte@bloquedearmas.com

There is no more difficult challenge for a manager than to take the reins of a team that is very close to elimination and aim to classify for the postseason.

Currently there are three managers who have one foot in the grave who can break through and put their teams in a position to quality for the playoffs.

Buddy Bailey for Tigres de Aragua , Omar Malave for the Navegantes del Magallanes and Yorvit Torrealba for the Caracas Lions are the three managers who took control of their team on the brink of elimination and one (or more) of them will have the pride in saying that against all odds he classified his team to the games in January.

Magallanes was the first to change manager at the beginning of week 10, after the "Admiral" Carlos Garcia left with an 18-26 record, who placed the Navigators in last place in the standings.

But since the helmsman Omar Malave took the reins of a ship has recorded a record of 6-2 (not counting yesterday), something that shows the change in the team, especially at the motivational level.

"The changes have been seen on the field. The chemistry, the aggressiveness, the desire to compete, "said Omar Malavé.

"Our goal is to achieve a record of .500. From then on we will continue with our work plan. But that is the first objective, "said the 56-year-old Turkish helmsman, who has only won praise from his players.

An old acquaintance. Buddy Bailey is the kingpin with the most experience and credentials of the three struggling to qualify for the postseason.

The Texas native has six championship rings and eight finals, describing perfectly the value of the manager in the LVBP .

"I was out for a couple of years and I appreciate this opportunity. I am grateful that they (management) have given me the chance to become a manager again. I did not expect to be a manager. I did not want to be, but I'm here, waiting for my job and looking to classify , "said Bailey to journalist Oscar Pérez .

Yorvit Torrealba has the most difficult task ahead and must dance with the toughest situation of the three new managers in the LVBP . Torrealba is the one who has the least amount of experience and also has taken over the helms of a team that sits in last place in the standings giving reflection to the task at hand. One which will not be easy to solve.

"We still have a lot of games left. Obviously, everyone knows where we are in the standings. I received this opportunity and I am ready to take up this challenge. I am optimistic that we have what it will take to win, "said Torrealba, who still has a tough hill to climb and the challenge will begin against the Tigers of Aragua.

"The most urgent thing is to win and I will repeat it many times because there is no tomorrow for us", emphasized the Torrealba.

The Tigers and Lions will have a defining series against each other that will mark the fate of the six teams trying to qualify. For their part, Magallanes currently rests in sixth place (not counting yesterday), and will have a series of three games against the Braves in Margarita, and three games against the Sharks, which could complicate even more the scenario for the six team trying to qualify for the games in January.

Winter leagues roundup:
Acuna, Garrett, Padlo growing Down Under

It was announced this week that Ronald Acuna, Stone Garrett and Kevin Padlo will represent the World team in the 2017 Australian Baseball League All-Star Game, which is set to be played on Dec. 22 at Melbourne Ballpark.

Acuna's .359 average, the second-best mark in the ABL, through 17 games for the Melbourne Aces made him an obvious selection for the game -- this after the Braves' No. 17 prospect posted a .311/.387/.432 slash line over 40 games at Class A Rome last season in an injury-plagued campaign. In addition to his average, Acuna, 18, owns a share of the league lead in hits (23) and steals (12) and is tied for second in total bases (34).

Garrett, the Marlins' No. 7 prospect, was selected for the All-Star Game after hitting .306/.362/.419 with four extra-base hits through his first 17 contests for the Sydney Blue Sox. It's been an encouraging performance for the 21-year-old outfielder, who missed much of the 2016 regular season as the result of a practical joke gone wrong by then-teammate Josh Naylor resulted in right thumb laceration and subsequent surgery.

As for Padlo, the Rays' No. 20 prospect sits atop the ABL leaderboard in extra-base hits (11) and triples (three), ranks second in RBIs (tied-15) and doubles (seven), and seventh in total bases (32). During the regular season, the 20-year-old third baseman posted a .771 OPS thanks to a Midwest League-leading 79 walks and finished tied for third with 16 home runs at Class A Bowling Green.

Here's a look at some of the top prospects currently making waves in offseason leagues.

Dominican Republic

• Alex Reyes, RHP, Cardinals -- Reyes was assigned Friday to the DWL, where he will get in some extra work ahead of his first full season in the Major Leagues. The Cardinals' No. 1 prospect (No. 7 overall) was excellent in his first taste and a major reason St. Louis remained in the playoff hunt down the stretch. In 12 appearances (five starts), the 22-year-old righty posted a 1.57 ERA with 33 hits allowed and 52 strikeouts in 46 innings.

• Manny Margot, OF, Padres -- The Padres' No. 2 prospect (No. 26 overall) has fared well this offseason, hitting .259/.303/.343 in 36 games for Torres del Este. Though he's cooled off of late, tallying just three hits in his last 18 at-bats, Margot, 22, has recorded six steals in his last 10 contests to increase his league-leading total to 14.

• Ramon Torres, SS/2B, Royals -- The Royals' No. 30 prospect has swung the bat well for Gigantes del Cibao so far, hitting .293/.333/.449 with 14 extra-base hits and 25 runs scored in 37 games. Torres, 23, split his time between both middle-infield positions in 2016, when he hit .262/.311/.328 in 114 games between the Double- and Triple-A levels.

Mexico

• Brian Goodwin, OF, Nationals -- After falling off the prospect radar from 2013-15, Goodwin resuscitated his career and ultimately reached the Major Leagues for the first time in '16, hitting .286 with five extra-base hits over parts of 22 games with the Nationals. The club's No. 29 prospect has continued to swing the bat well in Mexico, producing a .297 average and .763 OPS in his first 15 games as he prepares to compete for a bench spot on Washington's Opening Day roster.

Puerto Rico

• Corey Black, RHP, Cubs -- Black, the Cubs' No. 27 prospect, has gotten back on track this offseason with a dominant campaign for Cangrejeros de Santurce. In 20 appearances, the hard-throwing right-hander owns a 0.43 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP with a league-leading 12 saves in 21 innings. On top of that, Black has permitted just 10 hits in that span and only three knocks across his last 10 appearances.

• Jorge Lopez, RHP, Brewers -- After an encouraging finish to his otherwise disappointing 2016 season, Lopez finally is looking like his old self this winter in Puerto Rico. Through seven starts for Indios de Mayaguez, the Brewers' No. 14 prospect ranks second among qualified hurlers in both ERA (0.98) and WHIP (0.72), and he's limited opposing hitters to just 12 hits while posting a 25-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 27 2/3 innings. He's been particularly dominant as of late, too, posting nine straight scoreless frames across his last three starts.

• Mario Feliciano, C, Brewers -- Selected by Milwaukee in Lottery Round B (No. 75 overall) in the 2016 Draft, Feliciano impressed club officials during his pro debut last summer, when he hit .265 over 29 games in the Rookie-level Arizona League. The Brewers' No. 28 prospect was assigned to Tiburones de Aguadilla on Wednesday and made his league debut the same day.
Venezuela

• Raudel Lazo, LHP, Marlins -- Miami's No. 28 prospect recorded a 2.68 ERA in 42 appearances across three Minor League levels only to be designated for assignment when rosters expanded on Sept. 1. However, the 27-year-old lefty is opening eyes this offseason, as he has yet to allow an earned run while holding opposing hitters to a .177 average -- highlighted by a .109 mark against right-handed hitters -- across his 20 appearances for Tigres de Aragua,

• Tomas Telis, C, Marlins -- Telis had another strong season at the plate in 2016 as he hit .310/.362/.429 over 91 games at Triple-A New Orleans. The Marlins' No. 12 prospect continued to hit in the big leagues following a September callup (.308 average in 13 at-bats), and he's built on that success this offseason by hitting .313/.361/.384 in 29 games for Caribes de Anzoategui.

12/17/16 2B: Almonte (5, Deduno).
HR: Aguilar (8, 8th inning off Martinez, D, 1 on, 2 out)
TB: Diaz, Y 4; Aguilar 5
RBI: Diaz, Y (16); Aguilar 2 (19); Quiroz 2 (4)
SAC: Monsalve
2-out RBI: Aguilar 2
SB: Almonte (4, 3rd base off Deduno/Pena, F).