Cleveland Sports Forum

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Las Tunas bids farewell to the regular season of the 61st SNB

Las Tunas beat Mayabeque 10x4. Mayabeque not yet insured of postseason.

Saturday, May 14, 2022 04:01 PM

Havana.-

Las Tunas defeated the Hurricanes of Mayabeque today10-4 and concluded the qualifying phase of the 61st National Baseball Series with a record of 43-32.

Mayabeque with a record of 40-32 are very close to making sure they're also in the postseason.

Las Tunas had 13 hits good for 10 runs, all earned despite the fact that Mayabeque made three errors in the game.

Manuel Alejandro Ávila was 3-4 with a double and triple; Danel Castro went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs; Andrés de la Cruz and Andrés Quiala each went 2-for-4, and Denis Peña was 2-for-5.

Dennis Laza (5-2), Lazaro Martinez (3-2) and Orlando Lavandera (4-2) stood out for the Mayabeque.

The victory went to Yasel Luis Labrada (7-4), who worked five innings gave up five hits, three runs, two earned and the same number of strikeouts and walks.

The Mayabeque staff used six pitchers in search of victory, and the defeat fell to starter Yadián Martínez, the victim of eight earned runs in 4.2 innings of work.

After this result, the standings show:

1 Sancti Spíritus (45-30)
2 Las Tunas (43-32)
3 Granma (43-32)
4 Mayabeque (40-32)
5 Industriales (40-33) QUALIFIED

Ciego de Ávila (41-34)
Matanzas (40-35)
Pinar del Río (40-35).

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As is traditional, the quarterfinal playoff for Cuban baseball pits the first place against the eighth, 2-7, 3-6 and 4-5.

Artemisa defeated Industriales and qualifies for the 61 SNB playoffs

The Industriales needed to win to start the quarterfinals at their home field Estadio Latinoamericano against Mayabeque, and not as visitors against defending champion, Alazanes de Granma.,

Sunday, May 22, 2022 05:26 PM

Havana.-

Just like the Hunters of Artemisa eliminated Villa Clara's last possibility of qualifying in recent days, this Sunday they eliminated the Industriales from the first four places in the regular stage of the 61st National Baseball Series.

The Industriales needed to win to start the quarterfinals at their home field Estadio Latinoamericano against Mayabeque, and not as visitors against defending champion, Alazanes de Granma.

However, Artemisa defeated the Industriales 9-5 and finally set stage for the postseason.

Artemisa had 11 hits and benefited from two Industriales errors that ultimately cost their pitching four unearned runs.

For Artemisa, standouts were Lázaro Dayán Pérez (4-2), Carlos Yoel Amat (5-3) and Dayán García (4-2). And from the mound Michel Martínez Pozo (4.1 INN, 5R), Arián Abreu (3.2 ENT, 0R) and José Ángel García (1 ENT, 0R) did the task. The victory fwent to Arián Abreu

For the Industriales, Oscar Valdés (5-2, 2R), Andrés Hernández (3-2) and Ariel Echevarría (4-2) contributed on offense. And four pitchers faced Artemisa and Raimon Figueredo lost (4-3).

The quarterfinal matches will be based on:

Sancti Spiritus vs. Pinar del Rio

Las Tunas vs. Matanzas

Granma vs. Industriales

Mayabeque vs. Ciego de Avila.

The quarterfinals are due to start on May 25 in a best-of-four seven-match series.

This Monday afternoon, the National Baseball Commission will offer details of the baseball postseason, along with other topics of interest.

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Baseball: Roki Sasaki rockets Marines past Hawks
Roki Sasaki of the Lotte Marines throws a pitch during a Pacific League baseball game against the SoftBank Hawks at PayPay Dome in Fukuoka, on May 20, 2022. (Kyodo)

May 20, 2022 (Mainichi Japan)

FUKUOKA (Kyodo) --

Throwing as hard as he ever has, Roki Sasaki struck out nine over six innings to win his fifth game of the season as the Lotte Marines beat the SoftBank Hawks 8-1 in the Pacific League on Friday.

The 20-year-old right-hander frequently touched 164 kilometers (101.9 miles) per hour at PayPay Dome. And though he often missed badly, Sasaki (5-0) allowed just one run on four hits, two walks and a hit batsman.

"Because I got so much early run support I was able to just focus on pitching," Sasaki said. "My control wasn't very good, so I ran up my pitch count and wasn't able to go deep into the game."

Sasaki went to the mound in the bottom of the first with a two-run lead. Akito Takabe opened the game with a single off Hawks ace Kodai Senga (3-2), Shogo Nakamura doubled, and both came home to score.

Toshiya Sato and Hiromi Oka singled in the third inning and both scored as Adeiny Hechavarria's two-run single made it 4-0.

Senga, who is hoping to move to MLB next season, allowed four runs on six hits and three walks over four innings.

Hechavarria led a three-run eighth-inning rally, getting the first of five two-out hits that turned the game into a rout.

Elsewhere, in the PL, the Nippon Ham Fighters beat the Seibu Lions 5-3, while the Orix Buffaloes shut out the league-leading Rakuten Eagles 1-0.

In the Central League, the Yomiuri Giants took over first place with a 6-2 12-inning win over the Hanshin Tigers after the DeNA BayStars beat the Yakult Swallows 3-1. In Hiroshima, the third-place Hiroshima Carp crushed the Chunichi Dragons 11-5, powered by new import Ryan McBroom's first-inning grand slam.

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suyoshi Wada of the SoftBank Hawks pitches against the Lotte Marines in a Pacific League game on May 22, 2022, at PayPay Dome in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan. (Kyodo)

Baseball: 41-year-old Wada snaps Hawks' brief losing streak

May 22, 2022 (Mainichi Japan)

FUKUOKA (Kyodo) --

Former Chicago Cubs lefty Tsuyoshi Wada allowed a run over 5-2/3 innings to help the second-place SoftBank Hawks snap a two-game losing skid in a 3-2 Pacific League win over the Lotte Marines Sunday.

The 41-year-old Wada (1-1), the Hawks ace before moving to MLB in 2012, issued a first-inning walk but not another runner until a run scored on back-to-back two-out hits in the sixth at PayPay Dome.

"Just as I always do, I went all out from the start. I thought I needed to get through six at least. I'll try harder next time," said Wada, who returned to Japan in 2016 after going 5-5 in two seasons with the Cubs.

Yuki Yanagita opened the scoring in the fourth with a two-run home run, his seventh, off Lotte lefty Enny Romero (2-4).

"I felt like we weren't going to win if I didn't hit, so I tried to concentrate as well as I could and was happy I got it off the sweet spot," Yanagita said of his impressive opposite field homer well back into the distant stands in left.

Rising star Tatsuru Yanagimachi doubled in the Hawks third run of the inning, and the Hawks pitching staff made the lead hold up, with Livan Moinelo earning his seventh save.

Marines captain Shogo Nakamura knocked in the visitors' first run with a double and chased Wada in the sixth. Brandon Laird completed the scoring in the seventh by blasting a tough pitch for his sixth home run.

Elsewhere, the defending PL-champion Orix Buffaloes beat the league-leading Rakuten Eagles 6-1 to complete a three-game sweep, while the Seibu Lions beat the Nippon Ham Fighters 3-0 with Dietrich Enns (3-2) throwing seven shutout innings.

The Central League-leading Yakult Swallows won 5-3 against the DeNA BayStars, while the Hanshin Tigers blanked the second-place Yomiuri Giants 4-0 on the back of an eight-hit shutout from Masashi Ito (1-1). The Hiroshima Carp beat the Chunichi Dragons 1-0.

Sunday's league games were the last prior to the start of interleague play running from Tuesday until the middle of June, when each club will play a three-game series against each of the opposite league's six clubs.

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The two finalists of last year'schampionship in Cuba , the Alazanes de Granma and the Cocodrilos de Matanzas, reached the semifinals of this year's National Series ,


Quarter Finals

Team JG JP AVE DIF
1.PRI 3 2 .600 - Pinar Del Rio
2.SSP 2 3 .400 1 Sancti Spiritus

Team JG JP AVE DIF
1.MTZ 4 1 .800 - Matanzas
2.LTU 1 4 .200 3 Las Tunas

Team JG JP AVE DIF
1.GRA 4 1 .800 - Granma
2.IND 1 4 .200 3 Havana Industrialist

Team JG JP AVE DIF
1.CAV 2 2 .500 - Ciego De Avila
2.MAY 2 2 .500 - Mayabeque


The two finalists of last year'schampionship in Cuba, the Alazanes de Granma and the Cocodrilos de Matanzas, reached the semifinals of this tear's National Series .

The current national champions, Granma achieved their fourth victory in five games against the Leones de Industriales in Latin American stadium. Granma fans in the stands outnumbered the home team from Havana .

Despite suffering several significant players compared to last year's playoffs , Granma once again defeated the Havanans, demonstrating that it is not by chance that they have won three crowns in the last five seasons.

As happened in their other three wins, Granma came from behind on the scoreboard, taking advantage of the Industrialist relief staff that was unable to maintain the numbers they exhibited in the qualifying phase.

When starter Pedro Álvarez (winner of 11 games in the season) left the Industrialists mound at the top of the eighth inning, Granma unleashed an attack that turned the score around. Four hits, including two doubles, served to build a three-run rally that decided the game against the pitches of Andy Vargas, one of the best relievers in the season.

The poor offense shown by the Industriales throughout these games, and several controversial calls by manager Guillermo Carmona that did not work out, once again left the Industrialists out of championship play. This is a team that was the most successful winner of titles in the history of the national series, but has not managed a title for 12 years.

A few kilometers away , the Matanzas Crocodiles eliminated Las Tunas.

With a team completely decimated, to the point of having only 24 of the 40 players on their original roster for different reasons, showed their class to reach a semifinal for the ninth time in the last ten years.

Supported by his left-handed pitchers and an offense that knows how to produce at key moments , the team of the experienced manager Armando Ferrer left no room for doubt , and with great agony as a result of the multiple casualties that the team has suffered managing to qualify for this phase.

Effective pitching by Dariel Góngora , who did not allow runs for seven innings, and a home run by Yadil Mujica , a man who played a few years ago in the United States Minor Leagues , were enough for victory.

This team, with the loss of Naykel Cruz (main reliever) and Andrys Pérez (regular catcher), both called to the Cuba U23 team , will have many problems to continue advancing in these playoffs .

In the other two quarter-final pairings, the Vegueros de Pinar del Río are beating the Gallos of Sancti Spiritus 3 games to 2.

The Hurricanes of Mayabeque are tied at two wins apiece against the Tigres de Ciego de Ávila.

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Baseball: Nao Higashihama pitches Hawks' to franchise's 5,500th win
Nao Higashihama of the SoftBank Hawks pitches against the Yomiuri Giants in their interleague game at Tokyo Dome on June 1, 2022. (Kyodo)

June 1, 2022 (Mainichi Japan)

TOKYO (Kyodo) --

Nao Higashihama, who threw a no-hitter last month, was a strike-throwing machine again Wednesday as he pitched the SoftBank Hawks to the franchise's 5,500th win, a 6-3 interleague victory over the Yomiuri Giants.

Higashihama (5-1) rarely fell behind in counts and walked none but allowed three solo home runs in his seven innings for the Pacific League leaders.

"My thoughts were all about keeping our opponents scoreless until my teammates scored," Higashihama said. "To that end, I just took it one inning at a time."

"I'm so grateful for my teammates' run support that got me the win. I allowed three home runs, so that's something I have to deal with."

The win at Tokyo Dome was the Hawks' fifth straight and kept them a half-game ahead of the Rakuten Eagles on a night when five of the PL teams won in Central League parks.

The Hawks got on the board in a three-run fourth inning against rookie Yuji Akahoshi (2-3) on an Akira Nakamura RBI double and a two-run Tatsuru Yanagimachi single. Yuki Yanagita doubled in three more in the fifth.

The Giants' runs came on Naoki Yoshikawa's second homer in the fourth inning, Adam Walker's 10th in the sixth, and rookie Riku Matsuda's second in the seventh.

SoftBank became Japan's second pro franchise after Yomiuri with 5,500 wins.

The CL's last-place Hanshin Tigers held on to beat the Seibu Lions 5-4, preventing the PL from sweeping all six games for the second time in four days.

Elsewhere, the Eagles beat the Chunichi Dragons 2-0, while the Lotte Marines outlasted the CL-leading Yakult Swallows 4-3, in a game where each team hit three solo homers. The Orix Buffaloes beat the DeNA BayStars 5-1, and the Nippon Ham Fighters beat the Hiroshima Carp by the same score.

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Sancti Spíritus, third semifinalist in 61 National Baseball Series

With the series 2-3 against Sancti Spiritus achieved a couple of wins in a row to continue on the road to the title.


Taken from Latin Press

Saturday, June 04, 2022 11:02 AM

Havana.-

Sancti Spíritus qualified this Friday for the semifinals of the 61st National Baseball Series after beating Pinar del Río 5-3 and finishing a historic comeback 4-3 at their José Antonio Huelga stadium.

With the series 2-3 against, Sancti Spiritus achieved a couple of wins in a row to continue on the road to the title, in a playoff full of emotions until the last moment.

In one of his most significant performances, pitcher Yankiel Mauri (1-0) took to the mound to guide Sancti Spiritus to victory under a rain that did not stop during the nine innings.

The game began quietly for Pinar del Rio, who struck early thanks to a home run by clean up hitter William Saavedra and were up 3-0 in the first half of the game. But Mauri (1-1) came on in relief and stopped Pinar in their tracks while waiting for a comeback from their hitters.

The Sancti Spiritus saw the light in the sixth inning after Diasmani Ortiz's home run, although rival starter Erlys Casanova (2-1) maintained power in his pitches and was in control.

However, just six outs from elimination, the winners lived their dream in minutes. They knocked Casanova from the box and celebrated a key home run from Yunier Mendoza to complete a rally of three runs that defined the game and the series.

Thus, Sancti Spíritus, leader of the regular season, will face Matanzas in the next round, while Granma will face the winner of the game between Mayabeque and Ciego de Ávila, which was postponed due to the prevailing weather situation in the west of the island.

Granma, defending champions, and Matanzas, current runner-ups, advanced to the semi-finals. Grama eliminated the Industrialists 4-1. Matanzas eliminated Las Tunas 4-1.


Team JG JP bird DIFF
1.SSP 4 3 .572 -
2. PRI 3 4 .429 1

Team JG JP bird DIFF
1.MTZ 4 1 .800 -
2.LTU 1 4 .200 3

Team JG JP bird DIFF
1. GRA 4 1 .800 -
2.IND 1 4 .200 3

Team JG JP bird DIFF
1. BAC 3 2 .600 -
2. MAY 2 3 .400 1

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Ciego de Ávila completes the semifinals of Cuban baseball

Luis Marrero went the distance allowing one earned run, six hits, two walks and a hit batter, while striking out three.

JIT Drafting

Monday, June 06, 2022 06:18 PM

Havana.-

Ciego de Ávila today presented Mayabeque with an 11-1 knockout and qualified for the semifinals of the 61st National Baseball Series.

After a pause in the sub-series due to the intense rains that fell in the west of the country, Ciego de Ávila pounded out 12 hits, among those six extra-base hits.

Luis Marrero went the distance (seven innings) for manager Yorelvis Charles, allowing one earned run, six hits, two walks and a hit batter, while striking out three.

The offense helped him amply, especially Alexander Jiménez (5-3), Liosvany Pérez (4-3) and Raúl González (3-1), whose only hit went over the fence and brought three runs to the plate.

The one run for Mayabeque came off the bat of shortstop Rangel Ramos, author of a home run in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Mayabeque manager Michael González had right-hander Yadián Martínez as his starter, who in 4.1 innings allowed five earned runs. Four other pitchers were responsible for the rest of the scoring.

After this result, all the semifinal games have been completed. Sancti Spíritus will battle Matanzas on June 9.

Granma will challenge Ciego de Ávila on June 10.

According to the calendar released by the National Baseball Commission, the changes of venue will take place in one day, so that if the games reach seven games, they will end on June 18, unless the rains or another cause generate game suspensions.

The presence in this phase of last year's finalists suggests the possibility of revenge. We'll see...

Granma defeated Matanzas in last year's finals.

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The Association of Cuban Baseball Players in Exile presents the idea of ​​an independent team to the Major Leagues

'It was a very positive meeting, where we were able to present the just claims of our association,' say the organization's executives.

CDD

Miami 08 Jun 2022 - 19:13 CEST

The Association of Professional Cuban Baseball Players (ACPBP) met this Monday with the commissioner of the Major Leagues , Rob Manfred, to present the initiative that an independent Cuban baseball team participate in the 2023 World Classic , as reported on its Twitter account.

“This Monday, executives from the Association of Cuban Professional Baseball Players had a meeting with the commissioner of the Major Leagues, Rob Manfred, to explain our project and the intentions of presenting an all-star team at the WBC in 2023,” affirms the association created in March.

"It was a very positive meeting, where we were able to present the just claims of our association and in which Commissioner Manfred understood the great business opportunity that is presented with our team of Cuban stars who shine independently and freely in MLB ," he adds. the ACPBP.

The decision to meet with the commissioner of the Major Leagues shows that, although in April the director of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) , Ricardo Fraccari, ruled out the presence in the World Classic — a tournament that he co-organizes with the Major Leagues — of an A team separated from the state Cuban Baseball Federation ( FCB ) , the ACPBP does not give up its efforts to participate in the event.

In May, the association submitted an application for an independent team to participate in the 2024 Caribbean Series , which will take place in the city of Miami.

The initiative to create a team made up of players who play in foreign leagues arises from the reluctance of the Cuban regime to allow players who play on foreign professional teams, without any ties to the FCB, to represent Cuba in international tournaments. This refusal also joins the prohibition of allowing these players to enter Cuba for at least eight years, for those who have left their national teams to play abroad , even if they have given the best years of their sports career to baseball in Cuba, such as Yulieski Gurriel.

From the very beginning, the idea has had the support of renowned sports figures, including former stars such as Luis Tiant, Edilberto Oropesa, René Arocha, Orlando "El Duque" Hernández, José Ariel Contreras and Euclides Rojas; and current players like Randy Arozarena, Yulieski Gurriel, Guillermo Heredia, Raisel Iglesias, José Abreu and Aroldis Chapman.

Although the participation of the team in the next classic has not been finalized, "El Duque" Hernández and former catcher Bryan Peña have already been appointed as general manager and manager, respectively.

There are also uniform designs for the team. In May, the designer Carlos Rojas showed on his Twitter account the uniform proposals he created for the team, which allude to that of the Sugar Kings, a Minor League team affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds, based in Havana , who played in Triple A from 1954 to 1960, before Fidel Castro eliminated professional sports from Cuba.



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Semifinals 61 SNB



Team JG JP % DIFF
1.SSP 0 0 .000 -
2.MTZ 0 0 .000 -




Team JG JP % DIFF
1. GRA 0 0 .000 -
2. BAC 0 0 .000 -

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Semifinales 61 SNB




Team JG JP AVE DIF
1.MTZ 3 0 .1000 -
2.SSP 0 3 .000 3

Team JG JP AVE DIF
1.GRA 3 0 .1000 -
2.CAV 0 3 .000 3

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Granma and Matanzas knock on the door of the baseball final

Alazanes and Cocodrilos maintained a perfect pace in the semifinals to place their games 3-0 against Tigres and Gallos, respectively.


Taken from Latin Press

Monday, June 13, 2022 08:01 PM

Havana.-

GRANMA and Matanzas were today one step away from reaching the final of the 61st National Baseball Series , by defeating Ciego de Ávila (8-2) and Sancti Spíritus (5-4), respectively.

Alazanes and Cocodrilos maintained a perfect pace in the semifinals to place their games 3-0 against the Tigres and Gallos, who are obliged to sweep the four remaining games if they want to retain the desire to challenge for the title of the seasonr.

Led by manager Carlos Martí, Granma did not believe in the pressure of their opponents' supporters on the road and came out ahead in the first inning with a grand slam by catcher Iván Prieto (5-2, 4RBI, 1R, 1HR, 1-2B) , to silence the fans at José Ramón Cepero stadium.

The visitors' offensive had 11 hits and included another two homers by Guillermo Avilés (3-2, 4RBI, 3R, 2HR) and a multi-hit game by shortstop Yulián Milián (5-2).

Pitcher Yunier Castillo, who worked seven innings and allowed only one run and three hits claimed the victory. Avilanian Luis Marrero (2.0, 6R, 5ER, 10H, 1BB) took the loss.

In the other playoff , Matanzas once again staged a comeback over the Gallos, scoring two runs in the lower part of the eighth inning to claim victory at Victoria de Girón park.

The decisive home run For Matanzas by shortstop Erisbel Arruebarrena (3-2, 4RBI, 1R, 1HR, 1-2B) and the dominance of flame throwing lefty Yamichel Pérez (9.0INN, 4R, 8H, 4K, 2BB), who went the distance stood out in victory.

Thus, Granma and Matanzas, champion and runner up of the previous season, have the possibility of certifying this Tuesday, from 2:00 p.m. local time, their tickets to the finals.
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History Repeats: Alazanes and Crocodiles in the baseball finals

JOSÉ LUIS LÓPEZ SADO
PHOTO: OSVALDO GUTIÉRREZ GÓMEZ

JUNE 14, 2022

Matanzas, Jun 14 (ACN)

A mimesis of last season reflected the semifinal phase of the LXI National Baseball Series , which ended today with the 4-0 sweeps of current champions Granma and the runner-up Matanzas , against Ciego de Ávila and Sancti Spiritus, in that order.

Both teams were able to come out as favorites, but they never thought that their respective games would be solved with many players who started the season but were missing at the end.

In the José Ramón Cepero park and as visitors, the Granma Alazanes defeated the Avilanian Tigers 9-2, to reach their fourth final in the last six seasons.

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The victory went to Juan Danilo Pérez, who pitched 1.1 innings without allowing any runs, while Media Luna's left-hander, Miguel Paradelo, earned the save by pitching 3.2 innings with no hits and four strikeouts. There was a home run by Alexquemer Sánchez.

Meanwhile, at the Victoria de Girón stadium and at home, the Crocodiles had excellent pitching from left-hander Dariel Góngora to win 5-3 over the Roosters from Sancti Spiritus.

Góngora mixed his deliveries well and threw low, to limit the opponent's offense to five hits in six innings.

At the beginning of the sixth, he put two runners on base and to rescue him, once again, the right-hander Noervys Entenza appeared, who saved the game and, in this playoff, had three appearances in the four wins. He also won two. games.

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For Matanzas there was a home run by Jefferson Delgado in the fourth inning, the only run they scored off of reliever Yankiel Mauri, who later kept them at bay, although in a losing cause.

We had Entenza planned if it was necessary to preserve a win. Góngora worked well, but he had to be relieved and we are already preparing our bags to go to the grand final, pitching coach Jesús Salgado told ACN.

The final begins next Friday, at the Martyrs of Barbados Stadium, in Bayamo.

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61st Cuban National Series Final

Posted on June 16, 2022 by Phil Selig

The 61st Cuban National Series structure looked different than recent competitions. However the finals match up will look familiar. The Granma Alazanes triumphed over The Matanzas Cocodrilos in April of 2021. 14 months later the two squads will meet in a rematch. Matanzas is appearing in their third consecutive finals and hopes to garner their second championship. Granma is vying for their fourth title since 2017.

The two met to kick off the season on January 23rd, 2022. This represented a very different calendar than we have become accustomed to of late. The season itself was 75 games in length and eliminated the two-phase structure in place for the past decade. All 16 teams played 75 games which is below the usual 90 game docket.

There are certain indications that this might be a one off. A planned Special Series is rumoured for October 2022. The aim is to help in the selection of the World Baseball Classic squad. They will compete in the next tournament in the spring of 2023. Speculation is the 62nd Cuban National Series is likely to commence in September of 2023 because of this.

Granma and Matanzas meet in the playoffs again

It shouldn’t come as a complete surprise that these two franchises are back in the final. By no stretch was their journey here linear though. The erosion of talent in the National Series frequently focuses on young talent leaving to pursue MLB contracts. Granma and Matanzas have built their foundations more on veteran players or repatriating players.

The Alazanes still had to overcome Ace pitcher Lazaro Blanco surprising many by staying in Florida. This while travelling with Cuba during their Olympic Qualifying bid in the summer of 2021. The surprise more in his advanced age and questions over what his next move might be. He is scheduled to pitch in the Dominican professional league. A move that may have been possible while staying in Cuba. But A a payday in Korea’s KBO might be the end goal. The KBO is considered the third best pro league in the world and likely where Blanco can best compete. Korea and Cuba have no official baseball interaction unlike the Federation’s association with Japan’s NPB.



If Losing your top pitcher isn’t daunting enough both teams are lacking key pieces. This due to State sanctioned talent deals with professional leagues in countries such as Japan and Mexico. Matanzas will also be without their top starting pitcher. Yoennis Yera is currently plying his craft with Tabasco Olmecas of Mexico. It is arguable though, that Granma is further affected by this agreement. Two key Granma outfielders in Raico and Roel Santos are also playing with The Olmecas.

Last year’s finals MVP for the Alazanes Guillermo Garcia broke through when it mattered most. His reward was a contract in Japan. Garcia signed with the Chunichi Dragons. Little info is available beyond the fact that he isn’t in Cuba currently. Young players like Garcia frequently start out in Japan’s equivalent to AAA before earning a spot in their top league.

We can fixate on who is not here for the teams. They are in the finals though, because they still possess much talent. The Alazanes finished in third place knocking off Industriales and Ciego de Avila in the first two rounds of the playoffs. Cesar Garcia led the pitching staff with 107.2 innings with a solid 3.18 ERA but is emblematic of the types of pitchers that succeed in today’s National Series. Pitching to contact and only striking out a batter less than every two innings, he allowed baserunners but kept them from scoring. 43 year old Leandro Martinez is ageless and truly an exhibit of the art of pitching.

Carlos Benitez, Osvaldo Abreu, Guillermo Aviles, Alexquemer Sanchez and Ivan Prieto represent a balanced heart of the lineup with a solid mix of under 30 youth and middle age guile. Aviles has hit rounded the bases four times in these playoffs and looks dialled in heading into the Championship showdown. They have ridden getting just enough pitching mixed with clutch hitting and limiting mistakes to keep their championship dynasty window open.

The Cocodrilos entered 2022 as the prohibitive favourites and are obviously close to fulfilling expectations, however as the seven seed they underachieved during the regular season. Yoennis Yera was likely the best pitcher in the league before heading for Mexico, his loss will be immense. Dariel Gongora has stepped up though. His 2.98 ERA is microscopic compared to league average or at least the rest of the staff. Noelvis Entenza and Jonder Martinez’s numbers aren’t impressive but the two veterans will be used as Swiss army knives. Both frequently pitch in high leverage bullpen situations but can also step into the rotation as needed.

Javier Camero led the team with 48 RBI and was instrumental in the Finals in 2022, can he recapture clutch glory? Erisbel Arruebarrena is a dangerous power threat since returning from a stint in the Dodgers organization. He is complemented by the contact approach of former Yankees farmhand Yadil Mujica. Jefferson Delgado at age 38 always gives competitive at bats as the majority of the lineup grinds pitchers down walking well more than they strike out.

Even as things change very quickly in the Cuban National Series the consistency of the two finals competitors remains the same. The path to the Cuban National Series Championship has gone through either Granma or Matanzas for close to the past decade. As in any baseball series the team that limits mistakes has the upper hand, this is especially true as both teams rely on soft tossing pitchers and the defenders behind them. There is generally more baseball action than we have seen in the current MLB product. Granma can cement itself as a dynasty if they take home their fourth title in six years. The Cocodrilos can change the narrative of being competitive underachievers if they take their second banner in three championship trips.

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Granma defeats Matanzas in the first game of the finals of the Cuban baseball championship

With two five-run rallies in the second and seventh innings, the Alazanes equal the record for consecutive home wins in the postseason.

CDD

Bayamo 18 Jun 2022 - 13:54 CEST

The Alazanes de Granma took the victory against Matanzas during the first game of the finals of the 61st edition of the National Baseball Series at the Mártires de Barbados stadium in the city of Bayamo, by a score of 13 -6.

Granma opened the scoring. In the first inning. Ariel Sánchez had driven Mujica, but the Crocodiles did not take advantage of pitcher César García's wildness.

Granma rallied for a five-run rally in the bottom of the second inning,

In the fourth inning Iván Prieto widened the lead with a hit to left field. Matanzas then scored three runs in which a home run by Erisbel Arruebarruena stood out and Granma responded with two runs by Guillermo Avilés and Carlos Benítez.

In the seventh the Alazanes gave the finishing touch by adding another five runs. Matanzas scored two runs in the ninth inning but coming back was impossible.

Key for Granma was exploiting Matanzas starter Renner Rivero. The victory fell to César García with six innings pitched He already has four wins in these playoffs without accumulating losses. Reliever Kelvis Rodriguez got the save for the three innings he pitched.

With this victory, Granma equals the record for the most consecutive victories in the postseason at home, with 12, a mark that Santiago de Cuba had already achieved.

This Saturday the final will continue. Darién Góngora is expected to be the starter for Matanzas and Leandro Martínez will start on the mound for Granma.

GAME 1

https://youtu.be/i4FCPtV0zOc

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The Crocodiles come back in the finals of the Cuban baseball championship and return home with the series tied at 1 game apiece.

The production of Matanzas began in the eighth inning, after having left several runners on base.

AGENCIES

Bayamo 19 June 2022 - 12:57 CEST

With good productivity in the final two innings, Matanzas beat Cuban baseball champion Granma this Saturday 4-1 to tie the finals of the National Series as the sction continues next Tuesday at the Victoria de Girón stadium.

In Bayamo, a left-handed duel was raised between Leandro Martínez from Granma and Yamichel Pérez from Matanzas, who knew how to move their pitches too well, unlike the previous game, keeping the offensive at bay.

Los Alazanes de Granma opened the scoring in the bottom of the seventh inning, after two outs, due to a hit by Alexquemer Sánchez. That hit, coupled with a deflected pitch by Yamichel, moved Sánchez to third base and scored on a throwing error by catcher Roberto Loredo.

In the top of the eighth inning, the Matanzas went ahead with two runs. The first was batted in by Yariel Duque's pinch-hit double against reliever Carlos Santana, and the second by Loredo's hit against Joel Mojena.

The Crocodiles cemented the win with another pair of ninth-inning runs on three hits and an intentional walk off Mexico newcomer Yadir Drake.

The victory went to Noervys Entenza, who pitched 2.1 innings of relief, with three singles and a walk. In the semifinals against the Sancti Spiritus, the right-hander from Matanzas participated in three of the four wins for his team, accumulating two wins and one save.

Despite the win by Matanzas in this second game of the finals, it should be noted that the crocodiles led by Armando Ferrer left 14 runners on the base by not taking advantage of the 11 hits they connected for and the eight walks granted by the seven rival pitchers.

GAME 2

https://youtu.be/1w9dDT3KYfI

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