• Dominican Winter League Notebook
• Venezuelan Winter League Notebook • Complete Caribbean leagues coverage Aguilas de Mexicali THE WEEK IN REVIEW: The Aguilas went 4-2 for their first winning week but are last in the Mexican Pacific League with a 6-17 record. ROAD WEARY: Mexicali is still searching for its first road victory after losing its first 10 on the road. The pitching staff has a 7.78 ERA on the road vs. a 4.46 mark at home. WHO'S HOT: Emmanuel Valdez batted .357 (5-for-14) to lead his team. His best performance came Nov. 3 when he tripled, doubled and drove in two runs. ... 2B Oswaldo Morejon batted .348 with two doubles in six games. ... Diamondbacks prospect Dana Eveland earned his first win Nov. 2, giving up a run on four hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in seven innings against Guasave. WHO'S NOT: Brandon Boggs (Rangers) is 3-for-23 over his last six games and is hitless in his last 12 at-bats. ... Fernando Valenzuela Sr., who celebrated his 47th birthday Nov. 1, was battered in his last appearance, coughing up two runs on two hits and two walks in 1 1/3 innings against Guasave on Sunday. NEWS AND NOTES: Mexicali is no longer the worst-hitting team in the league, taking a seven-point lead over Culiacan with a .254 batting average. ... The Aguilas have plated a league-low 68 runs. ... The three-game winning streak from Oct. 31-Nov. 3 was their first this season.
Algodoneros de Guasave WHO'S HOT: Cristhian Presichi shows no sign of cooling off. He hit .348 with two homers, seven runs scored and four RBIs this week. ... After going 3-for-30 over his previous seven games, Noe Munoz broke out Sunday. He went 3-for-5 with a homer, triple, four RBIs and two runs scored. WHO'S NOT: Spike Lundberg (Dodgers) continues to struggle. The right-hander in 0-3 with a 4.94 ERA in five starts. ... Jasiel Acosta is also winless, going 0-5 despite allowing two runs or less in four of his starts. ... Francisco Mendez has nine strikeouts in his last seven games after whiffing 10 times in his first 16 contests. ... Pete Rose Jr. is hitless in 11 at-bats this season. NEWS AND NOTES: Guasave hitters are leading the league with a .303 batting average, but the team's pitchers own the league's worst strikeout/walk ratio with a 1.44 average (134/93).
Caneros de los Mochis WHO'S HOT: Alberto Castillo-Betancourt gave up only a fourth-inning single in a 1-0 victory over Hermosillo on Sunday. The 32-year-old left-hander struck out eight and walked two for his third win in five starts. ... Since becoming a designated hitter Oct. 25, Ramon Orantes has a seven-game hitting streak and went 8-for-26 (.308) with a double and two RBIs. WHO'S NOT: Dionys Cesar cooled off considerably after a hot start. The 31-year-old outfielder batting .130 (3-for-23) and struck out seven times in his last six games. ... Jason Bourgeois (White Sox) didn't do much better, batting .148 (4-for-27) with a run scored over the same span. ... Fellow White Sox prospect Heath Phillips gave up six runs on six hits and two walks in 2 2/3 frames Nov. 2 for his second straight loss. NEWS AND NOTES: The Caneros scored more than three runs only once this week, plating five in an 8-5 loss to Culiacan on Oct. 31. ... Their hitters are second-worst in the league in with 170 strikeouts.
Mayos de Navojoa WHO'S HOT: Oscar Robles was fourth in the league in hitting this week, batting .364 in six games with a homer and four RBIs. ... Brandon Jones (Braves) hit .360 (9-for-25) with three RBIs and three runs scored this week. He went 3-for-6 with an RBI and a run scored Nov. 1 against Guasave. ... Scott Chiasson got the save in all three of his appearances, and he struck out the side Oct. 30. WHO'S NOT: 2B Jose Amador has just two hits in his last 22 at-bats, dropping his batting average to .177. ... Oswaldo Verdugo was roughed up for his first loss Nov. 3 to Mazatlan, surrendering five runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings. NEWS AND NOTES: The Mayos had a six-game win streak snapped Nov. 2. ... The Mayos are second in the league in runs scored (120), third in homers (24) and tied for third in hitting (.268). ... Navojoa is hitting .311 at home, but its batting average plunges to .238 on the road.
Naranjeros de Hermosillo WHO'S HOT: Dodgers prospect Marshall McDougall's hot bat carried over into this week. He collected two homers, eight RBIs and five runs scored over six games. Over the past 12 contests, he is hitting .367 with four roundtrippers, 15 RBIs and eight runs. ... Jesus Cota reached base in 17 straight games, but the streak ended in Sunday's 1-0 loss to Mochis. ... Erubiel Durazo went deep three times this week and remains the league's best power hitter with eight homers. WHO'S NOT: Adam Pettyjohn (Brewers) only allowed two earned runs and struck out 12 over 11 innings, but he suffered the losses in a 4-3 defeat to Obregon and a 1-0 decision at Mochis. He is 2-2 with 2.25 ERA. NEWS AND NOTES: The Najaneros have been a streaky team. They have reeled off three win streaks of at least three games and suffered four- and five-game losing droughts.
Tomateros de Culiacan WHO'S HOT: Ruben Rivera's 11-game hitting streak ended with an 0-for-4 performance in Sunday's win at Obregon, but the White Sox prospect drew a first-inning walk to extend his on-base streak to 12. ... Jose Silva racked up three more saves and a win this week. He is 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA and a league-leading 10 saves. ... Reliever Alex Leon picked up wins in three of the four games he pitched. ... Reggie Taylor is 12-for-27 with a homer, seven RBIs and six runs scored over his past six games. WHO'S NOT: Flavio Romero, one of five position players to play in every game, is mired in a 1-for-11 slump with four runs scored and two RBIs over his last seven games. NEWS AND NOTES: The Tomateros have won at least two games over every other team with the exception of Navojoa, which has beaten Culiacan in two of three games. ... Over their win streak, the Tomateros have outscored their opponents, 52-23.
Venados de Mazatlan WHO'S HOT: Angels prospect Freddy Sandoval is riding a nine-game hitting streak at a .400 clip with a homer, seven runs scored and two RBIs in his last five games. ... Carlos Hines has gotten a save in eight straight appearances, three in the past week. ... Randy Williams (Rangers) and Pablo Ortega tossed complete games Oct. 30-31, the first time that's happened on consecutive nights this season. WHO'S NOT: Sergio Garcia (Dodgers) is hitting .143 (5-for-35) over his last 10 games. ... Christian Quintero has walked twice in his last seven games and is hitless in his last 25 at-bats. NEWS AND NOTES: All of the Venados games last week were decided by two runs or less. ... Mazatlan batters have struck out 127 times, best in the league, but are sixth in hits (196) and last in walks (68) and on-base percentage (.323).
Yaquis de Obregon HAPPY HALLOWEEN: Carlos Rivera treated the crowd at Hermosillo to some offensive fireworks Oct. 31, going 3-for-3 with a season-high five RBIs and falling a triple short of the cycle in a 6-3 victory. He collected seven RBIs in the week, second-best in the league. WHO'S HOT: Agustin Murillo is hitting .333 (7-for-21) with a home run and two RBIs in his last five games. ... Hugo Castellanos (Cardinals) didn't give up a run over his first 10 innings. That streak ended Nov. 3, but the 27-year-old right-hander still had a strong week, collecting two saves in four appearances. WHO'S NOT: Jason Botts (Rangers) has slowed down, going 4-for-24 (.167) with just one home run and two RBIs. ... Albino Contreras batted .192 (5-for-26) for the week. NEWS AND NOTES: In each of Obregon's four losses, the pitching staff gave up at least four runs. Its 4.40 ERA is sixth in the league. ... A recent offensive slump has seen the Yaquis drop to fourth in the league in runs scored (110) and homers (23). Michael Blinn and Michael Echan are contributors to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs. |
