Licey claims Caribbean Series title for Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic, represented by the Tigres del Licey, received the 2023 Caribbean Series with a 3-0 victory over host membership Venezuela in Caracas on Friday night time. It marks the eleventh time the Tigres have received the title and the primary time since 2008. No different membership has received extra Caribbean Series titles, and the Tigres’ win clinched the twenty second Caribbean Series championship for the Dominican Republic.
The D.R. scored single runs within the high of the second, fifth and ninth innings, however the largest raise got here from the mound, the place starter César Valdez threw 6 1/3 scoreless frames whereas yielding solely three hits, strolling none and putting out six. The 37-year-old right-hander threw 78 pitches — 54 for strikes — earlier than turning issues over to the bullpen, which silenced Venezuela’s bats the remainder of the way in which.
Valdez was named Caribbean Series MVP after throwing 12 1/3 scoreless innings whereas giving up solely six hits, strolling none and putting out 10.
The D.R. bought on the scoreboard within the second inning, when Kelvin Gutiérrez drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. In the fifth, Gustavo Nunez opened with a single and got here round to attain on a single by Yamaico Navarro. And within the ninth, the D.R. bought an insurance coverage run because of a throwing error by Venezuela third baseman Hernan Perez.
Relievers Jonathan Aro (two-thirds of an inning), Fernando Abad (one) and Jairo Asencio (one) blanked Venezuela for two 2/3 hitless innings to clinch the championship for the D.R.
Mexico wins third-place sport over Colombia
In a taut pitchers’ duel, Mexico defeated Colombia, 1-0, to seize third place on this yr’s Caribbean Series. Left-hander Jeff Kinley began for Mexico and tossed six sturdy innings, scattering 4 hits whereas strolling none and putting out one.
Colombia starter Carlos Quevedo matched zeroes with Kinley for 5 of these frames, giving up simply three hits whereas strolling one and fanning 4. But when he gave option to reliever Kevin Escorcia for the underside of the sixth, Mexico broke by with the sport’s solely run.
Escorcia hit the primary two batters he confronted however bought the subsequent batter, Reynaldo Rodriguez, to floor right into a double play. That’s when Mexico DH Joey Terdoslavich delivered a clutch RBI single that will show to be the distinction within the contest.
César Vargas pitched a scoreless seventh and a scoreless eighth for Mexico, and Jake Sanchez got here in to shut the sport out for his fourth save of the event, stranding the tying run on second base.
