Guardians Baseball Insider

PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE (LBPRC) SEMIFINALS – GAME 1 (BEST-OF-7)

CRIOLLOS DE CAGUAS 5, RA12 1 (CAGUAS LEADS 1-0)

CURRENT INDIANS

Joab Gonzalez (SS, RA12): 2-4, 1 K – 1 SB – Gonzalez accounted for half of RA12’s hits and stole the expansion team’s first postseason base. If your wondering how RA12 is in in the playoffs, the answer is that everyone got in due to only four teams playing.

Angel Lopez Alvarez (C, RA12): 0-4, 3 K – Alvarez’s high strikeout rate (16 in twelve regular season games) continued in the playoff opener.

FORMER INDIANS

Jonathan Laureano (1B, RA12): 1-3, 1 R, 1 BB – Laureano was the only RA12 player other than Gonzalez to reach base twice and scored the team’s first ever postseason run.

Giovanni Soto (RP, Criollos de Caguas): H (1st of playoffs), 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R (earned), 1 BB, 2 K – Not Soto’s best outing of the season, but enough in the festival of mismatches that is the 2020-21 LBPRC semifinals.

DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE (LIDOM) SEMIFINALS -GAME 1 (BEST-OF-7)

TOROS DEL ESTE 9, AGUILAS CIBAENAS 1 (TOROS LEAD 1-0)

CURRENT INDIAN

Anthony Gose (RP, Toros del Este): 1 IP, 1 BB – Gose’s stellar seventh was part of a combined three-hitter for the Toros’ staff.

FORMER INDIANS

Abraham Almonte (CF, Toros del Este): 0-4, 1 BB, 1 SB – A rough start to the postseason for Almonte, although he did get on base and did something once he got there.

Yasiel Puig (starting RF, Toros del Este): 0-2, 1 R, 2 BB – Puig also went hitless, but did even more with his plate discipline than Almonte.

Paolo Espino (SP, Toros del Este): ND, 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R (earned), 1 BB, 5 K, 1 HR allowed – Espino didn’t pitch long enough to earn the individual victory, but that doesn’t take away from his dominance, which set an early tone in this series.

Melky Cabrera (starting LF, Aguilas Cibaenas): 1-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI – Cabrera’s two-out solo shot in the first was the entirety of the Aguilas’ scoring in Game 1.

Robel Garcia (starting 2B, Aguilas Cibaenas): 0-1, 2 BB – Garcia was the only Aguila to reach base twice in their postseason opener.

MEXICAN PACIFIC LEAGUE (LMP) QUARTERFINALS – GAME 1 (BEST-OF-7)

SULTANES DE MONTERREY 3, AGUILAS DE MEXICALI 2 (MONTERREY LEADS 1-0)

FORMER INDIANS

Michael Choice (RF, Aguilas de Mexicali): 1-4, 1 K – Choice rebounded from a hitless regular season finale to contribute offensively in Game 1 of a postseason that could end on the literal eve of the Caribbean Series.

Jeff Johnson (RP, Sultanes de Monterrey): S (1st of the playoffs), 1 IP, perfect, 2 K – Johnson, who saved seven games in the regular season, got his postseason underway with a perfect ninth for his first save of the playoffs.

CHARROS DE JALISCO 11, YAQUIS DE OBREGON 5 (JALISCO LEADS 1-0)

FORMER INDIAN

Brennan Bernardino (RP, Charros de Jalisco): S (1st of the playoffs), 1,1 IP, 1 H, 1 K – For those wondering how this was a save, he entered the game in the eighth with the tying run on deck (and gave up a bases-loading single to bring him to the plate).

TOMATEROS DE CULIACAN 11, ALGONODEROS DE GUASAVE 6 (CULIACAN LEADS 1-0)

FORMER INDIANS

Jose Guadalupe Chavez (SS, Tomateros de Culiacan): 3-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 K – Chavez, who slashed .349/.421/.459 in the regular season, started the playoffs with an offensive explosion.

JC Ramirez (SP, Tomateros de Culiacan): ND, 4.1 IP, 13 H, 6 R (all earned), 7 K, 1 HBP – Ramirez got the no-decision because, as bad as he was last night, the Guasave bullpen was worse.

VENEZUELAN LEAGUE (LVBP)

CARDENALES DE LARA 6, BRAVOS DE MARGARITA 4

FORMER INDIANS

Yonathan Mendoza (SS, Cardenales de Lara): 1-5, 1 SB – Another game, another base hit for Mendoza, who has a hit in eleven of his last 13 games (one of the two hitless games was one where he only had one official at-bat).

Carlos Rivero (3B, Cardenales de Lara): 1-2, 2 BB – Rivero reached base thrice on Saturday, thanks in large part to his 15th and 16th walks of the season (in 25 games).

Yapson Gomez (RP, Cardenales de Lara): H (1), 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB (intentional) – Gomez picked up his first hold of the season in an outing vastly better than the other time he pitched only 0.1 inning this season (2 ER on 3 H and 1 BB on December 23 against the Caribes de Anzoategui).

TIGRES DE ARAGUA 9, LEONES DEL CARACAS 5

FORMER INDIANS

Alex Monsalve (C, Tigres de Aragua): 1-4, 1 R – Monsalve remains hot at the plate in limited action. After getting only six at-bats (two hits) in his first five games of the season, Alex has gone a combined 6-for-18 in his last four.

Alsis Herrera (SP, Leones del Caracas): ND, 3.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R (all earned), 1 K – Herrera continues to struggle in the Venezuelan League, having allowed at least one earned run in each of his seven starts this season.

AUSTRALIAN LEAGUE (ABL)

MELBOURNE ACES 5, CANBERRA CAVALRY 3 (GAME 1 – 7 INNINGS)

FORMER INDIAN

Samad Taylor (2B, Canberra Cavalry): 1-3, 1 R, 1 K, 1 E – Taylor scored his first run of the season after going 2-for-6 with a double and a walk in a pair of post-Christmas contests.

CANBERRA CAVALRY 7, MELBOURNE ACES 0 (GAME 2 – 7 INNINGS)

FORMER INDIANS

Samad Taylor (2B, Canberra Cavalry): 1-4, 1 R, 1 K – Taylor extended his early-season hitting streak to three games in the nightcap.

Shawn Morimando (SP, Canberra Cavalry): 5 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 5 K – While he only struck out five (instead of eight) and allowed a couple more hits, Morimando improved on his one-run season debut with this scoreless effort. He now has a 0.90 ERA and 13:4 K:BB ratio. Even as he continues to shake off the rust, Shawn is establishing himself as one of the ABL’s dominant hurlers this season.