Venezuelan View: Games of 12/20

A walkoff in Caracas.  A walkoff in Magallanes.  I wish he was my Frank, but he's Yorfrank.

CARACAS 8, ARAGUA 6 IN CARACAS (10 INNINGS)

Twins:  Oswaldo Arcia (Aragua) was 1-for-5.  Edgar Ibarra (Aragua) pitched 1.1 innings, giving up two runs on one hit and one walk with two strikeouts.

Aragua:  Wilson Ramos (Washington) was 2-for-5 with a three-run homer, his fourth.  Alex Romero was 2-for-5 with a double and two runs.  Carlos Hernandez (Colorado) retired all seven men he faced, striking out three.

Caracas:  Bobby Abreu was 2-for-3 with a walk and a three-run homer, his third.  Ramon Cabrera (Detroit) was 1-for-2 with a walk and a two-run homer, his fourth.  Wilmer Font (Texas) struck out five in two innings, allowing no hits and one walk.

The game:  Ramos hit a three-run homer before anyone was retired in the top of the first to give Aragua a 3-0 lead.  Caracas got one in the second, but a pair of doubles and a single in the third made it 5-1 Aragua.  In the bottom of the third, however, Caracas tied it up at five on a three-run homer by Abreu and a solo shot by Alex Gonzalez.  A sacrifice fly in the fourth put Caracas ahead 6-5 and they stayed there until the eighth, when Ronny Cedeno (San Diego) singled in the tying run.  They went to an extra frame, and in the tenth Cabrera hit a two-run walkoff homer to win it for Caracas.

LA GUAIRA 8, ANZOATEGUI 3 IN ANZOATEGUI

Twins:  Shairon Martis (La Guaira) pitched four innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on six hits and no walks with two strikeouts.

La Guaira:  Carlos Sanchez (White Sox) was 3-for-5 with a double and a run.  C. J. Retherford was 4-for-5 with a run and two RBIs.  Yorfrank Lopez (Detroit) pitched three shutout innings, giving up one hit and no walks with two strikeouts.

Anzoategui:  Oscar Salazar was 2-for-4 with a home run, his ninth.  Jose Castillo was 2-for-4 with an RBI.  Niuman Romero was 1-for-4 with a double and a run.

The game:  An RBI groundout and a Rene Reyes run-scoring single put La Guaira ahead 4-2 in the top of the third.  Salazar homered in the bottom of the third to cut it to 4-3, but that was as close as Anzoategui would get.  La Guaira added single runs in the fourth and seventh and scored two in the ninth to put the game out of reach.

ZULIA 14, LARA 1 IN ZULIA

Twins:  Miguel Sulbaran (Zulia) walked both men he faced but was charged with no runs.

Lara:  Mike Moustakas (Kansas City) was 1-for-2 with a walk and a double, driving in one.  Guilder Rodriguez (Texas) was 2-for-4 with a run.  Luis Valbuena (Cubs) was 1-for-2 with a walk.

Zulia:  Jose Pirela (Yankees) was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his fourth), scoring three times.  Ernesto Mejia (Atlanta) was 1-for-5 with a grand slam, his eleventh homer.  Austin Bibens-Dirkx (Toronto) pitched 5.1 innings, allowing one run on five hits and no walks with two strikeouts.

The game:  It was tied at one through three and a half, but a Jose Flores double and a sacrifice fly gave Zulia a 3-1 lead in the fourth.  Pirela hit a two-run homer in the fifth to make it 5-1.  Zulia added four in the seventh and five in the eighth to make it a blowout.

MAGALLANES 6, MARGARITA 5 IN MAGALLANES

Margarita:  Nate Tenbrink (Seattle) was 3-for-5 with a triple and two RBIs.  Junior Sosa (Pittsburgh) was 1-for-3 with two walks and a triple, scoring twice.  Carlos Monasterios pitched five shutout innings, giving up four hits and three walks with four strikeouts.

Magallanes:  Endy Chavez (Seattle) was 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.  Frank Diaz was 1-for-2 with two walks and a double, scoring once and driving in one.  David Martinez (Houston) pitched four innings, allowing one run on two hits and three walks with four strikeouts.

The game:  Tenbrink tripled in a run in the first to give Margarita a 1-0 lead.  There was no more scoring until the seventh, when Wilmer Flores (Mets) and Tenbrink each singled in a run to make it 3-0.  Magallanes got it going in the eighth with a five-run inning capped by a two-run single by Chavez.  Runs also scored on an error and a bases-loaded walk.  Margarita tied it in the ninth when Flores and Breyvic Valera (St. Louis) delivered RBI singles.  in the ninth, with one out, a double, an intentional walk, a hit batsman, and a bases-loaded walk brought home the winning run.