Winter Wonderland: Games of December 23 through December 27

AP-style recaps, as we try to get caught up.

MAZATLAN

Wednesday

MAZATLAN 8, OBREGON 2 IN OBREGON (10 INNINGS)

Mazatlan broke open a 2-2 tie with a six-run tenth.  They scored the runs on four singles, a walk, a hit batsman, and an error.  Matt Gage pitched seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits and a walk and striking out three.  Jose Augusto Figueroa was 2-for-3 with a triple and a double.

Thursday

No game.

Friday

MEXICALI 6, MAZATLAN 2 IN MAZATLAN

Mexicali scored two in the third to take a 2-1 lead and led the rest of the way.  Maxwell Leon was 2-for-2 with a double and two walks and Isaac Paredes was 2-for-2 with two walks.  Ricardo Valenzuela hit a home run, his sixth.

Saturday

MEXICALI 2, MAZATLAN 1 IN MAZATLAN

Xorge Carrillo's two-run single in the ninth gave Mexicali the victory.  Irwin Delgado pitched 5.1 scoreless innings, giving up four hits and two walks and striking out three.  Isaac Paredes and Ricky Alvarez were each 2-for-4.

Sunday

MAZATLAN 10, MEXICALI 9 IN MAZATLAN

Mazatlan led 6-1, trailed 7-6, and led 9-7, but it was tied 9-9 going to the bottom of the ninth.  Maxwell Leon singled home the deciding run with two out.  Ramon Rios was 3-for-5.  Jose Augusto Figueroa was 2-for-5 with two doubles and Carlos Munoz was 2-for-4 with a double and three RBIs.

Record:  Mazatlan is 27-28, tied for seventh place with Culiacan in the Mexican League, nine games behind Obregon.  They are a half game behind sixth-place Jalisco.

Next game:  Mazatlan is at Los Mochis tonight.

GIGANTES

Wednesday

GIGANTES 4, TOROS 2 AT TOROS

A three-run second carried the Gigantes to victory.  Two of the runs scored on wild pitches.  Richelson Pena pitched four shutout innings, giving up four hits and four walks and striking out three.  Kelvin Gutierrez was 2-for-4.

Thursday--Sunday

Did not play.

Next game:  The Dominican League playoffs have started.  It's a five-team playoff with a play-in round to drop it to four.  The Gigantes are the number-one seed in the playoffs, and so have a bye past the play-in round.  They will play the winner of Estrellas/Escogido.  It appears that series will start on January 2 and is a best-of-seven series.

LARA

Wednesday

CARIBES 4, LARA 1 AT LARA

Caribes scored two in the fourth and two in the eighth, while Lara's lone run came in the fifth.  Nestor Molina pitched five innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on two hits and two walks and striking out two.  Gorkys Hernandez was 1-for-4 with a double and drove in the lone run.

Thursday

No game.

Friday

No game

Saturday

ZULIA 4, LARA 3 IN ZULIA

Zulia scored two in the seventh to take a 4-3 lead.  Ex-Twin Alex Romero doubled home the tying run and the deciding run scored on an error.  Lara put men on second and third with one out in the eighth but could not tie it up.  Carlos Rivero was 3-for-4 with a walk and all three RBIs.  Jecksson Flores was 3-for-3.

Sunday

LARA 5, CARIBES 4 IN LARA

Trailing 4-2, Lara scored three in the ninth to win it.  Yordanys Linares had a two-run double to tie it and Gorkys Hernandez singled home the deciding run.

Record:  Lara is 16-11, in first place in the Venezuelan League West, a half game ahead of Magallanes.

Next game:  Lara is at Magallanes for a doubleheader this evening.

MAYAGUEZ

Wednesday

RA12 1, MAYAGUEZ 0 AT RA12

The game's lone run scored in the third inning on a sacrifice fly.  This was RA12's first win of the season.  Kenny Hernandez pitched five innings, giving up one run on two hits and a walk and striking out four.

Thursday and Friday

No games.

Saturday

MAYAGUEZ 10, RA12 1 AT MAYAGUEZ

Mayaguez scored three in the fifth, aided by four walks, to take a 3-1 lead.  They then put it away with two in the seventh and five in the eighth.  Eric Stout struck out eight in five innings, giving up one run on four hits and two walks.  Xavier Fernandez was 3-for-5 with a home run (his second), a triple, and five RBIs.

Sunday

MAYAGUEZ 8, CAGUAS 1 AT MAYAGUEZ

Emmanuel Rivera and ex-Twin Danny Ortiz hit back-to-back homers in the first to give Mayaguez a 3-0 lead.  It was Rivera's third and Ortiz' second.  Ivan De Jesus also homered.  Ortiz was 3-for-3.  Luis Medina struck out seven in five innings, giving up one run on three hits and two walks.

Record:  Mayaguez is 12-4, in second place in the Puerto Rican League, one game behind Caguas.

Next game:  Mayaguez is at Caguas on Tuesday

MELBOURNE

Wednesday through Friday

No games.

Saturday

CANBERRA 8, MELBOURNE 4 IN CANBERRA

Trailing 4-3, Canberra scored five runs in the eighth.  They had just two hits in the inning, both singles, but got the benefit of three walks and a throwing error.  Gunnar Kines pitched five innings, giving up two runs on three hits and four walks and striking out one.  Blake Gailen hit a three-run homer, his first.

Sunday

MELBOURNE 8, CANBERRA 2 IN CANBERRA

Damek Tomscha homered in the sixth to break a 2-2 tie.  Melbourne then scored five in the seventh to put the game out of reach.  Ex-Twin Delmon Young was 2-for-4 with a double.  Brian Flynn pitched three shutout innings of relief, giving up a hit and a walk and striking out two.

Record:  Melbourne is 2-2, tied for first in the Australian League with Canberra and Sydney.  COVID concerns are playing havoc with the early season schedule.  The three teams listed above are the only teams that have played games.  Canberra and Sydney are each 1-1.

Next game:  Melbourne is scheduled to host Perth on Wednesday afternoon.