Criollos swept the Indians and go to the Caribbean Series

A single by Vimael Machín with men in corners and two at the top of the ninth gave Criollos de Caguas a 7-6 advantage, and the Professional Baseball League championship Roberto Clemente (Lbprc) defeating the Mayagüez Indians and sweeping series finale in four games.

The new Puerto Rican winter ball champions have thus won the right to represent Puerto Rico in the 2021 Mazatlán Caribbean Series, which will be played between January 31 and February 6.

Los Criollos returns to the Caribbean classic for the first time in the 2017-18 season. They were crowned in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 campaigns and, on both occasions, were proclaimed champions of the Caribbean.

In addition, the championship is number 19 for Yegüita and breaks the tie with 18 that existed between the Caguas and Mayagüez Indians for the largest number of championships in the history of winter ball in Puerto Rico.

The Criollos reached their last offensive opportunity with a 6-5 disadvantage, the first they saw in this final series. Major league player Yacksel Ríos entered the field and started shooting without hitting Jarren Durán. After Jay Gonzalez was withdrawn in a sequence for a third that could have been a double piece, Durán advanced to second place, and star Yadier Molina received the third pitch of the game.

Molina was replaced by defender Kevin Santa, and after a shot by José Miranda, Víctor Caratini hit a powerful ball in the middle that hit the pitcher and went short, allowing Durán to score from the middle and Santa to get in place. third.

The one with advantage and victory was produced by Vimael Machín, who then shot a shot in the center that made Santa Claus score 7-6.

Confident of having a 3-0 lead in the series, Criollos were the first to score. The first hitter of the game, Jarren Duran, lost the ball to the right of Indian incumbent Nick Travieso to give Caguas an immediate 1-0 lead.

Two innings later, in the third, Duran started the shooting by taking a walk, and the next player, Jay Gonzalez, fired a double in the right field, which left the men in the corners without exits. Yadier Molina, who was the designated hitter, was hit by a pitch that blocked traffic.

After Travieso eliminated José Miranda, Víctor Caratini went, causing Duran to score the second round for Criollos from third base and leave the score 2-0.

The tribe reacted at the bottom of the half with an opening shot from Jeremy Rivera. Xavier Fernández put a lip of sacrifice that led Rivera to the second bag. Although Henry Ramos broke out, Jack Lopez sent Rivera center and scored 2-1.

But Criollos came out for more in the fifth and opened with a Gonzalez shot to the center before cheating the second bag. With no goals scored, Molina received another pitch that put the Creoles on first and second base.

Then, the newcomer of the season, José Miranda, hit a home run on the third base team that made Cagueños 5-1.

Mayagüez scored one in the bottom of the fifth when Christian Colón was walked, Jeremy Rivera fired a double to the right that took Colón to third base. He scored the next half with a sacrifice fly that brought him almost 5-2.

But the Indians were left.

At the bottom of the seventh, when Alexis Díaz came on for Mayagüez saw Iván de Jesús hit before Colón received another walk. Jeremy Rivera followed with a shot to the center that left the natives in first and second place.

Fernández, immediately after, hit a double on the front line, which made Colón score from the second to get close to 5-3. With Rivera at third base, Fernandez was replaced by runner Vince Conde in second.

Díaz was relieved by Zack Muckenhirn, who gave him a cross in the center that led to Rivera and Conde, leveling the score to 5-5 and only one. With Ramos in the second bag, López hit a deep fly to the left that González caught, but González made a mistake by turning the ball into the box, which allowed Ramos to reach third place, and with the Creole defense seemingly asleep, Ramos ventured to keep running. to still slip on the plate and give the Indians the lead.