Playoffs Races, Junio 12
Villa Clara and Mayabeque threaten Sancti Spíritus; the Indians sealed; more notes
Yes, we could be close to seeing a triple or quadruple tie for eighth place in the standings in this final stretch of the 63rd National Series of Cuban baseball. For the moment, after this Wednesday's results, Mayabeque (33-36) and Villa Clara (33-36) were one game behind Sancti Spíritus (34-35). But the story does not end there: Guantánamo (32-35) and Artemisa (32-35) could also be promoted when they play their respective games suspended due to rain. So, nothing has been decided yet! Let's get to the action between this Wednesday's contenders.
Villa Clara 9, Cienfuegos 2: 40%
That is the percentage that the Villa Clara Leopards have in their favor in the series against the Cienfuegos Elephants: two wins out of five games. Three missing. And, to maintain its aspirations of returning to the postseason after four years of absence, Villa Clara needs to sweep Cienfuegos. This Wednesday the story was different from last Tuesday: the Leopards scored a three-run rally in the first inning, surpassing all the offensive production of the previous day. A double by Luis Darío Machado off right-hander Alex Daniel Pérez started the Leopardos' attack, and Leonardo Montero hit a two-run single that made the score 3-0.
Cienfuegos came closer after scoring at the beginning of the fourth inning, but Villa Clara finished off with a four-run rally to take a definitive lead 7-1 at the end of the fifth. The Leopardos' third and fourth hitting duo, Luis Darío Machado (2) and Leonardo Montero (4), drove in six of the team's nine runs. Montero reached 38 RBIs and is leading the lineup, but the main clutch hitter has been Machado. With 36 fewer plate appearances, Machado is hitting .328 with runners in scoring position. He has 34 RBIs, and 38% of them have been key, providing the tie or the advantage for Villa Clara.
With the offensive support he received, 17-year-old rookie Cristian Rojas kept the Elephants in check. Rojas pitched a 5 ⅔ inning start, where he allowed one run, striking out six opponents and no walks. The rest of the route was covered by another rookie, left-hander Maikel Pérez, who pitched 3 ⅓ innings and earned the first save of his career. Villa Clara has won 16 of the last 23 games they have played against Cienfuegos, but that is past history. They will still need to get three more wins to survive in the challenge to reach the playoffs.
The Hurricanes remain unbeatable
When I review the Hurricanes' statistics, there is one quick search that seems inevitable: the records of power and production in clutch situations of Denis Laza and Yasniel González. In fact, the Laza-Yasniel duo began this season leading the league with 78 home runs combined over the last three seasons, leaving behind Yasser Julio González (47) and William Saavedra (28), who had hit 75. So, with that history, I found it alarming the regression in power of Yasniel González. I know “El Guajiro” has battled injuries and personal issues over the past few months, but his home run drought was concerning. Yasniel González had hit three home runs in the first two weeks of this season (during 33 PAs), and then recorded a drought of 100 plate appearances without a homer.
Luckily for the Hurricanes, that offensive slump is behind them: Yasniel has driven in 31 runs in his last 95 trips to the plate, with eight home runs. He also improved his slugging from .368 to .608, which is being key for the Hurricanes, who have become surprise contenders in these last two weeks of the regular season.
In Mayabeque's 12-1 victory this Wednesday against the Tigres, Yasniel hit two home runs and drove in five of the team's 11 runs. His two homers devastated the Tigers: the first was a grand slam against Yadir Rangel in the second inning to increase the lead from 3-0 to 7-0. Four innings later, Yasniel repeated the dose with a solo home run that gave him a 10-0 lead.
Between the production of Yasniel González and leadoff hitter Jeison Martínez, the Hurricanes have recorded four of their five home runs—and half of their 18 RBIs—during this start of the week against the Ciego de Ávila pitchers. Although starters José Ignacio Bermúdez and Geyler Gracial have had dominant starts, the Hurricanes' offense has taken all the credit against the Tigers: they have scored 19 runs in 18 innings on offense, with nine extra bases (four doubles and five home runs ), although the key to success has been timely hitting: they have hit .391 with runners in scoring position, while the Tigers have gone 0-for-8. The challenge for the Hurricanes will not be easy, but if the offense keeps producing, there could be surprises during the last week of the season. As I wrote before, Mayabeque has two points in favor and two against if it is a draw: they won this year's series 3-2 against Villa Clara and Sancti Spíritus, but lost with equal dividends against Guantánamo and Artemisa.
The Gallos could not win on a historic day for Frederich Cepeda
This time the Gallos' pitching could not control Holguín's offense, and the Cubs won 15-9 this Wednesday. On another historic day to remember, Frederich Cepeda hit the 370th home run of her career and tied for fifth place all-time with Havana's legendary home run hitter, Romelio Martínez.
Romelio recorded the honorable figure in just 15 seasons and 6,057 plate appearances, 3,685 less than Frederich Cepeda. But now Cepeda—who needed to play 11 more seasons to tie Romelio—is one home run away from surpassing the iconic “Bejucal home run hitter.” And the story does not end there: Cepeda's 371st home run will tie with another legend, Antonio Muñoz, who appears in fourth place among home run hitters in the National Series.
Cepeda hit the home run against starter Jesús Enrique Pérez, and brought Sancti Spíritus closer to 7-6 at the beginning of the fourth inning. However, the Roosters scored only three runs in the rest of the game, while the Cubs added eight more. The home runs by Yasiel Andy González and Nelson Batista were decisive in the finish of the Cubs, who scored 10 runs in six innings against the Sancti Spíritus bullpen.
As you already know, the Gallos now have a record of (34-35) and a single game advantage against two contenders who won the five-game series this season: Mayabeque (3-2) and Villa Clara (4-1). Yes, a draw against them is not an option in the battle on the way to the playoffs.
The latest news on Wednesday was the sealed game between Isla de la Juventud and Guantánamo, which led 7-6 for the Indians in five complete innings. If weather conditions improve, it is likely that several challenges will resume tomorrow, Thursday, where 12 games are scheduled. These would be the pending doubleheaders:
• Guantánamo vs Isla de la Juventud (delayed, Top 6)
• Guantánamo vs Isla de la Juventud (first of the day with 7 innings)
• Guantánamo vs Isla de la Juventud (second of the day with 7 innings)
• Artemisa vs Las Tunas (first game with 7 innings)
• Artemisa vs Las Tunas (second game of 7 innings)
• Granma vs Pinar del Río (first game with 7 innings)
• Granma vs Pinar del Río (second game of 7 innings)
