Postseason: A return in time
Industriales is back: The Blues of the Capital achieved their first victory in this Semifinal with another gem of pitching from right-hander Maikel Taylor and four electrifying RBIs from leadoff Roberto Acevedo. El León roared at the Latinoamericano stadium, and tomorrow Sunday they will seek to tie the series 2-2, although the Vegueros will try to deliver a blow that could be close to the finish.
Semifinal Game 3: Pinar del Río 1, Industriales 9
Key moment
The bottom of the sixth, when Industriales produced a four-run rally that made the score 7-1. At the beginning of the fifth, Pinar del Río scored a run, but Industriales responded to make the score 3-1. The four-score rally in the sixth was the big offensive blow that took Pinar del Río out of the game. The Blues combined quality at-bats (they had 13 hits, including two doubles by Roberto Acevedo) with aggressiveness on the bases. After the explosion of veteran Bladimir Baños, who could not complete the five innings (4 ⅔ IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, K, 3 BB), Industriales scored six runs in 3 ⅓ innings against the Vegueros bullpen.
MVP of the Game
Maykel Taylor and Roberto Acevedo. Taylor has emerged as Industriales' ace in these playoffs. He is 2-0, 0.74 ERA and recorded his third consecutive quality outing. His 97 batters faced have produced a poor .455 OPS. With that remarkable command after three starts, Taylor is leading pitchers this postseason with 24 ⅓ innings (an average of eight innings per game!) and 16 strikeouts.
The Vegueros had two crucial opportunities against Taylor, but his main hitters couldn't RBI. Alexei Ramírez hit a foul fly out to first in the top of the third inning with runners on first and second. That was the second out of the inning.
Taylor then struck out William Saavedra—who had hit a fly ball to deep left in his first appearance at the plate—but catcher Oscar Valdés was unable to block the pitch and the ball escaped. Saavedra reached base on an unexpected strikeout and wild pitch that loaded the bases. However, Jorge Yoán Rojas also failed to produce, and delivered the third out with a ground ball to short.
Two innings later, Rojas himself faced a similar situation again. There were two outs in the top of the fifth and runners on second and third, after a sacrifice fly by Saavedra that drove in the first run for the Vegueros. Industriales still had a 2-1 lead, and Taylor struck out Rojas. In two consecutive at-bats, Rojas left five runners on base, a breakdown that Pinar del Río's offense could not overcome.
While Taylor limited the Vegueros to one run, controlling the game in key situations, Roberto Acevedo was in charge of carrying the offensive load: he hit 4-for-5 with a pair of doubles and drove in four runs.
The first two opened the scoring for Industriales in the second inning with two outs. And, in the bottom of the seventh, his second double of the night made the score 9-1. In nine games of these playoffs, Acevedo has had 18 hits (four doubles and two triples), has eight runs scored and tied Yasmany Tomás with 11 RBIs.
Turning points to consider:
—Maikel Taylor's dominance not only stopped the Vegueros in a key game that could have turned the series around. Taylor's durability also prevented bullpen wear and tear. With 101 pitches, he managed to advance the game until the seventh inning, and then right-handers Leodán Reyes and Fher Cejas took care of the final seven outs.
—Total neutralization: The batch of first to fifth hitters in Pinar del Río's lineup was limited to 3-for-16 by Maikel Taylor.
—Without the help of Industriales' errors, Pinar del Río has scored just nine runs. They have combined for a .304 slugging percentage, with only three extra-base doubles. The Vegueros' offense has not been able to explode at the level they showed in the regular season, but they knew how to take advantage of every defensive slip by Industriales during Games 1 and 2. Of course, I have not forgotten: the Blues did not make mistakes in Game 3 , so the first step to avoid the Vegueros attack was to strengthen the defense.
—Speed this time was a decisive factor for the Lions: they were aggressive, they stole four bases from catcher Yasiel Agete, who also committed a passed ball and an error on a throw to second. By not lining up center fielder Luis Pablo Acosta as a starter, there were changes that weakened the Vegueros defense, although the worst defensive work of the night was from catcher Agete.
Postseason: An unexpected end
—Stopping the low-round hitters in the Pinar del Río lineup continues to be a pending issue for the Industriales pitchers. Tailon Sánchez and Rolando Martínez have reached base in 50% of their plate appearances during this Semifinal. That has been a great job, but Pinar del Río needs more offensive production from its main hitters. The veteran duo of Alexei Ramírez (1-for-9) and William Saavedra (2-for-10) have failed to RBI 16-of-19 runners found in scoring position.
—Could there be more changes in the Industriales lineup? Probably, because Oscar Valdés is 0-for-12 with three strikeouts and a ground ball into a double play in his first 14 plate appearances in this Semifinal. Valdés has an admirable status within the Blues' lineup, but he stopped driving in the nine runners he found in scoring position. We'll see if Oscar can make adjustments.
—Rookie Dayron Miranda has become one of Industriales' most reliable clutch hitters. A little less than a year ago, I saw Dayron Miranda play for the first time. I always found his energy overflowing, but what I appreciated most about him was how he faced pressure situations. Miranda was the MVP of the I Copa Orbe Luis Rodríguez In Memoria, where he highlighted his potential as a hitter and the arm strength that a right fielder should have.
In less than a year, his evolution has been surprising. Miranda started in the team's reserve and, since he was added to the Industriales roster in the middle of the season, his rise has not stopped. After going 2-for-4 (2 RBI) this Saturday in Game 2, Miranda leads the team with five RBIs against Pinar del Río so far in this Semifinal. If we had projected a possible Industriales lineup before these playoffs, Miranda probably would not have been in all versions. However, “El Jabao” Miranda has taken advantage of the opportunities and continues to contribute as if he had played playoff games in his entire career.
—After the explosion of Bladimir Baños, the Pinar del Río bullpen was attacked mercilessly by Industriales. Maybe it was because of the early decision in the game. But, obviously, Vegueros manager Alexander Urquiola still has options to face Game 4.
One key stat you should know: Pinar del Río established a 14-0 record playing on Sundays in the regular season. That was incredible! The next Sunday challenge will be tomorrow. Will they maintain this surprising streak?
Box Score
PINAR DEL RIO (1) AT INDUSTRIALES (9)
PINAR DEL RIO AB R H BI INDUSTRIALES AB R H BI
Juan C. Arencibia 3 0 1 0 Roberto Acevedo 5 1 4 4
Alexei Ramirez 4 0 1 0 Roberto Alvarez 3 1 1 0
William Saavedra 3 0 0 1 Yasmany Tomás 4 0 2 1
Jorge Yoan Rojas 4 0 0 0 Oscar Valdes 4 0 0 0
Yaser Julio Gonzalez 4 0 1 0 Dayron Miranda 4 0 2 2
Lazaro E. Blanco 4 0 1 0 Yasiel Santoya 5 0 0 0
Yasiel Agete 4 0 0 0 Alfredo Rodriguez 4 2 2 0
Tailon Sanchez 4 0 2 0 Ariel Hechevarria 1 0 0 0
Rolando Martinez 2 1 1 0 Roque Tomas 1 2 1 0
Yoannis Moreno 1 0 0 0 Alberto Calderon 2 3 1 2
TOTALS 33 1 7 1 TOTALS 33 9 13 9
PINAR DEL RIO 000 010 000 -- 1
INDUSTRIALES 020 014 20x -- 9
LOB--PINAR DEL RIO 8, INDUSTRIALES 9. ERR--Yasiel Agete,
Yancarlos Garcia. 2B--Roberto Acevedo (2). SACF--William
Saavedra, Yasmany Tomás. SACB--Ariel Hechevarria.
SB--Roberto Alvarez, Alfredo Rodriguez, Roque Tomas, Alberto
Calderon.
PINAR DEL RIO IP H R ER BB SO HR
Vladimir Baños (L) 4 2/3 6 3 3 4 1 0
Yancarlos Garcia 1/3 2 3 3 0 0 0
Frank D. Blanco - 1 1 1 1 0 0
Yosvany Martinez 1 2/3 3 2 2 1 1 0
Gabriel Cantero 1 1/3 1 0 0 1 1 0
INDUSTRIALES
Maikel Taylor (W) 6 2/3 7 1 1 2 4 0
Leodan Reyes 1 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fher Cejas 1 0 0 0 0 1 0
PB--Yasiel Agete. WP--Vladimir Baños, Maikel Taylor.
SO--William Saavedra, Alexei Ramirez, Jorge Yoan Rojas,
Yoannis Moreno, Yaser Julio Gonzalez, Yasiel Santoya,
Roberto Alvarez, Oscar Valdes. BB--Rolando Martinez, Juan C.
Arencibia, Ariel Hechevarria, Roberto Alvarez (2), Dayron
Miranda, Oscar Valdes, Alberto Calderon (2).
