A kidnapping in Venezuela and a championship for Puerto Rico
By César Augusto Márquez
A Thursday that started with shock and dismay in Venezuela ended with great joy in Mexico, where the Criollos de Caguas came from behind in the last two innings to defeat the Águilas Cibaeñas, 9-4, to win the Caribbean Series for the second straight year.
Not only did the Criollos become the first team from Puerto Rico to capture consecutive Caribbean Series, their victory vindicated government and league officials who insisted on playing an abbreviated winter league season despite the island’s laboriously slow recovery from Hurricane María.
And among the first to congratulate the champions was Álex Cora, the Boston Red Sox’s new manager and a former Criollo himself.
“I’m proud to be a Criollo,” Cora tweeted in Spanish. “Thank you @GuzzyPR25 [GM Edwards Guzmán] @lui_mat32 [manager Luis Matos] for giving us this championship. To [team owner] Raúl Rodríguez, my respects. You are the real MVP. Without you, we wouldn’t have done it. To the players, #YouNeverStoppedFighting, I’m proud of you all. To the coaches and the rest of the staff, enjoy. You earned it.”
Kidnapped in Venezuela
But amid the celebration, real life was once again intruding, beginning with the news that Ana Soto, mother of Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Elías Díaz, had been kidnapped earlier in the day in the town of San Francisco, located south of the port city of Maracaibo.
And hours later, Williams Pérez, who pitched for the Atlanta Braves in 2015 and 2016, accidently shot and killed another player while handing him a gun after batting practice at Bachiller Julio Hernández Molina Stadium in Araure, a small town between Maracaibo and Caracas. The incident was reported by the Venezuelan media and confirmed by three different sources to La Vida Baseball.
This year’s Caribbean Series was supposed to be held in Barquisimeto, Venezuela’s fourth largest city, but organizers moved it to Mexico’s Estadio de Béisbol Charros de Jalisco, outside of Guadalajara, over concerns about security and the state of the country.
That was small consolation to Díaz, 27, a three-year veteran with a jovial personality who last season backed up countryman Francisco Cervelli.
Details about the kidnapping remain sketchy, but the Pirates were quick to offer their support.
“We are all shocked and deeply concerned for Elías’ mother, as well for Elías and his entire family,” Pirates president Frank Coonelly said. “We are using all the resources available at the Pirates and Major League Baseball to support Elías and his family during this incredibly difficult time.”
Matos makes his mark
Puerto Rico’s victory — sealed by five runs in the seventh inning and three more in the eighth — ignited a raucous celebration on the diamond. And it came at the expense of fellow boricua Lino Rivera, who a week ago managed the Águilas to their first Dominican winter league title in 10 years, fulfilling a promise made to his late sister Awilda, who passed away from cancer last October.
But what was disappointing for one Puerto Rican manager was good for another: Criollos’ manager Luis Matos became the second manager in history to capture consecutive Caribbean Series titles, after Cuba’s Napoleón “Nap” Reyes, who won with the Tigres de Marianao in 1957 and 1958.
The Criollos, who have earned five Caribbean Series overall, are also the first team to repeat since the Águilas did it in 1997 and 1998.
Crushed Tomateros
Even though the Caribbean Series was held in home territory, for first time in five years the Mexican team didn’t make it to the finals. The Tomateros (Tomato Growers) of Culiacán, managed by former major leaguer Benji Gil, lost their first three games to Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and Cuba and were eliminated before the end of the round-robin phase. Beating the Dominican Republic 8-1 in their last outing was no solace.
“I do not consider it a failure,” Gil insisted afterwards. “We were a hit away from beating Puerto Rico and Venezuela. We needed a timely hit or a dominating hitter.
“If there’s anything you can question about this team, it was the relief pitching,” Gil added of his staff, which gave up too many key hits. “We had the best relievers in Mexico.”
Since 2013, when the Caribbean Series adopted the “final four” format for the second round, Mexico has been the country with the most success, winning three championships and finishing second twice.
Adiós, Alfredo
Fan favorite Alfredo Amézaga played his last game, at least in the winter leagues. A utility player from Ciudad Obregón who enjoyed nine seasons in the majors, mainly with the Angels and the Marlins, the 40-year-old Amézaga will permanently hang up his spikes after one more go-round in the Mexican Baseball League, the country’s summer circuit.
“I will miss everything about my career, from my friends to my locker to the fans,” Amézaga said.
Amézaga’s claim to fame is that he was selected by the Angels in the 13th round of the 1999 draft — 401st overall and one spot ahead of Albert Pujols. Amézaga hit .247 in the majors but retired from the Caribbean Series with a bang, smacking a triple, driving in two runs and scoring one in Mexico’s last game against the Dominican Republic. Farewell, fellow.
Taking a stand
During its meetings in Jalisco, the Caribbean Federation confirmed that Venezuela would return as a host next year. After that, the series will rotate to Puerto Rico in 2020, México in 2021 and Dominican Republic in 2022.
However, the organizing committee will be under pressure to guarantee the safety and comfort of the teams and fans while ensuring that it can meet its financial commitments in U.S. dollars, which might be a deal-breaker if the government of President Nicolás Maduro doesn’t step in.
How bad are things in Venezuela? The hyperinflation is spiraling out of control, rising more than 4,000 percent in the last 12 months and projected to reach 13,000 percent by the end of year, according to the International Monetary Fund. One U.S. dollar is worth approximately 236,000 bolivars, an amount that could have paid for a small apartment five years ago.
The Balbinator
Even though Venezuela lost in the semifinals, slugger Balbino Fuenmayor wrote himself into the record books. A 28-year-old career minor leaguer, he became the seventh player to connect for five hits in a Caribbean Series game, joining Archie Ware (SpurCola, 1951), Pompeyo “Yo-Yo” Davalillo (Caracas, 1957), Hall of Famer Ken Griffey (Bayamón, 1975), Alvin Moore (Los Mochís, 1984), Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar (San Juan, 1995) and José Vidro (Santurce, 2000).
Two of his hits were home runs, which put him on a second list composed of players from Venezuelan teams who hit two dingers in a game: Norman Cash (1959), Phil Stephenson (1989), Wes Chamberlain (1999), José Miguel Nieves (2001), Robert Pérez (2002), Robert Machado (2002) and Luis Jiménez (2011).
Balbino, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 230 pounds, is known as the “Balbinator.” He has signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals for this season.
Families on their minds
Unfortunately, Soto’s kidnapping was a reminder that ballplayers’ family members in Venezuela are not immune from crime. In 2009, the mother of Víctor Zambrano, a pitcher for the Mets and Rays, was rescued three days after being kidnapped.
That same year, the 11-year-old son of Colorado Rockies catcher Yorvit Torrealba was held for nearly 48 hours by abductors before being released unharmed. After that incident, Torrealba relocated his family to Florida.
In 2011, Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos was held for two and half days before being rescued by the authorities in a flurry of gunfire.
According to the Observatorio Venezolano de Violencia (Venezuelan Observatory of Violence), the country registered 26,616 murders in 2017.
Which is why players take all threats seriously. Last summer, Detroit Tigers superstar Miguel Cabrera talked openly about paying protection money to safeguard his parents and family.
And this past November, Brewers prospect Javier Betancourt, nephew of former major leaguer Edgardo Alfonzo, was shot in the arm after an altercation in a nightclub.
Featured Image: Criollos Caguas twitter