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Former MLB Players Harold Ramirez & Luis Cessa Sign With Two Liga Mexicana de Beisbol Teams and More 2025 Signings South of the U.S.

 Matt Tallarini - World Baseball Network  |    Feb 26th, 2025 12:13am EST
Harold Ramirez, son of a former MLB player, in action for the Tampa Bay Rays. Now joining Tecos de los Dos Laredos for the 2025 Liga Mexicana de Beisbol season, along with Socrates Brito, Luis Cessa, and Alonso Gaitán.

The 2025 Liga Mexicana de Beisbol season has seen several key signings of former Major League Baseball players, many of whom have also competed in international winter and spring-summer leagues throughout their careers.

World Baseball Network has compiled a list of four players who have signed with their respective LMB teams for the 2025 regular season.

The full schedule for the 2025 LMB season can be found at MLB MiLB Schedule.

Game start times for the 2025 LMB regular season, which begins on April 18, have not yet been announced.

Harold Ramirez

The Tecos de los Dos Laredos signed Colombian designated hitter and outfielder Harold Ramirez on February 25, 2025, for the upcoming season.

Ramirez will also represent the Colombian national team during the 2025 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers in Tucson, Ariz. at Veterans Memorial Stadium at Kino Sports Complex from March 2-6. He will compete against China, Brazil, and Germany in hopes of earning a spot in the 2026 WBC.

Ramirez, 30, was born in Cartagena, Colombia, and has played six seasons in MLB, spending time with the Miami Marlins from 2019-2020, the Cleveland Indians in 2021, the Tampa Bay Rays from 2022-24, and the Washington Nationals in 2024. 

Ramirez played for the Águilas Cibaeñas and Tigres del Licey in the 2024-25 Liga de Béisbol Profesional de la República Dominicana (LIDOM) season. During the LIDOM Championship Series with the Tigres del Licey, Ramirez posted impressive numbers, hitting .452/.386/.490 with 14 hits in 31 at-bats, two doubles, five RBI, one walk, and four strikeouts. Despite his contributions, Tigres del Licey fell to the Leones del Escogido, managed by former MLB star Albert Pujols, in the seven-game championship series.

Ramirez also played for the Águilas Cibaeñas in 13 games during the 2024-25 LIDOM Round Robin, hitting .353/.386/.490 in 51 at-bats, recording 18 hits, four doubles, one home run, 10 RBI, one stolen base, four walks, and seven strikeouts.

Earlier in the 2024-25 winter season, Ramirez appeared in 13 games for the Caimanes de Barranquilla in the Liga Profesional de Béisbol Colombia, batting .200 over 16 plate appearances, with 10 hits, two doubles, three RBI, eight walks, and six strikeouts before being activated by Águilas Cibaeñas on December 27, 2024.

Last season, Ramirez started 2024 with Tampa Bay, appearing in 48 games with 169 plate appearances and posting a .268/.284/.305 batting line. He collected 44 hits, three doubles, one home run, 13 RBI, five stolen bases, three walks, and 33 strikeouts before being released on June 13, 2024.

Ramirez then signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals on June 15, 2024, and was assigned to Triple-A Rochester the same day. He played seven games with Triple-A Rochester, hitting .375/.516/.417 in 31 plate appearances, recording nine hits, one double, four RBI, six walks, and seven strikeouts before Washington selected his contract on June 24, 2024.

Ramirez played 25 games for Washington, hitting .243/.273/.365 in 77 plate appearances, collecting 18 hits, four doubles, one triple, one home run, 16 RBI, one stolen base, two walks, and seven strikeouts before being released on August 14, 2024.

He then signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves on August 23, 2024, and was assigned to Triple-A Gwinnett.

Ramirez played 22 games for Triple-A Gwinnett, batting .231/.278/.275 in 97 plate appearances, recording 21 hits, four doubles, nine RBI, two stolen bases, six walks, and 20 strikeouts before electing free agency on November 4, 2024.

Over six MLB seasons, Ramirez holds a lifetime batting average of .286, having played 536 games with 1,932 plate appearances. He has 517 hits, 91 doubles, seven triples, 38 home runs, 247 RBI, 19 stolen bases, 79 walks, 350 strikeouts, and a .729 OPS.

Last season, the Tecos de los Dos Laredos finished second in Zona del Norte with a 54-39 record, just half a game behind first-place Sultanes de Monterrey (53-37).

The Tecos de los Dos Laredos will begin the 2025 LMB regular season on April 19 against the Acereros de Monclova on the road at Estadio de Béisbol Monclova in Monclova, Mexico.

The Tecos de los Dos Laredos also signed right-handed pitchers Cory Abbott and Trey Supak for the 2025 season, the team announced on February 22.

The Sultanes de Monterrey signed right-hander Luis Cessa for the 2025 LMB season, the organization announced on February 24. 

The Sultanes de Monterrey also announced on February 25, that they traded for infielder Gustavo Nunez and sent Jorge Rondón and Jermaine Palacios to the Bravos de Leon. 

Luis Cessa

Cessa, 32, was born in Cordoba, Veracruz, Mexico and has played eight seasons in the MLB with the New York Yankees from 2016-21 and the Cincinnati Reds from 2022-23. 

After the 2023 season, Cessa was released by the Washington Nationals on August 29, 2023 after he spent some time with the organization in Triple-A Rochester. 

Cessa signed with the Kansas City Royals to a minor league contract on November 18, 2023 and was a non-roster roster invitee in their spring training to start the 2024 season. 

Cessa in his six appearances out of the bullpen during spring training in 2024, posted a 4.70 ERA with one save opportunity, throwing 7.2 innings, allowing five hits, four earned runs, one home run, two walks, and five strikeouts prior to assigned to Triple-A Omaha on March 28, 2024. 

He made 11 appearances and 10 starts with Triple-A Omaha, and went 2-2 with a 3.89 ERA, chucking 39.1 innings, allowing 44 hits, 17 earned runs, six home runs, 16 walks, 29 strikeouts, and a 1.525 WHIP before being released on June 1, 2024. 

Cessa signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 10, 2024 and was assigned to Triple-A Indianapolis on June 11. 

Cessa went 2-5 with Triple-A Indianapolis and threw 63.1 innings with a 5.26 ERA in 15 appearances and 13 starts, allowing 62 hits, 37 earned runs, nine home runs, 27 walks, 48 strikeouts, and a 1.405 WHIP before he elected free agency on November 4. 

Cessa played in the 2024-25 Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico regular season with the Yaquis de Obregon and went 4-2 in his 10 starts, throwing 51.2 innings with a 2.09 ERA, allowing 39 hits, 12 earned runs, two home runs, nine walks, 35 strikeouts, and a 0.929 WHIP prior to exploring his options to stay in Mexico for the 2025 season. 

During Cessa’s eight seasons in the majors, he has a lifetime record of 17-22 with a 4.43 ERA, in 208 appearances and 35 starts, four saves, throwing 425 innings, allowing 423 hits, 209 earned runs, 66 home runs, 141 walks, 331 strikeouts, and a 1.327 WHIP. 

The Sultanes de Monterrey will open up the 2024 regular season on April 18 against the Charros de Jalisco at home at Estadio de Béisbol Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico. 

Alonso Gaitan 

Mexican outfielder Alonso Gaitan signed with the Caliente de Durango on February 24 for the 2025 LMB season, the organization announced. 

Gaitan, 27, was born in Tijuana, Mexico and has played six seasons in LAMP with the Yaquis de Obregon from 2019-21, the Mayos de Navojoa from 2020-22, and the Venados de Mazatlan from 2022-25. He has played in LMB for four seasons with the EL Águila de Veracruz from 2021-24 prior to him signing with the Caliente de Durango. 

The Caliente de Durango were previously known as the Generales de Durango before Grupo Caliente, a Mexican sports betting company, purchased the naming rights in March 2024.

During the 2024-25 LAMP season with the Venados de Mazatlan, Gaitán played 56 games, logging 232 plate appearances, and hit .255/.368/.292, recording 49 hits, five doubles, one triple, 15 RBI, seven stolen bases, 32 walks, and 49 strikeouts.

Last season with the El Aguila de Veracruz, he played in 70 games and hit .260 with 270 plate appearances, recording 61 hits, 16 doubles, one triple, four home runs, 28 RBI, nine stolen bases, 18 walks, 51 strikeouts, and a .703 OPS. 

Over four seasons with El Águila de Veracruz, Gaitán has played 208 games, with a career .263 batting average, 166 hits, 43 doubles, three triples, 11 home runs, 83 RBI, 25 stolen bases, 45 walks, and 148 strikeouts.

The Caliente de Durango finished the 2024 LMB season in eighth place with a 36-56 record, 18 games behind first place in Zona del Norte, failing to qualify for the postseason.

The Caliente de Durango will open their 2025 LMB season against the Saraperos de Saltillo at Estadio Francisco Villa in Durango, Mexico, on April 18.

Socrates Brito 

Dominican outfielder Socrates Brito signed with El Aguila de Veracruz on February 24, the LMB X page reported. 

There has been no confirmation from El Águila de Veracruz’s official X page that Brito will play for the organization in the 2025 season.

Brito, 32, was born in Azua, Dominican Republic and played four seasons in the MLB, spending time with the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2015-16 and 2018 and the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019. Brito also spent three seasons with the Kia Tigers in the Korean Baseball Organization for the last three seasons from 2022-24. 

In 409 games over three seasons with Kia, Brito hit .302 over 1,764 plate appearances, collecting 487 hits, 90 doubles, 13 triples, 63 home runs, 270 RBI, and 40 stolen bases, with 127 walks, 252 strikeouts, and an .843 OPS.

Last season, he helped the Kia Tigers capture the 2024 Korean Series title, defeating the Samsung Lions in five games. The Kia Tigers now hold 12 KBO championships, the most in league history since its inception in 1982.

Brito batted .310 in the 2024 regular season, playing 140 games and logging 602 plate appearances. He totaled 171 hits, 30 doubles, three triples, 26 home runs, 97 RBI, 13 stolen bases, 41 walks, 91 strikeouts, and an .875 OPS.

Brito played a key role in the Leones del Escogido’s championship run at the 2025 Caribbean Series.

In six games at El Nido de los Águilas in Mexicali, Mexico, he hit .417/.464/.458 over 28 plate appearances, scoring four runs, tallying 10 hits, one double, three RBI, and six stolen bases, while drawing three walks and striking out four times. His contributions helped Leones del Escogido secure their fifth Caribbean Series title with a 1-0 championship victory over 2024-25 LAMP champion Charros de Jalisco.

Brito played only five games in the 2024-25 LIDOM season with Leones del Escogido before the Round Robin, batting .333/.400/.500 in 20 plate appearances, collecting six hits, one double, one triple, three stolen bases, two walks, and two strikeouts.

During the 2024-25 LIDOM Round Robin, Brito appeared in 15 games, posting a .362/.424/.552 slash line in 58 at-bats, with 21 hits, three doubles, one triple, two home runs, nine RBI, one stolen base, seven walks, and seven strikeouts.

In the 2024-25 LIDOM championship series, he played seven games, hitting .273/.306/.485 over 33 at-bats, scoring six runs, recording nine hits, one double, two home runs, five RBI, one stolen base, two walks, and four strikeouts. His performance helped Leones del Escogido capture their 17th league title.

In 99 MLB games, Brito hit .179 over 218 plate appearances, totaling 37 hits, six doubles, three triples, five home runs, 18 RBI, three stolen bases, 10 walks, and 56 strikeouts, with a .525 OPS.

El Águila de Veracruz finished fourth in the 2024 LMB season, qualifying for the Zona del Sur playoffs with a 46-44 record before falling in the first round to Conspiradores de Querétaro in five games.

El Águila de Veracruz opens the 2025 season at home on April 18 against Pericos de Puebla at Estadio Deportivo Veracruzano “Beto Ávila” in Veracruz, Mexico.

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Matt Tallarini - World Baseball Network
Matthew (Matt) Tallarini is the Founder and Chief Correspondent for the World Baseball Network.