When the gifts have been opened, the toys have been assembled, and dinner is finished, sports fans in the United States consume either NFL football or NBA basketball on Christmas Day.
If you’re a hockey fan, you’re out of luck, as the NHL shuts down on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day each year.
And if you’re a baseball fan in the U.S., well, the season ended a month and a half ago, and free agency is the only real topic of baseball conversation on Christmas Day.
But south of the border, the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico has a tradition of playing on Christmas Day, and this year, all 10 teams will be in action on December 25, playing their 63rd game of the regular season. Because the biggest celebrations of the holiday in Mexico are held on December 24, known as La Nochebuena, the league generally doesn’t play on Christmas Eve, allowing players and fans alike to have their Christmas meal with families and attend a midnight mass. This year, December 24 is on a Tuesday, and because the LAMP doesn’t schedule games on Mondays, the league will not play on December 23 or December 24.
Occasionally, as happened in 2021, the LAMP playoffs open on Christmas Day, adding some extra zest to the holiday slate.
In the LAMP, teams make the playoffs by earning points for their finishes in the first and second halves of the 68-game regular season, with a first-place finish earning a team 10 points, a second-place finish earning nine, and so on, with the 10th-place finisher earning a single point.
With the regular season will be winding down and the final playoff spots on the line, Christmas Day could be a big day for teams fighting to get into the playoffs or improve their place in the second-half standings in hopes of securing a higher seed.
The Tomateros de Culiacan won the first half title, earning 10 points, but haven’t fared well in the second half of the season, going 9-13 thus far. They’ll hit the road on Christmas Day to face the Algodoneros de Guasave, who finished third in the first half and are currently in fourth place in the second half at 30-27.
The second half’s hottest team, the defending LAMP champion Naranjeros de Hermosillo, will face the Charros de Jalisco in Guadalajara. The Charros, too, have had a good second half after Benji Gil returned from managing Mexico at the 2024 WBSC Premier12, going 15-7.
Mazatlan and Navojoa, two teams that will be fighting for their playoff lives, will square off at Mazatlan’s Estadio Tedoro Mariscal. Mazatlan finished ninth in the first half and are currently sixth in the second half at 10-12. A sixth place finish would give the Venados seven points, while the Mayos, currently in ninth place in the second half, would also finish with seven points if both teams maintain their current positions in the standings.
The Caneros de Los Mochis, who finished second in the first half, earning nine points, are currently third in the second half, and will face the Yaquis de Obregon, who finished eighth in the first half and are currently seventh in the second half. While Los Mochis is almost certainly going to make the playoffs barring an unfathomable collapse, Obregon would finish the season with seven points, putting them in a three-way tie for the final two playoff spots with Mazatlan and Navojoa should the standings remain the same.
Sadly, the fans of the Sultanes de Monterrey will likely be finding coal in their stocking on Christmas Day. The Sultanes, who finished last in the first half and are currently last in the second half, will likely need to finish the second half in fifth place or higher to have a shot at making the playoffs, and they’re currently four games in back of fifth-place Mexicali, the team they’ll host on Christmas Day.
So if you happen to be in Monterrey, Guadalajara, Mazatlan, Los Mochis, or Guasave on Christmas Day, head down to the ballpark. If not, you can watch the games live via the LAMP YouTube channel for a small fee wherever you might be.
Feliz navidad!
If The Playoffs Started Today – If the LAMP playoffs were to start today, Hermosillo and Los Mochis would be tied with 17 points. With the better overall record, Hermosillo would get the first seed via the league’s tie-breaking criteria, while Los Mochis would be second. Guasave and Jalisco would be tied for third with 15 points each, and Jalisco would get the third seed by virtue of their record, while Guasave would be fourth. First-half winner Culiacan would finish with 13 points and get the fifth seed, and Mexicali, with 10 points, would be the sixth seed. As mentioned above, Navojoa, Obregon, and Mazatlan would each finish with seven points, but the Mayos de Navojoa, who have the worst record of the three, would miss the playoffs. Thus, Hermosillo would face Mazatlan in the first round, Los Mochis would face Obregon, Mexicali would face Jalisco, and Guasave would face Culiacan. Of course, with 11 games left in the regular season, a whole lot can change between now and December 30, when the regular season concludes.
