There are no games in the major winter leagues on Christmas Eve, but the final six-game stretch in the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico will begin on Christmas Day with a full slate of games.
Here are the potential playoff scenarios for each team as the LAMP’s regular season draws to a close.
Jaguares de Nayarit (18-9) – Having won six straight, the Jaguares are tied with the Tomateros for first place in the second half, and hold the tiebreaker with a 2-1 head-to-head record. They travel to Los Mochis for three games before finishing the season with three games at home against Culiacan, and could finish anywhere from first to sixth in the second half, but will make the playoff regardless of how the season ends, and will almost certainly have home-field advantage in the first round.
Tomateros de Culiacan (18-9) – The Tomateros host Mexicali for three and then travel to Nayarit. Like the Jaguares, and could finish anywhere from first to sixth in the second half, but will make the playoff regardless of how the season ends, but a weak first half means that Lorenzo Bundy’s club likely needs to win the second half to secure home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Naranjeros de Hermosillo (17-10) – Currently tied with Los Mochis in the points, Hermosillo holds the tiebreaker on the basis of their overall record and would get the third seed if the playoffs began today. They’ll play a road series against Tucson at home, and then host Obregon to close the regular season, and could finish as high as first or as low as eighth in the second half, but should start the playoffs with home field advantage in the first round unless they completely collapse.
Charros de Jalisco (15-12) – The Charros could win the second half or finish as low as ninth, but Benji Gil’s team will make the playoffs, and have a more than a puncher’s chance at making it through to the Caribbean Series — which they’re hosting. They host Guasave for three and then go to Mexicali for three, so six straight losses is unlikely. A fourth place finish in the second half would get them the sixth seed in the playoffs.
Caneros de Los Mochis (13-14) – A second-place finish in the first half really boosted the Caneros’ chances at home field advantage, though they need to finish better than .500 over the final six games of the regular season. With a miracle, they could win the second half, but this is a team that has trouble scoring runs. If they can maintain their position, they get the fourth seed, but they’ll have three home games against Nayarit and three on the road at Mazatlan.
Yaquis de Obregon (13-14) – The Yaquis won the first half, and could finish anywhere from first to 10th in the second half, though they’re all but guaranteed a top-four seed because of their success early in the season.
Aguilas de Mexicali (13-14) – First through 10th are all possible in the second half, but the Aguilas face Culiacan on the road and then host Jalisco. A finish between fifth and eighth is likely, as is a road playoff series.
Algodoneros de Guasave (11-16) – After a last-place finish in the first half, Guasave has to finish in eighth place or better in the second half to get into the playoffs. They go on the road to face Jalisco for three games and then host Tucson for three games. It’ll be close.
Venados de Mazatlan (9-18) – Ninth place in the first half and ninth place in the second half gets you an early vacation before spring training starts. They’ll travel to Obregon for three games before finishing with three games at home against Los Mochis. It’ll take a lot of luck for the Venados to get into the playoffs.
Tucson Baseball Team (8-19) – The season on the road caught up with the Baseball Team in the second half. Having finished eighth in the first half, there’s a small chance they win six straight and get in the postseason. It’s slightly better than the chance that they play a game in Tucson this season.
Tucson Baseball Team (21-40) 4, Aguilas de Mexicali (30-31) 3 (Game 1/Seven Innings) – Agustin Ruiz hit a solo homer to get the Baseball Team on the board in the first, and Ramon Mendoza drove in the go-ahead run in the sixth with a double. Ruiz scored twice and went 2-for-2 with two walks. Alejandro Florez hit a two-run homer for Mexicali.
Aguilas de Mexicali (31-31) 1, Tucson Baseball Team (21-41) 0 (Game 2/Seven Innings) – Marco Jaime drew a bases-loaded walk in the fourth, forcing Alex Mejia across the plate with the game’s only run. Starter Ernesto Zaragoza limited Tucson to one hit over five scoreless innings, Kurt Heyer was perfect in the sixth, and Jake Sanchez earned his 13th save of the year and the 134th of his career, tying the all-time saves mark in the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico.
Naranjeros de Hermosillo (37-24) 1, Caneros de Los Mochis (33-28) 0 (Game 1/Seven Innings) – That’s a balk! With Todd Lott batting in the third, Cesar Salazar stole third and then scored when Luis Miranda was called for a balk, scoring the game’s only run. Miranda threw all six innings for Los Mochis, allowing a run on five hits, while Hermosillo’s Touki Toussaint threw six scoreless innings, allowing five hits, walking three, and striking out nine.
Caneros de Los Mochis (34-28) 4, Naranjeros de Hermosillo (37-25) 2 (Game 2/Seven Innings) – Alejandro Urias went 1-for-3 with a run scored and three RBIs as Los Mochis took the second game of the doubleheader. Urias grounded out to first with the bases loaded in the first to score Nick Williams, laid down a sac bunt back to the mound in the fifth to score Eric Filia, and laid down another bunt in the seventh to score Aaron Lugo.
Venados de Mazatlan (21-40) 1, Tomateros de Culiacan (35-26) 0 (Game 1/Seven Innings) – Andres Alvarez doubled to right in the bottom of the third to score Fabricio Macias with the game’s only run. Culiacan’s Aldo Montes threw six innings, allowing one unearned run, while Braulio Torres-Perez threw six scoreless innings for Mazatlan, allowing just one hit and no walks, striking out seven.
Tomateros de Culiacan (36-26) 3, Venados de Mazatlan (21-41) 0 (Game 2/Seven Innings) – Joey Meneses had an RBI double and Orlando Martinez singled home a run in the bottom of the first, and Poncho Ruiz singled home a run in the fourth as the Tomateros shut out the Venados in the second game. Andres Alvarez went 3-for-3 for Mazatlan, hitting three singles.
Algodoneros de Guasave (22-39) 5, Yaquis de Obregon (34-27) 2 (Game 1/Seven Innings) – Tito Polo went 2-for-2 with a walk, two triples, two RBIs, and scored three times as the Algodoneros took the early game.
Yaquis de Obregon (35-27) 3, Algodoneros de Guasave (22-40) 0 (Game 2/Seven Innings) – Santiago Chavez got the Yaquis a 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the second, and Victor Mendoza’s two-run homer in the seventh provided insurance as the Yaquis took the late game. Starter Fernando Sanchez walked five but allowed no hits over five scoreless innings for Obregon.
Jaguares de Nayarit (37-24) 4, Charros de Jalisco (35-26) 2 (Game 1/Seven Innings) – Aaron Zavala hit a three-run homer, his fourth of the year, and Niko Vasquez followed him with a solo homer in the first to get the Jaguares a 4-0 lead that held up. Robert Dugger threw 5 2/3, allowing two runs on four hits for Nayarit.
Jaguares de Nayarit (38-24) 4, Charros de Jalisco (35-27) 2 (Game 2/Seven Innings) – Jose Orozco’s three-run homer in the second got the Jaguares another early lead that held up. Six Nayarit pitchers combined to allow two runs on three hits and two walks as the Jaguares notched their sixth straight win.
Thursday’s Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico Schedule
All times Eastern Standard Time
7:10 p.m. – Venados de Mazatlan at Yaquis de Obregon
7:30 p.m. – Algodoneros de Guasave at Charros de Jalisco
8 p.m. – Jaguares de Nayarit at Caneros de Los Mochis
8:05 p.m. – Aguilas de Mexicali at Tomateros de Culiacan
Photo: Jake Sanchez tied the LAMP’s all-time save record, notching his 134th save against Tucson on Tuesday night. (Photo courtesy of LAMP)
