The 2025-26 Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente regular season in Puerto Rico is more than halfway complete.
Leading the way with 18 wins in their first 26 games are the Cangrejeros de Santurce. Major League Baseball experienced players like catcher Christian Vazquez, shortstop Andrew Velazquez, and second baseman Shed Long Jr. are a big reason for their success.
Long ranks second in the LBPRC with a .355 batting average, behind only Emmanuel Rivera (.390) of the Indios de Mayaguez. His 42 total bases are three behind Nelson Velázquez of the Criollos de Caguas for the most in the league.
The Cangrejeros host the Leones de Ponce at Estadio Hiram Bithorn on Thursday night, hoping to avoid a third consecutive loss against their counterpart.
A Balk Wins the Game – The Giantes de Carolina lost to the Cangrejeros 8-7 in nine innings on Wednesday night with the help of a walk-off balk from Japanese relief pitcher Ren Mukunoki.
Sí, esto pasó… ¡WALK-OFF BALK! pic.twitter.com/PhbCSDbVTm
— LBPRC ⚾️?? (@LBPRC) December 11, 2025
With the game-winning run on third base in the bottom of the ninth, Mukunoki appeared to come set without issue. He delivered a fastball for a strike, but quickly raised his arms in confusion as the home plate umpire signaled for a balk. Fans took to the comments of a video clip of the play posted on the LBPRC’s Instagram page, also confused.
Mukunoki, 25, plays for Nippon Professional Baseball’s Orix Buffaloes during the summer. The right-hander has a 1.38 ERA in 13 innings this winter with the Gigantes.
Former Kansas City Royal Named Player of the Week – On Tuesday, the LBPRC announced that Criollos outfielder Nelson Velázquez was named the LBPRC’s player of the week for his hitting performance during the first stretch of games in December.
Velázquez, who played for the Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Royals from 2022-24 in MLB, hit .429 with two home runs, 10 RBIs, and posted a .810 slugging percentage and 1.288 OPS in five games last week. He was on Puerto Rico’s roster for the 2024 Caribbean Series and first played with the Criollos during the 2019-20 campaign.
Velázquez is tied with the Gigantes’ Josh Hatcher for second in the LBPRC with three home runs this year. His teammate, shortstop Luis Vazquez, leads the league with five dingers.
LBPRC Standings as of Thursday, December 11
- Cangrejeros de Santurce (18-8)
- Leones de Ponce (14-11)
- Indios de Mayaguez (12-12)
- Criollos de Caguas (12-14)
- Gigantes de Carolina (12-14)
- Senadores de San Juan (8-17)
WBN Puerto Rico: https://worldbaseball.com/league/puerto-rico/
Photo: Fans cheers in the first inning of the final of the World Baseball Classic between the United States and Puerto Rico in Los Angeles, Wednesday, March 22, 2017
