The Titans Del Caribe (LIDOM) Series was scheduled to be played in Yankee Stadium for two days from November 8-9 between Tigres del Licey and Àguilas Cibaeñas in September. The original plan was for the final game to be played at Citi Field, but now all the games will be played at Citi Field, just like in 2023. Z 101 reporter Tenchy Rodriguez reported the news of the venue switch on October 19. Last November, Àguilas Cibaeñas swept Tigres del Licey at Citi Field in three games.
Tigres del Licey—Tigres del Licey went 2-3 in their first five games and finished fourth in the standings.
Tigres del Licey announced on October 17 that Dominican star Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz will rejoin their team. De La Cruz, 22, hasn’t suited up yet, but he will play for them soon. He played for Tigres del Licey in the 2022-2023 season and had one home run, 14 RBI, nine stolen bases, and an OPS of .813 in 84 at-bats. The second-year MLB player put together a 5.2 bWAR season for the Reds last year with 25 home runs, 76 RBI, and a league-leading 67 stolen bases. His slash line was .259/.338/.471 in 696 at-bats last season.
Tigres del Licey went 2-3 in their first five games and found themselves fourth in the standings. Shortstop Jordan Lawlar has gotten off to a hot start with them with a team-leading two home runs, a .444 batting average, and two stolen bases. Outfielder Daniel Johnson leads LIDOM with seven RBI and has one home run with an OPS of 1.093 in 19 at-bats. Johnson, 29, played one MLB game with the Baltimore Orioles last season and made his MLB debut with the Cleveland Guardians in 2020.
Tigres del Licey lost their last game 6-3 to Leones del Escogido at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal in Santo Domingo on October 20.
Àguilas Cibaeñas- Àguilas Cibaeñas is 1-4 and has the worst record in LIDOM through the first five games. They were shutout 6-0 against Gigantes del Cibao at Estadio Diabo in Santiago on October 20.
Aguilas has received strong pitching performances, including shutouts from left-handers Enny Romero and Braulio Torres-Perez. Romero, 33, threw five scoreless innings, with two hits allowed and seven strikeouts, in a 3-1 loss against Leones del Escogido on October 19.
Romero pitched in MLB for five seasons and made his MLB debut with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2013. Romero played for Leones del Escogido for 10 seasons before debuting with Àguilas Cibaeñas this year. His career LIDOM numbers are 711.2 innings, 672 strikeouts, and an ERA of 3.72.
Perez, 31, threw 4.1 scoreless innings with three strikeouts in a 3-2 loss against Toros del Este on October 18. Perez never played in MLB and has played in the Frontier League, Liga Mexicana de Béisbol, and Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico. He made his debut with Toros del Este this season, and his numbers in Mexico are 508.1 innings, 410 strikeouts, and an ERA of just over four.
Toros Del Este- Toros del Este is 3-2 and is in second place in the LIDOM standings.
Torres Del Este has the pitching wins leader with right-hander Diogens Almengo with two and lefty Emalian Montilla is tied with Romero with seven strikeouts.
Almengo, 29, has pitched three games out of the bullpen and hasn’t allowed a run, with only one hit surrendered and four strikeouts. Almengo was signed by the Houston Astros as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2014. He never made it to MLB but did get as high as Triple-A with the Baltimore Orioles affiliate, the Norfolk Tides, in 2021. His MiLB career numbers are 310 innings, 287 strikeouts, 38 saves, and an ERA of 3.72.
This is his second season playing in LIDOM with Toros del Este. He also played for Leones del Escogido and Estrellas Orientales.
Montilla, 29, struck out seven batters in just 2.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen this season. His latest outing saw him strike out the side in an inning of work against Gigantes del Cibao in a 6-1 win on October 19. He pitched in the Arizona Diamondbacks farm system with their Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces, in 2024. He was released by the Diamondbacks in June.
He has pitched six seasons with Toros del Este and has a record of 231.2 innings, 252 strikeouts, and an ERA of 3.42.
Toros del Este lost their last game 7-3 to Estrellas Orientales on October 20 at Estadio Francisco A. Micheli in La Romana.
Leones del Escogido- Leones del Escogido are 4-0 and are at the top of the Lidom Standings.
Right-hander Victor Santos threw five scoreless innings with five strikeouts in his debut for Leones del Escogido this season against Tigres del Licey on October 20. Santos, 24, pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals Triple-A affiliate, the Memphis Redbirds, this past season. He was signed as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2017 by the Philadelphia Phillies.
He has played in LIDOM with Leones del Escogido for four seasons, and his stats are 71.2 innings, 64 strikeouts, and an ERA of 2.89.
Left fielder Sander Pimental tied Lawlar with the league lead in home runs with his second against Tigres del Licey on October 20. Pimental signed a MiLB deal with the Athletics in 2012 out of the Dominican Republic and made it as high as their High-A affiliate, the Stockton Ports. The left-hander is 30 years old and is in his second season with Leones del Escogido. He also played seven seasons for Esrellas Oreientales.
His career numbers in LIDOM are 17 home runs, 55 RBI, and a slash line of .269/.402/.480 in 331 at-bats. He has two home runs and five RBI in seven at-bats this season.
Estrellas Orientales- Estrellas Orientales is 2-2 and is in third place.
Former Reds prospect Dominican shortstop/outfielder Jose Barrero made his season debut on October 20 against Toros del Este. He went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored. Barrero was the Reds sixth-ranked Prospect on MLB Pipeline.com in 2021. He signed with the Reds out of Cuba as an international free agent in 2017. Barrero played for Team Cuba in the 2015 U-18 Baseball World Cup and in the Cuban National Series for the Industrials.
Barrero, 26, made his MLB debut with the Reds in 2020. Barrero played parts of four MLB seasons with the Reds from 2020-2023. He has four home runs and nine stolen bases in 415 MLB at-bats. The Texas Rangers claimed him off waivers before the 2024 season. He played for their Triple-A affiliate, the Round Rock Express.
This is his second season with Estrellas Orientales, and he made his LIDOM debut with Leones del Escogido in 2021. He has four home runs, 14 RBI, and eight stolen bases with Estrellas Orientales.
Catcher Carlos Martinez had two hits and three RBI for Estrellas Oreintales in their 7-3 win against Toros Del Este on October 20. Martinez signed out of Colombia as an MiLB free agent in 2012 with the Atlanta Braves. Martinez, 29, played in the Braves farm system for eight seasons, making it as high as their Triple-A affiliate, the Gwinnett Stripers. His career MiLB numbers are six home runs and 103 RBI in 1,091 at-bats.
This is his first season in LIDOM, and he also played in the LMB and Liga Profesional de Béisbol in Colombia.
Gigantes del Cibao- Gigantes del Cibao are 2-3 and are in fifth place in the standings, with the top four teams making the LIDOM playoffs.
Righty Antonio Santos threw four scoreless innings in a 6-0 win for Gigantes del Cibao against Àguilas Cibeañas on October 20. Santos, 28, signed as an international free agent with the Colorado Rockies in 2015 out of the Dominican Republic. He made his MLB debut with them in 2020 and pitched seven games in 2021 with ten strikeouts in 11 innings.
Santos is currently with the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate, the Tennessee Smokies. He threw 70 innings for them last season, with 80 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.99.
This is his fourth season in LIDOM and second with Gigantes del Cibao. He made his LIDOM debut with Tigres del Licey in 2021. His LIDOM career numbers are 48.2 innings, 48 strikeouts, and an ERA of 2.22.
Camilo Doval recorded his first save for Gigantes del Cibao on October 17 in a 4-2 win against Tigres del Licey with a scoreless ninth and a strikeout. The right-handed Doval, 27, has pitched two scoreless innings with two strikeouts this season. The Dominican Doval is a reliever for the San Francisco Giants and was an All-Star with them in 2023. Doval tied the National League lead with 39 saves in 2023. He struck out 87 batters in 67.2 innings, with an ERA of 2.93 in 2023.
His MLB career numbers are 221.1 innings, 282 strikeouts, 92 saves, and a 3.33 ERA.
Doval signed as an international free agent with the Giants in 2015 out of the Dominican Republic. Doval made his MLB debut in 2021 and has thrown at 104.5 MPH.
Standings-
Leones del Escogido 4-0
Toros del Este 3-2
Estrellas Orientales 2-2
Tigres del Licey 2-3
Gigantes del Cibao 2-3
Àguilas Cibaeñas 1-4
Schedule: Tuesday, October 22
Leones del Escogido 4-0 vs Gigantes del Cibao 2-3 at 7:00 p.m. EST at Estadio Julián Javier in San Francisco de Macorís.
Àguilas Cibaeñas 1-4 vs Estrellas Orientales 2-2 at 7:30 p.m. EST at Estadio Tetelo Vargas in San Pedro de Macorís.
Toros del Este 3-2 vs Tigres del Licey 2-3 at 7:30 p.m. EST at Estadio Quisqueya.
Photo Credit: Baltimore Orioles pitcher Diogenes Almengo (92) delivers a pitch during the MLB Spring Training game between the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees on March 01, 2019 at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, FL. (Photo by /Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
