Both the Charros de Jalisco and the Diablos Rojos del Mexico will use a four-man starting rotation in the 2025 Serie del Rey, which begins Wednesday night at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in Mexico City.
Righty Luis Payan will take the mound for game one for Jalisco, which advanced to the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol’s championship series by eliminating the Zona Norte’s regular season champion, the Sultanes de Monterrey, in the Serie Campeonato. Payan has thrown 23 1/3 innings over five starts in the postseason, allowing eight runs on 17 hits with 26 strikeouts and nine walks with a 0.890 WHIP. He’ll face Venezuelan right Ricardo Pinto for the Diablos, who has a 2.25 ERA in 20 innings of work across four starts, with 23 strikeouts and eight walks.
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When Zac Grotz starts game two for Jalisco, it’ll be his seventh start of the playoffs, during which he’s thrown a league-leading 32 innings with a 3.38 ERA, 25 strikeouts, and four walks. He’ll face the Reds’ Justin Courtney, who has gone 11 1/3 innings in three starts during the postseason, allowing seven runs on 15 hits with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.680 WHIP.
When the series goes to Guadalajara for game three Saturday night, Brooks Hall will take the mound at Estadio Panamericano for the Diablos. Hall, a well-traveled 35-year-old righty, has thrown 23 1/3 innings over five playoff starts, allowing 15 runs on 30 hits with 10 walks, eight strikeouts, and a 5.79 ERA. He’ll face Charros veteran righty Luis Ivan Rodriguez, who has a 4.43 ERA in 20 1/3 innings over five starts.
Game four will pit the Diablos’ Efrain Contreras against the Charros’ Eduardo Vera on Sunday night. Contreras, a 25-year-old righty, has thrown 6 1/3 innings in the postseason in one start and one relief appearance with a 2.70 ERA, a 1.200 WHIP, six strikeouts and four walks. Contreras made only one start during the regular season, making the remainder of his 17 appearances for the Reds out of the bullpen. He’ll face Eduardo Vera for the Charros, who’s thrown 11 2/3 innings across two starts with a 5.40 ERA.
Facing The Diablos Doesn’t Make Benji Gil Sweat – With the chance to win his second league championship with the Charros de Jalisco organization in less than a year, Benji Gil’s team will have to go through the best team in the LMB.
But the skipper who lead Guadalajara’s winter league team to the Liga ARCO Mexicana de Beisbol title last January and the Caribbean Series championship game in February said he’s not worried.
“I’m not interested in the opponent. My goal, and that of the team, is to win the championship, not against a certain team, in a certain stadium, or in a certain city… That’s insignificant. Maybe it will matter in time; history will tell the tale. Right now, I honestly don’t care who I’m playing against or in what stadium. What I care about is winning four games,” Benji Gil told Mexican baseball media outlet Septima Entrada today.
Diablos’ Captain Juan Carlos Gamboa Says Reds Are Ready – While the Charros have a chance to hold both of the championship in each of Mexico’s top baseball leagues simultaneously, the Diablos have the chance to be the first team to win back-to-back LMB titles since the Saraperos de Saltillo did so in 2009 and 2010.
“We’re where we wanted to be and where we deserve to be after all the hard work and sacrifice we’ve made throughout this season,” said Diablos Rojos captain Juan Carlos Gamboa in a team release. “We’ve been working since March 1 at the [Alfredo Harp Helu Baseball] Academy in Oaxaca with this goal in mind, and this is what we were talking about, the objectives and goals we had, and we’ve been meeting them, but the most important one is still missing.”
Where to Watch – All LMB games can be streamed live on MLB.tv for a fee.
2025 Serie del Rey Schedule
All times Eastern Daylight Time
* – If necessary
September 10
9 p.m. – Charros de Jalisco at Diablos Rojos del Mexico – Game 1
September 11
9 p.m. – Charros de Jalisco at Diablos Rojos del Mexico – Game 2
September 13
8 p.m. – Diablos Rojos del Mexico at Charros de Jalisco – Game 3
September 14
7 p.m. – Diablos Rojos del Mexico at Charros de Jalisco – Game 4
September 15
9:30 p.m. – Diablos Rojos del Mexico at Charros de Jalisco – Game 5*
September 17
9 p.m. – Charros de Jalisco at Diablos Rojos del Mexico – Game 6*
September 18
9 p.m. – Charros de Jalisco at Diablos Rojos del Mexico – Game 7*
Photo: Zac Grotz will start game two of the Serie del Rey for the Charros de Jalisco. (Courtesy of the Charros de Jalisco)
