After four weeks of play in the Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional, the Tigres de Aragua remain in first place. They sit at 14-7 with a 2½-game lead.
On the opposite end are the Navegantes del Magallanes, who struggled once again this past week and sit alone in last place at 6-14. They have the second-worst run differential in the LVBP at minus-18 and have scored 16 fewer runs than the next lowest team.
After a league-worst offensive start, manager Eduardo Pérez was fired following a 5-11 record, and the team hired Yadier Molina to guide them. After Pérez’s firing, Magallanes dropped its next three games before finally breaking through in Sunday’s finale against the Leones del Caracas with an 11-4 win and a season-high 18 hits.
In an effort to boost the struggling offense, Magallanes officially signed Yasiel Puig, who will make his 2025-26 LVBP season debut today against his former team, the Tiburones de La Guaira. Puig spent this past season in Korea with Kiwoom, but after struggling with injuries and underperforming, he was released after 40 games. He hit .212/.285/.340 with just eight extra-base hits.
Magallanes will need him to resemble the player he was two years ago, when he posted a 1.364 OPS in 26 LVBP games, rather than the version seen last winter in Venezuela or this past season in Korea.
Zac Grotz, a former MLB pitcher who played in Mexico in 2025, has been the best starter in the LVBP for Tiburones and an early front-runner for Pitcher of the Year. Only four starters in the league have an ERA below 3.00, and Grotz is the only one below 2.00 at 1.91. He also leads the LVBP in strikeouts with 32.
On Thursday, he turned in another brilliant outing against the Tigres de Aragua, throwing seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts and allowing just three hits. In a hitter-friendly league, he’s been the standout on the mound.
LVBP Standings
1. Tigres de Aragua – 14-7
2. Leones del Caracas – 11-9
3. Águilas del Zulia – 11-9
4. Bravos de Margarita – 11-10
5. Caribes de Anzoátegui – 10-10
6. Tiburones de La Guaira – 10-11
7. Cardenales de Lara – 9-12
8. Navegantes del Magallanes – 6-14
