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Central American And Caribbean Games 2026 Day 1 Roundup: José Rivera’s Walk-Off Single Gives Puerto Rico Extra-Inning Victory

Michael Ryan DeLucaAug 1, 20264 MIN READ
Central American And Caribbean Games 2026 Day 1 Roundup: José Rivera’s Walk-Off Single Gives Puerto Rico Extra-Inning Victory

The Central American and Caribbean Games are underway in Santo Domingo, and the winner will advance to the Pan Am Games in Peru. Here’s a roundup of the first set of games.

Puerto Rico (1-0) 4, Dominican Republic (0-1) 3  – Puerto Rico secured its first win of the tournament, outlasting the Dominican Republic with an extra-inning victory in a thrilling Group B matchup.

In the bottom of the first, Rubén José Castro Ortiz grounded out to bring home Edison William Mora Rodríguez. Anthony García followed with a solo home run to deep center field, extending Puerto Rico’s advantage.

José “Pocholo” Rivera delivered the game-winning moment in extra innings, driving in the winning run with a walk-off RBI single.

José “Pocholo” Rivera delivered the walk-off win for Puerto Rico, lining his RBI single to right field off reliever Miguel Castro in the eighth inning with the bases loaded and no outs to score Rubén Castro, while finishing the game 3-for-2 at the plate.

The Dominican Republic battled back in the top of the seventh inning when Deivi Muñoz recorded an RBI single to shortstop, scoring Juan Manuel Guerrero to tie the game.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Kerby Jordan Camacho drew a bases-loaded walk, allowing Edison William Mora Rodríguez to score.

Nicaragua (1-0) 3, Colombia (0-1) 1 – Nicaragua opened its 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games campaign with a strong all-around performance, defeating Colombia on Friday afternoon at Quisqueya Juan Marichal Stadium in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Emanuel Trujillo provided the game’s biggest swing with a two-run home run, while Omar Mendoza added an RBI double in the fourth inning to extend Nicaragua’s lead to 3-0.

Left-hander Danilo Bermúdez set the tone on the mound for Nicaragua, pitching five innings of one-run ball while striking out eight batters.

Luis Montealto reached base twice and scored a run, while Cheslor Cuthbert also finished with a hit and a run scored.

Colombia’s top highlight was veteran shortstop Ivan Marin making a diving stop in the sixth inning to prevent further Nicaraguan runs and keep Colombia in the game.

After falling behind 3-0, Colombia scored its only run in the game off starter Danilo Bermúdez but could not pull any closer.

Cuba (1-0) 4, Curaçao (0-1) 1 – On Friday morning, Cuba jumped out to an early 4-0 lead, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first inning before adding another run in the second.

Yoel Yanqui, Yulieski Remón, Tailón Sánchez and Luis Mateo fueled Cuba’s offensive attack, combining timely at-bats to help build the early lead.

In the bottom of the first, Yoel Yanqui delivered an RBI single through the right side, bringing Yoelkis Guibert home while advancing Luis Vicente Mateo to third base.

Yanqui led the offense by going 2-for-2 with 2 RBIs, 1 run scored, and 1 walk to power the team’s victory.

Curaçao plated a run in the top of the second inning, as Dudley Leonora scored after reaching base with a 2-for-3 performance at the plate.

Raysheandall Michel provided the RBI single to bring Leonora home, but Cuba’s pitching staff shut down Curaçao’s offense for the remainder of the game.

Panama (1-0) 4, Mexico (0-1) 2 – Panama came out swinging on Friday, scoring early and fending off Mexico’s late rally to capture an opening-day victory.

Panama took control from the opening innings, building a 4-0 lead after Carlos Alfredo Mosquera launched a solo home run to deep right field in the second inning.

Luis Castillo added an RBI single in the third inning, driving in Héctor Arturo Rayo, before Erasmo Joel Caballero followed with a sacrifice fly to bring home Edgard Muñoz and extend Panama’s advantage.

Jhonny Santos and Héctor Rayo each recorded two hits to help lead Panama’s 10-hit offensive attack, with Santos also contributing an RBI in the victory.

In the top of the fifth, Carlos Jesús Báez delivered a two-run single to left field, driving in Joseph Andriy Sequera Ibarra and Jesús Guadalupe Villalobos while advancing Johan Jaziel López Báez to second base.

Mexico responded with two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning but struggled to generate additional offense against Panama’s pitching staff.

Photo Courtesy of World Baseball and Softball Confederation

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