The 2024-25 LIDOM champion, Leones del Escogido announced their official roster for the 2025 Caribbean Series on January 29.
¡NOS VEMOS EN MEXICALI! ???????? pic.twitter.com/WM8lkPUYV9
— ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????? (@EscogidoBBClub) January 30, 2025
The Leones del Escogido, under manager Albert Pujols won 6-5 over their in-city rival, Tigres del Licey in Game Seven of the 2024-25 LIDOM Championship Series at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, claiming their 17th title, and earning a berth to the 2025 Caribbean Series.
The Leones del Escogido will face the 2024-25 Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional champion, Cardenales de Lara, on Friday, January 31 in the opening game of the 2025 Caribbean Series at El Nido de los Águilas in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico at 4:30 p.m. EST.
Caminero was named the 2024-25 LIDOM Championship Series MVP, after hitting an impressive .346/.471/.615 in 26 at-bats, scoring four runs, drilling nine hits, two doubles, one triple, one home run, six RBI, six walks, and five strikeouts.
The Tampa Bay Rays did not permit Caminero to participate in the 2025 Caribbean Series, despite his dominant performance and electrifying 454-foot home run off the scoreboard at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal that helped propel the organization to reach the tournament for the 11th time.
The players to watch for Leones del Escogido at the 2025 Caribbean Series include infielders Yamaico Navarro, Sócrates Brito, Junior Lake, Héctor Rodríguez, Cristhian Adames, and Kelvin Gutiérrez.
Navarro played in all seven games of the championship series, batting .217/.310/.304 over 23 at-bats. He recorded five hits, two doubles, three RBI, three walks, and four strikeouts.
Brito helped Leones del Escogido clinch their 20th league title and a berth into the 2025 Caribbean Series with his diving catch for the final out to beat the Tigres del Licey 6-5 in Game Seven of the 2024-25 LIDOM championship series.
What a game.
What a series.
What a finish.Leones del Escogido defeat Tigres del Licey in Game 7 of the LIDOM championship ???? pic.twitter.com/IegG1lmPS1
— MLB (@MLB) January 28, 2025
Brito played in all seven games of the championship series, hitting .273/.306/.485 over 33 at-bats. He tallied nine hits, one double, two home runs, five RBI, two walks, and four strikeouts.
Gutiérrez played for the Gigantes del Cibao in the 2024-25 LIDOM regular season and will have a big impact for Leones del Escogido at the 2025 Caribbean Series. Over 38 games, he slashed .296/.385/.393 in 135 at-bats, collecting 40 hits, seven doubles, two home runs, 20 RBI, 19 walks, and 28 strikeouts.
Adames will be a key reinforcement for Leones del Escogido after a strong performance in the best-of-seven championship series with Tigres del Licey. He played in five games, hitting .267/.267/.267 over 15 at-bats with four hits and four strikeouts.
Rodríguez appeared in four games in the championship series, batting .286/.333/.357 over 14 at-bats. He recorded four hits, one double, two RBI, one walk, and two strikeouts.
Lake will look to carry his championship series success into the 2025 Caribbean Series. Over seven games, he hit .346/.471/.615 in 26 at-bats, collecting nine hits, two doubles, one triple, one home run, six RBI, six walks, and five strikeouts.
Seventeen-year Major League Baseball veteran Robinson Canó rounds out the 2025 Caribbean Series roster for the Leones del Escogido’s offense.
In the coming weeks, Canó will play for the Arabia Wolves in Baseball United’s United Arab Series against the Mid East Falcons from February 14-16 at BU Ballpark in The Sevens, Dubai. He will then return to Liga Mexicana de Béisbol for the 2025 season, marking his second year with the defending champion Diablos Rojos del México.
LIDOM announced their 2024-25 best-of-seven championship series with: Leones del Escogido pitcher Silvino Bracho, Leones de Escogido catcher Pedro Severino, Leones del Escogido first baseman Yamaico Navarro, Leones del Escogido second baseman Jean Segura, Leones del Escogido third baseman Junior Caminero, Tigres del Licey shortstop Sergio Alcantara, Leones del Escogido left fielder Socrates Brito, Tigres del Licey center fielder Johan Rojas, Tigres del Licey right fielder Emilio Bonifacio, Leones del Escogido relief pitcher Rafael Montero, and Tigres del Licey designated hitter Harold Ramirez.
Ellos son nuestro #LineUpAllStar de la #SerieFinalLIDOM ⚾️????#LIDOM pic.twitter.com/5zxPE22c09
— LIDOM (@LIDOMRD) January 28, 2025
Kevin Cabral, President of Baseball Operations for Águilas Cibaeñas, reported on January 28 that Tigres del Licey designated hitter Harold Ramírez tied the LIDOM best-of-seven championship series record for hits with 14, a mark previously set by Ronald Guzmán of Gigantes del Cibao in 2020-21, Luis Polonia of Águilas Cibaeñas in 1995-96, and Willie Kirkland of Leones del Escogido in 1955-56.
Harold Ramírez entra en los libros de récords de las Series Finales de LIDOM, con los 14 hits que pegó en una serie al mejor de siete. Luis Polonia pegó sus 14 imparables en una final que terminó en cinco partidos en 1996. Para tus jugadas, @juancitosport, una banca para fans. pic.twitter.com/rnwGtXSBDJ
— Kevin Cabral (@kevcabral) January 29, 2025
The Leones del Escogido snuck into the LIDOM Round Robin, finishing the 2024-25 regular season in fourth place with a 24-25 record. The Estrellas Orientales were the No. 1 seed under manager Fernando Tatís Sr., finishing at 30-20. Águilas Cibaeñas, led by Yadier Molina, placed second at 27-22, while Tigres del Licey ended third, also at 27-22.
Gigantes del Cibao, managed by Wellington Cepeda, did not qualify for the league’s Round Robin, finishing fifth at 22-27. The Toros del Este, under Carlos Febles, ended last at 17-32.
In the LIDOM Round Robin, Tigres del Licey secured first place with an 11-4 record, followed by Leones del Escogido at 10-5. The Estrellas Orientales struggled, finishing 5-10, while Águilas Cibaeñas placed last at 4-11.
Leones del Escogido have previously won LIDOM championships in 1955-56, 1956-57, 1957-58, 1959-60, 1960-61, 1968-69, 1980-81, 1981-82, 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90, 1991-92, 2009-10, 2011-12, 2012-13, and 2015-16.
They have represented the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean Series in 1981, 1982, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2016. In their last Caribbean Series appearance in 2016, they finished 0-4, ending in last place at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal.
The last time Leones del Escogido played in the Caribbean Series in Mexico was 1989, when they went 1-5 and finished last under manager Phil Regan at Estadio Teodoro Mariscal in Mazatlán.
The most recent Dominican team to win a Caribbean Series championship in Mexico was the 2020-21 LIDOM champion Águilas Cibaeñas, who defeated the 2020-21 LBPRC champion Criollos de Caguas 4-1 in the final at Estadio Teodoro Mariscal, going 7-0 in the tournament.