Diablos Rojos del Mexico 11, Pericos de Puebla 5 - Pitching on three days of rest, Trevor Bauer allowed three runs on five hits over seven innings of work, walking three and striking out seven as the Diablos won Game 5 and sent the series back to Mexico City.
It was a rebound from Bauer's start in Game 2, where Bauer allowed four runs in 6 1/3 innings and suffered his second career playoff loss in the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol, the second of three consecutive Diablos' losses to open the series against Puebla.
After Bauer left the game, Tomohiro Anraku threw the final two innings, allowing two runs on three hits.
"The credit really goes to the offense today," Bauer told the media after the game. "They came out and put up runs early, and that made it really easy for me to pitch."
The Diablos' offense, meanwhile, cruised with their ace on the mound, scoring three runs in the first behind a solo homer from Franklin Barreto, an RBI double by Jon Singleton, and a single by Julian Ornelas that scored Singleton.
Adding five more in the third, the Diablos put the game out of reach early. Orlando Arcia cracked a two-run double, Ramon Flores drove in Arcia with a double, and then Francisco Mejia hit a two-run homer to make it an 8-3 game.
Barreto drove in a run in the seventh grounding out to short with runners at the corners and another with a single in the ninth, and Singleton had his second RBI double of the game in the eighth.
The series returns to Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu for Game 6 on Wednesday evening at 9 p.m. EDT, with Ricardo Pinto starting for the Diablos against Antonio Santos for the Pericos.
Olmecas de Tabasco 5, Guerreros de Oaxaca 4 - Luis Miranda allowed three runs, two of them earned over eight innings, but it wasn't enough for Oaxaca to close out the series against Tabasco.
The Olmecas got a pair off Miranda in the eighth when Oscar Gonzalez hit a two-run homer, then added two more in the top of the ninth when Randy Romero hit a two-run double off reliever Garrett Alexander to give Tabasco a 5-2 lead.
Surviving a two-run rally in the bottom of the ninth, the Olmecas held on to bring the series back to Villahermosa for Game 6.
Mel Rojas Jr.'s two-run double kept the Guerreros in the game late, but they were unable to complete the comeback.
Game 6 is scheduled for Wednesday night, with Radhames Liz starting for Oaxaca against Ronnie Williams for Tabasco.