When the Diablos Rojos del Mexico hit the field at “el Diamante del Fuego” — the diamond of fire, as Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu has been nicknamed — for game one of the 2025 Serie del Rey, they’ll be a heavy favorite, and for good reason.
They’re the defending champions.
They ran away with the Zona Sur title in the regular season, going 63-25.
At the plate, Lorenzo Bundy’s club has five starters getting on base at better than a .400 clip, and five batting over .300 in the postseason, with Robinson Cano leading all remaining players with a .400 average, having gone 22-for-55 in the postseason. They hit, they run, they bunt, they draw walks, and they manufacture runs efficiently, outscoring their opponents by more than a two-to-one margin (103-48) despite hitting just 11 homers in 14 games during the postseason.
And while they may not have Trevor Bauer, the pitcher-in-exile who put together one of the best seasons in Liga Mexicana de Beisbol history in 2024 and then put the team on his back in game seven of last year’s Serie Campeonato against Oaxaca to get them to the Serie del Rey, their pitching is just as strong. Through 126 1/3 playoff innings, the Diablos have allowed just 48 runs, 42 of them earned, for a team ERA of 2.96 — a full point better than the Charros, who are second with a 4.04 mark — as they’ved mowed down the Leones de Yucatan, Pericos de Puebla, and Piratas de Campeche in the playoffs, and have 100 strikeouts against just 48 walks.
In the other dugout, Benji Gil’s Charros, who finished sixth in the Zona Norte during the regular season with a 46-46 record, run hot and cold. When their bats are hot, they win, and when they’re not, well… they don’t. The Charros live and die by the RBI double and the home run, and have more extra base hits, 57, than the Diablos, who have 50, a play a similar offensive game to the Piratas de Campeche, the Diablos’ opponent in the Zona Sur Serie Campeonato.
The Piratas, who lead the playoffs with 30 homers, have been the only team to pin losses on the Diablos in these playoffs, winning when they were able to get both pitching and clutch hitting. To take game one of the Serie Campeonato, they stifled the Diablos at the plate in the late innings, with five relievers combining to allow just five baserunners over the final five innings in a 4-2 in, and in game three, they limited the Diablos to just eight baserunners and got a three-run homer in the bottom of the 10th.
For the Charros to win the Serie del Rey in their first appearance in 54 years, they’ll need to get good pitching and get runs off the stingiest pitching staff in the LMB in the Diablos, early and often.
The 2025 Serie del Rey At a Glance
Charros de Jalisco (46-46 Regular Season, Sixth Place in Zona Norte)
Key Players – No single player sparks the Charros offense, but if you had to pick one, Kyle Garlick (20 RBI, 6 2B, 5 HR) is a good choice. Designated hitter Willie Calhoun (.377/.458/.667, 6 HR, 17 RBI) and Josh Fuentes (.328, 17 RBI, 5 2B) are key to the offense, with Mateo Gil (.324, 4 HR, 14 RBI) providing base hits and occasional power.
Key Pitchers – Expect to see starters Zac Grotz (six appearances, 32 innings, 3.38 ERA) and Luis Payan (five appearances, 29 1/3 innings, 2.45 ERA) throw twice should the series go seven games. Closer Trevor Clifton has made 11 appearances, earning seven saves in nine opportunities, throwing 12 2/3 innings.
Outlook – The Charros are a team that have overachieved, knocking off the Zona Norte’s regular season champion, the Sultanes de Monterrey, in two series during the playoffs this year. They’ll get runs the way they always do, with clutch hitting and homers, but they will also be facing their toughest test of the year. Beyond Grotz, Payan, Luis Ivan Rodriguez, reliever Miguel Aguilar, and Clifton, the Charros’ pitching staff lacks depth, with the bullpen holding a 4.62 ERA. Whether they can stun the Zona Sur’s regular season champion will depend almost completely on whether their pitching — and especially their bullpen — can meet the moment.
Diablos Rojos del Mexico (63-25 Regular Season, First Place in Zona Sur)
Key Players – Robinson Cano is batting .400 and has 18 RBIs in the playoffs, and Julian Ornelas (.353, 10 RBI, 3 HR) and Carlos Perez (.351, 11 RBIs, seven doubles) are all tough outs. Carlos Sepulveda and Allen Cordoba are the Diablos’ other .300 hitters, but don’t discount contributions from the bottom of the lineup. Rio Ruiz, the Reds’ free-swinging third baseman, may lead the team in strikeouts (14), but he also has three homers and nine RBIs. At the opposite corner of the infield, former Seattle Mariner Jose Marmolejos has 11 RBIs and a .410 on-base percentage.
Key Pitchers – Venezuelan starter Ricardo Pinto has been a workhorse for Lorenzo Bundy’s club, throwing 20 innings in four starts with a 2.25 ERA with 23 strikeouts and just eight walks. Former Milwaukee Brewers reliever J.C. Mejia has made 13 appearances and thrown 13 1/3 innings with a 0.68 ERA, and along with former New York Met Jimmy Yacabonis (12 appearances, 11 2/3 innings, 1.54 ERA) and former Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagle Tomohiro Anraku (11 appearances, 12 1/3 innings, 0.73 ERA, 12 strikeouts, no walks), they’ve locked down opposing hitters in the late innings.
Outlook – While perhaps the Diablos aren’t as intimidating as they were when they trotted out Trevor Bauer every fourth day in the 2024 LMB playoffs, they are no less potent. The offense will continue to produce runs, and if the bullpen, led by Mejia, Yacabonis, and Anraku, continues its dominance in the late innings, the Diablos will hoist the Zaachila Cup for the second year in a row.
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: Willie Calhoun celebrates one of two homers he hit in game five of the Serie Campeonato. Calhoun has been a key for the Charros, who finished in sixth place with a 46-46 record but will play in the 2025 Serie del Rey. (Photo courtesy of the Charros de Jalisco)
