The Wide, Wide World of Baseball

[j.tom]

WWoB News 11.30-12.06.59

Top Performances by Day:

11.30.59


12.01.59


12.02.59


12.03.59


12.04.59


12.05.59


12.06.59







Major League 11.30 -- Three big names are off the free agent board and headed to ML teams:

2B Kjeld Lubbers 🇳🇱 to Milwaukee, 5 years/$175 million


OF Manny Pineda 🇻🇪🇨🇴 to Providence, 6 years/$177 million


1B Alex Martinez to Colorado 🇻🇪, 8 years/$159 million




Major League 11.30 -- Trade! The Baltimore Barons send 2058 Asia Cup Best Pitcher Yin-ti Huang 🇲🇳 to the Buffalo Bisons in exchange for RHP prospect Jesse Shoemaker 🇺🇸.





WWoB 12.01 -- This week's WWoB player of the week (and inaugural POTW) is OF Oscar Lluberes 🇵🇪 of the Lima Explorers (LL), who made the LL look less like the Latin League, and more like the Little League.





Major League 12.01 -- LHP Justin Hanson 🇺🇸 signs with the Milwaukee Brewers, 4 years, $130 million.




Major League 12.04 -- San Antonio Bullets sign 3-time Liga Sudamericana (LL) MVP Ricky de Leon 🇵🇪 for 2 years, $17.4 million.




Liga Brasil 12.06 -- Rio Carnavais manager Hideyoshi Akamine 🇧🇷 has instituted 'casual fridays.' The Carnavais are 2-1 this season on Fridays and 8-14 on other days.




Standings (As of 12.06)

Latin League


Liga Brasil


Liga Gran Colombia


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

Going to add an extra day to this one because I want to begin starting these on Mondays.

WWoB News 12.07-12.14.59



Top Performances by Day

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WWoB Player of the Week (12.01-12.07)
3B Asmerom Uuka 🇿🇦 -- Bloemfontein Rose




Worldwide News

Latin League 12.08 -- The LL has suspended Montevideo 1B Salif Riitho 🇬🇲 and Asuncion RHP Alex Leonides 🇵🇾 for fighting. In the bottom of the 9th, with Montevideo rallying, Leonides hits Riitho with a pitch, and Riitho sees red.

Tale of the Tape:


I can't imagine this was a very long fight. Riitho, with five inches and 30 pounds on Leonides, easily triumphs.





Major League 12.09 -- Baltimore continues to wheel and deal, trading RHP Jean-Marc Bruneau 🇫🇷 and $2.2 million to the Mexico City Aztecs in exchange for 95th ranked prospect 1B Cody Tyson 🇺🇸, plus a 2nd round pick.

---





Latin League 12.09 -- Another big fight. Panama Niveladores 2B Angelo Reyes 🇻🇪 and Guadalajara Mariachis RHP Ignado Hernandez 🇲🇽 have been suspended after Hernandez, already down 3 in the first, decides to cut his own night short by plunking Reyes.

Tale of the Tape:


Pretty fair fight here. Hernandez outlasts Reyes with his superior stamina and beats him.






Liga Brasil 12.10 -- The Sao Paulo Industriais lose LHP Bartholomeu Burgeira 🇧🇷 for the season to a torn meniscus, in the midst of his breakout year.




Liga Brasil 12.10 -- Last year's home run leader Takeshi Lehrfel 🇧🇷🇯🇵 is approaching 'record watch' status with homer no. 15 in game 26. December 10 marks the halfway point of the BZL season, so Lehrfel is currently on pace to tie the record.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga 12.12 -- Gqeberha's Peter Mwinyimadi 🇿🇦 is a pretty good pitcher, but he may want to reconsider his approach next time he sees Dida Kalamka 🇿🇦.






Latin League 12.13 -- Lima RHP Jon Garcia 🇵🇪 will miss the rest of this season, and all of next, after tearing his UCL.




Latin League 12.13 -- Guadalajara 3B Danny Morales 🇨🇴 hits his first three home runs of the year, and contributes to all 7 Mariachis runs, but it isn't enough to beat his former team.





WWoB 12.13 -- Top prospects lists in Liga Gran Colombia and Liga Brasil have been updated:

In Liga Gran Colombia, SS Miguel Isaza 🇨🇴 leads the way with 3B Tony Medina 🇪🇨 ranked no.2. LHP Vinnie Anderson 🇦🇺 is the top-ranked pitcher (no. 7).


And in Liga Brasil, Sao Paulo has both the top batter and pitcher prospects in 3B Ze Sarmiento 🇧🇷 (no. 1) and RHP Fytor Caldas 🇧🇷🇯🇵(no.7). SS Adityagarbha Puri 🇮🇳 is ranked 2nd.




Standings (As of 12.14):

Latin League


Liga Brasil


Liga Gran Colombia


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

WWoB News 12.15 - 12.21.59

Top Performances by Day

12.15



12.16



12.17



12.18



12.19



12.20



12.21




WWoB Player of the Week (12.08-12.14)
RF Alex Hinojoza 🇲🇽 -- Panama Niveladores (LL)





Worldwide News:


12.15
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Major League

- Milwaukee signs OF Ronnie Brooks 🇺🇸 (3y, $26.5m), who was once considered the next big thing at just 16 years old.



- Former T-IV MVP C David Nanez 🇭🇳 signs with the Boise Cutthroats, 3 years, $48.6 million.




12.16
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No big news today.



12.17
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Major League

- San Antonio signs 6x ML Gold Glove winner Befikadu Osogo 🇿🇦 (3y/18m).




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

- Reigning SAL MVP Asmerom Uuka 🇿🇦 is one-upping himself this year. His latest feat: Tying the Suid-Afrikaanse Liga record for longest hitting streak, at 20.




12.18
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Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

- Asmerom Uuka's 🇿🇦 hit streak comes to an end as Bloemfontein falls to Pretoria, 3-1.





12.19
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Major League

- The San Antonio Bullets sign OF Marty Garcia 🇲🇽, 8 years, $174.4 million.




Latin League

- Kingston RHP Patricio Andrade 🇧🇷 throws 7 no-hit innings as a follower, facing the minimum, as the Crowns beat the San Juan Senadores, 1-0.





12.20
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Antarctic Research League

- McMurdo Station defeats Quinling Station for the ARL championship.




12.21
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Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

- The SAL top prospects list has been updated. The top two hitters are Pretoria 2B Luis Romo 🇩🇴, and Kimberley OF Yellel Mandara 🇿🇦. The top pitcher is RHP Masaharu Tsukada 🇯🇵, ranked 7th.




Standings As of 12.21:

Latin League


Liga Brasil


Liga Gran Colombia


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

WWoB News 12.22 - 12.28.59

Top Performances by Day

12.22


12.23


12.24


12.25


12.26


12.27


12.28




WWoB Player of the Week (12.15 - 12.21)

1B Juan Garza 🇦🇷 -- Guatemala Quetzals (LL)





Worldwide News

12.22

WWoB -- The latest power rankings in Liga Gran Colombia, Liga Brasil, and the Suid-Afrikaanse Liga have been released:





12.23

No big news today.



12.24

SAL -- Polokwane loses RHP Argan Muombwa 🇿🇦 for at least 12 months to a ruptured UCL.





12.25

LL -- A Christmas day cage match in the Latin League! Cardinales and Angeles fans were treated to a great fight in this one between Barquisimeto 2B Mario Garcia 🇻🇪 and Asuncion RHP Sergio Encinas 🇨🇺. After a hilarious sequence in the bottom of the 4th inning, Barquisimeto hits a pair of grand slams before bringing in Encinas, their third pitcher of the inning. On his second pitch, Encinas beans Garcia and the benches clear.

Tale of the Tape:


What Garcia lacks in height, he makes up for in weight and speed. He outmaneuvers Encinas and delivers yet another win for Barquisimeto in an inning full of them.

The full inning in question:





LL -- Managua gets demolished by San Jose, 18-9, but LF Marco Garcia 🇨🇴 hits for the cycle for the moral victory.





12.26

No big news today.



12.27

Major League -- Boise Cutthroats sign RHP Guglielmo Cappelletti 🇻🇪, 3 years, $8 million.




12.28

SAL -- Bloemfontein RHP Roushdy Kinoro 🇿🇦 no-hits Polokwane, the first no-hitter in the Suid-Afrikaanse Liga in 5 years!





Standings (as of 12.28)

Latin League


Liga Brasil


Liga Gran Colombia


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

WWoB News 12.29.59 - 01.04.60



WWoB Player of the Week (12.22-12.28)

1B Dev Venkatasubramanian 🇮🇳 -- Montevideo Falcons (LL)






Top Performances by Day:

12.29


12.30


12.31


01.01


01.02


01.03


01.04




Worldwide News

12.29

WWoB -- Big News! Three more leagues will begin play next season in the Wide World of Baseball: Liga Patagonia (Chile, Argentina), Sovetskaya Liga (fmr. Soviet countries), and Thịy Līk (Thailand).





Thịy Līk -- About 5 minutes into the THL's existence, Udon Thani Lotas shortstop Son Phang 🇹🇭 accidentally cooks his hand instead of dinner.




12.30

SAL -- 10 games, 10 wins in the last 10 days for the Gqeberha Seemeeue, who are running away with the race for the #1 seed.


GCL -- Reigning Liga Gran Colombia Best Pitcher Miguel Aguilar 🇻🇪🇨🇴 is out for at least a year with a torn UCL. At 40 years old, this might be the last we see of him.


LL -- Reigning Wide World of Baseball Player of the Week Dev Venkatasubramanian 🇮🇳 will not repeat, he's been suspended five games by the Latin League along with Quito pitcher Jean van Breda NED after inciting a bench clearing brawl.




12.31

CPL -- Guangzhou trades former Chinese Pro League, Africa League Best Pitcher Shi-fa Xue 🇨🇳 to the Tianjin Lions for RHP prospect Ming Ru 🇨🇳.



BZL -- Rio RHP Ryoichi Matsumoto 🇧🇷🇯🇵 is out for the season with an elbow strain.



LL -- A pair of hat tricks on New Years Eve in the Latin League. Veracruz OF Freddy Yanez 🇨🇺 gets three homers in a 15-9 win over Managua, but the best performance of the night goes to Omar Rodriguez 🇨🇴, whose third homer sent the fans home happy.




01.01

WWoB -- December Player of the Month: Kimberley (SAL) RHP Getachew Muthomi 🇿🇦.






EuroLeague -- After a 15-year run in the U.S. that included a T-III Best Pitcher award, RHP Gillespie Deane 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 is heading home, signing with the London Monarchs.




DEL -- Deutschliga #98 ranked prospect Kazuo Kurihara 🇯🇵 is out for 2 weeks after slipping on a wet floor and straining his gluteus.





01.02

LL -- No-hitter! Kingston Crowns RHP Gustavo Herrera 🇻🇪 throws the 15th no-hitter in Latin League history, and the first of the 2059-60 season.





GCL -- Reigning Liga Gran Colombia home run champion Jose Ortiz 🇨🇴 is out for the season with a torn labrum.




01.03

No big news today.



01.04

T-III Continental League -- Memphis Cavalry trade prospects RHP Hsui-chen Li 🇹🇼 and RHP Yu-zhang Mak 🇨🇳 to the Henderson Panthers for 2052 T-IV Best Pitcher Justin Cates 🇺🇸.





SAL -- Hard hitting journalism here.




Standings (As of 01.05)

Latin League



Liga Brasil



Liga Gran Colombia



Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

WWoB News 01.05.60 - 01.11.60




Top Performances by Day

01.05


01.06


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01.09


01.10


01.11




WWoB Hall of Fame Class of 2060



The votes are in! Two players make up this year's World Wide of Baseball Hall of Fame class, from the UK League and India League.


OF Evan Bostock 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 played eight seasons in the UKL with the London Gents, winning the UK Series four times (2047-49, 2054). He was named UK Series MVP in 2054, and also won three UKL silver slugger awards and a gold glove at RF. Bostock currently holds the UK League record for most stolen bases in a season (2052, 51) and a career (296).



2B Devesita Gargeya 🇮🇳 joined the Wide World of Baseball late in his playing days, but made the most of it. He won four India Series titles (2047, '50, '51, '54) and three MVP awards (2048, '49, '51).







Worldwide News

01.05

WWoB -- The playoff race is coming down to the wire in Liga Brasil and Liga Gran Colombia, with just 11 games to go in each league's regular season. In both the BZL and GCL, 4 of 6 teams make the playoffs.

In Liga Brasil, only Salvador has distanced themselves from the pack, with 2nd through 5th place separated by one game.


The picture's a bit clearer in Liga Gran Colombia, where it would take an act of God to knock Cucuta out of the playoffs, and another to get Valencia in. Between them, it's a four-team dogfight for three playoff spots.




Baltic League -- Liepajas Dzintari RHP Tony Gallardo 🇨🇺 is out for 2 months after falling down a flight of stairs.





01.06

Major League -- The Minnesota Chiefs make a questionable trade, sending RHP Garrett Portillo 🇺🇸 to the Boise Cutthroats in exchange for OF Brandon Taliaferro 🇺🇸 and a 6th round pick.





Liga Gran Colombia -- The Cali Sultanes, fighting for oxygen in the playoff race, mount a massive comeback to walk off Maracay.





01.07

Major League -- Four-time ML MVP Kody Randazzo 🇺🇸 misses Hall of Fame induction this year by a single vote, capturing 79.7% of ballots in the world's only league that requires 80%. You'll get 'em next year, Kody.





Latin League -- Five days after its first no-hitter of the year, the LL has its second. Willemstad RHP Bobby Garcia 🇨🇼🇳🇱 shuts down La Paz, the league's best team, with 11 strikeouts. This is the first time a Cactussen pitcher has thrown a no-hitter.





T-II Union League -- 3-time Major League home run leader 1B Justin Evans 🇺🇸 signs with the Norfolk Royals for 3 years, $4.5 million.




01.08

Liga Brasil -- Sao Paulo RHP Joan Fal 🇧🇷, with 7 shutout innings versus Rio, earns his 34th BZL win, currently the career record.





01.09

Liga Brasil -- Despite a loss last night, the Salvador Tucanos are the first team to clinch a playoff spot in the BZL.




T-II Union League -- OF Justin Kauffman 🇺🇸 is announced as the Portland Beavers' new left fielder in a press release that was definitely written by his agent.





01.10

Liga Brasil -- Brasilia, Sao Paulo fail to capitalize on Belo Horizonte's loss and remain outside the playoffs.


Liga Gran Colombia -- Cucuta clinches a playoff spot, Cali and Maracay match wins to stay locked for final spot, Valencia's tragic number ticks down to 2.




01.11

Liga Brasil -- Salvador clinches the #1 seed, while win for Sao Paulo and a loss for Belo Horizonte brings them even for 4th place, with Brasilia just one game back.


Liga Gran Colombia -- A Maracay loss gives Cali sole possession of 4th place. Valencia is eliminated from contention.


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Gqeberha becomes the first SAL team to lock into the playoffs.





Standings (as of 01.11.60)

Latin League


Liga Brasil


Liga Gran Colombia


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

WWoB News 01.12 - 01.18.60


The playoffs arrive this week in Liga Brasil and Liga Gran Colombia, and they are fast approaching in the LL and SAL. So, for the next few weeks we'll be focusing less on the news, and more on the baseball, but first...



WWoB Player of the Week (01.05-01.11.60)
1B Ming Ou-yang 🇨🇳 -- Medellin Carpinteros (LL)





Worldwide News

01.12

Liga Brasil -- Three-way tie for the final playoff spot after Brasilia wins, Sao Paulo and Belo Horizonte lose.



Liga Gran Colombia -- Guayaquil, Cali, and Maracay, ranked 3-4-5 in the GCL, each lose, dropping Guayaquil's magic number to one with three games left to play.



Liga Gran Colombia -- Cali Sultanes 1B Israel Garcia 🇨🇴 is out for the season with a fractured hand.





01.13

Liga Brasil -- Belo Horizonte falls behind, Brasilia and Sao Paulo deadlocked for 4th.



Liga Gran Colombia -- A win and a loss by Cali keeps Maracay alive in the playoff race.




01.14

Liga Brasil -- Wins by Brasilia and Belo Horizonte, losses by Sao Paulo and Rio set up a tense final day of the BZL regular season.



Liga Gran Colombia -- In the GCL, 3 out of 4 playoff spots are now spoken for, with Cali and Maracay needing wins in game 60.




01.15

Liga Brasil -- A Rio loss earlier in the day sets up a 'win and you're in' scenario between Belo Horizonte and Sao Paulo for a chance at a tiebreaker versus the Carnavais. Lifted by Zozimo Balduque's 🇧🇷walk-off grand slam, Sao Paulo sends Belo Horizonte to the couch. Brasilia picks up a win to avoid a 3-way tiebreaker scenario.



Liga Gran Colombia -- Maracay chokes away their opportunity, being shutout by the worst team in the GCL, but are bailed out by a Cali loss. The two teams will meet in a regular season tiebreaker game.




01.16

Liga Brasil -- The Rio Carnavais are headed to the playoffs! A heroic 3-run homer by Alberto Navio 🇧🇷 in the bottom of the 7th is enough to beat Sao Paulo for the final playoff spot.


Rio will face Salvador in the Semifinais, while Fortaleza faces Brasilia.



Liga Gran Colombia -- In the Liga Gran Colombia tiebreaker, Maracay smokes Cali in a game that could have been an email. Cali spent the last portion of the regular season rolling over and dying, they continue the trend in game 61 by giving up 13 before the 50/50 drawing.


Maracay will take on top-seed Cucuta in the Semifinales, Ibague and Guayaquil will also face off.




01.17

Liga Brasil -- Today is an off day in the BZL and GCL, so lets take a look at some of the stats leaders this season.


BZL Batting title: 1B Zozimo Balduque 🇧🇷 -- Sao Paulo Industriais


BZL Home run title: OF Takeshi Lehrfel 🇧🇷🇯🇵 -- Salvador Tucanos


BZL ERA title: RHP Jonas Stilwell 🇧🇷 -- Fortaleza Palmeiras




Liga Gran Colombia GCL stats leaders:


GCL Batting Title: OF Victorino Vioso 🇧🇷🇯🇵 -- Cucuta Centinelas


GCL Home run Title: OF Alberto Sanchez 🇨🇴 -- Guayaquil Piratas


GCL ERA Title: RHP Raul Aguilar 🇪🇨 -- Ibague Musicales




01.18 -- BZL & GCL Semifinals: Game 1

Liga Brasil -- Opening the BZL Semifinais, two excellent games to end the week. In Brasilia, the Gatos Pretos escape after a huge comeback in the 9th inning by Fortaleza, via a walk-off double by C Jorge Andrades 🇧🇷.

Meanwhile in Salvador, the #1 seed Tucanos were shocked by Rio in game one, letting the floodgates open with a top of the 9th Olivio Torro 🇧🇷 3-run homer to give Rio a 1-0 series lead.



Liga Gran Colombia -- Guayaquil goes up a game on Ibague after an offensive shootout, winning with help from a pair of Laurent Carlier 🇫🇷 homers.

Cucuta takes care of business to open up their series against Maracay, with the Centinelas pitching staff combining for a 5-hit shutout.



Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- With just a few days to go in the SAL season, here's how the playoff race stands. Extended coverage of the SAL begins next week and will run through the postseason.

[j.tom]

PLAYOFFS BEGIN IN SOUTH AFRICA; CONTINUE IN SOUTH AMERICA - WWoB News -- 01.19 - 01.25.60




It is crunch time, the first round of the BZL and GCL playoffs are underway, and the SAL playoffs get started this week, so let's get straight to the action.


Worldwide News

01.19

Liga Brasil -- Brasilia goes up 2-0 over Fortaleza behind RHP Aires Samico's 🇧🇷 6 shutout innings, Salvador evens their series with Rio with a 7-2 drubbing.




Liga Gran Colombia -- Both Semifinales series knotted at 1 after Ibague's walkoff sac fly, Maracay LHP Robert Ortiz's 🇨🇴 8 shutout innings.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- With 3 games to go in the regular season, Gqeberha and Bloemfontein are locked in, Pretoria needs one more win, while Kimberley and Durban race for the final playoff spot.




01.20

Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Travel day in the BZL and GCL, so South Africa is center stage today. Pretoria clinches a playoff spot with a win over Durban + a Kimberley loss.




01.21

Liga Brasil -- The venues flip for Game 3 of the Semifinais, with Fortaleza earning their first win of the series over Brasilia behind a big day from C Ximena Russel 🇧🇷. Rio goes up 2 games to 1 on the league's only above .500 team.




Liga Gran Colombia -- Pitchers step up big time in Game 3, with Ibague, Cucuta, and Maracay all getting excellent performances from their starters. Maracay, however misses out on a win.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Durban will enter the regular season finale tied with Kimberley, thanks to a Diamante loss and a walk-off single by Indringers 2B Abu Akrama 🇿🇦.





01.22

Liga Brasil -- Brasilia spoils a great starting pitcher performance by Fortaleza to go up 3-1, Salvador even with Rio after Marcelino Feij 🇧🇷, signed 12 days ago, goes 3-4.




Liga Gran Colombia -- Maracay gets another strong pitching performance and this time, they capitalize to even the series with Cucuta. Ibague goes up 3-1 on Guayaquil.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- On the final day of the regular season, Durban and Kimberley both pick up wins, setting up a tiebreaker tomorrow for the league's final playoff spot.




01.23

Liga Brasil -- Fortaleza stays alive, Rio pushes Salvador to the brink behind a great showing by RHP Ruben Martinez 🇧🇷.




Liga Gran Colombia -- Ibague ends Guayaquil's season, while Cucuta draws closer to Serie Gran Colombia, taking a 3-2 lead over Maracay. OF Juan Garcia 🇨🇴 is named Semifinales MVP for Ibague.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- On the final day of the regular season, Durban beats Kimberley for the final playoff spot tiebreaker, behind two home runs by 3B Tyler Ben Bella 🇿🇦.





01.24

No big news today. Off-day in BZL, GCL, SAL.



01.25

Liga Brasil -- Rio completes the stunning upset to knock out Salvador, while Ivo Susano's 🇧🇷🇯🇵 4-4 night and game-tying homer in the bottom of the 9th sends Brasilia to Serie Brasil.




Liga Gran Colombia -- In game 6, from the 4th inning on, Maracay pitchers give up a zip code (31222 - Somapura, Sri Lanka) and their season ends in an 11-3 defeat. Somehow Cucuta SS Jordan Duran 🇨🇴 wins series MVP, despite going 3-25.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- No big surprises in Games 1 of the SAL's Halfenstryde (Semifinal). Gqeberha wins a nailbiter over Durban, while Bloemfontein rides 7.2 no-hit innings by RHP Zoubeir Runihara 🇿🇦 to a walk-off, extra-inning win.





Top Performances by Day

01.19


01.20


01.21


01.22


01.23


01.24


01.25




Standings / Playoff Brackets (As of 01.25)

Latin League



Liga Brasil



Liga Gran Colombia



Suid-Afrikaanse Liga

[j.tom]

A CHAMPION IS CROWNED - WWoB News -- 01.26 - 02.01.60



Serie Brasil and Serie Gran Colombia kick into action this week. Let's go day-by day through each series.



Worldwide News

01.26

Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Both underdogs take wins in Game 2, Durban scoring all their runs via homers, and Pretoria beats Bloemfontein via a game-tying home run by in the 8th by OF Jordan Vickery 🇿🇦, and a game-winning 2-run triple in the 9th, also by Vickery.




Liga Brasil -- On the eve of Game 1, a comparison of the two teams left standing in Liga Brasil.




Liga Gran Colombia -- The tale of the tape for Serie Gran Colombia.






01.27

Liga Brasil -- Serie Brasil Game 1 is a low-scoring pitching duel with 6 total hits, a first-inning home run is all it takes to preserve a gem from former BZL MVP Eusebio Alferes 🇧🇷, a nice story two years after he suffered a career-altering shoulder injury.




Liga Gran Colombia -- Entering Game 1 of Serie Gran Colombia, Cucuta hadn't lost a game by more than 2 runs in over a month, but tonight, the seal breaks. Ibague 1B Bobby Flores 🇨🇴 goes 4-5 to improve his slash line this postseason to .455/.520/.864, and the Musicales win in a blowout, 10-4.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- It's an off-day for the SAL, so let's take a look at the regular season stats leaders. (Because I forgot to last week.)


SAL Batting Title: OF Ghenima Enobakhare 🇿🇦 -- Bloemfontein Rose


SAL Home Run Title: 2B Kenbede Amani 🇿🇦 -- Gqeberha Seemeeue (tiebreaker: 1 fewer at-bat)


SAL ERA Title: LHP Zak Peel 🇿🇦 -- Gqeberha Seemeeue




01.28

Liga Brasil -- Brasilia once again tries the 'only score in the 1st inning' strategy, this time with less success. A 2-run single by OF Francisco Galindez 🇧🇷 in the 6th inning gives Rio the lead, and they never look back, tying the series at 1 apiece.




Liga Gran Colombia -- With home field advantage already flipped, Game 2 is a nailbiter that stays 1-1 until the bottom of the 8th, when rookie 3B Armando Huerta 🇨🇺 gives Cucuta the lead and eventually, the win.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Like in Game 2, both underdogs win Game 3 in the SAL semis. Pretoria gets another big game from Jordan Vickery 🇿🇦, while RHP Sean Fifi 🇿🇦 pitches the bulk of a shutout for Durban.





01.29

Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Durban continues their miracle run, now just one game away from the finals. Bloemfontein evens their series with Pretoria in extras, thanks in part to a 3-hit night from OF Aghilas Kristo 🇿🇦.




Latin League -- The LL's best pitching duel of the season comes down to extras between Barquisimeto and La Paz, with Palomas RHP Luis Camacho 🇧🇴 taking just two pitches to undo all of RHP Alfredo Quintero's 🇬🇹 hard work. On the other side, the Cardinales get 8 shutout innings from RHP Alejandro Mota 🇨🇺. With just 13 games left, Barquisimeto is fighting to stay alive in the playoff race.






01.30

Liga Brasil -- Gatos Pretos' 1B Yasuo Inada 🇧🇷🇯🇵 comes up huge in game three, the former Serie Latina MVP's three homers are an exclamation point on a blowout to take a 2-1 series advantage.




Liga Gran Colombia -- A relatively quiet game 3 in Liga Gran Colombia. Ibague 2B Alex Millan's 🇨🇴 2-run double in the 3rd gives the Musicales the lead, and they never relent.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Gqeberha hangs on to avoid elimination, Pretoria gets a huge start from LHP Mutara Muhamadi 🇿🇦 and pummels Bloemfontein.





01.31

Liga Brasil -- In Game 4 of Serie Brasil, Brasilia takes an early lead on yet another Yasuo Inada 🇧🇷🇯🇵home run, but it's 2 insurance runs scored on OF Eneas Aleluia's 🇧🇷 2nd home run in his last 300+ at-bats that ends up making the difference.




Liga Gran Colombia -- A wild finish to Game 4 in Serie Gran Colombia. In a tie game, 9th inning, OF Alex Bermea 🇩🇴 hits a leadoff triple, then beats the throw home on an ensuing groundout to walk it off for Ibague and take a 3-1 series lead!




Latin League -- With just 10 games left in the Latin League season, here's a look at the latest playoff odds (full standings will be at the end of this post):

Divisions:


Wild Cards:




02.01

Liga Brasil -- Rio strikes back in Game 5, earning a dominant victory fueled by a great start by RHP Modesto Abe 🇧🇷🇯🇵.




Liga Gran Colombia -- The Ibague Musicales are Serie Gran Colombia Champions! They close it out at home in game 5 with a 5-2 win, and earn their first title. Ibague OF Alex Bermea 🇩🇴 is named series MVP, going 8/21 with a homer and 3 RBI.




Suid-Afrikaanse Liga -- Bloemfontein draws even with Pretoria to set up a Game 7. Meanwhile in a stunning upset, the 28-33 Durban Indringers are headed to the Suid-Afrika-reeks after hammering the 41-19 Gqeberha Seemeeue. Durban OF Declan Cooke 🇿🇦 is named series MVP, batting 7/20 with 3 home runs.





Top Game Performances by Day

01.26


01.27


01.28


01.29


01.30


01.31


02.01




Standings / Playoff Brackets - As of 02.01.60

Latin League:


Liga Brasil:


Liga Gran Colombia:


Suid-Afrikaanse Liga: