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 Culiacán, Sinaloa, a 27 de noviembre de 2009 (Bruce Belkin-Baseball Mexico).- 1) HERMOSILLO NARANJEROS (5-1/.833/0.0GB)
Hermosillo is off to a great start in the second half, winning 5 of 6 games. The Naranjeros opened by taking 2 of 3 in Mexicali. Nelson Teilon went 4-for-5 with a homer and 3 RBIs in an 8-3 win over the Aguilas Nov. 20, followed two days later by a 10-7, 10-inning win as Luis Alfonso Garcia and Geronimo Gil whacked homers.
The Orangemen then swept 3 at home against Mazatlan, outscoring the Venados by an aggregate 26-11 margin. Garcia hit two more homers in the opener, giving him an LMP-high 15 roundtrippers for the season.
 2T) CULIACAN TOMATEROS (4-2/.667/1.0GB)
Culiacan is bouncing back from a last place finish in the first half, taking 2 0f 3 games against both Mazatlan and Mexicali. Mike Cervenak had a great series against the Venados, batting 6-for-11 with two doubles, 4 runs and 4 RBIs. Hector Rodriguez tossed 7 shutout innings in a Tomateros 4-1 win on Nov. 21.
Then Culiacan registered back-to-back shutouts over potent Mexicali. Andres Meza started in a 5-0 Nov. 25 victory, and Rodriguez pitched 7 more scoreless frames Nov. 26 in a 2-0 whitewashing of the Aguilas.
 3T) OBREGON YAQUIS (4-2/.667/1.0GB)
Obregon put 25 runs on the board in sweeping a Nov. 22 doubleheader in Navojoa, then took two more games at home against Los Mochis to finish the week tied for second. Carlos Valencia had 2 doubles, a homer and 6 RBIs in the twinbill with the Mayos, while John Mayberry Jr. and Erubiel Durazo each homered.
Durazo then homered in the first 2 games against Mochis as the Yaquis won by 7-1 and 3-1 scores. Obregon stretched Game 3 to 12 innings before losing, 6-5, despite Agustin Murillo’s homer.
 4T) LOS MOCHIS CANEROS (3-3/.500/2.0GB)
Los Mochis evened their second half record at 3-3 with a Nov. 26 win in Obregon. The Caneros won 2 of 3 over Guasave to start the week before dropping their first 2 to the Yaquis. Sandy Madera had a pair of 3-hit games against the Algodoneros, and still tops LMP batters with a .442 average, 72 points ahead of the rest of the pack.
Madera, Saul Soto and Sebastian Valle have combined for 34 homers, ranking 2-3-4 behind Hermosillo’s Garcia. Madera leads or is tied for the Mex Pac lead in seven offensive categories.
 5T) NAVOJOA MAYOS (3-3/.500/2.0GB)
Navojoa rebounded from a 1-3 start by posting a pair of wins to end the week at .500. Javier Martinez threw 6 strong innings in a 2-0 shutout against Obregon before the Yaquis bombed the Mayos in a Nov. 22 doubleheader.
After losing a 7-4 contest in Guasave Nov. 24, the Mayos racked up 12-3 and 9-5 wins the next 2 nights. Reid Gorecki put on a show in those games, going 4-for-8 with 2 homers, 5 runs and 7 RBIs. Christian Zazueta had a 5-for-5 night Nov. 26 to crack the LMP’s Top Ten with a .326 average.
 6T) GUASAVE ALGODONEROS (2-4/.333/3.0GB)
Guasave had their problems with Los Mochis and Obregon, losing 2 of 3 to both sides. The Algodoneros droped their first 2 in Mochis (despite a 4-for-9 showing with 2 doubles for Eduardo Arredondo) before pulling out a 4-3 win Nov. 22 as Benji Gil cracked a homer for the victors.
Guasave then won their opener with Navojoa, 7-4, on Nov. 24 as Francisco Mendez was 3-for-4 with a double, scoring 1 run and driving in 2. Mendez homered in the Cotton Pickers’ 9-5 loss to the Mayos on Nov. 26.
 7T) MEXICALI AGUILAS (2-4/.333/3.0GB)
Mexicali rocked Hermosillo and Culiacan for 30 runs before being shut out by the Tomateros 2 nights in a row. Oswaldo Morejon went 3-for-4 with 2 runs and 3 RBIs in a Nov. 21 win over the Naranjeros, while Roman Pena and Adam Rosales combined for 5 RBIs in the Aguilas’ 11-7 win in Culiacan Nov. 24.
The Eagles have 4 of the Mex Pac’s top 10 hitters, so what’s the problem? How about a pitching staff that let in 32 runs in 6 games last week, including 20 by Hermosillo? Hardly fatal, but sometimes hitting won’t carry you.
 8) MAZATLAN VENADOS (1-5/.167/4.0GB)
After a tremendous first half, Mazatlan had a disastrous first week in the second half, losing 5 of 6 games. The Venados won their opener over Culiacan, 8-2, as Pablo Ortega went 8 innings en route to his league-leading 6th win. After that, it was 5 losses in a row (including a sweep in Hermosillo) by an average score of 8-4.
Ortega remains on top of the LMP tables with a 2.16 ERA to go with his 6-1 record, but the Venados now trail Hermosillo in team ERA by a 3.66 to 3.71 margin. No other Mex Pac pitching staff is below 4.39.
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