Eight Cubans will see action this postseason in the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico. In what could be an exciting playoff in the Aztec circuit expect plenty of Antilleans to play key roles for their teams in their quests to find a path to the Serie del Caribe in Miami.
Elían Leyva was a key pitcher for Hermosillo this season. The righty from Mayabeque, Cuba was the ace of the Naranjeros staff posting a 7-1 record, 3.43 ERA and 1.79 WHIP in nine starts. The hurler also struck out 27 batters in 44 ⅔ innings pitched. The two-time Liga ARCO Pitcher of the Year will be the main man for Hermosillo in key games in their series with Navojoa.
Eight Cuban players will be present in the @Liga_Arco postseason:
Yoelquis Guibert (GUA)
Yadir Drake (GUA)
Peter O'Brien (CUL)
Yasmany Tomás (MOC)
Ronald Bolaños (MOC)
Maikel Serrano (JAL)
Odrisamer Despaigne (MAZ)
Elian Leyva (HER)#LigaARCO #CubanBaseballDigest pic.twitter.com/myaEGQvqKb— Cuban Baseball Digest (@CBaseballDigest) January 2, 2024
Last season’s MVP in the Liga ARCO will lead a potent Los Mochis lineup in their quest to defend their league championship. The Cañeros opened a playoff series with the Tomateros de Culiacán last night. On the season the slugger is hitting a solid .270 with 10 longballs, 35 runs batted in and is slashing .303/.439/.742. “El Tanque” as he is known by the Cuban faithful has also swatted nine doubles and collected 101 total bases on the campaign.
Odrisamer Despaigne was selected in the re-entry draft by the Venados de Mazatlán to reinforce their pitching staff. The right-hander from Havana had a 5-2 record, 2.98 earned run average and fanned 68 in 87 ⅔ innings. The hurler also posted a 1.15 WHIP over that span. Despaigne who is a workhorse is a great addition to the pitching corps of the Mexican ballclub in their series with Charros de Jalisco.
The eight Cuban players will be present in the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico’s postseason:
Yoelquis Guibert OF (GUA)
Yadir Drake IF-OF (GUA)
Peter O’Brien IF-OF (CUL)*
Yasmany Tomás IF (MOC)
Ronald Bolaños RHP (MOC)
Maikel Serrano OF (JAL)
Odrisamer Despaigne RHP (MAZ)
Elian Leyva RHP (HER)
*Cuban-American