2008 Caribbean Series


The fiftieth edition of the Caribbean Series was played in. It was held from February 2 through February 7, featuring the champions teams from Mexico, Yaquis de Obregón; Venezuela, Tigres de Aragua, and two teams from Dominican Republic: Águilas Cibaeñas and Tigres del Licey . The format consisted of 12 games, each team facing the other teams twice, and was played at Estadio Cibao, home of the Águilas. Licey finished second in the Dominican League, but made the Series due to the cancellation of the Puerto Rican League season due to financial problems. It was the first Series fully held in the city of Santiago de los Caballeros and the first round-robin of its kind to feature two teams from the Dominican Republic.

Summary

Licey, managed by Héctor de la Cruz, finished with a 5–1 record to clinch the club's 10th Caribbean Series title since the country began participating in 1970 and the 17th overall for the Dominican Republic. Pitcher and Series MVP Ramón Ortiz posted a 2–0 record with a 0.00 ERA in 11⅔ scoreless IP against the Águilas, including five of relief. RF Nelson Cruz provided the offensive support for the team, leading the Series hitters in batting average, hits, doubles, SLG and OPS. Licey also got fine work off starters José Capellán and Francisco Rosario, as well from relievers Jailen Peguero and Carlos Mármol. Other contributions came from 3B/OF José Bautista, 2B Ronnie Belliard, LF Emilio Bonifacio and C Matt Tupman, who batted.364 and was the only of Licey's players with at least one hit in each game.
Managed by Félix Fermín, the Dominican champions wasted home field advantage, ending in second place with a 3–3 mark. The Cibao's team was characterized by an ineffective pitching staff and a poor offense, while the defense committed crucial errors. Two hitters carried much of the offensive weight – 2B Rafael Furcal and SS Tony Peña, while DH Miguel Tejada provided a substantial contribution. Pitchers Joselo Díaz and Arnie Muñoz headed the staff. Supporting them were Randy Choate, Joel Peralta and Francisco Cruceta, but Denny Bautista, Bartolo Colón, Sergio Ramírez and Alfredo Simón, combined for an 8.00 ERA in 18 innings.
Mexico was guided by Homar Rojas and finished with a 2–4 record, tying for third place with Venezuela. DH Robert Saucedo, SS Alfredo Amézaga and OF Armando Ríos paced the offense, while the top pitcher was Nelson Figueroa. The Obregón team also included players like Justin Lehr, Óscar Robles, Dan Serafini and Reggie Taylor.
Venezuela, piloted by Buddy Bailey, played with a depleted line-up. This year, 15 players from the Venezuelan finals roster were unavailable for the Series, including Miguel Cabrera, Ronny Cedeño and Edgardo Alfonzo, due to Spring Training reports. Luis Maza, the man charged with filling Cabrera's shoes at third base, responded by hitting .348 with six runs and a.435 SLG. Other help came from outfielders Selwyn Langaigne and Alberto Callaspo, as well from pitchers Giovanni Carrara and Ramón García. The only homers were hit by sub-batters Alex Delgado and Luis Ugueto, while Andrew Lorraine was the only pitcher to lose two games in the Series that year. The Aragua club also featured RF Robert Pérez and pitchers Orber Moreno, Víctor Moreno and José Santiago, among others.

Note

Of 33 players on the Series rosters included on the 40-man Major League 2008 rosters, 30 were on the Dominican Republic teams. According to MLB, the Caribbean Confederation officials considered moving up the start of the 2009 tournament from the first week of February to the last week of January, because it gives the players at least 10 days before they are expected to report to their respective camps in Spring Training. This year's tournament ended six days before pitchers and catchers begin reporting. The change would encourage more participation for major leaguers from Mexico, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela. Adding new teams to the tournament could also be an option for the future of the Caribbean Series.

Final standings


Scoreboards

Game 1, February 2

Game 2, February 2

Game 4, February 3

Game 5, February 4

Game 6, February 4

Game 7, February 5

Game 8, February 5

Game 9, February 6

Game 10, February 6

Game 11, February 7

Game 12, February 7