The Dominicans have won three of the last four editions of the Caribbean classic
Con Cesar Valdez on the mound the Tigres del Licey de la Dominican Republic They go out to revalidate their title as Caribbean champions against Tiburones de La Guaira that seek to break the bad streak that the Venezuelan teams are dragging on.
After being crowned in their local league for the first time since the 1985-86 season, those led by Ozzie Guillén want to lift the champions trophy, something that no Venezuelan team has done since 2009, when the Tigres de Aragua achieved it in Mexicali.
For this they will have on the mound Ricardo Pinto who made his only appearance so far against Hermosillo, pitching five complete innings, allowing six hits, one earned run and striking out eight opponents.
Valdez will try to stop the offense of Yasiel Puig and the Sharks, ESPN.
The Venezuelans finished the initial phase of the tournament with a record of five wins and only one loss, against the Puerto Rican team that could not qualify. They defeated Curacao 6-2 to secure their place in the final.
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Despite not having been able to win titles in the Caribbean, Venezuela’s representative teams have dominated the Dominican teams in recent matches with eight victories in the last ten matches.
In contrast, the Tigres del Licey of the Dominican Republic have been inconsistent during Miami 2024 but have done what was necessary to have the opportunity to achieve the desired two-time championship.
Alert: Over 36 thousand tickets sold for the meeting between @TigresdelLicey from the Dominican Republic and @tiburones_net from Venezuela for tonight’s final in Serie Caribe Miami 2024.
— Enrique Rojas/ESPN (@Enrique_Rojas1) February 9, 2024
After finishing the regular phase with three wins and the same number of losses, the Tigres del Licey defeated Panama, a team that achieved a 5-1 record, with great work from starter Cameron Gann and the bats of Dawel Lugo, Emilio Bonifacio and company.
Manager Gilbert Gómez’s strategy of using the American in the semis gave him the opportunity to have his flagship pitcher, César Valdez, for the most important game of the Caribbean Series.
Valdez obtained the victory against the Criollos de Caguas in the first part of the tournament with a quality outing of five innings, two earned runs, six hits and a couple of strikeouts.
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But on the offensive side is the real challenge for the Dominicans since their offense has not been fueled and the Venezuelan ninth has only allowed more than two runs to its opponents in two of the seven games they have played.
The organizers of the event expect it to be played to a full house at loanDepot Park in Miami, with the latest report on ticket sales giving more than 36 thousand tickets, so attendance records at the Marlins stadium could be broken again.
The Dominican Republic, with the Leones del Esgido and Tigres del Licey teams, have been champions of the two previous editions, in 1990 and 1991 respectively, in which the Caribbean Series was held in Miami, Florida.