After several days of waiting due to the impact of Hurricane Melissa in the country, the Las Tunas Woodcutters knocked out the Matanzas Crocodiles 15-3 this Tuesday and brought them down from the throne of the 64th National Baseball Series.
With this triumph, achieved in their «enchanted forest» of the Julio Antonio Mella, the reigning champions made the Holguín Cubs the new leaders of the tournament —by winning percentage— and placed themselves just half a game away from the summit.
In the very first inning the green-and-red troop took a lead they did not lose again for the rest of the clash, by scoring a trio of runs, two of them driven in by a double from Yosvani Alarcón and another by a single from his brother Yordanis.
One chapter later, a packet of five runs decided the clash. In that episode, the starter and defeated Yamichel Pérez jumped from the mound and Héctor Quintero hit one of the two home runs he connected in the game.
After scoring two more in the third act, the knockout score arrived in the fifth with another batch of five runs, three of them pushed in by a home run hit from Yordanis Alarcón and another by the second home run from Quintero, this one with Haziel Suárez on the mound.
Anier Pérez was credited with his second victory after working five innings with three strikeouts and a pair of earned runs allowed, while Darbys Leyva got three outs and Eloy Borrego ended the suffering of the saurians, although he withstood a home run from Esteban Terry.
At the Latinoamericano stadium, the Industriales of Havana did the job and defeated the Camagüey Bulls 3-1, to also come within half a game of the pinnacle and turn the battle for the leadership red-hot.
Angel Alfredo Hechavarría and Ariel Sánchez sent the sphere disappearing, the latter with a teammate on base, to drive in the capital’s runs.
Remberto Barreto achieved his fourth success without the shadow of a defeat by walking a route of six episodes with one earned run to his records, Misael Fonseca pitched a pair of immaculate innings and Frank Herrera closed the challenge to record his sixth save.
For its part, the match between the Cienfuegos Elephants and the Guantánamo Indians was sealed by darkness in the ninth act with the score tied at seven runs.
Finally, the Isla de la Juventud Pirates defeated the Ciego de Ávila Tigers 4-1, in a match that extended to 10 innings and where Yadier Garay took the credit with a great relief of three innings without accepting any liberties.
The match between the Pinar del Río Vegueros and the Villa Clara Leopards, scheduled for the Augusto César Sandino, was suspended due to inclement weather.
Tomorrow, the teams from the provinces most affected by the meteorological event will resume their action: Holguín, Granma and Santiago de Cuba, who will return to the field to face Artemisa, Mayabeque and Sancti Spíritus, respectively.
