The Las Tunas’ team lost by knockout against Curaçao Goats. This Monday they will face Caimanes de Barranquilla.
Leñadores de Las Tunas conceded their second defeat on Sunday, losing by a 2×15 knockout in seven innings against the undefeated Curaçao Goats during the third day of the I Baseball Series of the Americas, based in Nicaragua.
None of the three lines of the game worked for the Cuban monarch: an offensive drought of just three hits, pale pitching – between their five pitchers they allowed 16 hits – and poor defence (2 errors). That’s no way to win in baseball.
Curaçao opened the scoring in the third inning with a decisive eight-run run, giving up seven hits against Camagüey’s left-handed backup starter Dariel Góngora and first reliever Kenier Ferraz.
Those seven hits included a triple by Ray-Patrick Didder and a double by Juremi Profar, which set off the Agramontino blast.
With two outs Ferraz came to the rescue, who could not get the third out, as he conceded a ticket, a jit and allowed Raysheandall Michel to hit a two-run homer. Left-hander Eliander Bravo struck out Llewellin and put an end to the rival «bombardment».
Complications returned in the fourth when the Curaçaoans scored another huge seven-run blast to complete the 15-run package.
In that act, Bravo gave up two free passports and a run-scoring single by former major leaguer Didi Gregorio in the ninth to also explode him.
Pantoja handed the ball to third reliever Rodolfo Diaz, who was also punished severely with four singles, including a pair of doubles, and allowed four runs.
Of course, with such a pale performance, Diaz also went to the showers. Alejandro Meneses became the fourth reliever and was able to close out the extended episode, as well as allowing no runs in 2.2 innings.
While Curacao were partying with the lumber, the Lumberjacks never cracked the delivery of right-hander Juan Carlos Sulbaran, who was hit with just two singles and scored a pair of runs, both driven in by captain Yunieski Larduet in the fourth inning.
In the other games on Sunday, Águilas Metropolitanas of Panama defeated Caimanes de Barranquilla (Colombia) 4×3 and Nicaragua knocked out Club Daom (Argentina) 13×2.
After these results, Curaçao Goats lead (3-0), followed by Nicaragua and Águilas Metropolitanas, both tied (2-1), while Cuba and Club Daom are tied in fourth and fifth places (1-2). The basement belongs to Caimanes de Barranquilla (Colombia), with three successive failures.
This Monday, the Leñadores will face Caimanes de Barranquilla. Santiago right-hander Danny Betancourt has been announced as the starter.
