February 3, 2020 at 4:00 AM
Fall/Winter League Roundup: Willis helps Melbourne to ABL final
We continue our weekly roundups of the Fall and Winter Leagues, highlighting performances from players in the Red Sox organization. Coverage will continue every Monday into January. For the full list of Red Sox prospects participating in these leagues, check out our Fall & Winter Leagues page, which will be updated continuously through the winter season. This week's roundup covers January 27 February 2.
Australian Baseball League
The only player in the Sox system to see action this week was once again Melbourne outfielder Colin Willis. The 27-year-old joined the Red Sox this offseason as a minor league free agent, and celebrated by crushing Australian League pitching to the tune of .427/.520/.612 in the regular season. Melbourne knocked off Auckland in the league semifinal two games to none despite an atypically quiet showing from Willis. The outfielder was 0 for 7 in the two games, walking twice and striking out four times. He drove in a run the hard way in Saturday's clinching victory, getting hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. He then came around to score as part of the Aces' decisive six-run fifth inning.
Dominican Winter League
The Toros del Este defeated Tigres del Licey to win the 2020 Dominican Winter League championship. Chris Mazza (Este) and Marco Hernandez (Licey) did not appear during the playoffs.
Mexican Pacific League
The season also wrapped up in Mexico, as Culiacan defeated Mazatlan four games to three for the league title. Konnor Wade had a 2.20 ERA for Mazatlan during the regular season but did not appear in the postseason.