January 2, 2023 at 1:00 PM
Fall/Winter League Roundup: Hernández adds to home run total by going deep twice
With 2023 now underway, Ronaldo Hernandez (pictured) made sure to cap off his 2022 in style last week by hitting two more home runs for his team in Colombia. Meanwhile, in Puerto Rico, Matthew Lugo saw his winter ball campaign draw to a close two days before Christmas. This article covers games played from December 26 through January 1.
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Roberto Clemente Professional Baseball League
Matthew Lugo was placed on Caguas' inactive list on Friday, Dec. 23. In 39 games for the Criollos, the 21-year-old infielder batted .275/.360/.450 with three doubles, six home runs, 19 RBIs, 20 runs scored, two stolen bases, 11 walks, and 34 strikeouts over 140 plate appearances.
Elsewhere, Henry Nunez got into two games for Ponce last week. The 21-year-old right-hander struck out two in a scoreless third inning against Caguas on Wednesday and then got rocked for two runs in two-thirds of an inning on Friday. He now owns an ERA of 4.30 to go along with 16 strikeouts to 11 walks through his first 12 appearances (23 innings) of the winter.
On the other side of the ball, Juan Montero got into one game for Ponce and went 0-for-1 as a pinch-hitter. The 20-year-old catcher has now gone 3 for 25 (.120) with one double, three RBIs, four runs scored, one stolen base, two walks, and eight strikeouts so far this season. He has also thrown out one of four base stealers from behind the plate.
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Dominican Professional Baseball League
While Nick Sogard was selected by Cibao in last month's LIDOM re-entry draft, the 25-year-old utility man has yet to appear in a playoff game for the Gigantes, who went 3-1 last week.
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Venezuelan Professional Baseball League
Darwinzon Hernandez did not appear in a game for Lara last week, thus ending his regular season with an ERA of 3.86 and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 23:9 over 19 relief appearances spanning 16 1/3 innings of work. The Cardenales are slated to open round robin play against the Navegantes del Magallanes on Tuesday.
Like Hernandez, Norwith Gudino did not make an appearance for Caracas last week, either. The 27-year-old right-hander finished the regular season having posted a 4.19 ERA with 20 strikeouts to 14 walks across 12 outings (one start) and 19 1/3 innings pitched. His Leones will take on the Tiburones de La Gauira on Monday.
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Colombian Professional Baseball League
In four games with Cartagena last week, Ronaldo Hernandez went 3 for 17 (.176) with two home runs and five RBIs. The 25-year-old slugger is now slashing .274/.387/.548 on the season with 11 doubles, one triple, eight homers, 34 runs driven in, 31 runs scored, 17 walks, and 25 strikeouts. From behind the plate, he has thrown out five of 15 possible base stealers.
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Panama Pro Baseball Association
There are no updates for this week as the Probeis website is still down. Any updates to the statistics will be available on the Fall and Winter Leagues page once available. Yusniel Padron-Artiles and Eduardo Vaughan are the two players active in this league.
Photo Credit: Ronaldo Hernandez by Kelly O'Connor