Dominican Winter Baseball League
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| Dominican Winter Baseball League | |
|---|---|
| Sport | Baseball |
| Founded | 1951 |
| No. of teams | 6 |
| Country |  Dominican Republic |
| Current champions | Águilas Cibaeñas |
| Official website | lidom.com |
The Dominican Winter Baseball League (Spanish: Liga Dominicana de Béisbol Invernal) is a winter baseball league consisting of six baseball teams spread across the Dominican Republic. The league's players include many from Major League Baseball, and its champion plays each year in the Caribbean Series.
Each team plays a fifty-game schedule that begins the end of October and runs to the end of December. The top four teams engage in a 36 game round-robin play-off the first three weeks of January; the top two teams in those standings then play a best-of-nine series for the national title. The league's champion advances to the Caribbean Series to play against the champions of Mexico, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico.
Contents |
[edit] Current teams
- Santo Domingo: Tigres del Licey and Leones del Escogido
- San Pedro de Macorís: Estrellas Orientales
- Santiago: Águilas Cibaeñas
- San Francisco de Macorís: Gigantes del Cibao
- La Romana: Azucareros del Este
[edit] Former Teams
- San Cristobal: Caimanes Del Sur
[edit] History
Baseball was first introduced to the Caribbean in 1866 on the island of Cuba. Taught to the Cubans by American sailors who were there to load sugar[citation needed]. Eight years later in 1874 the first organized game of baseball was played between Cuban teams. In the years to come it would be Cuba who would spread baseball throughout the Caribbean. When the ten year war (1868-1878) in Cuba brought turmoil to the country, many Cubans fled their country and migrated to the Dominican Republic bringing with them the game called "Baseball" or "Béisbol".
[edit] Founding teams
In the early 1900s, four Dominican teams formed. These teams still exist today, and form the foundation of Dominican professional baseball:
- 1906: Tigres del Licey
- 1911: Estrellas Orientales
- 1921: Sandino (later renamed Las Águilas)
- 1921: Leones del Escogido
[edit] Trujillo's Era
The dictator Rafael Leónidas Trujillo oversaw the modernization of the Dominican Republic and undertook many public works projects, including baseball stadiums. To his advantage, he merged the two rival teams from Santo Domingo (Licey and Escogido) to play in the 1937 Dominican baseball league. He then renamed the team "Ciudad Trujillo Dragons" after himself and the city of Santo Domingo (which he had already renamed "Ciudad Trujillo"). Some of the players on that team are already Hall of Famers: Josh Gibson, Cool Papa Bell and Satchel Paige.
Dominican professional baseball began to gain international attention in the early 50's. Ozzie Virgil was the first Dominican to play Major League baseball in the United States. By the mid-50's,driven by the success of Juan Marichal and the three Alou brothers, Major League Baseball in the Dominican Republic had become internationally recognized as the home of winter baseball.
[edit] Modern situation
Two teams currently dominate the league: Tigres del Licey and Águilas Cibaeñas. These teams have won the last 11 titles and 13 of the last 14.
[edit] Championship history
[edit] See also
 Dominican Winter Baseball League |
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| Águilas Cibaeñas (Santiago) | Azucareros del Este (La Romana) Estrellas Orientales (San Pedro de Macorís) | Gigantes del Cibao (Santo Domingo) Leones del Escogido (Santo Domingo) | Tigres del Licey (Santo Domingo) |
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