Related Research Articles
In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of September. In other team sports, like association football or basketball, it is generally from August or September to May although in some countries – such as Northern Europe or East Asia – the season starts in the spring and finishes in autumn, mainly due to weather conditions encountered during the winter.
The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year.
Omar Linares Izquierdo is a Cuban former baseball player. He was born in San Juan y Martínez, Pinar del Río Province, Cuba. Linares played third base for the Cuba national baseball team and for Pinar del Río and Vegueros in the Cuban National Series wearing the number 10 on his jersey. After a career as a player in Cuba, Linares, along with other Cuba baseball players such as Antonio Pacheco, Orestes Kindelan, and German Mesa, in coordination with the Cuba national baseball commission, decided to try the Nippon Professional Baseball. Linares spent three seasons with the Chunichi Dragons, wearing the number 44 on his jersey, before returning to Cuba. In 2009 Linares decided to become a batting coach and first base coach for longtime rival team Industriales, helping them to conquer a national championship. Although Linares never received an official retiring ceremony, the season of 2001–2002 is considered to be his last appearance in Cuba National Baseball Series.
The Cuban National Series is the primary domestic baseball competition in Cuba. Formed after the dissolution of the Cuban League in the wake of the Cuban Revolution, the Series is a part of the Cuban baseball league system.
The Mexican League is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country.
The 16th Cuban National Series won won by Citricultores, hailing from Matanzas Province. They finished with a slim lead over Vegueros from Pinar del Río Province. The length of schedule and the teams within the league again remained the same as the prior season.
The 17th season of the Cuban National Series saw Vegueros of Pinar del Río Province win the title, finishing with a slim lead over Industriales of Havana. The makeup of the league was directly influenced by the administrative restructuring of the provinces of Cuba. The league expanded from 14 to 18 teams, and the regular season increased from 39 to 51 games.
The 18th season of the Cuban National Series saw Sancti Spíritus win its first championship, edging Villa Clara and defending champion Vegueros to win the league with a 39–12 record.
In the 19th season of the Cuban National Series, Santiago de Cuba won its first title, edging Villa Clara, Forestales, and Vegueros, each of which finished within two games of the champion. The league's 18 teams and 51-game schedule remained unchanged from the prior season.
The 20th Cuban National Series saw Vegueros, from Pinar del Río Province, win its second title, with Villa Clara and Citricultores each finishing three games behind. The 18 teams of the league, each with a 51-game schedule, remained unchanged from the prior season.
In the 21st season of Cuban National Series, Vegueros, from Pinar del Río Province, repeated as champions, finishing with a one-game lead over Citricultores, from Matanzas Province. Metropolitanos finished well ahead of its Havana rival, Industriales. The league's teams and length of schedule remained unchanged from the prior season.
The 23rd Cuban National Series marked the first time the league was divided into two divisions, each consisting of nine teams, after the first half of the season. The 18 teams of the league remained unchanged, but the length of schedule was increased from 51 games to 75 games.
The 24th Cuban National Series saw Vegueros of Pinar del Río Province win the title, outdistancing Camagüey by seven games. The Vegueros roster included notable players Luis Casanova, Omar Ajete, and Omar Linares. Forestales, also from Pinar del Río, again finished atop the second division.
The 32nd season of the Cuban National Series saw a slight contraction of the league. Two of the Cuban provinces that had been fielding two teams each since the 1977–78 season, Pinar del Río Province and Matanzas Province, began fielding one team each. Vegueros and Forestales became the Pinar del Río team, while Henequeneros and Citricultores became the Matanzas team. Ciudad de La Habana Province continued to field two teams, Industriales and Metropolitanos.
The 31st season of the Cuban National Series again featured a four-team postseason bracket tournament, with the semifinal round increased to best-of-five series. Two-time defending champion Henequeneros of Matanzas Province advanced to the championship series, but lost to Industriales of Havana in five games. The league makeup of 18 teams, each with a 48-game schedule, was unchanged from recent seasons. This was the final time the league fielded 18 teams.
The 26th Cuban National Series was the second season the league held a postseason round-robin tournament to determine a champion. The four teams that qualified were the same as in the prior season: Vegueros from Pinar del Río Province, Industriales of Havana, Santiago de Cuba, and Villa Clara. Vegueros captured the championship by winning five of their six postseason games. The league's 18 teams and 48-game regular-season schedule were unchanged from the prior season.
In the 27th season of the Cuban National Series, Vegueros, from Pinar del Río Province, repeated as champions. La Habana and Santiago de Cuba both won at least 80% of their regular-season games, but Vegueros, with an all-star lineup including Luis Casanova and Omar Linares, prevailed in the postseason. Camagüey advanced to the four-team round-robin tournament for the first time, but lost all but one of their games. The 18 teams within the league, each playing a 48-game regular-season schedule, remained unchanged from recent seasons.
The 28th season of the Cuban National Series saw a three-way tie atop the Eastern division, with Granma and Santiago de Cuba advancing to the postseason, along with Industriales and Henequeneros from the Western division. The ensuing round-robin tournament was won by Santiago de Cuba, who won five of their six games. This was the final season with the postseason structured as a round-robin tournament. The 18 teams of the league, each with a 48-game regular-season schedule, was unchanged from recent seasons.
In the 29th season of the Cuban National Series, the postseason format was changed. The league directly matched its two division winners in a best-of-seven series for the league championship, while the two division runners-up played a best-of-five series for third place. A four-team round-robin tournament had previously been used, since the 1985–86 season. The 18 teams of the league, and the regular-season schedule of 48 games, remained unchanged.
The 30th season of the Cuban National Series featured a postseason bracket tournament for the first time, with the top two teams from each division qualifying. Semifinals were played as best-of-three series, followed by a best-of-seven final series. Both semifinals were won by division runners-up, with Henequeros then defeating Camagüey to repeat as league champions. The 18 teams of the league were unchanged from recent seasons, as was each team's regular-season schedule of 48 games.
References
- ↑ "Juego Decisivo Serie Nacional 1985-1986 Vegueros-Industriales, Fin del juego del 10mo al 12 inning". YouTube . Archived from the original on 2021-12-06.
- ↑ "Las 40 primeras Series Nacionales". Granma (in Spanish). Archived from the original on December 27, 2014.
