Tomateros de Culiacán to the Caribbean Series Final 2026
Zapopan, Jalisco – Los Tomateros de Culiacán, representing Mexico, secured their place in the 2026 Caribbean Series final after defeating the Leones del Escogido of the Dominican Republic with a score of 9-4. The semi-final match took place at the Pan American Stadium this Friday.
The Mexican offense demonstrated its power by connecting 13 hits, highlighting a crucial home run by the Dominican Esteban Florial in the fourth inning, which changed the course of the game and gave Culiacán the definitive advantage.
This triumph marks the Tomateros’ second consecutive victory over the Dominican team, after their match in the round-robin phase. With this result, the Mexican team repeats the feat of the Tigres del Licey in 2012, who reached the final after finishing second in their local league.
Florial: The Turning Point
The Leones del Escogido took the lead early in the game. In the second inning, a double by Franchy Cordero and a single by Marcos Hernández put the score at 1-0. In the third, they took advantage of walks and a defensive error to extend the lead to 2-0.
However, the fourth episode was key. With two outs and runners on base, the Dominican manager replaced starting pitcher Oscar de la Cruz with Kenny Hernández to face Florial. The outfielder hit a home run that turned the score to 3-2 in favor of the Mexicans.
From that moment on, Culiacán dominated the game. In the sixth inning, they added two more runs thanks to singles and a sacrifice fly by Alí Solís. In the seventh, they manufactured a cluster of four runs that practically sealed the victory.
The Lions tried to react, loading the bases in the sixth inning and scoring one more run on a walk to Gustavo Núñez, but they failed to capitalize on the opportunity.
Performance in the Montículo
Right-handed pitcher David Reyes started for Culiacán, working four innings with two runs allowed. The win went to reliever Anthonny Gose, while Kenny Hernández took the loss.
By the Escogido, Oscar de la Cruz pitched 3.1 innings before being relieved in the fourth episode. The Dominican bullpen couldn’t stop the Mexican offense in the final innings.
Waiting for the opponent
With this victory, the Tomateros advance to Saturday’s grand final and await the winner of the match between the Cangrejeros de Santurce (Puerto Rico) and the Charros de Jalisco (Mexico).
The Sinaloa team will seek the championship title of the 2026 Caribbean Series, after an outstanding offensive performance at the key moment of the tournament.
