1965 Amateur World Series

The 1965 Amateur World Series was the 16th edition of the Amateur World Series of international baseball. The tournament was held from February 12 through February 27, 1965 in the Colombian cities of Cartagena and Barranquilla.[1]

1965 Amateur World Series
Tournament details
CountryColombia
Venue(s)2 (in 2 host cities)
Teams9
Final positions
Champions Colombia
Runner-up Mexico
Third place Puerto Rico
Fourth place Panama
← 1961
1969 →

The tournament was marked by the absence of defending champions Cuba. The Colombian government, which had broken off diplomatic relations with Cuba following the Cuban Revolution, refused to grant visas to the team of Cuban players.

Colombia and Mexico both finished the regular tournament with a 7-1 record. In the tie-breaking playoff series, Colombia defeated Mexico two games to one, to win its second international championship; it had previously won the 1947 Amateur World Series, also held in Colombia.

Participants

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Though post-revolutionary Cuba had participated in the 1961 Amateur World Series, it was not without controversy as several Cuban players, including Bert Campaneris defected.[2] In 1965, the situation was complicated by the fact that Colombia, the host of the seriess, had severed diplomatic ties with the Castro regime in 1961; the right-wing government of Guillermo León Valencia refused to issue visas to the Cuba national team.[3] Cuba protested the move, and International Olympic Committee president Avery Brundage attempted to intervene on Cuba's behalf, but he was rebuffed by Carlos Manuel Zecca, president of the International Baseball Federation (FIBA).[4][3] Though Houston Astros scout Tony Pacheco expressed interest in forming a "Free Cuba" team composed of Cuban exiles to compete, ultimately no squad representing Cuba appeared in the 1965 tournament.[3] Pacheco would ultimately pilot the Colombian team.

Invited teams

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Tournament summary

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The tournament was dominated by Colombia, the hosts, and Mexico. It saw two notable pitching feats: a perfect game, thrown by Mexico's David Garcia against Guatemala on February 14; and a 19-strikeout game (a tournament record for a single game) thrown by Puerto Rico's Efrain Contreras against the Dutch Antilles on February 22.[1]

Group stage

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The group stage featured a round robin format to determine the medal winners. Since Mexico and Colombia tied for first with a 7–1 record, a best-of-three tie-breaker round was played.[5]

Pos Team Pld W L PCT GB   COL   MEX   PUR   PAN   DOM   NCA   GUA   AHO   SLV
1   Colombia (H) 8 7 1 .875 5–4 2–3 2–1 3–2 4–0 9–0 3–0 15–1
2   Mexico 8 7 1 .875 4–5 7–3 2–1 3–1 1–0 1–0 6–0 6–2
3   Puerto Rico 8 5 3 .625 2 3–2 3–7 1–3 3–2 1–2 7–1 15–1 5–3
4   Panama 8 4 4 .500 3 1–2 1–2 3–1 6–3 1–0 1–5 2–6 7–1
5   Dominican Republic 8 4 4 .500 3 2–3 1–3 2–3 3–6 3–2 3–1 3–1 5–1
6   Nicaragua 8 4 4 .500 3 0–4 0–1 2–1 0–1 2–3 5–3 3–2 5–0
7   Guatemala 8 3 5 .375 4 0–9 0–1 1–7 5–1 1–3 3–5 4–2 4–1
8   Netherlands Antilles 8 2 6 .250 5 0–3 0–6 1–15 6–2 1–3 2–3 2–4 11–0
9   El Salvador 8 0 8 .000 7 1–15 2–6 3–5 1–7 1–5 0–5 1–4 0–11
Source: Baseball.ch (archived)
(H) Hosts

Tie-breaker

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Pos Team Pld W L RF RA RD PCT GB
1   Colombia (H) 3 2 1 17 9 +8 .667
2   Mexico 3 1 2 9 17 −8 .333 1
Source: Baseball.ch (archived)
(H) Hosts

Results

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25 February 1965 Colombia   2 – 4   Mexico Estadio Once de Noviembre, Cartagena de Indias

26 February 1965 Mexico   5 – 11   Colombia Estadio Once de Noviembre, Cartagena de Indias

27 February 1965 Colombia   4 – 0   Mexico Estadio Once de Noviembre, Cartagena de Indias

Final standings

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Pos Team W L
    Colombia 9 2
    Mexico 7 1
    Puerto Rico 5 3
4   Panama 4 4
5   Dominican Republic 4 4
6   Nicaragua 4 4
7   Guatemala 3 5
8   Netherlands Antilles 2 6
9   El Salvador 0 8

Statistical leaders

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  1. ^ Cuba was invited by FIBA, but the team's visas were denied by the Colombian government.
  2. ^ J. Calvo (MEX), Ovidio Lara (SLV), Reinaldo Suárez (PAN), S. Jacobs (AHO)
  3. ^ Arthur Hudson (NIC), Luis Garcia (MEX))

References

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  1. ^ a b Bjarkman, Peter (2007). A History of Cuban Baseball, 1864-2006. McFarland. p. 200. ISBN 0786428295.
  2. ^ Turner, Justin W.R. (2012). Baseball Diplomacy, Baseball Deployment: The National Pastime in U.S.-Cuba Relations (Thesis). University of Alabama. p. 113.
  3. ^ a b c Turner, pp. 117-18
  4. ^ "Se agudiza la situación ante impedimento para que Cuba asista a Mundial de Beisbol" (in Spanish). La Republica. 9 February 1965. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  5. ^ a b c "Historia de la Copa Mundial/World Cup History XI-XX (1950-1972)". Baseball de Cuba (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 22 November 2011.

Bibliography

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