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Dominican Professional Baseball League

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The Dominican Republic Professional Baseball League (Spanish: Liga de Béisbol Profesional de la República Dominicana or LIDOM) is a professional baseball winter league consisting of six teams spread across the Dominican Republic; it is the highest level of professional baseball played in the Dominican Republic. The league's players include many prospects that go on to play Major League Baseball in the United States while also signing many current MLB veterans. The champion of LIDOM advances to play in the yearly Caribbean Series.

Dominican Professional Baseball League
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2024–25 LIDOM season
SportBaseball
Founded1951
PresidentVitelio Mejía Ortiz
No. of teams6
Country Dominican Republic
ConfederationCPBC
Most recent
champion(s)		Tigres del Licey
(2023-24)
Most titlesTigres del Licey
(24 titles)
TV partner(s)Dominican Republic
Águilas (CDN Deportes)
Estrellas, Toros (Coral 39)
Licey, Escogido (Digital 15)
Gigantes (Channel 4RD)
Outside the D.R.
MLB.TV[1]
Related
competitions		Caribbean Series
Official websitelidom.com

Each team plays a fifty-game round-robin schedule that begins in mid October and runs to the end of December. The top four teams engage in another round-robin schedule with 18 games per team from the end of December to the end 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 representatives from Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama and Puerto Rico.[2]

History

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See also: Baseball in the Dominican Republic

For his close involvement in the Dominican league's establishment and early development, Pedro Miguel Caratini has been called "the father of Dominican baseball".[3] Four amateur clubs established in the early 1900s still exist today, and form the foundation of Dominican professional baseball: Tigres del Licey in 1907, Estrellas Orientales in 1911, Leones del Escogido in 1921, and Sandino (later renamed Águilas Cibaeñas) in 1937.

The first attempts at an organized professional league came about in the 1920s. Licey, the most successful of the existing amateur teams in Santo Domingo, played a series of 32 games against an all-star team known as "Escogido" ("the chosen ones"); that tournament was won by Escogido, though Caratini (Licey) took the batting title.[4][5] A second tournament held the following year, now with four teams (Escogido, Licey, Santiago and San Pedro de Macorís) was suspended with only 34 games of the 48-game schedule played, after Escogido withdrew in protest of a controversial decision to nullify a victory over Licey.[6] Licey won the 1924 series, contested against Escogido, as they did in 1929. However, professional baseball saw a hiatus after the 1930 San Zenón hurricane destroyed both La Primavera and the Gimnasio Escolar, the two existing venues for baseball in Santo Domingo.[4]

During the years 1930-1963, military dictator General Rafael Trujillo can be credited with furthering the sport of baseball in Dominican Republic. Trujillo encouraged many sugar refineries to create teams of cane cutting laborers to play baseball during the idle months of cultivation. Fostering high levels of competition, the organization structure continued to mature stimulating growth in the intensity and popularity of the game.[7] Another professional tournament was established in 1936, this time with four teams: Licey, Escogido, Santiago, and Estrellas Orientales, which won the 1936 tournament.[4]

In 1937, Licey and Escogido, the two teams in Santo Domingo (now renamed "Ciudad Trujillo"), were merged into the "Dragones de Ciudad Trujillo," a team sponsored by the dictator Trujillo himself.[4] teams of the Dominican Republic signed a large number of players from the Negro leagues of the United States, attracting them with large salaries by Dominicans with money and political power. Among these players were future Hall of Famers James Thomas "Cool Papa" Bell, Josh Gibson, and Satchel Paige.[7] Gibson won the batting title (.453) and Paige earned the most wins, as Dragones defeated Aguilas Cibaeñas.[8] However, the lavish contracts exhausted team finances, leading to a decline of Dominican baseball until 1950.[7]

Many of the teams were nearly bankrupted after the 1937 season, and no professional tournament was attempted for the next 14 years. The best Dominican professionals left to play in Cuba, Puerto Rico, or in the American Negro leagues, while popular attention on the island turned to the amateur teams (which, in many cases, were effectively semi-pro teams). However, Dominican victories in the Amateur World Series and other international competitions spurred calls for a return to professional baseball.[9]

Current teams

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Dominican Professional Baseball League team locations
Team City Stadium Capacity Founded
Águilas Cibaeñas Santiago Estadio Cibao 18,077 1933
Estrellas Orientales San Pedro de Macorís Estadio Tetelo Vargas 8,000 1910
Gigantes del Cibao San Francisco de Macorís Estadio Julián Javier 12,000 1996
Leones del Escogido Santo Domingo Estadio Quisqueya 14,469 1921
Tigres del Licey Santo Domingo Estadio Quisqueya 14,469 1907
Toros del Este La Romana Estadio Francisco Micheli 10,000 1983

Former teams

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  • Azucareros del Este, 1983–2008, a former name of the current Toros del Este
  • Caimanes del Sur (San Cristóbal), during 1983–1989
  • Delfines del Atlántico (Puerto Plata), this team was never officially in the league and did not play
  • Pollos del Cibao / Pollos Nacionales / Pollos Béisbol Club (San Francisco de Macorís) during 1999–2002, previously Gigantes del Nordeste, currently Gigantes del Cibao

Championship history

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Pre-LIDOM era (1922–37)

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Season Champion Manager Record Runner-up
1922 Leones del Escogido Luis Alfau 23–9 Tigres del Licey
1923 Season not completed
1924 Tigres del Licey Charles Alexander Dore 17–15 Leones del Escogido
1929 Tigres del Licey Charles Alexander Dore 11–7 Leones del Escogido
1936 Estrellas Orientales Enrique Mejía 13–5 Aguilas Cibaeñas
1937 Dragones de Ciudad Trujillo Lázaro Salazar 18–13 Aguilas Cibaeñas

Modern era (1951–present)

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Season Champion Manager Final
Series 		Runner-up
1951 Tigres del Licey Félix Delgado 4–1 Leones del Escogido
1952 Águilas Cibaeñas Rodolfo Fernández 4–3 Tigres del Licey
1953 Tigres del Licey Oscar Rodríguez 4–1 Águilas Cibaeñas
1954 Estrellas Orientales Ramón Bragaña 4–1 Tigres del Licey
1955–56 Leones del Escogido Frank Genovese 4–3 Águilas Cibaeñas
1956–57 Leones del Escogido Red Davis 5–2 Tigres del Licey
1957–58 Leones del Escogido Salty Parker 5–1 Estrellas Orientales
1958–59 Tigres del Licey Joe Schultz 5–4 Leones del Escogido
1959–60 Leones del Escogido Pete Reiser 5–1 Estrellas Orientales
1960–61 Leones del Escogido Pepe Lucas 5–2 Águilas Cibaeñas
1961–62 season not completed
1962–63 season not held
1963–64 Tigres del Licey Vernon Benson 5–3 Águilas Cibaeñas
1964–65 Águilas Cibaeñas Al Widmar 5–0 Leones del Escogido
1965–66 season not held
1966–67 Águilas Cibaeñas Pete Peterson 5–3 Leones del Escogido
1967–68 Estrellas Orientales Tony Pacheco 5–3 Leones del Escogido
1968–69 Leones del Escogido Andy Gilbert 5–2 Estrellas Orientales
1969–70 Tigres del Licey Manny Mota 5–1 Águilas Cibaeñas
1970–71 Tigres del Licey Manny Mota 6–1 Leones del Escogido
1971–72 Águilas Cibaeñas Ozzie Virgil 5–3 Tigres del Licey
1972–73 Tigres del Licey Tom Lasorda 5–2 Estrellas Orientales
1973–74 Tigres del Licey Tom Lasorda 5–2 Águilas Cibaeñas
1974–75 Águilas Cibaeñas Al Widmar 5–4 Estrellas Orientales
1975–76 Águilas Cibaeñas Tim Murtaugh 5–3 Tigres del Licey
1976–77 Tigres del Licey Buck Rodgers 5–2 Águilas Cibaeñas
1977–78 Águilas Cibaeñas Johnny Lipon 5–2 Tigres del Licey
1978–79 Águilas Cibaeñas Johnny Lipon 5–0 Leones del Escogido
1979–80 Tigres del Licey Del Crandall 5–1 Estrellas Orientales
1980–81 Leones del Escogido Felipe Rojas Alou 5–4 Águilas Cibaeñas
1981–82 Leones del Escogido Felipe Rojas Alou 5–1 Estrellas Orientales
1982–83 Tigres del Licey Manny Mota 5–2 Águilas Cibaeñas
1983–84 Tigres del Licey Manny Mota 4–3 Águilas Cibaeñas
1984–85 Tigres del Licey Terry Collins 4–1 Azucareros del Este
1985–86 Águilas Cibaeñas Winston Llenas 4–1 Tigres del Licey
1986–87 Águilas Cibaeñas Winston Llenas 4–1 Estrellas Orientales
1987–88 Leones del Escogido Phil Regan 4–3 Estrellas Orientales
1988–89 Leones del Escogido Phil Regan 4–0 Tigres del Licey
1989–90 Leones del Escogido Felipe Rojas Alou 4–1 Águilas Cibaeñas
1990–91 Tigres del Licey John Roseboro 4–1 Leones del Escogido
1991–92 Leones del Escogido Felipe Rojas Alou 4–0 Estrellas Orientales
1992–93 Águilas Cibaeñas Miguel Diloné 4–2 Azucareros del Este
1993–94 Tigres del Licey Casey Parsons 4–1 Águilas Cibaeñas
1994–95 Azucareros del Este Art Howe 4–2 Águilas Cibaeñas
1995–96 Águilas Cibaeñas Terry Francona 4–1 Estrellas Orientales
1996–97 Águilas Cibaeñas Mike Quade 4–0 Leones del Escogido
1997–98 Águilas Cibaeñas Tony Peña 4–2 Tigres del Licey
1998–99 Tigres del Licey Dave Jauss 5–4 Leones del Escogido
1999–00 Águilas Cibaeñas Tony Peña 4–3 Estrellas Orientales
2000–01 Águilas Cibaeñas Félix Fermín 4–2 Leones del Escogido
2001–02 Tigres del Licey Bob Geren 4–3 Águilas Cibaeñas
2002–03 Águilas Cibaeñas Félix Fermín 4–0 Leones del Escogido
2003–04 Tigres del Licey Manny Acta 4–1 Gigantes del Cibao
2004–05 Águilas Cibaeñas Félix Fermín 4–3 Tigres del Licey
2005–06 Tigres del Licey Rafael Landestoy 5–2 Águilas Cibaeñas
2006–07 Águilas Cibaeñas Félix Fermín 5–1 Tigres del Licey
2007–08 Águilas Cibaeñas Félix Fermín 5–3 Tigres del Licey[a]
2008–09 Tigres del Licey José Offerman 5–0 Gigantes del Cibao
2009–10 Leones del Escogido Ken Oberkfell 5–4 Gigantes del Cibao
2010–11 Toros del Este Dean Treanor 5–0 Estrellas Orientales
2011–12 Leones del Escogido Ken Oberkfell 5–4 Águilas Cibaeñas
2012–13 Leones del Escogido Audo Vicente 5–0 Águilas Cibaeñas
2013–14 Tigres del Licey Jose Offerman 5–2 Leones del Escogido
2014–15 Gigantes del Cibao Audo Vicente 5–3 Estrellas Orientales
2015–16 Leones del Escogido Luis Rojas 5–1 Tigres del Licey
2016–17 Tigres del Licey Audo Vicente 5–4 Águilas Cibaeñas
2017–18 Águilas Cibaeñas Lino Rivera 4–3 Tigres del Licey
2018–19 Estrellas Orientales Fernando Tatis 5–1 Toros del Este
2019–20 Toros del Este Lino Rivera 5–3 Tigres del Licey
2020–21 Aguilas Cibaeñas Felix Fermin 4–3 Gigantes del Cibao
2021–22 Gigantes del Cibao Luis Urueta 4–1 Estrellas Orientales
2022–23 Tigres del Licey Jose Offerman 4–1 Estrellas Orientales
2023–24 Tigres del Licey Gilbert Gomez 4–3 Estrellas Orientales
       Won Caribbean Series
Team Championships
Tigres del Licey 24 (2)*
Águilas Cibaeñas 22
Leones del Escogido 16 (1)*
Estrellas Orientales 3 (1)*
Toros del Este 3
Gigantes del Cibao 2
Dragones de Ciudad Trujillo 0 (1)*
Caimanes del Sur 0

*Championships won before LIDOM (1951)

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Two Dominican teams participated in the 2008 Caribbean Series

References

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  1. ^ "Watch every LIDOM game on MLB.TV". MLB.com.
  2. ^ HISTORIA DE LA SERIE DEL CARIBE Archived February 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Accessed on 2011-01-12.
  3. ^ Van Hyning, Thomas E.; Valero, Eduardo (1995). Puerto Rico's Winter League: A History of Major League Baseball's Launching Pad. McFarland. p. 1.
  4. ^ a b c d "Early History of Baseball in the Dominican Republic". SABR.org. Society for American Baseball Research. 2022. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  5. ^ "1922: El primer campeonato o campeonato de la reina". Licey.com (in Spanish). Tigres del Liceey. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  6. ^ "1923: Inconcluso". Licey.com (in Spanish). Tigres del Liceey. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Klein, Alan (1989). Baseball as Underdevelopment: The Political-Economy of Sport in the Dominican Republic. Northwestern University.
  8. ^ "El Campeonato del 1937". Licey.com (in Spanish). Tigres del Liceey. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
  9. ^ Yoder, April (2023). Pitching Democracy: Baseball and Politics in the Dominican Republic. University of Texas. pp. 17–19.
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