On Wednesday we had the privilege of following one of the best performances by any pitcher in the history of the 64 Caribbean Series.
Tyler Alexander pitched eight perfect innings against Mexico’s Charros de Jalisco before allowing a double by Isaac Rodríguez in a 2-1 victory for the Dominican Republic Giants.
Despite the masterful outing of the imported southpaw, Thomas Fine remains the only pitcher to have a no-hit, no-run game in these classics. The knuckleballer, who briefly pitched in MLB with Boston and the St. Louis Carmelites, accomplished the feat on February 21, 1952 with the Havana team and against Venezuela’s Cervecería Caracas.
Fine participated in that Caribbean Series as a reinforcement, after winning 15 games with the Tigres de Marianao in the Cuban League.
Among the performances of Dominican representatives worth remembering in these events, we can mention that of Odell Jones, who struck out 14 in seven blank episodes against the Criollos de Caguas in the 1977 series, when he reinforced the Tigres del Licey. He wrapped up a two-win, 18-strikeout performance in 12 scoreless innings. The right cuttlefish is the leader for life in PCL with 1.38, in performance shared with the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
In the 2003 series in Carolina, two eaglet starters grew in games without tomorrow for their delegation. On the last day of the regular season, José Acevedo pitched seven innings of two hits with 12 strikeouts against the Indios de Mayagüez, who were undefeated up to that point. The Dominican team won 6-0, helped by the offense of David Ortiz and Luis Poland, and forced a playoff game.
The next day, Claudio Vargas traveled from Santiago (he had returned to the country after pitching) and worked six scoreless innings with just three hits allowed to guide the Dominican team to a 7-3 victory. Miguel Tejada and Ortiz combined to go 7-for-9 in the championship win.
It is worth mentioning a 10-episode shutout launched by Dennis Lewallyn in the 1980 series, held at the Quisqueya Stadium, reinforcing the Tigres del Licey, and another by Nino Espinosa in 1978 shooting with the Águilas.