07-09-07 (Weekend 7)
Mariners resurface to claim title
Makati 4, Negros 2 [Box Score]
Manila 5, Cebu 3 [Box Score]
MANILA - The month of July brought about a remarkable turnaround to the Makati Mariners season. After getting off to a poor start in a summer that showcased an unsightly 18 errors and a series-high 29 runs allowed, the Mariners played to a different tune in stunning the favored Negros Roosters, 4-2, to claim the Baseball Philippines Series 1 Title at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium on Sunday.
Jon-Jon Robles’ first homerun of the series broke a 1-1 tie to open the sixth inning and the Mariners added two more insurance runs in the frame to knock the wind off the Roosters.
Robles, who went 4-for-4 at the dish, connected off Roosters ace Ernesto Binarao’s first pitch fastball offering in the top of the sixth with a drive that cleared the right-center field wall. Two outs later, Editho Justo, who had reached on a fielder’s choice, came around to score when 3B Virgilio Roxas misplayed Kelly Culubong’s grounder down the third base line. Jake Cumlat followed with a run-scoring double to give the Mariners a 4-1 lead.
Binarao knotted the game in the fifth with a one-out home run to send Mariners starter Christian Canlas off the mound. Robles came in relief, but the Roosters added another run in the sixth when Jerry Estanislao drew a one-out walk and later scored on Junifer Pinero’s two-out single.
Negros threatened once more in the eighth by placing runners at the corners with one out. In a strategic oddity, Mariners skipper Jeffrey Santiago was forced to summon Canlas back to the mound after inadvertently calling time for the fourth time in the game. The right-hander promptly retired the last five batters in succession to seal the victory for Makati.
"Naging blessing in disguise ang pagkakamali ko sa eighth inning nang tumawag ako ng ikaapat na timeout at napilitan akong ibalik si Canlas para palitan si Robles," (It turned out to be a blessing in disguise; my mistake in the eighth inning when I called that fourth timeout forced me to bring back Canlas in favor of Robles," said Santiago referring to the more favorable right-handed pitcher vs right-handed hitter match-up that awaited his hurler's return and subsequently flushed any momentum the Roosters hitters had mustered in the inning.
The Mariners opened the scoring when Cumlat led off the game with a single and came around two outs later on Robles’ run-scoring single.
Binarao allowed ten hits, walked two, and struck out seven in a complete game effort to absorb his only loss of the series.
Canlas meanwhile gave up only two hits, did not walk a batter, and struck out a pair in six effective innings, the only blemish being Binarao’s homer. It was the right-hander's second win and came on the heels of his solid outing the previous weekend that propelled the Mariners past top-seed Cebu in the playoffs. Robles surrendered one run on four hits and four walks over three innings of relief.
The Makati defense meanwhile played flawless defense for the second weekend in a row.
Earlier, United States ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney threw out the ceremonial first pitch during pre-game festivities.
07-02-07 (Weekend 6)
Roosters, Mariners face-off for Series 1 title
Negros 6, Manila 4
Makati 5, Cebu 4
06-25-07 (Weekend 5)
Tigers claim first win at expense of sloppy Mariners
Laguna 7, Makati 4
MANILA – The Laguna Tigers knew that if they were going to continue playing in the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series, they had better find a way to win a game. Faced with the possibility of losing favor from hard-line owner Hector Navasero, the Tigers found themselves in a must-win situation and locked in a tie game with the Makati Mariners before breaking through for five runs in the decisive seventh inning en route to a 7-4 win.
The winning margin was not enough however as the Mariners still nosed out the Tigers based on head-to-head match-ups in run differential between the three teams as the series heads into next weekend’s second round. The Manila Sharks, despite suffering a 6-1 defeat earlier to Negros still qualify for next weekend's play-offs given its plus-2 run differential over the Mariners and Tigers, while Makati has a minus-1 rd and Laguna a minus-2 rd.
Through six innings Laguna had managed just two runs off Mariners ace Jon-Jon Robles despite three Makati errors, seven hits, a hit batter, and a walk, stranding seven Tigers on the base in the process. But the Tigers effectively solved the left-hander as they sent eight men to the plate in the seventh for their most productive inning of the series.
Chris Jimenez opened the frame with a double, advanced to third when Francis Candella reached first on 1B Jerby Diego’s miscue. Candella promptly stole second and Robles’ only wild pitch of the game knocked in Jimenez with the go-ahead run only to have Candella thrown out at the plate on the same play. But Ricardo Jimenez followed with a walk, swiped second and third, then scored on Alejandro Velasquez’s two-bagger. One out later, Ernel Faustino blooped a two-out single to put runners at the corners. Denver Largo’s two-run double made it 6-2 and gave him a game-high three rbi’s. Largo scored when Saxon Omandac rifled a shot just past the infield, but got himself thrown out at second trying to stretch the hit.
The Mariners quickly responded against Tigers right-hander Roy Baclay in their half of the seventh. Robles led off with his third hit of the game. Pinch-hitter Kelly Culubong followed with a double to put runners at second and third. Chris Canlas’ two-bagger knocked in Robles. Culubong scored on Edito Justo’s sacrifice fly as Canlas moved to third. But Baclay settled down and induced pinch-hitter Jake Cumlat to groundout on the next pitch, then struck out Mark Castillo on three pitches to thwart the Mariners’ counter-attack and the Tigers would hold on the rest of the way for the uplifting victory.
Laguna drew first blood on Velasquez’s rbi-double in the first inning. Makati took a 2-1 lead in the second on Diego’s run-scoring single and Canlas’ rbi-double. The Tigers tied it in the fourth when 3B Justo’s two-out fielding error off Largo’s bat plated Fernando Recto from third.
Baclay, who had lost on opening day, tossed his first complete game in recent memory despite surrendering 13 hits to even his record at 1-1. He struck out four and walked none. Robles gave up 12 hits, two walks, and struck out seven to absorb his second loss of the series.
Makati's 18 errors in four games is a series-high.
Binarao’s gem takes bite out of Sharks
Negros 6, Manila 1
MANILA – Reuben Angeles’ one-out double in the fifth inning knocked in Gary Ejercito with the go-ahead run and Ernesto Binarao tossed his series-leading second complete game as the Negros Roosters took the bite out of the Manila Sharks, 6-1 in weekend five of the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
With the score tied at 1-1 entering the bottom of the fifth, Ejercito drew a one-out walk off losing pitcher Romeo Jasmin (0-1), moved to second on Jerry Estanislao’s single, then scored when Angeles drilled Jasmis’ 1-2 offering to the center field gap. Junifer Pinero followed with an rbi-groundout that plated Estanislao to give Negros a 3-1 lead.
The Roosters scored three more runs in the next two frames to break the game open. In the sixth inning, Joey Guerrero and Brendo Dela Cruz reached on singles, and found themselves scooting home on Jake Ilao’s two-out fielding error. Estanislao capped the scoring in the seventh when he led off with a single, advanced to second on Pinero’s single, stole third, and scored on reliever Justin Zialcita’s wild pitch.
The left-handed Binarao meanwhile was his dominant self once again in going the distance as he gave up just one run on eight hits, walked two and struck out six. Three of the hits came during a shaky fifth inning when four consecutive Sharks batters reached base.
It turned out that the game would swing in that fifth inning. The Roosters clung to a 1-0 lead after pushing across an unearned run (Binarao had reached on CF Jarus Inobio’s fielding error) on Dela Cruz’s two-out rbi-double in the second inning and Binarao cruising after retiring the first 13 Sharks batters in a row. Nino Tator broke the Sharks’ silence with a one-out single on Binarao’s first pitch of the at bat, stole second, and raced home when Pinero airmailed one to centerfield, allowing Manila to tie the game.
Marvin Malig then touched Binarao for another single, Ilao drew a walk, and pinch-hitter Justin Torio reached on a single to load the bases. But Pinero averted another blunder and instead avenged his miscue after missing pinch-hitter Edward Landicho’s 3-2 foul ball only to recover in time to nail Malig at the plate. Binarao struck out Landicho on the next pitch to preserve the tie and shift the momentum to Negros in the bottom half of the fifth. None of the five Sharks who reached base in the next two frames made it past second -- two of whom were erased on base-running blunders -- and Binarao finished his 97-pitch masterpiece by retiring the last seven batters to wrap up the Roosters’ third win in four outings.
Jasmin went six innings, gave up five runs, two earned, on seven hits, a walk, and four strikeouts as Manila fell to 1-3.
06-18-07 (Weekend 4)
Dolphins swim past Sharks to fourth straight win
Cebu 12, Manila 6
MANILA –Roldan Bacarisas’ two-out single to left field scored Miggy Corcuera with the go-ahead run in the third inning to break a 4-4 tie and the Cebu Dolphins continued to display their offensive prowess in swimming past the Manila Sharks, 12-6 behind a 16-hit barrage to post their fourth straight win in weekend four of the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium last Sunday.
Left-hander Joseph Orillana was not untouchable for the first time in the Series but still improved his record to 3-0. He took the hill in relief of Korean teammate Seung Jun in the second inning with two runners on, one out, and the heart of the Sharks lineup coming up. Orillana got the dangerous Nino Tator on a fly-out to center field then promptly retired the next nine batters before seeing his scoreless inning streak end at 17 1/3 innings on Justin Zialcita’s rbi-double to left field in the fifth inning. The southpaw gave up two earned runs on eight hits over 6 2/3 innings of relief, struck out four and walked one. Seung Jun started on the mound but did not make it out of the second inning as he gave up four earned runs on four hits, two walks, and a hit batter.
Cebu, which is averaging more than nine runs a game to lead all teams in the Series broke the game open on Jonash Ponce’s two-run single to left field in the fourth inning and rbi singles by Jordan Orobia, Nico Uichico, and a run-scoring double by Jerome Bacarisas in the fifth inning to give the Dolphins a 10-4 margin.
Manila got two runs back in its half of the fifth on Zialcita’s two-bagger and a run-scoring single to left field by Justin Torio.
Cebu closed the scoring with two more runs in the seventh on Jerome Bacarisas’ rbi single to left field and Fulgencio Rances’ long rbi single to center field. Ervick Vijandre pitched a scoreless ninth to seal the Dolphins’ win.
Charlie Labrador (1-1) took the loss by giving up ten runs, seven earned, on eleven hits in 4 1/3 innings pitched. He struck out three and did not walk a batter. It was a far cry from his two previous outings when he allowed a combined three runs, two earned, on three hits over 11 1/3 innings while fanning seven against no walks issued.
Manila (1-2) fell into a two-way tie for the third seed with the idle Makati Mariners while undefeated Cebu gained the top seed in the next round.
Roosters break loose early then hang on to fend off Tigers
Negros 7, Laguna 6
MANILA – The Negros Roosters scored six runs in the first two innings off right-hander Edwin Andrade then held off a furious Laguna rally in the late innings for a wild 7-6 win in weekend four of the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium last Sunday.
Roosters southpaw Ernesto Binarao (2-0) continued his brilliant performance of late as he went seven innings, gave up just one earned run on eight hits, struck out one, and did not walk a batter. Only five balls were hit out of the infield in another stellar outing for the left-hander before he gave way to a pair of relievers to open the eighth inning.
Laguna’s offense which had been put into a slumber by Binarao for seven innings, finally came alive once RHP Ramil Placides took the mound in the eighth with Negros comfortably ahead 7-1. Fernando Recto led off with a single to left field and advanced to second on a passed ball by C Junifer Pinero. Sofronio DeJuras followed with an infield single to put runners at the corners and stole second. One out later, Chris Jimenez reached on an error by SS Jerry Baltazar, bringing home Recto and moving De Juras to third. Francis Candella followed with a single to left field that brought home De Juras. Jimenez, who had advanced to third on the play scored after his brother, Ric Jimenez, was hit by a pitch and Alejandro Velasquez grounded into a fielder’s choice to make it 7-4 Negros. Placides then got Denver Largo on a pop up to first to thwart the rally.
But the Tigers roared again in the bottom of the ninth, this time against Roosters reliever Joey Guerrero. Saxon Omandac started the new rally with a single to left field, moved to second on another passed ball by Pinero, and reached third when Recto followed with his fourth hit of the game. Recto then stole second and one out later, pinch-hitter Ernel Faustino roped a two-run single to left field that cut Negros’ lead to 7-6. But Guerrero settled down to register his first save of the series by getting Chris Jimenez on a ground out to third and Candella on a pop out to first to end the game.
At the outset, it seemed like a cakewalk for Negros as they opened the floodgates early with three runs in the first inning off losing pitcher Edwin Andrade (0-1). Jerry Estanislao and Ruben Angeles set the table with back-to-back walks to open the game. Pinero’s bloop single loaded the bases. Estanislao scored when Virgilio Roxas reached on an error by SS Chris Jimenez. Ernesto Binarao followed with a single to left field to drive in Angeles and keep the bases loaded. One out later, Andrade forced in a run by walking Joel Binarao, but got out of the jam by striking out Rommel Maniago and getting Brendo Dela Cruz on a pop up.
The Roosters were crowing again in the second inning when each of the first five batters reached base only to have Estanislao and Angeles erased on a couple of fielder’s choices. But Pinero, Roxas, and Ernesto Binarao, who had reached on a free pass, all scored when Guerrero roped a bases-clearing double to the gap in left field to give Negros a 6-0 lead that effectively sent Andrade to the showers. In two innings of wildness on the hill, Andrade gave up six runs on four walks, three hits, and two hit batsmen.
The Tigers would get their only run off Ernesto Binarao in the fourth inning when Chris Jimenez led off with a double to right-center field and two outs later reached home on Alejandro Velasquez’s single to left field.
Negros scored what would eventually turn out to be the decisive run in the fifth inning off reliever Rolando Delos Reyes when Joel Binarao reached on a one-out single to left field, Maniago drew a walk, Dela Cruz was hit by a pitch, and Estanislao hit a sacrifice fly to left field. But Dela Cruz was cut down at second on the ensuing play by C Denver Largo’s alert throw to 2B Candella.
Despite being outhit 13-6, Negros won its second straight game against one defeat in weekend four of the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series while Laguna remained the only winless team at 0-3.
06-11-07 (Weekend 3)
Dolphins sink Tigers
Cebu 9, Laguna 5
MANILA (from wire reports) - Southpaw Joseph Orillana scattered four hits over another five shutout innings while his teammates erupted for five runs in a second inning onslaught as the Cebu Dolphins (3-0) defeated the Laguna Tigers (0-2) 9-5 in weekend three of the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series.
A controversy over line-up eligibility that took away a run for Laguna in the first inning paved the way for Cebu in the next frame. Jordan Orobia opened the scoring off losing pitcher Fernando Badrina with one of three Dolphins two-baggers in the inning. Darwin Dela Calzada and Miggy Corcuera added run-scoring singles while Jerome Bacarisas' two-run double capped the five-run rally. Orillana meanwhile has yet to give up a run in the series as he run his streak to 13 consecutive scoreless innings.
The Tigers threatened in the sixth when Korean Seung Jun spelled Orillana a breather on the mound only to load the bases and give up Denver Largo's bases-clearing double. Seung Jun settled down thereafter and the Dolphins padded their lead with two runs each in the eighth and ninth frames then held off a two-run ninth inning Laguna rally to close out the game.
On Sunday's trailer, the Negros Roosters (1-1) bounced back from its series opening loss by routing Makati (1-2) 10-4.
Roosters bounce back, turn back the clock
Negros 10, Makati 4
MANILA - There was a time not long ago when Ernesto Binarao was dubbed the country's top pitcher. The youngest in a brood of four baseball-hardened siblings, Binarao echoed that he is still in his prime and the force to be reckoned with on the Philippine mound. Last Sunday, the left-hander picked a good time to regain his form as he struck out a series-high ten Mariners batters en route to a complete-game effort that anchored the Negros Roosters' 10-4 win over Makati in weekend three of the Baseball Philippines Pilot Series at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
Binarao gave up four runs, three earned, on nine hits while surrendering no walks. It was reminiscent of his 2006 Titans League season when he hurled a total of 26 innings without issuing a free pass and showed flashes of his brilliant six inning performace against South Korea in the consolation round of November's Intercontinental Cup. It was also his first complete game since shutting out Thailand in the 2005 Southeast Asian Games Baseball Championship.
The Negros offense meanwhile was sparked by 40-year old Ruben Angeles and aided by an inept Makati defense. The oldest player in the circuit went 3-for-3 at the dish with two walks including a bases-loaded free pass that broke a 1-1 tie in the second inning to give Negros a 2-1 lead. The Roosters added a run on Rommel Maniago's rbi single in the third, then capitalized on defensive miscues by the Mariners for two more in the fourth on an Alden Lozada error and a Jake Cumlat passed ball, and another in the fifth on a fielder's choice by pitcher Jon-Jon Robles.
But Makati almost had Binarao on the ropes in the sixth inning. Robles led off and reached on an error. Wilfredo Hidalgo's double put runners at second and third with nobody out. Cumlat's rbi groundout cut Negros' lead to 6-2. The Roosters caught a break on the ensuing play when Neil Suelto reached on a fielder's choice only to have Hidalgo caught in a rundown at third. But Roel Batuto followed with a two-bagger. Cris Canlas' two-out two-run double made it 6-4. That brought up Mark Castillo, whose rbi single in the second inning gave Makati an early 1-0 lead. But the crafty Binarao avenged that feat by inducing Castillo into a tapper back to the mound for the third out and flushing the Mariners rally.
The bottom half of the sixth however further exposed Makati's sloppy fielding and derailed any momentum the Mariners gained when Cumlat dropped a third strike call that enabled Virgilio Roxas to score from third to give Negros a 7-4 advantage. The Roosters effectively put the game away with three more runs in the eighth when Cris Canlas booted a potential inning-ending double play ball for a two-base error that made it 9-4. One out and one wild pitch later accounted for the final tally.
With the win, Negros evened its record at 1-1 while Makati fell to 1-2.
06-04-07 (Weekend 2)
Mariners harpoon Sharks; Dolphins spoil Roosters debut
Makati 7, Manila 5
Cebu 8, Negros 4
MANILA (from wire reports) - Wildfredo Hidalgo, Alden Lozada, and Jon-Jon Robles played for the same alma mater more than a decade apart. It was only fitting that their ties to perennial collegiate power University of Santo Tomas found its way into the Makati Mariners line-up.
Last Sunday, Hidalgo and Lozada combined for six hits and drove in five runs, while Robles rebounded from last weekend's lackluster start to hurl three innings of scoreless relief as the Mariners picked up a 7-5 win over the Manila Sharks in weekend two of Baseball Philippines' Pilot Series.
In the trailer game, the Cebu Dolphins rode the bats of a threesome of Team Philippines stalwarts to spoil the debut of the Negros Roosters, 8-4. Fulgencio Rances collected four hits and scored three runs, while Jonash Ponce and Opening Weekend's pitching hero Joseph Orillana drove in two runs apiece for the victors. Ervic Vijandre and Sky Rosales secured the win by pitching shutout baseball over the final four frames.
05-28-07 (Weekend 1)
The New Hope... Dolphins, Sharks place stamp on historic opener
Cebu 8, Makati 0
Manila 8, Laguna 3
MANILA (from wire reports) - The Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium echoed baseball immortality in the Philippines once again when Baseball Philippines took the field on Sunday in what looms as "the new hope" in Philippine sports.
Left-hander Joseph Orillana weaved a complete-game two-hitter along with six strikeouts as the Cebu Dolphins (1-0) defeated the Makati Mariners (0-1), 8-0 in the inaugural game of the country's newest sports circuit.
Orillana did not seem to need his team's bats on this warm Sunday. He would get all the offense he needed courtesy of Makati's porous defense which committed six errors in the game, two of which came early in the decisive second inning.
Sky Rosales, a former teammate of Orillana during their collegiate days at De La Salle University and on the farm with Titans Baseball, reached second on a fielding error then scooted home on Orillana's single in what stood up to be the winning run.
In the trailer of Sunday's double-dip, the Manila Sharks rallied from an early 2-0 deficit to fend off the Laguna Tigers for an 8-3 victory. The Sharks scored three times in the third, two in the fourth, and three more in the eighth to put the game away.
The Negros Roosters open their campaign next Sunday when they square off against the Dolphins.