The Mexican Winter League began play over the weekend and is now four games into their season. To this point in the season Sebastian Elizalde is the lone Cincinnati Reds prospect that has appeared. He is once again playing for the Naranjeros de Hermosillo.
While his team is 0-4, it’s not for a lack of performance on his part. The left hander has hit third each game and played right field. So far he is hitting .500 (7 for 14) with a double, triple, three walks, two runs scored, two runs driven in and a stolen base. His overall line so far is .500/.588/.714, good for an OPS of 1.302.
Last year he played in 66 games for the Naranjeros, hitting .277 with 15 doubles, a triple and five home runs. The league is a bit more neutral than the Mexican Pacific League that takes place at the same time as the regular minor league season (.711 OPS for the Winter League compared to .772 OPS for the regular season league).
The 23-year-old Elizalde isn’t one of the youngest players in the league anymore, but he’s well under the average age of the player in the league. The Mexican League tends to skew quite old, with the average player being 28.5 years old over the past few seasons.
Here’s some video of Sebastian Elizalde from August.
Other Winter League Performances
The Venezuelan Winter League is underway as well. Sammy Diaz has gotten some early playing time in a utility role, going 2-5 with 2 runs batted in over the course of four games while playing for the Navegantes del Magallanes.
Hernan Iribarren, who spent his season playing for the Louisville Bats, is off to a quick start for the Caribes de Anzoategui in Venevuela. The infielder is hitting .389/.450/.444 with a double and two walks through five games.
Reliever Alejandro Chacin returned to Venezuela this year, and just like last season, has gotten some early playing time. Last season he got into three games, all early in the year, but that was all he managed to get as he tossed 2.2 shutout innings. This year he has also made three appearances without allowing a run. In 2.0 innings he’s allowed just one hit and he’s recorded a strikeout. The 22-year-old is still going to be one of the younger players on the roster, but he could push his way into more playing time this season with more experience above Low-A.
The Dominican Winter League will begin play on Thursday. The Puerto Rican winter league won’t begin until October 30th. The Australian Baseball League begins play on October 23rd.