Venezuelan Baseball (LVBP): Preview, News, and Notes

Opening Day is here for the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League! The LVBP will open its 2024-2025 season on Friday, October 11, at 7 p.m. EST with a marquee matchup between the reigning Caribbean Series champions, the Tiburones de La Guaira, and the Navegantes del Magallanes at Estadio Universitario in Caracas, Venezuela.

For the rest of the league, play is set to begin on Saturday, October 12. The Águilas del Zuila will travel to Estadio Monumental Simón Bolívar to play the Leones del Caracas at 4 pm. The Tigres de Aragua will host the Caribes de Anzoátegui at Estadio José Pérez Colmenares at 5 pm. At 5:30 pm, the Tiburones de La Guaira will play the Navegantes del Magallanes again, this time at Estadio Jose Bernardo Perez. The Cardenales de Lara will host the Bravos de Margarita at Estadio Antonio Herrera Gutierrez at 7 pm to round out the day.

The 2023-2024 LVBP season saw much growth for the league in terms of viewership, media attention, and sponsorships, according to Giuseppe Palmisano, the president of the LVBP. “In 2023-2024, we had a massive presence of fans; we had the support of the media and sponsors. In addition to a high sporting performance with the presence of MLB players and the coronation of the Tiburones de La Guaria, who gave samba to an entire country,” he said in the inaugural press conference.

The competition format will be the same this season as last, with 56 games in the regular season for each of the eight teams in the league. Once the regular season is over, the postseason will begin with the Wild Card round, a two-game set in which the fifth and sixth-place teams will face off. If the fifth-place team wins the first game, they will move on to the Round Robin, and a second match will be unnecessary in the Wild Card.

The round-robin will continue until January 17. Then, a best-of-seven series will determine which team will advance to the Caribbean Series, which is scheduled to begin on January 30.

Despite the format for the 2024-2025 season being the same, the LVBP has taken some inspiration from the recent changes that Major League Baseball made to how the game is played. Starting this season, LVBP umpires will be equipped with cameras and a radar system, allowing television stations to review pitches. Additionally, the LVBP will follow the MLB rules on the obstruction of bases and the pitch clock. “As part of the Winter League Agreement, we must tune with the MLB rules, and we have an interpretation of the rule of obstruction on the bases. The lane to first base was extended to avoid physical problems for players, the pitch clock will be in use in all league stadiums with a time of 18 seconds whether or not there are runners on base, and we will maintain the Pan American Rule during the regular round”, said Amador Montes, general manager of the LVBP.

There are some notable players to look out for who are on their way to milestone seasons. Jose Rodon of the Leones del Caracas is two home runs away from becoming the ninth player in franchise history with 40+ homers. If he hits six home runs this season, he will surpass Bob Abreu (43); if he hits nine, he will surpass Alfonso Chico Carrasquel (46). Both Abreu and Carrasquel are in the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame.

Alexi Amarista of the Tigres de Aragua has the most doubles (140) for a left-handed hitter active in the LVBP. If he hits at least ten more, he will join an exclusive club of only twelve hitters in LVBP history with 150 or more doubles.

Another player to look out for is Silvino Bracho of the Águilas del Zulia. Since the 2020-2021 season, he has led in saves with 31. Last season, he joined an exclusive club of only 25 closers with 40 or more saves.

First pitch tonight for the game between the Tiburones de La Guaira and the Navegantes del Magallanes is at 7 pm. Stay tuned to worldbaseball.com for more about the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League.