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HISTORY

There have actually been six Mexican leagues of note. The first was an outlaw circuit directed by Jorge Pasquel from the late 1930s until 1953 . Having major league ambitions, Pasquel stocked his teams with Negro League greats, then raided the U.S. Major Leagues for additional talent when a player surplus and pay cuts there followed the World War II player shortage. Pasquel's raids netted 23 Major League regulars, most of whom jumped to the Quebec Provincial League in 1948 - 1949 , and were reinstated by the majors in June 1949. Struggling financially, Pasquel's league dissolved in 1953 . The northern clubs merged into the Arizona-Texas and Arizona-Mexico leagues of 1953-57. The Mexican League proper reorganized in 1955 , and has operated continuously since.

The Mexican Central League, recognized as Class-A, formed in 1960 , and was joined during the decade by the short-lived Mexican Northern League, Mexican Pacific League, and Mexican Rookie League. All were based on previously existing outlaw circuits. The last three were acknowledged farm leagues for the Mexican League, but the Mexican Central League, while hosting some farm clubs, had aspirations to equal status. The Mexican and Central leagues finally merged into a single 20-team circuit with four divisions in 1979 . A players' strike curtailed the 1980 season, but six clubs broke the strike to play a 40-game schedule. Following numerous bankruptcies, the Mexican League dwindled to 14 teams in two divisions.

Long known as a last stop for over-the-hill major leaguers, the Mexican League has swung back and forth between dead-ball and lively-ball eras. A new lively-ball era commenced in no player hit 20 home runs; in 1986 14 hit more than 30.


CHRONOLOGY

  • OF Danny Gardella becomes the first major leaguer to announce he is jumping to the "outlaw" Mexican League, the first shot in the series of events that will dominate baseball even more than the return of all the war veterans. His attempt to return to the Major Leagues a few years later will initiate a major court battle.





  • May 27 , 1946: The outlaw Mexican League scuttles its competition, Mexico's only league entry in organized baseball. There are now 43 minor leagues for 1946.




  • , suspended for five years for jumping to the Mexican League, files suit for $300,000 in damages. He charges that the Reserve Clause is " Monopolistic and restrains trade." It will be dismissed.


  • February 9 , 1949 : A federal appeals court orders the $300,000 suit against baseball by Mexican League jumper Danny Gardella back to a lower court for trial.


  • and Fred Martin , late of the Mexican League, file a $2.5 million suit against baseball. A federal judge on April 1 will deny their right to be reinstated.


  • and Luis Olmo rejoin the Dodgers from Mexican League exile.


  • rules that organized baseball is a sport and not a business, affirming the 25-year-old Supreme Court ruling. This effectively dismisses the Antitrust suits of Jack Corbett and former Dodger farm hand Walter Kowalski . The $300,000 suit of Corbett, the owner of the Texas League El Paso club, is based on his belief that he lost money when Major League baseball prohibited him from signing several players suspended for participation in the Mexican League. Kowalski's $150,000 suit is based on the general principles of the antitrust and restraint-of-trade laws. Their lawyer in these cases is Frederic Johnson , who also represents Danny Gardella in his suit against Major League baseball.


  • Copper Kings team hits a Home Run in a 22-8 rout of the Chihuahua Dorados (Arizona-Mexican League).


  • and Poza Rico combine to hit 12 home runs in one game, a Mexican League record.


  • purchase former National League batting champ Rico Carty from Cordoba of the Mexican League. He will hit .363 for the rest of the season.



  • of the Mexico City Reds racks up his 30th Save to go with a record 19 victories in relief. Veteran Tampico First Baseman Hector Espino hits only 14 home runs, but raises his career total to 435, a new minor league record. Thirty-eight-year-old Vic Davalillo , the league's top hitter at .384, is purchased by the Dodgers.


  • acquire vet Julio Franco from the Mexico City Tigers. Franco, 40, who led the Mexican League with a .437 average, had been out of the majors since 1997 . In a separate deal, the Braves pick up P Rudy Seanez from the San Diego Padres for a player to be named later.



TEAMS


Summer League (Known as the Mexican Baseball League)

North Zone:

South Zone:


Inactive Summer League Teams

Winter League (Known as The Mexican Pacific League)

Inactive Winter Teams



BIGGEST RIVALRIES


  • 1.- Mexico Red Devils vs. Mexico Tigers

  • 2.- Mexico Red Devils vs. Cordoba Cofee Dealers

  • 3.- Monterrey Sultans vs. Saltillo Sarapeers -

  • 4.- Yucatan Lions vs. Campeche Pirates



FORMAT

  • Regular Season Format: Split

  • Number of Games: 110

  • League roster limits: 28, no more than 4 imports

  • Play-off system: Twelve teams qualify. Six First round winners and two "best losers" advance to ---second round. All playoff series are best-of-7. Second Round winners meet in Division Finals. ---Winners advance to best-of-7 series for Mexican League championship

  • Brand of Baseball: Rawlings



WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC

Mexico's team participated in the World Baseball Classic , a championship tournament for teams from numerous countries across the globe which began March 3 , 2006 . {Link without Title}


SEE ALSO



REFERENCES

David Pietrusza ''Major Leagues: The Formation, Sometimes Absorption and Mostly Inevitable Demise of 18 Professional Baseball Organizations, 1871 to Present'' Jefferson (NC): McFarland & Company, 1991. ISBN 0899505902


EXTERNAL LINKS