LEBC 2024 Postseason | The Artemisa Hunters rolled over Industriales 11-1 in Game 1 at home

Rain had caused the game to be suspended on Sunday

It was Geonel Gutiérrez who started for the Hunters this Sunday. (Photo: Jit Digital)

Semifinals of the II Elite League of Cuban Baseball

Artemisa 11, Industriales 1 (7 Innings)

Artemisa leads the series 1-0

During Game 1 of the semifinals of the II Elite League of Cuban Baseball, the Artemisa Hunters scored in all innings except the sixth to beat the Industriales Lions 11-1 by the Mercy Rule in seven innings.

Box score

As the best team in the entire championship, the Hunters averaged 5.85 runs per game entering the postseason of this elite edition of the Cuban tournaments, and in Game 1 of the semifinals against Industriales, which was played in two days because of the rain, they proved why that was the case.

In just four innings, the Hunters had already scored 10-1 after an offensive that included 12 hits, including five doubles and a triple. 

The outburst made it easy for starter Geonel Gutiérrez and reliever Israel Sánchez.

The two pitchers combined for four and three innings, respectively, leaving the Lions with a single run and sending an early signal of how difficult it will be for the finalist of the 62th National Series to beat them in this postseason.

In four innings, the left-handed starter gave up one run, five hits, struck out five, and walked one, but did not return to the mound on Monday as expected, denying him his first playoff victory.

While this was Artemisa's sixth victory in ten games, it was the team's thirteenth in 21 home matches during this Elite League.

In the first inning, Frederich Cepeda tied the score with his double #455 in National Series - all-time leader - and two batters later, Raúl González gave Artemisa an early 3-1 lead with his two-run double.

A double by Luis González against Industriales' starter Reemberto Barreto in the second inning put the team ahead 4-1.  When José A. Jiménez started the third inning with a triple to right field - Industriales' defense did not look good in the outfield - manager Guillermo Carmona decided it was enough and quickly extracted its top regular-season winner.

Barreto pitched only two innings, allowing six hits, five of which were extra-bases, allowing 5 earned runs in a short-lived effort that ended in defeat.

As the rain forced the match to be suspended in the fourth inning on Sunday afternoon, Artemisa had a 7-1 lead with the bases loaded. At the end, with the game out of reach, Industriales' bullpen was drained, allowing six runs in two innings and allowing the Mercy Rule to be used in the seventh.

Meanwhile, the Industriales' bats were silenced. Three consecutive singles by José L. Gutiérrez, Luis V. Mateo, and Jorge E. Alomá gave the Lions their only run in the first inning. Against the starter Gutiérrez and Israel Sánchez, the first reliever and winner of the game, they hit only five more hits with no extra-base hits.

On Monday, Sánchez pitched three innings, striking out three and walking one.

Game 2 of the series was underway, with Artemisa up 2-1 in the fourth inning. This was in an apparent right-handed duel between Pavel Hernández for Industriales and Yunieski García for Artemisa.