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For the fourth straight season, Leon finished with the best record in the Mexican League. The two-time defending league champ easily took the South Division with a 107-55, allowing only 526 runs over the season. Meanwhile, Chihuahua won the North Division at 95-67, besting Hermosillo by six games. Last year’s winner Juarez dropped to fifth at 80-82. For the Warriors, it is their first playoff berth since 1948.

In addition to having the best record, Leon boasted the league MVP, Pitcher of the Year, and Reliever of the Year. RF Zak Carranza won the MVP with the 29-year old leading in home runs (53), RBI (134), walks (71), slugging (.653), and OPS (1.050). Daniel Valdez won the Pitcher of the Year with the league’s best ERA of 2.06, posting 7.0 WAR over 253.1 innings with 207 strikeouts. The Lions wouldn’t have him for the postseason though with a stretched elbow ligament in September. Bruno Escandon became the second CABA pitcher to win four Reliever of the Year awards He had 4.5 WAR over 91 innings with 34 saves and 120 strikeouts and a 2.08 ERA.



The Caribbean League Island Division was a fierce battle with defending CABA champ Santo Domingo narrowly taking the title. The Dolphins finished at 98-64, one game ahead of Jamaica and five better than Haiti. For SD, they have won four division titles in five seasons. Honduras extended their postseason streak to four consecutive seasons with their 22^nd Continental Division title. The Horsemen took it at 93-69 with a 12 game gap to their closest competitor Salvador.

Honduras RF Yovani Pena won his third consecutive MVP, doing it in the first four seasons of his career. He led the league in runs (117), walks (70), slugging (.643) and WAR (7.8), adding 49 home runs and 116 RBI. Santo Domingo’s Wilner Christian won his third Pitcher of the Year. In his penultimate season with the Dolphins, Christian was the leader in wins (21) and quality starts (26), posting 7.9 WAR and a 2.55 ERA with 263 strikeotus in 264.2 innings. The 31-year old would pitch one more year for SD, then leave for MLB and St. Louis.

In the Mexican League Championship Series, Chihuahua edged Leon in seven games, denying the Lions a three-peat. It is the fifth title for the Warriors and their first since 1948. The Caribbean League Championship Series for the third time in four years had Santo Domingo versus Honduras with the Horsemen having won in 1958 and the Dolphins in 1960. The 1961 edition went to SD in six games, giving Santo Domingo back-to-back titles and their sixth in total. The Dolphins were denied back-to-back CABA titles with the championship going to Chihuahua 4-1. It is the second CABA crown for the Warriors, who also won it all in 1922.





Other notes: Prometheo Garcia set two major milestones in 1961. In May, he became the first CABA hitter to reach 3500 career hits. Then on July 31, he became the first to 700 home runs. Garcia also won his 13^th Silver Slugger. Julio Hinojosa became the 16^th hitter to 2500 hits. Edgar Andunvar became the sixth pitcher to 250 career wins and the 15^th to cross 3500 strikeouts. SS Thiago Hernandez won his 11^th and final Gold Glove. 2B Luis Miranda and CF Emmanuel Lopez became nine time Silver Slugger winners. Also of note, 1961 was the final season of CABA’s original format with four new teams and an expanded postseason starting in 1962.