By MARK LORENZANA

Luis Fernando Miranda and Mexico’s pitching team tied up Venezuela in two hits and blanked the home team in Mexico’s 7-0 victory on Monday, Feb. 6, as the Mexican team barged into the semifinals of the Greater Caracas 2023 Caribbean Series in Venezuela.

Miranda threw six scoreless innings, and eight of Mexico’s nine starters had at least one hit that pushed the team into solo first place in the group standings at 4-1. Joey Terdoslavich — who also plays for the Bravos de León of the Mexican League — jump-started the match’s scoring with a two-run double in the second inning before Mexico blew the game wide open with a four-run third. Roberto Valenzuela hit a two-run triple, and then scored on Reynaldo Rodriguez’s RBI single. Rodriguez then dashed home on a dropped third strike, which would have ended the frame.

Venezuela’s loss drops the team into a three-way tie for second place at 3-2 in their bracket.

Mexico — represented in this tournament by the Cañeros de Los Mochis of the Mexican Pacific League — is the first team to qualify for the semifinals of this year’s Caribbean Series, the 65th version of the highest tournament for professional baseball teams in Latin America, which is currently being played at the La Rinconada Baseball Stadium in Caracas and Jorge Luis García Carneiro Stadium in La Guaira, Venezuela. The tournament will run until Friday, Feb. 10, when a new champion will be crowned.

“The key has been the hearts of the guys. Maybe we are not the most talented team, but we are the team with the biggest heart. The guys have done an excellent job; the things that are done inside the clubhouse is a chemistry that they have created themselves, and as we move forward we believe that we are ready for great things,” said José Moreno, Mexico’s team manager.

“Being in the semifinals is the first step, and we have to keep moving forward,” added Moreno. “I have to give a lot of credit to the members of the group, who have done an excellent job from day one. We have played the Caribbean Series very well, and we give credit to Luis (Miranda) for his work. There’s a reason he was pitcher of the year (for the Mexican Pacific League), and had a quality outing.”