Cuba beats Dominican Republic 4-0 in Caribbean Series opener

By AP
Published

MEXICO CITY (AP) Lazaro Blanco pitched into the seventh inning, Roel Santos had two RBIs and Cuba's Alazanes de Granma defeated the Dominican Republic's Tigres de Licey 4-0 on Wednesday in the first game of the Caribbean Series.

The 29-year-old Blanco (1-0), the ace of the Alazanes staff, allowed five hits over 6 1/3 innings with six strikeouts for Cuba, looking for its second Caribbean championship in three years.

''I was focused on doing a great job. It was important to start off this Series with a win,'' Blanco said. ''Things went really well for us. I'm very happy to get the win.''

Santos went 2 for 4 with a triple in the first inning and a double during a three-run fifth.

Ivan Pineyro (0-1) took the loss. He gave up four runs in 4 1/3 innings.

Cuba will play the Criollos de Cagua from Puerto Rico on Friday, while the Dominican Republic will face Mexico's Aguilas de Mexicali on Thursday.