Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
There are walk-off home runs, and there’s what Marlins outfielder Jerar Encarnación did in the Dominican
There is perhaps only one way to describe the rivalry between Tigres del Licey and Águilas Cibaeñas in the Dominican Professional Baseball League (LIDOM).
As LIDOM’s version of the Yankees versus the Red Sox.
“It’s like when the Yankees play the Red Sox,” 2002 AL MVP Miguel Tejada said back in 2005 when interviewed about the league, and the rivalry. “There’s nothing else like it. There’s yellow and blue everywhere.”
That season Tejada played for Áquilas, once the MLB season is over.
There could be another way to describe the rivalry, as writer John Thorn did back in 2013:
The most intense rivalry is Licey-Aguilas. Licey, the winningest franchise, is also the nation’s oldest, dating to 1907. Aguilas was established in 1936. Their competition for respect and bragging rights makes the old wars between the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants seem as polite as cricket matches.
The two teams, loaded with MLB players both past and present, are currently tied with 22 championships apiece, and every time these teams meet, the intensity is off the charts.
That brings us to Sunday, when the teams met at Estadio Cibao, home of Áquilas. While Licey had enjoyed the run of play between the rivals over the past 40 games, entering Sunday having won 25 of their last 40 meetings, including their first three meetings this season, Águilas was working on a four-game winning streak of their own.
Which set the stage for some drama in the game’s final inning.
Áquilas had a 5-3 lead in the top of the ninth, but Licey put two runs on the board to tie the game at five, sending it to the bottom of the ninth. With the game knotted at five, Miami Marlins outfielder Jerar Encarnación stepped in against right-hander Jean Carlos Mejía, and quickly sent the crowd into a frenzy with a walk-off home run.
And when we saw walk-off, we mean it:
Encarnación was mobbed by his teammates mere steps out of the batter’s box, and was surrounded by the rest of the dugout within seconds. As Licey players left the field, Encarnación slowly made his way around the bases, before being mobbed by his teammates a second time upon touching home plate.
Even the mascot got involved:
The win for Áquilas moved them closer to LIDOM in the standings. Licey has an 11-4 record on the season, while Áquilas has a 13-6 record so far.
In case you are wondering, the two teams meet again on Wednesday.
