CARACAS.- World Series-winning manager in Major League Baseball, Ozzie Guillen He jumps back into the water with the Sharks of La Guaira in his native Venezuela, with the two-time championship in his sights.
With Guillén at the helm, La Guaira broke a 38-year drought last season without winning the title of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP) and, later, gave even more shine to the feat by winning the first Caribbean Series of a team from this country since 2009.
Ozzie and his team will seek new successes in the 2024-2025 campaign, which begins this Friday, October 11.
The Sharks will host the Navegantes del Magallanes in the opening game of this season at the Estadio Universitario de Caracas.
“Last year was a great year for us, we were very close and we hope this year we have the same chemistry,” said pitcher Ricardo Pinto, who comes from playing with the Philadelphia Phillies in the majors.
“We have the focus and the spirit of seeking the two-time championship,” Pinto said in statements released by the club on social networks. “We’ve come out of so many years without winning and now we’re going to be calmer. We’re not going to have that pressure anymore,” added the right-hander, who was the Most Valuable Player of the LVBP final, in which the Sharks dispatched the Cardinals of Lara.
Exorcist
Guillén, 60 years old, was a three-time champion player with the Sharks in the 1982-1983, 1984-1985 and 1985-1986 seasons.
These had been, until the unforgettable last harvest, the last titles in the franchise, which collects eight in total.
The former Venezuelan shortstop thus expanded his fame as an ‘exorcist’ of curses. When he won the 2005 World Series as a manager with the Chicago White Sox, the team ended 88 years without a championship.
He managed the patiblancos in the Big Show between 2004 and 2011, becoming the first Latin American manager to win the World Series. He also led the Miami Marlins in 2012.
The next challenge
The last team that chained championships in the LVBP was Cardenales de Lara in the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 seasons.
Players with big league experience such as infielder Alcides Escobar, patrolman Luis Matos or Pinto are important pieces for the Sharks in their attempt to repeat the triumphs of the previous campaign, knowing in advance that this time they will not be able to count on figures such as Ronald Acuña Jr. , who was seriously injured again in the majors with the Atlanta Braves, Miguel Rojas or Maikel García.
“I have wanted to play here for a long time. I had not had permission (from the San Francisco Giants), but thank God we were able to get it and we are here to give 100%,” said Matos, who is making his debut in the LVBP.
There will also be spotlights on prospects such as catcher Diego Cartaya, belonging to the Los Angeles Dodgers farms.
Tiburones also repeats its import of Cuban slugger Yasiel Puig, one of the most productive hitters of the previous season.
