The Buhitos Unison league wins the MLB Cup

Mexico City. They say not to be superstitious, but when certain coincidences occur the unexpected can happen. The victory of the Buhitos Unison de Hermosillo in the MLB Cup that was played on the fields of the Mayan and Olmeca League, in Mexico City, was preceded by a series of events with great symbolic force. In the fifth edition of this tournament for children aged 11 and 12, in which the Major Leagues offer an experience close to that experienced by professional baseball players, these little feathered ones managed to become champions. A feat because it meant overthrowing the hegemony of Tijuana, winners of the cup in its four previous editions.

On the field, Buhitos beat the representatives of Veracruz, the Medellín Municipal League, with a score of 6-0. The scores reached the fifth and sixth innings. Something deep impelled these little Sonorans.

In the morning they received a call from Isaac Paredes, a Mexican player who shines with the Tampa Bay Rays. He encouraged them and asked them to take out the buhito power as if invoking a hidden force that only those little ones understand. And they did it by winning the Major League Cup.

Paredes knew what that request meant; his baseball career began precisely in the Hermosillo league when he was eight years old. The player’s grandmother took him to learn that sport that is so popular in Sonora; We must not forget that that state and Sinaloa are the main sources of Mexican baseball players in the Major Leagues.

Unlike soccer, which does not require more equipment than a ball and very simple rules, baseball requires a series of accessories and rules that can be complex; All of this together makes it a less affordable practice. There were economic reasons why Paredes’ grandmother could not keep the boy in the league. That is where the collective and family character that fuels this sport in so many states of the country came to light. The fathers and mothers of the other children were in charge of supporting little Paredes, who in the end was the first major leaguer to emerge from Buhitos Unison. Later, others emerged, such as Luis González and César Salazar.

A couple of days ago, Paredes took his grandmother to a Major League game for the first time. She was a promise and she posted it on social media. All of this, the children agree, had an important effect on the morale of the new champions.

Yesterday’s game in the Mayan League pitted two teams seeking to lift the MLB Cup title for the first time. They reached the fifth inning without moving the scoreboard. The pitchers’ duel was very close and the runs were not coming. But that fifth roll was the fateful one for those from Veracruz, because Buhitos occupied the bases with a out in the account.

With that pressure that only baseball players know, José Quihui, 11 years old and 1.72 tall, stood in the batter’s box to try to solve that dilemma. I only thought that it was urgent to hit a hit. But I was very nervous, I just had to breathe and concentrateQuihui commented.

As soon as he got the ball close, he hit it to send it to deep center field; The patrolman jumped in and was about to be the hero of the game but he couldn’t catch her. I saw the ball going away and then I thought: this is already racingQuihui recalled. And those were the first two streaks he produced for the team. Three more buzzers later came in that same inning and one more in the sixth. Undisputed victory.

I think there was magic or mystique in the teamcommented Pablo Vázquez, manager of the team. This morning Paredes called us and encouraged them. The boys were excited and very convinced that they could win..

The manager had initials written in marker on his pants: MR8. They are the initials of Max Romero, a 10-year-old boy who died in a road accident in 2023 while returning from a baseball game and was part of the team. It would surely be here. That’s why we decided to dedicate the title to itcommented the manager.

At the other extreme, there were the boys from Veracruz. Some were celebrating, although others looked a little sad because of the very reasonable frustration.

Héctor Ponce, a pitcher from Playuelas, Veracruz, did not hide that he hoped to win the cup. Everything he experienced – he says – seemed like a dream. He came to Mexico City with all expenses paid by the Major Leagues. They live this experience as if they were professional players, he adds, in impressive hotels, airplanes and the same treatment given to sports figures.

Ponce did not come with his parents. They could not make the trip for financial reasons, but the relatives of his colleagues supported him so that he would not feel alone.

My father is a fisherman. Sometimes I help him tooreports. We leave at dawn or at night to throw the nets. Sometimes there is shrimp. Even though we didn’t win the cup, I came back happy, because everything was like a dream. I see myself as a professional player when I grow up. What happened these days gives me more encouragement to try hardershare.

Ponce, perhaps like Paredes at the time, dreams of the Major Leagues and the solidarity of a community supports him.