GAP CLOSES IN CUBA’S ORIENTAL DIVISION STANDINGS

Although Villa Clara jumped out the gate to take a large early lead in the Cuban National Series’ Oriental Division standings, two teams are beginning to close the gap in the tables. While Villa Clara remains on top with a Cuban-best 20-6 record, 19-10 Ciego de Avila and 18-10 Holguin are both within three games of the Oriental leaders. Ciego de Avila’s lineup features Yoelvis Fiss, who leads Cuban batters with a .407 average, while Holguin has received outstanding pitching from Aroldis Chapman, who is 6-0 with 53 strikeouts.


In the Occidental Division, La Habana continues to lead the way with a 17-8 mark, three games ahead of Industriales. The six other Occidental teams are below .500. One of those is Pinar del Rio, who can’t fault pitcher Yuniesky Maya for their slow start. Maya is 6-1 thus far with a microscopic 1.01 ERA.