DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

The Leones del Escogido moved within a single victory of a back-to-back championship and their 18th historic crown after outlasting the Toros del Este 4-3 in an 11-inning marathon at Francisco A. Micheli Stadium in La Romana on Monday, 26 January 2026. With this victory, the Leones have a 3-1 lead in the Lidom Final Series, a seven game series.

The game was tied at the close of the ninth inning. With runners on first and second and one out, Erik González hit a sharp grounder to shortstop that appeared to be a textbook double-play ball. However, a throwing error by second baseman Rafael Lantigua allowed Michael De la Cruz to cross the plate, securing the go-ahead run for the visitors.

The drama had peaked earlier in the ninth when De la Cruz lined an RBI single off Joe Corbett to score Raimel Tapia, briefly giving the reigning Caribbean champions the lead. The “Orange Dynasty” fought...