Mazatlán Venados Baseball Team

January 7, 2025 UPDATE: The Venados unfortunately were eliminated from the Playoffs by the Culiacan Tomateros last night 4 games to 1.

There is a professional baseball team in Mazatlán called the Venados (aka. Deers).

They play in the Mexican Pacific League (LMP) which is a small league which plays from October to December with playoffs in January.  The teams are comprised of mainly Mexican players with an allowance of a few foreign players per team.

It is a lot of fun to go to a baseball game in Mazatlán.  There are lots of activities going on before each games.  There are many different sets of cheerleaders: venados, telcel, etc. that are cheering.  There is the team mascot, Venny, who is hillarious, doing his act on the field.  The giant screen does the kiss cam, and shows people in the crowd.  There is so much going on you can sometimes be distracted from the baseball game!

It is completely safe to go to a Venados baseball game in Mazatlán.  Many foreign residents of Mazatlán have season's tickets and go to the games.

In the 2024-2025 season, the Venados made it to the 1st round of the playoffs they lost 4 games to 1 game to the Culiacan Tomateros.

In the 2023-2024 season, the Venados made it to the final playoff round where they lost 4 straight game to the powerhouse Hermosillo Naranja team.  In round 1 of the playoffs, they beat the Navojoa Mayos team 4 games to 1.  In round 2, they beat the Mexicali Aguilas 4 games to 0.

In the 2022-2023 season, the Venados lost in the 1st round of the playoffs to Hermosillo.

In the 2019-2020 season the Venados lost in game#7 of the championship series...1 game from winning the Mexican League!  They didn't fare as well in the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 seasons.

There are various theme nights throughout the season.

For example, they have fireworks nights, sunday family games, band nights, 3 for 2 tickets and 3 free beers promotion nights, thursday ladies night, and happy hours.  In the past, they have had Mexican wrestling pre-game in the courtyard.

The Mexican Pacific League (LMP) (Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico) consists of 10 teams:

• Mazatlan Venados
• Caneros de Los Mochis
• Naranjeros de Hermosillo
• Tomateros de Culiacan
• Aquilas de Mexicali
• Charros de Jalisco
• Mayos de Navojoa
• Algodoneros de Guasave
• Sultanes de Monterrey
• Yaquis de Obregon

The regular season runs from October through December.  Playoffs take place in January.  The winner advances as Mexico's entry to the Caribbean Series.

The league started in 1945 by Mazatlan's Teodoro Mariscal, for whom the Mazatlan Stadium is named!

You can buy tickets at the box office at the stadium on game days or online or at one of the Venados merchandise stores around town.

October 2024 Venados Games

• Oct 12 - Away vs. Charros de Jalisco
• Oct 13 - Season Home Opener vs. Charros de Jalisco
• Oct 15-17 - Home vs. Mayos de Navojoa
• Oct 18-20 - Away vs. Naranjeros de Hermosillo
• Oct 22-24 - Home vs. Aquilas de Mexicali
• Oct 25-27 - Away vs. Yaquis de Obregon
• Oct 29-31 - Home vs. Tomateros de Culiacan

November 2024 Venados Games

• Nov 1-3 - Away vs. Algodoneros de Guasave
• Nov 5-7 - Home vs. Caneros de Los Mochis
• Nov 8-10 - Away vs. Sultanes de Monterrey
• Nov 12-14 - Home vs. Charros de Jalisco
• Nov 15-17 - Home vs. Aquilas de Mexicali
• Nov 19-21 - Away vs. Mayos de Navojoa
• Nov 22-24 - Home vs. Naranjeros de Hermosillo
• Nov 26-28 - Away vs. Aquilas de Mexicali
• Nov 29-30 - Home vs. Yaquis de Obregon

December 2024 Venados Games

• Dec 1 - Home vs. Yaquis de Obregon
• Dec 3-5- Away vs. Tomateros de Culiacan
• Dec 6-8 - Home vs. Algodoneros de Guasave
• Dec 10-13 - Away vs. Caneros de Los Mochis
• Dec 13-15- Home vs. Sultanes de Monterrey
• Dec 17-19 - Away vs. Charros de Jalisco
• Dec 20-22 - Away vs. Aquilas de Mexicali
• Dec 25-27 - Home vs. Mayos de Navojoa
• Dec 28-30 - Away vs. Naranjeros de Hermosillo

January 2025 Venados Playoff Games

• Round 1, Game 1: Jan 1 - Venados lost to Culiacan 3-2 in Culiacan
• Round 1, Game 2: Jan 2 - Venados lost to Culiacan 13-2 in Culiacan
• Round 1, Game 3: Jan 4 - Venados lost to Culiacan 12-5 in Mazatlán
• Round 1, Game 4: Jan 5 - Venados won against Culiacan 3-2 in Mazatlán
• Round 1, Game 5: Jan 6 - Venados lost to Culiacan 4-2 in Mazatlán

The top 8 teams based on total combined points of the 1st and 2nd halves of the season make the playoffs.  There are 3 playoff rounds.

All series are best of 7 games with a 2-3-2 format starting at the home of the team with the higher standings.

Playoff will begin on January 1, 2025 with first round matchups as follows: 1 vs. 8, 2 vs. 7, 3 vs. 6, and 4 vs. 5 based on the points standings.

The semifinal series, which determines the order of the general standings of the 4 teams that qualify for this stage, will be played from January 11, 2025 to January 19, 2025.

The Championship Series will start on Tuesday, January 21, and there should be a champion of the 2024-2025 Season by January 29, 2025.

The winning team of the Mexican Pacific league (Liga Mexicana del Pacifico)(LMP) gets to play in the Caribbean Series.  The Caribbean Series is a tournament for the best club teams from Mexico, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela.

Mazatlán won this series in 2005 and 2016!  Mazatlan hosted the series in 2021!

The 2025 Caribbean Series will take place on January 31, 2025 to February 7, 2025 in Mexicali, Mexico.  This year will be the 67th year of the series!

Previous/Future Caribbean Series:

• In 2023, Panama and Columbia were included in the series!
• 2024(Feb 1-9) - Miami, USA - winner: Venezuela(Tiburones de la Guaira) runner up: Dominican Republic(Tigres del Licey)
• 2025 - Mexicali, Mexico - Japan will be the guest team.
• 2026 - San Juan, Puerto Rico
• 2027 - Hermosillo, Mexico
• 2028 - Dominican Republic
• 2029 - Puerto Rico

Due to covid, the best way is to purchase tickets online now.  Tickets are for a section.  Some of the seats are taped off for social distancing.

The photo shows the 2018 regular season prices for the Venados.  Playoff prices are slightly higher.

The Mazatlán baseball team is called the Venados (i.e. Deers in English).

The Venados play in the Mexican Pacific league (Liga Mexicana del Pacifico)(LMP).  This winter league runs from October to December with playoffs in January.

The level of play is about triple A (AAA) or better.  Each team is allowed a couple of foreigners.  Usually these are players that are on the cusp of making a Major League Baseball team.  These guys have to produce or they are cut and replaced very quickly!  This adds to the level of play!

The Mazatlán baseball team, the Venados, plays in the Teodoro Mariscal Stadium which is a 16,000 seat newly-rebuilt stadium.

The stadium is located a few blocks off of the Malecon (Avenida del Mar) and a few long blocks south of Punto Valentino (castle).  You can actually see the stadium from the Malecon.  So, it is near to the Golden Zone.

The atmosphere is festive!  There is lots of beer and food being sold by vendors.  They have a mascot named Venny which is a deer who is hillarious!  I would recommend going to the baseball game for an inexpensive and entertaining evening out.

A bunch of fans usually go to Joe's Oyster Bar in the Golden Zone to celebrate after winning a game!  It is free admission into Joe's with your ticket stub after a game.