The Panamanian Professional Baseball League (Spanish: Liga Profesional de Béisbol de Panamá, or LPBP), commonly known as Probeis, is a professional baseball winter league consisting of four teams based in Panama. Originally founded in 1946, the league has run in its current form since 2011.
 | |
| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1946 |
| CEO | Guy Nacchio |
| Director | Lauren Flores |
| No. of teams | 4 |
| Country | Panama |
| Confederation | CPBC (1948–60) |
| Most recent champion(s) | Federales de Chiriquí (2nd title) |
| Most titles | Cerveza Balboa (7 titles) |
| TV partner(s) | Sertv |
| Sponsor(s) | +Movil |
| Related competitions | Caribbean Series |
Since 2019, the league's winner takes part in the Caribbean Series.
History
edit1946–72
editThough amateur baseball has existed on the isthmus of Panama, the first professional baseball game in the country was played on January 3, 1946 between Cervería Nacional and Chesterfield; Panamanian President Enrique Adolfo Jiménez threw out the first pitch. The first incarnation of the Panamanian Professional Baseball League joined 'organized baseball" in 1948 and operated continuously until 1972.[1]
The league's champion team played in the Caribbean Series in its first stage from 1949 through 1960, before Fidel Castro dismantled the Cuban Winter League and replaced it with a new amateur circuit.
The Carta Vieja Yankees were of the most distinguished clubs in the circuit, winning five league titles between 1950–58 and also capturing the 1950 Caribbean Series, to become the only Panamanian team to a win a Caribbean Series in the 20th century.[2][3] Throughout its 12-year history, the team featured players as Wayne Blackburn, Chet Brewer, Webbo Clarke, Jim Cronin, Jerry Davie, Carl Duser, Marion Fricano, Milt Graff, Bill Harris, Spook Jacobs, Connie Johnson, Spider Jorgensen, Héctor López, Bobby Prescott, Humberto Robinson, Jean-Pierre Roy, Pat Scantlebury, Billy Shantz, Joe Tuminelli and Jim Umbricht, among others.[2]
The 1960s saw Panama enter a period of economic and political instability that forced private companies to withdraw support for professional sports teams. The Panamanian league merged with the Nicaraguan league for the 1961–62 season, after no local sponsors could be found; that season, Panama's Marlboro and Cerveza Balboa played against Nicaragua's Bóer and Cinco Estrellas.[4] In 1965, the league decided to play with only Panamanian players, as a means of cutting league costs; that ended up lowering the quality of the play, leading to deep economic crises that ended with the collapse of the league after the 1971-72 season.
Probeis era
editA new professional baseball league started the 2001–02 season as Probeis (Liga Profesional de Béisbol de Panamá), but it lasted only one season. Four teams participated during the 2001–02 season: Canaleros de Panamá, Macheteros de Azuero, Roneros de Carta Vieja and Tiburones Atlas de Panamá Oeste. Carta Vieja was the champion team, while Olmedo Sáenz won the batting title (.331) and Miguel Gómez was the best pitcher (5-0).[5][6]
By 2010, executives with the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball restarted the Panamanian league as LPB (Spanish: Liga Profesional de Béisbol), but with poor logistics and little financial support, the LPB lasted only one season.
Despite the failure of LPB, professional baseball returned, as Probeis, in 2011. Roneros Carta Vieja won their second Probeis title in 2011-12.[7][8] In 2012–13, Caballos de Coclé won their first title and Javier Castillo was selected as MVP with a .397 batting average. Caballos de Coclé as champion represented Panama in the first Latin American Series held in Veracruz, Mexico, reaching third place. Industriales de Herrera replaced Diablicos de Azuero for the 2012 tournament.[9][10]
Teams
editAs of the 2024–25 season, all of the games are played in two stadiums in Panama City: Estadio Juan Demóstenes Arosemena (capacity and Estadio Nacional Rod Carew (capacity 27,000).[11]
| Team | Founded | Represents |
|---|---|---|
| Águilas Metropolitanas | 2014 | Panama City |
| Atlánticos de Bocas del Toro y Colón | 2022 | Bocas del Toro / Colón Province |
| Club Deportivo Los Nacionales | 2024 | — |
| Federales de Chiriquí | 2019 | Chiriquí Province |
Former teams
editIn the original LPBP (1948–72), many of the teams folded after less than a decade of existence. Only Carta Vieja, Cerveza Balboa, and Chesterfield/Marlboro survived more than ten years.
- Carta Vieja Yankees (1946–59)
- Cerveceria Nacional (1946–53)
- Refresqueros de Spur Cola (1946–54)
- Chesterfield / Marlboro Smokers (Cigarilleros) (1946–72) [a]
- Cerveza Balboa (Brewers) (1956–65, 1966–72)
- Azucareros de Coclé (1958–61)
- Comercios Dodgers (1959–61, 1965–66) [b]
- Novatos de Carta Vieja (Rookies) (1963–65)
- Panalit Roofers (1963–66, 1967–68) [c]
- Ron Santa Clara (1966–67)
- Ramblers (1968–69)
- Guardia Nacional (1969–72)
The 1961–62 season was played with two Nicaraguan clubs, Indios del Bóer and Cinco Estrellas, in a merged league. In addition, the 1962–63 season was made up of four completely new teams: Chiriquí-Bocas, Central Provinces, Colon, and Panama. All of these teams lasted only a single season.[13]
The Carta Vieja, Chesterfield, Comercios, and Marlboro teams represented Panama City, while Spur Cola was based in Colon. The Azucareros and Cerveza Balboa teams were sponsored from the cities of Aguadulce and Balboa, respectively. Most of the games were played at Estadio Olímpico de Panamá in Panama City.[2]
In the modern Probeis era, several teams have had brief existences, including:
- Astronautas de Chiriquí / de los Santos (2019–24)
Champion teams
edit| † | Champions also won the Caribbean Series that season |
| † | Champions also won the Interamerican Series that season |
Original LPBP (1946–72)
edit| Season | Champion |
|---|---|
| 1946–47 | General Electric |
| 1948–49 | Refresqueros de Spur Cola |
| 1949–50 | Carta Vieja Yankees † |
| 1950–51 | Refresqueros de Spur Cola (2) |
| 1951–52 | Carta Vieja Yankees (2) |
| 1952–53 | Chesterfield Smokers |
| 1953–54 | Carta Vieja Yankees (3) |
| 1954–55 | Carta Vieja Yankees (4) |
| 1955–56 | Chesterfield Smokers (2) |
| 1956–57 | Cerveza Balboa |
| 1957–58 | Carta Vieja Yankees (5) |
| 1958–59 | Azucareros de Coclé |
| 1959–60 | Cigarilleros del Marlboro[2] |
| 1960–61 | Cerveza Balboa (2) |
| 1961–62 | Cigarilleros del Marlboro (2) |
| 1962–63 | Chiriquí-Bocas † |
| 1963–64 | Cigarilleros del Marlboro (3) |
| 1964–65 | Cerveza Balboa (3) |
| 1965–66 | Ron Santa Clara |
| 1966–67 | Cerveza Balboa (4) |
| 1967–68 | Cerveza Balboa (5) |
| 1968–69 | Cerveza Balboa (6) |
| 1970–71 | Cerveza Balboa (7) |
| 1971–72 | Guardia Nacional |
| No professional baseball from 1972 to 2001 | |
Probeis era (2001–02, 2011–present)
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ The Rise of the Latin American Baseball Leagues, 1947–1961 - Lou Hernandez. Publisher: McFarland & Company, 2011. Format: Softcover, 412 pp. Language: English. ISBN 978-0-7864-6384-8
- ^ a b c d The Rise of the Latin American Baseball Leagues
- ^ Carta Vieja, Rey del Caribe Archived 2009-01-08 at the Wayback Machine (Spanish)
- ^ "Panama-Nicaragua: Merged Circuit Will Play Sked in Two Countries". The Sporting News. 18 October 1961.
- ^ "Sports&Health Magazine – La llama del béisbol profesional en Panamá vuelve a brillar con el torneo PROBEIS". (Spanish)
- ^ Diamonds around the Globe: The Encyclopedia of International Baseball – Peter C. Bjarkman. Publisher: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005. Format: Hardcover, 656 pp. Language: English. ISBN 978-0-3133-2268-6
- ^ 2011 Probeis Rosters Archived 2013-03-11 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ 2011 Final Game
- ^ Probeis Teams 2012
- ^ Probeis 2012
- ^ "PROBEIS anunció fecha oficial para el inicio de la temporada 2024-2025" (in Spanish). RPC. 18 October 2024. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Billy Shantz New Marlboro Skipper". The Sporting News. November 11, 1959.
Under a working agreement with the Los Angeles franchise, the club will use only Dodger farmhands.
- ^ Eberenz, Leo (October 13, 1962). "Panama League Back To Four Clubs; Flynn Heads Circuit". The Sporting News.