Alacranes de Durango (baseball club)

There have been three Minor League Baseball clubs named Alacranes de Durango (Durango Scorpions) in Mexican Baseball History.[1]

In all its incarnations, the Alacranes have represented the city of Durango, the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Durango. Since classification of the minor leagues began, they have been labeled as classes C, A and AAA in a span of 12 seasons from 1956–1979. The name is traditional for all sports teams from Durango, as its association football club is also called the Alacranes.

Besides, Durango is known nationally and even internationally as the Land of the Scorpions (Tierra de los Alacranes), due to abundant species of scorpions on its territory, especially in the colonial areas.[2]

Alacranes de Durango chronology

Year	League	Class	Record	Finish	Manager	Notes	Ref
1956	Mexican Central League	C	45-54	5th	Salvador Sahuayo Adolfo Cabrera		[3]
1957	Mexican Central League	C	52-48	3rd	Virgilio Arteaga		[4]
1965	Mexican Center League	A	66-72	4th	Regino García Francisco Martínez		[5]
1966	Mexican Center League	A	67-69	5th	Francisco Martínez		[6]
1967	Mexican Center League	A	45-95	8th	Epitacio Torres		[7]
1972	Mexican Center League	A	34-35	4th	Guillermo Frayde		[8]
1973	Mexican Center League	A	25-43	8th	Felipe Hernández	[1]	[9]
1974	Mexican Center League	A	52-23	1st	Manuel Fortes	[2][3]	[10]
1976	Mexican League	AAA	54-79	15th	Ossie Álvarez Jorge Fitch Al Gallagher		[11]
1977	Mexican League	AAA	77-71	7th	Benjamin Cerda	[4]	[12]
1978	Mexican League	AAA	85-65	4th (tied)	Benjamin Cerda	[5]	[13]
1979	Mexican League	AAA	58-74	16th	Benjamin Cerda		[14]

1. Served as a farm club for AAA Algodoneros del Unión Laguna
2. Served as a farm club for AAA Charros de Jalisco
3. Won Championship
4. Lost in 1st round of playoffs
5. Lost in 1st round of playoffs

Notable players

• Kim Allen (1976)
• Jim Bouton !(1977)
• Jim Breazeale (1976)
• Ted Ford (1976–1977)
• Wayne Granger (1977)
• Jerry Hairston (1979)
• Rudy Hernández (1976)
• Jeff Holly (1976)
• Max León (1979)
• Buck Leonard (1956)
• Roberto Méndez (1976–1979)
• Bill Moran (1976)
• Ivan Murrell (1976)
• Tom Norton (1976)
• Reggie Sanders (1977)
• Ray Torres (1977–1979)
• Earl Williams (1979)

Sources

1. Alacranes de Durango History Archived 2017-03-21 at the Wayback Machine. Baseball Reference Bullpen website
2. Durango's Cult of the Scorpion. Los Angeles Times website
3. 1956 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
4. 1957 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
5. 1965 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
6. 1966 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
7. 1967 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
8. 1972 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
9. 1973 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
10. 1974 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
11. 1976 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
12. 1977 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
13. 1978 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website
14. 1979 Alacranes de Durango season. Baseball Reference website

Further reading

• Treto Cisneros, Pedro (2002). The Mexican League/La Liga Mexicana: Comprehensive Player Statistics, 1937-2001. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-78-641378-2
• Worth, Richard (2013). Baseball Team Names: A Worldwide Dictionary, 1869–2011. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-78-646844-7