Algodoneros de Unión Laguna

The Algodoneros de Unión Laguna (English: Laguna Union Cotton Farmers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Torreón, Coahuila.

Algodoneros de Unión Laguna
Team logo Cap insignia
Information
LeagueMexican League (Zona Norte)
LocationTorreón, Coahuila
BallparkEstadio Revolución
Year founded1940
League championships2 (1942, 1950)
Division championships3 (1942, 1950, 1990)
Former name(s)
    • Jabonera La Unión
    • Jaboneros del Unión Laguna
    • Vaqueros Laguna
    • Vaqueros Unión Laguna
ColorsMaroon, white, gold
     
OwnershipFrancisco Javier Orozco
ManagerOmar Malavé
General ManagerFrancisco Méndez
Websitewww.unionlaguna.mx

History

Early years

The team was established in 1940 under the name Algodoneros de Unión Laguna, named for the Compañía Jabonera la Unión (Union Soap Company), the team's first sponsor.[1] The team won its first pennant in 1942 under manager Martín Dihigo. The franchise moved to Nuevo Laredo in 1944, but an expansion club restored baseball to the region between 1946 and 1953. In the 1950 season, Laguna won their second and latest title to date, with Guillermo Garibay as manager.

1970–1981

With the creation of the Zona Norte in 1970, the Comarca Lagunera returned to the Mexican League. The new Algodoneros de Unión Laguna played their home games in Gómez Palacio, Durango from 1970 to 1974, and moved across the border to Torreón for the 1975 season with the construction of Estadio Superior, which reused the structure of the former Colt Stadium in Houston. The move coincided with new ownership, Don Juan Abusaid Ríos.[1] The team won the Zona Norte in 1974, 1976, and 1978, but fell to the Diablos Rojos del México (1974, 1976) and Rieleros de Aguascalientes (1978) in the league championship. After the 1981 season and a falling out between ownership and Governor José de las Fuentes, Abusaid sold the team to the Sindicato de Trabajadores Petroleros de la República Mexicana (Union of Oil Workers of the Mexican Republic), which moved the franchise to Tampico, Tamaulipas. While the stadium was taken down in Torreón and moved to Tampico, the franchise spent the 1982 season in Monclova, Coahuila, as the Astros de Monclova.

1985–2003

In 1985, the Indios de Ciudad Juárez were bought by Jorge Dueñes Zurita[1] and moved to Torreón, where the franchise has remained since. The team made the postseason in 1989, 1990, 1992, and 1994, but in their lone league championship appearance in 1990, they fell in five games to the Bravos de León. Unión Laguna was bought in 1997 by FEMSA-Cervecería Cuauhtémoc-Moctezuma,[1] which sold the team in 2002 to Ricardo Martín Bringas, the director general of Organización Soriana.[2]

Vaqueros Laguna
Vaqueros Laguna logo used between the 2003 and 2016 seasons

At the beginning of the 21st century, the new management opted to change the team's name and colors. The Vaqueros Laguna (Laguna Cowboys) donned orange uniforms beginning with the 2003 season. The team appeared in the playoffs in 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2015, the latter two years as the wild card.

Vaqueros Unión Laguna

The 2017 season marked a return to tradition for baseball in Torreón as the franchise restored the Unión Laguna name and switched back to maroon as its primary color.[3]

Return to Algodoneros

The 2018 season further marked a return to tradition for baseball in Torreón, as the franchise restored the original name under which the club had been founded in 1940: the Algodoneros de Unión Laguna.[4]

Among their best players in history are Miguel Gaspar, Guillermo Garibay, Pedro "Charolito" Orta, Moisés Camacho,[5] Leo Rodríguez, Martín Dihigo,[6] Jesus "Chanquilón" Diaz, Antonio Pollorena, and Héctor Espino.[7]

Roster
Algodoneros de Unión Laguna roster
Players Coaches/Other

Pitchers

  • 43 Nestor Anguamea
  • 96 Manuel Baez
  • -- Dustin Crenshaw
  • 36 Frankie de la Cruz
  • 51 Jose Frutos
  • 10 Luis Gamez
  • -- Jordan Guerrero
  • -- Santiago Gutierrez
  • -- Jair Jurrjens
  • -- Warner Madrigal
  •  3 Alejandro Martinez
  • 55 Oswaldo Martinez
  • 87 Edgar Martinez
  • -- Jenrry Mejía
  • -- Aldo Montes
  • 19 Edgar Osuna
  • 32 Roman Pena
  •  1 Axel Rios
  • 15 Jose Miguel Sanchez

Catchers

  • -- Alejandro Flores
  • 75 Adrian Gutierrez
  • 33 Abraham Lopez
  • 12 Daniel Mercado

Infielders

  • -- Bryant Aragon
  • 43 Kevin Flores
  • 29 Brian Garcia
  •  7 Ciro Norzagaray
  • 24 Francisco Rivera
  • -- Carlos Rivero
  • -- Isaias Tejeda
  • -- Adrian Tovalin

Outfielders

  • 92 Francisco Ferreiro
  • -- Francisco Hernandez
  • 47 David Miranda
  • 66 Edgar Robles
  • 13 Jorge Sesma

Manager

Coaches

  • 44 Rogelio Del Campo
  • 16 Salvador Garibay
  • 53 Carlos Eduardo Gonzalez
  • 63 Leonardo Munoz
  • 18 Flavio Orea
  • 88 Jesus Ramirez
  •  2 Leo Valenzuela


7-day injured list

# Rehab assignment
∞ Reserve list
‡ Restricted list
§ Suspended list
† Temporary inactive list
Roster updated February 5, 2021
 Transactions
→ More rosters: MiLB • Mexican League

Retired numbers
  • 6 Pedro Orta
  • 11 Guillermo Garibay
  • 21 Héctor Espino

References
  1. Luna Walss, Rodolfo (20 July 2005). "El negocio del béisbol". El Siglo de Torreón (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  2. Luna Walss, Rodolfo (27 July 2005). "El negocio del béisbol". El Siglo de Torreón. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  3. Corpus, Salvador (17 February 2017). "Vaqueros presenta nueva imagen". LMB (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  4. "Regresan los Algodoneros Unión Laguna". LMB (in Spanish). 2 February 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  5. "Moises Camacho Mexican & Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  6. "Martín Dihigo Mexican & Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  7. "Héctor Espino Mexican & Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
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