The Indios de Oriente was a baseball club which played from 1956 through 1964 in the

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Early years Baseball exp ...

. They played its home games at the Estadio Municipal de Puerto La Cruz in

Anzoátegui ) , anthem = '' Himno del Estado Anzoátegui'' , image_map = Anzoategui in Venezuela.svg , map_alt = , map_caption = Location within Venezuela , pushpin_map = , pushpin_map_a ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in ...

History

The Indios de Oriente replaced the

Navegantes del Magallanes The Navegantes del Magallanes ( Magellan Navigators), commonly known as Magallanes, are a baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. Based in Valencia, Magallanes has won 13 LVBP championships and two (2) Caribbean Series. It w ...

franchise for the 1956–1957 season. The team finished second in the first half with a 13-14 record, but slumped to 10-15 in the second half to finish last in the four-team league, out of contention. They improved to a 22-19 mark in 1957–1958, good for a second place and a playoff berth, but failed in the opening round. In 1958–1959 Oriente finished second during the regular season. Then advanced to the playoffs and clinched the Championship title. As the league champions, the team represented Venezuela in the

1959 Caribbean Series The eleventh edition of the Caribbean Series (''Serie del Caribe'') was played in 1959. It was held from February 10 through February 15 with the champions teams from Cuba ( Almendares), Panama ( Coclé), Puerto Rico ( Santurce) and Venezuela ( Ori ...

played in

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

. With a low-profile squad, Oriente came in on an honourable second place behind

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

's Alacranes de Almendares after finishing 4-2. Managed by

Kerby Farrell Major Kerby Farrell (September 3, 1913 – December 17, 1975) was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager. He was a longtime minor league manager who spent a single season — 1957 — managing in Major League Baseball for the ...

, the offensive was anchored by RF/1B and Series MVP Norman Cash, who collected a .360 average and 11 RBI, while slugging .680.

Babe Birrer Werner Joseph Birrer (July 4, 1928 – November 19, 2013) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball. Listed at 6' 0", 195 lb., Birrer batted and threw right handed. He was born in Buffalo, New York. Graduated from Kensington High S ...

was the top pitcher with a 2-0 record, including a 13-inning victory, a 1.25 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 21⅔ innings of work. Besides, 3B Luis ′′Camaleón′′ García and OF Jesús Mora tied for the batting title with a .417 average. All of them made the All-Star team. The 1959–1960 VPBL season was suspended because of a players' strike. Returning to action the next season, the team finished second with a 29-23 record but lost the semifinal round to the eventual champion team, the

Industriales de Valencia The Industriales de Valencia was a baseball club who played from 1955 through 1968 in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. The Industriales joined the league as a replacement for the Santa Marta BBC. The Industriales were based at Valencia ...

. In 1961–1962, for the fourth time in team's history, the Indios ended in second place during the regular season after going 29-22. Lastly, Oriente was beaten by the

Leones del Caracas The Caracas Base Ball Club C.A. or better known by its commercial name as the ''Leones del Caracas'', is a professional baseball team of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. In its creation, its headquarters are the University Stadium of C ...

in the best-of-seven championship series, four to one games. The Indios de Oriente declined considerably in 1962–1963, posting an 8-25 record before retiring during the midseason.

Estrellas de Oriente

The franchise was renamed and restructured to become the Estrellas de Oriente for the 1963-64 season. They also were misspelled as the Estrellas Orientales or simply Oriente. Nonetheless, the changes did not create a more competitive team, as they finished fourth with a 21-29 record. At the end of the year, the franchise owners acquired the brand

and continued in the league the following season.

Yearly Team Records

Noted players

Joe Altobelli Joseph Salvatore Altobelli (May 26, 1932 – March 3, 2021) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder who played for the Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball. He was also a manager for the San Fr ...

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* Oswaldo Blanco *

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Chico Carrasquel Alfonso Carrasquel Colón, better known as Chico Carrasquel (January 23, 1926 – May 26, 2005), was a Venezuelan professional baseball player, coach, scout and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a shortstop from 1950 to 195 ...

Néstor Chávez Néstor Isaías Chávez Silva (July 6, 1947 - March 16, 1969) was a Venezuelan right-handed starting pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the San Francisco Giants in 1967. Career Chávez was born on July 6, 1947 in Chacao, Miranda St ...

Harry Chiti Harry Dominic Chiti Jr. (pronounced ) (November 16, 1932 – January 31, 2002) was an American catcher in Major League Baseball. He appeared in 502 games over all or parts of ten seasons between and for the Chicago Cubs, Kansas City Athletic ...

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Bob Darnell Robert Jack Darnell (November 6, 1930 – January 3, 1995) was an American professional baseball pitcher who appeared in seven games in Major League Baseball during the and seasons for the Brooklyn Dodgers. The right-hander, a native of Wewoka ...

* Bob Duliba *

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* Dick Egan * Harry Elliott * Dick Fowler *

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* Luis García *

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* Rod Graber *

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* Bert Hamric *

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* Julián Ladera *

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Jack Lohrke Jack Wayne Lohrke (February 25, 1924 – April 29, 2009) was a third baseman in Major League Baseball. During his playing career, he stood 6' (183 cm) tall, weighed 180 pounds (81.7 kg) and threw and batted right-handed. "Lucky Lohrke" ...

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* Jesús Mora *

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* Johnny Schaive * Wally Shannon *

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* Ron Taylor * Fred Valentine * Gale Wade * Ray Webster * Mike White

Sources

*Gutiérrez, Daniel; González, Javier (1992). ''Numeritos del béisbol profesional venezolano (1946-1992)''. LVBP, Caracas. *Nuñez, José Antero (1994). ''Serie del Caribe de la Habana a Puerto La Cruz''. JAN Editor.

External links

PuraPelota.com – Indios de OrientePuraPelota.com – Estrellas de OrienteBeisbolVenezolano.net – Equipos del béisbol venezolano
{{Venezuelan Professional Baseball League , state=collapsed 1956 establishments in Venezuela Defunct baseball teams in Venezuela Baseball teams established in 1956