The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the highest level baseball league in Venezuela

The Season Details

The league houses eight teams in two divisions (East and West) which play sixty-two games from October to December in the elimination (opening) round
The top two teams from each division as well as the best third place team move on to the sixteen game round robin semifinals in January
The top two teams from the semifinals advance to a best of seven series in a 2-3-2 homefield format at the end of January

The Venezuelan champion moves on to the Caribbean Series to face the champions of the baseball leagues of the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Mexico

Venezuela has won the Caribbean Series six times, most recently in 2006 by the Leones del Caracas (Caracas Lions)

A Brief History

Baseball exploded in Venezuela in 1941, following the world-wide championships in Havana
On December 27, 1945, the owners of the Caracas Brewers (present day Caracas Lions or Leones del Caracas), Vargas, the Magallanes Navigators (Navegantes del Magallanes), and Venezuela created the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League
On January 12, 1946, the first champion was crowned
After the first season, Vargas changed their name to the Guaira Sharks (Tiburones de La Guaira)
In 1964, the league added two more teams, the Lara Cardinals (Cardenales de Lara) and the Aragua Tigers (Tigres de Aragua)
In 1969, the Zulia Eagles (Águilas del Zulia) are brought into the league to replace the Valencia Industrymen (Industriales de Valencia) - the original Venezuela team
In 1991, the league expanded to eight teams from six, with the additions of the Eastern Caribbeans (Caribes de Oriente) who are now the Anzoátegui Caribbeans or (Caribes de Anzoteguil) - and the Cabimas Oil Tankers, who are now the Llanos Shephards (Pastora de los Llanos)

The Teams

Location
Click here for three maps showing Venezuela, Acarigua and Araure

"The Needles"
Click here for the list of vaccinations Brett was required to have

Accommodation - San Cono Suites
Click here for the details of where Brett will be staying - includes shots of his living room, kitchen, bath and bedrooms, along with the views he has - plus there are another six photos of the area around Brett's 'Venezuelan home' - and a link to an information site about Acarigua and Araure, which includes a photo albumn

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League
Click here for the League's web site------(NOTE - this site is in Spanish)

Season Details
Opening date of the season is Thursday 12th October, and games continue until Saturday 30th December 2004
Click here for the complete League schedule

The Round Robin for the teams that advance commences on (to be advised)
The Championship Series begins on (to be advised)
The Caribbean Series is to be held in (to be advised) during (to be advised)

Translation - Spanish to English
Naturally, the web sites associated with this League and Team are in Spanish, but I will be trying to gather as much information as possible as the season progresses - for example, game reports, newspaper articles, etc
Also, I hope to be able to include all Box Scores, Statistics, League Leaders, and Division Tables - somewhere they might be available in English!!!

"Learning curve in US stint - AA rating for best year in Minor League"
Click here to read this article which was published in the Cairns Post on Monday 25th September 2006
In this article, Brett speaks about how his shoulder went following surgery, his 2006 season with the Altoona Curve, his Club and All Star Game 'Most Valuable Awards' - and his coming season playing in the Venezualan League from October to December 2006

"The Imported Players" - "The Purple Machine"
Click here to read six articles published in Venezuelan newspapers during September 2006 - though the articles are in Spanish, Brett's details have been highlighted in each - also mentioned is his previous season in 2004 with the Leones del Caracas - the page includes two photos, one of which shows the new uniforms for the Pastora de Los Llanos, becoming "The Purple Machine"

"The Team Manager is replaced"
Click here to read two articles and an email from Brett - these articles detail the replacement of the Team Manager, Edgar Alfonzo, following the game on Monday 30th October - Pastora lost this game, and that was the seventh consecutive loss resulting in a '4wins-7losses' season to date record - they also include the appointment of the new Manager, Phil Regan, who was the pitching coach - Brett's email covers "the confusion" by the players, and that some are threatening to strike over the new appointment, and just how hard it is to understand what is going on when everybody is speaking Spanish!!!

Team Web Site
Click here to go to The Pastora de Los Llanos official web site (NOTE - this site started on Thursday 19th October 2006)

Team and Player Promotional Computer Wallpapers
Click here to see four different team computer wallpapers released by Pastora
Click here to see computer wallpapers which feature a player - and the players included to date are:-
----------Frank Diaz

Schedule
Click here for the full year schedule for Brett's team - first game is on Thursday 12th October 2006

The Stadium - Estadio Bachiller Julio H. Molina
Click here for all the details on the Stadium - there is a diagram of the field, and the field dimensions - and there are sixteen photos, which include the Stadium exterior, the field, and outside and inside of the players' clubhouse

Team Roster
Click here for details of the "Pastora de Los Llanos" players - includes a list of the imported players

Player Profile
Click here to see Brett's Player Profile as it appeared on Pastora's web site - Uniform #16

Game-by-Game Reports
Click here for the details on the games in which Brett participated

Statistics
Click here for Brett's season-to-date statistics

Home Runs
Click here - Number One - Friday 27th October 2006 v Navegantes del Magallanes

News and Notes during the Season
Brett is mentioned in all these articles
#01 - Click here to read an article titled "Roneberg disfruta regreso a Venezuela" which translates as "Roneberg enjoys return to Venezuela" - includes a few details on Brett's 2004 season with the Leones del Caracas, and his first game against them this year playing for Pastora de los Llanos - Brett is interviewed and speaks about this first game, along with his hopes for the season - also mentions his season with the Pittsburgh Pirates organisation this year - from the 'El-universal.com' web site on Saturday 14th October 2006
#02 - Click here to read an article titled "Pastora con todos los hierros" and this article is an interview with Ruben Mijares, the General Manager of Pastora de los Llanos - he speaks about 'The Purple Machine' in general, and Brett is mentioned as one of the 'shining lights' of the team, and that he had played in Venezuela before with the Leones del Caracas during the 2004/2005 season - from the 'Batazos.com' web site on Monday 16th October 2006
#03 - Click here to read an article titled "Roneberg mejora" which translates as "Roneberg improves" - is a brief note on Brett's improvement since his stay in hospital - says the team hope to have him back soon - from the 'Lider en Deportes' web site on Friday 20th October 2006

"My time in Venezuela"
Click here for a few notes from Brett sent during the season
------------and this page includes all the details of "My time in a Venezuelan Hospital!!!"

------------------