Tijuana Municipal going back to LLWS

By Ramon Scott
Updated: July 11, 2026

2026 LITTLE LEAGUE MEXICO REGIONAL CHAMPION MUNICIPAL DE TIJUANA

2026 LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL

Four days after leaving the bases loaded twice in its only tournament loss, Municipal de Tijuana reversed the result with an 8-2 victory over Matamoros to claim Mexico’s Little League championship, sending the power league back to Williamsport

By RAMON SCOTT
EastCountySports.com

MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas — Municipal de Tijuana had already learned how quickly an opportunity against Matamoros could disappear.

Four days earlier, the Baja California champions repeatedly placed runners in scoring position, twice left the bases loaded and watched Matamoros turn its own opportunities into a 7-4 pool-play victory.

Given a second chance Saturday with a trip to Williamsport at stake, Tijuana Municipal left little unfinished.

Municipal scored twice in the first inning, added four more in the second and rode a dominant pitching performance from Jorge Fonseca to an 8-2 victory over Matamoros in the championship game of Mexico’s Serie Nacional Pequeña on Saturday, July 11.

The victory secured Mexico’s berth in the 2026 Little League World Series and completed a 7-1 national tournament run for Tijuana, which outscored its opponents 47-12.

WATCH THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Watch the complete Mexico Little League championship game between Municipal de Tijuana and Matamoros below. The Play by Play broadcast is presented in Spanish.

The title is the third for Municipal de Tijuana, following its previous Mexico championships in 2013 and 2023.

Municipal lost the International Championship game to Japan, 3-2 in 2013, then 10 years later, the league was eliminated by eventual International Champion, Curacao, in the loser’s bracket final in 2023.

The latest championship came against a Matamoros team that entered the final undefeated and had already defeated Municipal during pool play.

That first meeting provided the defining contrast of Tijuana’s championship run.

In the July 7 game, Municipal tied the score in the first inning on an RBI double by Fonseca and later loaded the bases with one out. Tijuana failed to score again and stranded all three runners.

Municipal loaded the bases for a second time in the second inning but again came away empty. The broadcasters noted that Tijuana had already left the bases loaded twice while Matamoros capitalized on its own opportunities at the other end.

Matamoros eventually built a 7-1 advantage. Tijuana battled back with three late runs but could not complete the comeback, falling 7-4 in its only defeat of the state and national tournaments.

In Saturday’s rematch, Municipal’s patience and situational hitting produced an entirely different result.

Mateo Montañés worked an eight-pitch walk in the top of the first inning, beginning a long and stressful opening frame for the Matamoros pitching staff. Fonseca also reached, and Gareth García’s ground ball kept the inning moving despite a force play at third.

With two runners aboard and two outs, Emiliano Kerber delivered the first major hit of the championship, driving a two-run single into the outfield to give Tijuana a 2-0 lead. The live broadcast described both runs as unearned after the walks and defensive difficulties that extended the inning.

Those early runs were especially meaningful after Municipal’s missed opportunities in the teams’ first meeting.

Tijuana did not allow Matamoros to escape a second time.

The pressure continued in the second inning when Néstor Melchor drew a leadoff walk. Tadeo Páez followed with a hard single, placing runners at first and second with nobody out.

Esteban Bautista then punched a ground-ball single through the infield, scoring Melchor and extending the lead to 3-0.

Iker González followed with a double that drove in Páez for a 4-0 advantage as a light rain began falling over the packed Villa del Refugio ballpark.

Paul Lavenant later walked to load the bases, and Matías García delivered a two-run single to center that completed a four-run inning and stretched the lead to 6-0.

The difference from the earlier meeting was unmistakable.

Tijuana had placed runners on base in both games. In the championship, its hitters found the openings, advanced runners and produced the timely contacts that had been missing four days earlier.

Municipal’s approach also placed immediate pressure on the Matamoros pitching staff. The host team made an early pitching change in the first inning and used four pitchers before recording an out in the second.

While Tijuana’s offense seized control, Fonseca removed any immediate possibility of a Matamoros comeback.

The right-hander opened the game by overpowering the host lineup. He struck out two batters in the first inning and added two more in the second, recording four strikeouts through the first six outs.

By the fourth inning, Fonseca had struck out seven of the first 11 Matamoros batters while throwing only 38 pitches.

Matamoros’ only early baserunner reached after being hit by a pitch. Otherwise, Fonseca attacked the strike zone, changed speeds and received clean defensive support behind him.

His efficient work prevented the championship from developing into the kind of back-and-forth game the teams had played earlier in the tournament.

Municipal supplied its final blow in the fifth inning.

With Tijuana already six outs away from Williamsport, Kerber drove a pitch over the left-field fence for a two-run home run. The shot extended the lead to 8-0 and sent the Tijuana supporters into celebration.

The broadcast showed Kerber’s mother celebrating in the crowd as her son rounded the bases, providing one of the defining images of the championship.

Matamoros scored twice late, but the outcome had already been decided.

Tijuana completed the 8-2 victory, setting off a celebration for the players, coaches and families who had traveled across Mexico to pursue the Williamsport berth.

The championship concluded an extraordinary postseason for Municipal.

Before arriving in Matamoros, Tijuana went 5-0 in the Baja California state tournament and outscored its opposition 54-8.

At the national tournament, Municipal went 5-1 in Pool A, finishing behind Matamoros and advancing as the second-place team. The format sent the top two teams from each pool into the semifinals.

Tijuana then defeated fellow Baja California representative Seguro Social of Mexicali, 3-1, in the semifinals.

Matamoros edged Cuauhtémoc of Nuevo León, 1-0, in the other semifinal, setting up the championship rematch.

Altogether, Municipal went 12-1 across the state and national tournaments with a combined scoring advantage of 101-20.

The championship adds another chapter to one of Mexico’s most accomplished Little League programs.

Municipal de Tijuana first represented Mexico in Williamsport in 2013 and advanced to the International Championship game. After falling one victory short of the World Championship game, Tijuana defeated Westport, Connecticut, in the consolation game to finish third overall.

Municipal returned in 2023 and again made a deep international-bracket run, advancing to the International Semifinals before being eliminated by Curaçao.

The 2026 appearance will be the eighth by a team from Baja California and the 38th overall appearance for Mexico in the Little League World Series.

Tijuana will open International Bracket play against Ryde Little League of Sydney, Australia, on Thursday, Aug. 20, in Game 5.

Ryde’s representative, known as Ryde Red, will represent Australia in Williamsport.

Several other positions in the International Bracket remain undecided as regional tournaments continue, but Municipal already knows its opening opponent and has more than a month to prepare for its return to Pennsylvania.

Tijuana will arrive with a balanced offense, an accomplished pitching staff and the experience of having already responded to adversity.

Its only loss in Mexico came against the same opponent it eventually had to defeat for the national title.

When the rematch arrived, Tijuana did not merely reverse the outcome.

Municipal controlled the championship from the opening inning and earned another trip to Williamsport.

MUNICIPAL DE TIJUANA

Players: Gael Santa María, Néstor Melchor, Matías García, Tadeo Páez, Emiliano Kerber, Esteban Bautista, Jorge Arturo Fonseca, Iker González, Gareth García, Mateo Montañés, Rafael Mesina and Paul Lavenant.

Manager: Francisco Fimbres.