Eusebio Elizalde

Eusebio Elizalde Rocha

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 7", Weight 168 lb.

• Born January 20, 1938 in Anahuac, Tamaulipas Mexico

BR Minors page

Eusebio Elizalde pitched professionally for fourteen seasons.

Elizalde debuted in 1961, going 14-8 with a 3.61 ERA for the Leon Aguilas. In '62, he was 17-13 with a 5.43 ERA for the Fresnillo Rojos, two wins shy of the Mexican Center League lead. In 1963, the 25-year-old made his Mexican League debut, with a 3-1, 6.96 record for the Mexico City Red Devils. He was 6-5 with a 5.75 ERA for the 1964 Red Devils then split '65 between Mexico City (16 runs in 20 innings) and the Tabasco Plataneros (2-1, 1.71). In 1966, he was 0-1 with four runs in four innings for the Veracruz Eagle but spent most of the year with the Campeche Pirates, where he was dominant at 13-2, 1.08. He tied for the Mexican Southeast League lead in victories and set the league record for ERA (never broken).

Eusebio thus earned a trip back to the Mexican League and spent all of 1967 with Veracruz, going 9-6 with a 2.72 ERA and only 28 walks in 109 innings over 46 relief outings. Had he qualified, he would have ranked 4th in ERA. He had his best season in 1968, going 13-7 with a 2.05 ERA and just 29 unintentional walks in 123 innings for the Eagle, appearing in 63 games. He again would have been 4th in the LMB in ERA had he qualified.

The little right-hander fell to 3-7, 4.58 in his third year with Veracruz; he fell back to the Mexican minors for the last time (3-0, 2.57 with Leon). Elizalde pitched for the 1970 Reynosa Broncos (1-1, 8 R in 6 IP), then was with the Sabinas Pirates in 1971 (2-4, 3.32) and 1972 (1 R in 3 IP). He played for the 1973 Monterrey Sultans (3 R in 11 IP) then ended his career four years later with the Tampico Lightermen (11 R, 4 ER in 26 IP). Overall, he was 37-32 with a 3.79 ERA in 282 Mexican League games (7 starts) and 49-24 in the lower Mexican circuits.

He managed the Bravos de León for part of 1979, replacing Benny Valenzuela at the helm.

Primary Sources: The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics by Pedro Treto Cisneros, Pat Doyle database

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