2025 Dominican Republic Tour Recap and Photo Log
Next Dominican Republic Winter Ball Adventure: November 11-22, 2026
Days One & Two — November 3 & 4, 2025
We arrived in the beautiful DR yesterday and enjoyed a great welcome dinner at the El Embarcadero, our hotel’s restaurant on the pier over the water!
Today, we explored the La Cueva de las Maravillas, or the “The Cave of Wonders.” This gorgeous cave, a natural tourist destination, showcases an impressive cave network with ancient paintings from the Taino natives. The iguana sanctuary is a must-see experience.
We also got in plenty of baseball activities with visits to the Boston Red Sox and LA Dodgers academies.
The highlight at the Red Sox facility was eating lunch like a ballplayer with the players in their cafeteria. Excellent home cooked typical Dominican food and drinks with wonderful hospitality!
The Dodgers visit was great with the whole academy staff from the director to the gardeners just returning from the World Series. We toured their academy Campo Las Palmas, the first in DR with all sorts of history in producing greats like Pedro Martinez and Adrian Beltre.
We capped off the day with a LIDOM winter league game between the Gigantes del Cibao and Toros del Este at Estadio Francisco Micheli, featuring many former and current MLB players like Eloy Jimenez, Bryan de La Cruz, Johan Rojas, and Nomar Mazara.
The Gigantes pulled through, 7-4, in a crazy 15 innings!
Day Three — November 5
We started our day with a delicious traditional Dominican breakfast then drove out to San Pedro de Macoris, an important cultural center in the country on and off the baseball diamond.
San Pedro is called “The Cradle of Shortstops” due to producing legendary players such as Tony Fernandez, Mariano Duncan, and Fernando Tatis Jr. The murals are super cool! We also hit the San Pedro main fire station, the first in the country, and got a look at the Jumbo San Pedro supermarket.
Afterwards, it was time for another great night of winter ball between the Toros del Este and Estrellas Orientales at Estadio Tetelo Vargas.
It was a 7-4 victory for the Estrellas as longtime Colorado Rockie Raimel Tapia led the way with 3 hits. The electric former NPB reliever (and king of strikeout celebrations) Jefry Yan got the hold in the 8th and former AL ROY Neftali Feliz got the save in the 9th.
Day Four — November 6
We kicked off the day with a visit to Banco BHD, the official bank of MLB in the Dominican Republic. Every year, thousands of young Dominican, Venezuelan, and other Latin American prospects receive their long-awaited signing bonuses there, which is why locals say “Christmas comes on January 15” for baseball families.
At the bank, we toured their museum of Dominican baseball artifacts, met the great Carlos Gomez (@cadigoliz), Vice President of MLB Accounts, and learned how deeply intertwined the country’s financial and baseball worlds are. The Q&A was super educational and interesting!
From there, we visited two incredible youth baseball programs. First was Academia de Beisbol la Grey de Jehova, run by former MLB colleague Frandy Jimenez, where local kids showed off their skills and passion for the game. Then we headed to Liga Deportiva Quezada, founded by Jose Luis Quezada, who also worked with Shane in the Dominican MLB Office.
Former MLB catcher Wellington Castillo (@welington_castillo) was also there to support all the young players. It was so great meeting him!
We wrapped up the day at Gran Parador Bella Mar, famous for having “the best ribs in the Caribbean.” A perfect way to end another unforgettable day immersed in Dominican baseball culture.
Days Five & Six — November 7 & 8
We started Friday at the Colorado Rockies complex, where we caught an Instructional League matchup between the Nationals and Rockies. It was a great look into how some of the top young talent develop in the Dominican Republic.
After the game, Victor Rodriguez, Director of International Operations for the Washington Nationals, welcomed us to the Nationals Academy for an insightful Q&A session about scouting, player development, and the journey from the Dominican Republic to the Major Leagues.
Next, we checked into our new hotel, the Crowne Plaza Santo Domingo, which has gorgeous views, and were greeted by none other than Luis Polonia, the all-time hits leader in Dominican Winter League history! He graciously took photos and signed autographs for everyone.
Before heading to the night’s ballgame, we made a stop at the Museum of the Dominican Ballplayer, which celebrates the country’s rich baseball heritage and honors many of its LIDOM legends.
We finished the night at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal, where the Toros del Este took down the Tigres del Licey — our third straight Toros game and finally, a Toros win!
On Saturday, we headed to Pantoja, hometown of our guide Pachy, to visit the youth baseball program Triunfadores con Jesus. The kids’ energy and love for the game were infectious!
After enjoying a classic Dominican lunch at Chicharrones de la Cayetano, famous for its crispy pork skin and lechon, we explored Parque Nacional Tres Ojos, a breathtaking underground cave and lagoon system, and made a quick stop at the Malecon Santo Domingo Este for a fun photo opp with baseball statues overlooking the sea.
We wrapped up the evening wandering through the Colonial Zone, the oldest European settlement in the Americas and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where we viewed the nation’s early history and independence before sitting down for a cozy German-Dominican dinner at Centro Dominico-Aleman.
Days Seven & Eight — November 9 & 10
We started Sunday off with a trip through baseball history at Estadio La Normal, the oldest ballpark in the Dominican Republic and one of the most historic sites in Caribbean baseball. The stadium hosted the Brooklyn Dodgers back in 1948, featuring legends like Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, and Pee Wee Reese, and was also where boxing great Joe Louis fought in 1949. Fittingly, this is also where Juan Soto and his brother Elian grew up honing their skills!
Afterwards, we grabbed lunch at the iconic Barra Payan, a Santo Domingo institution made famous by Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown.” Their sandwiches and smoothies are the best!
Then, we took in some more LIDOM baseball at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal, where the Leones del Escogido defeated the Tigres del Licey, 4-2. Before the game, we even played some Dominican style vitilla in the parking lot!
Monday was a much-needed rest day after a busy week on the road. The morning was free to relax and unwind where many of us enjoyed the hotel’s beautifully remodeled pool overlooking the Caribbean.
In the afternoon, we returned to Estadio Quisqueya for yet another exciting winter ball matchup — this time Escogido vs. the Toros del Este. The Toros went up big early and held on to win, 12-4.
Days Nine & Ten — November 11 & 12
We continued the last leg of our journey on Tuesday with a deep dive into one of the Dominican Republics most talent-rich regions. Our first stop was Nizao, hometown of legends like Vladimir Guerrero Sr., Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Ketel Marte. From there, we headed to nearby Palenque for an exclusive visit to the academy of former MLB infielder Juan Uribe. For lunch, we ate at Tipico Bonao for some tasty Dominican classics like stewed meats, rice and beans, tostones, and fresh juices before heading north toward Santiago.
The following day, we explored one of the regions most meaningful landmarks, the Monumento a los Heroes de la Restauracion, along with the nearby monument dedicated to some of the greatest players in Aguilas Cibaenas history.
But one of our favorite activities of the entire trip came next: the El Sendero del Cacao tour! Everyone absolutely loved learning how cacao is grown, harvested, and transformed into Dominican chocolate.
We wrapped up the trip with one last unforgettable baseball experience. Before the nights’ scheduled Gigantes vs. Estrellas game at Estadio Julian Javier, the two teams completed the second half of a previously suspended matchup, giving us bonus baseball to close out our LIDOM adventures!
What an amazing 10+ days in baseball paradise! Thank you all so much for following along!