Dominican Baseball League @ ESPN Deportes.

The Dominican Baseball League, the Caribbean’s most storied winter baseball league and a forum for current and future major league stars to sharpen their skills, has a new television home in the U.S. on ESPN Deportes.

ESPN Deportes and the Dominican Baseball League announced a new multi-year agreement that grants ESPN Deportes the exclusive telecast rights in the U.S. and Puerto Rico to the entire schedule of regular season games, plus playoffs and the final championship series.

In addition, pitching legend Juan Marichal, the only Dominican- born player in the Hall of Fame, has been signed to provide commentary and analysis on ESPN Deportes telecasts. Joining Marichal for play-by-play will be veteran Dominican League and Major League Baseball announcers Kevin Cabral and Carlos José Lugo. Rounding out the broadcast team is Carolina Cruz, who brings a passion for baseball and sharp interviewing skills to her role as a field reporter.

“This announcement is cause to celebrate for a variety reasons,” said Lino Garcia, general manager, ESPN Deportes. “By adding the Dominican League, we have made a tremendous enhancement to our already potent baseball line-up. We are also honored that Juan Marichal, a baseball legend and a hero to the Dominican community, has agreed to join us for our telecasts.”

Added Garcia: “We’re delivering a message to fans that baseball season doesn’t end with the final out of the World Series. We’re also demonstrating our commitment to serve our Latino fan base by offering programming that is tailored to their interests.”

In addition to the Dominican League, ESPN Deportes also televises extensive coverage of Mexican Winter League Baseball and Mexican Summer League Baseball, as well as more than 70 regular season Major League Baseball games.

This season, ESPN Deportes plans to offer telecasts of up to 30 Dominican League games, including playoffs, on Wednesday nights at 7 p.m. ET and Sunday afternoons at 2 p.m. ET.

The Dominican Baseball League consists of six teams: Aguilas Cibaeñas; Azucareros del Este; Estrellas del Oriente; Gigantes del Cibao; Leones del Escogido; and Tigres del Liceo. Each team plays a 50-game schedule, with the top four teams advancing to the playoffs. The titleholder then goes on to represent the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean Series to play against the champions of Mexico, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. Last year, the Dominican Republic captured its record 15th Caribbean Series Championship and its sixth in eight years.