The Los Gigantes are the Masters 38+ champions for the first time in franchise history, defeating the Avi Nelson Rockies three games to one in the best-of-five Championship Series.

Heading into Game 4 with a 2-1 series lead, the Gigantes put a stamp on a dominant season with a 7-2 victory that saw the franchise capture its first Masters Division crown.

Gigantes Manager/Pitcher Jose Aquino (4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 K, 3 BB) earned the title-clinching win, allowing just 2 runs on 3 hits to go along with 2 strikeouts in 4 innings of work.

Carlos Escano (4-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B) fueled the offense, going 4-for-4 at the plate with 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored.

Reliever Manny Delcarmen (2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 6 K) tossed the final two innings, striking out all six batters he faced to close out the game and secure the team's first title.

"This win means everything," said Aquino following the Game 4 triumph. "We set up the team and put ourselves in a position to win. We had one goal this year and that was to win a championship, and it's great that I had the opportunity to pitch in this game."

Motivated by a season-ending loss in Game 5 of the semifinals last year, the Gigantes came into the 2022 season on a bit of a high from their off-season recruiting efforts, which saw the team bring in the likes of Yulkin German, Joel Torres, Jose Toledano, George Ziegler, Juan Rouge, Felix Villalobos, and Roman Colon.

The revamped Gigantes went on to produce a division-best 16-1 record in the regular season with a franchise-high +149 run differential — the second-highest run differential in Masters Division history.

Over the course of their 17-game regular-season schedule, the Gigantes averaged an astounding 11 runs per game and trailed in a total of just 5 innings all season, and at one stretch, had not trailed in a game in 42 straight innings.

Offensively, the Gigantes ranked first in virtually every statistical category, including average (.425), hits (225), runs (187), doubles (42), triples (8), home runs (10), slugging percentage (.591), and OPS (1.053). A remarkable thirteen different players hit .400 or higher on the regular season, including Yulkin German, who was named the 2022 Masters MVP.

The two-way star batted .469 (23-49) and led the division in runs scored (23), doubles (9), home runs (5), slugging percentage (1.041), and OPS (1.559). As a pitcher, German appeared in 7 games and compiled a 2-0 record with 1 save and 40 strikeouts over 20 innings. The veteran southpaw led the team in ERA (1.05), WHIP (.750), and SOIP (2.00).

The pitching staff as a whole finished first in the division in terms of ERA (1.64), WHIP (1.047), strikeouts (129), SOIP (1.21), and runs allowed (38), holding their opponents to just 2.24 runs per game.

George Ziegler served as the staff's ace in just his first year with the squad, producing an undefeated 7-0 record with a 1.74 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 40.1 innings on the hill.

For the first time in their five-year history, the Gigantes owned the No. 1 overall seed heading into the postseason, where they faced the No. 8-seeded Boston Dodgers (4-12) in an opening-round best-of-three quarterfinal matchup.

The Gigantes carried its regular season dominance into their first-round series, defeating the Dodgers in two games by scores of 11-0 and 10-2.

Ziegler (7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 9 K) and Aquino (5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 K) combined to go 2-0 in the series with 13 strikeouts, limiting the Dodgers to just 2 runs (1 earned) on 7 hits. The two starters received plenty of run support, thanks to the Gigantes' high-octane offense, which collected 21 runs on 27 hits, with 10 of those hits going for extra bases.

For the third straight season and fourth time in five years, the Gigantes advanced on to the semifinal round, where they would have a chance to exact some revenge on the 4th-seeded Bulls (10-7), the team responsible for their early exit in both the 2019 and 2020 postseason.

The red-hot Gigantes would seize that opportunity and continue their torrid winning pace with a three-game sweep of the Bulls, defeating their bitter rivals 11-5, 13-6, and 4-1 in the best-of-five series.

The Gigantes pitchers held the Bulls to a .256 batting average, allowing just 8 earned runs while striking out 20. Ziegler (6-7, 5 R, BB) and Escano (5-9, 3 R, 7 RBI, 3 2B) went a combined 11-for-16 with 8 runs scored to lead the offense, which struck out just five times in the series.

After failing to make it out of the semifinal round in three of the previous four seasons, the Los Gigantes finally broke through, reaching their first-ever Masters Division Finals, where they would meet the No. 3-seeded Avi Nelson Rockies (12-5).

The Rockies finished the 2022 regular season with a franchise-best 12 wins, surpassing the previous mark of 11 wins held by the 2019 squad. The fifth-year team also set a club record in runs scored (97), average (.337), slugging percentage (.412), and OPS (.821).

Five different players hit .400 or higher in the regular season, including newcomer Mike Feetham, who led the team with a .636 (14-22) batting average, 1.552 OPS, and .818 slugging percentage.

The pitching staff, which ranked second in ERA (2.35) and runs allowed (55), was led by Ethan Solomon (5-1, 0.78 ERA, 56 K) and Mike Barthel (4-1, 1.17 ERA, 23 K), who combined to produce a 9-2 record in the regular season with a 0.95 ERA.

Solomon took home the Cy Young Award for a second consecutive season and the third time in his career, with a league-high 56 strikeouts, .750 WHIP, and 1.56 SOIP.

The Rockies reached the Masters Finals for a second straight season by virtue of a 2-0 series victory over the 6th-seeded Metro Red Sox (7-7-1) in the quarterfinals, and a 3-1 series win over the 2nd-seeded Milton Breakers (14-3) in the semifinals.

Mike Feetham combined to hit .667 (10-for-15) in the two series with a home run, triple, 2 doubles, and 5 RBIs. Cy Young Award winner Ethan Solomon recorded a win in both series and remained undefeated in his postseason career, going 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA while striking out 25.

For the first time in Masters Division history, the No. 1-seeded Los Gigantes faced the No. 3-seeded Avi Nelson Rockies in the best-of-five Championship Series.

The two teams had just one prior postseason meeting back in last year's semifinal round, which saw the Gigantes fall to the Rockies in five games and fail to reach the Finals for the third time in four years.

That loss would serve as motivation for the Gigantes, who quickly took a two games to none lead in the Finals after outscoring the Rockies 12-to-1 (5-1, 7-0) in the first two games of the best-of-five series.

German (4 IP, H, 0 ER, 9 K) picked up the Game 1 win in his first start of the postseason, tossing 4 innings of 1-hit ball to go along with 9 K's. Ziegler (6 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 K) earned the victory in Game 2 and improved to 3-0 in the postseason, allowing no runs on 3 hits while striking out 2 in 6 innings of work.

Escano continued to stay scorching hot at the plate, going 6-for-7 (.857) with a home run, double, 5 RBIs, and 4 stolen bases in the first two games.

With their backs against the wall going into Game 3, the Rockies offense finally came to life in the must-win game, scoring 13 runs on 15 hits en route to a 13-6 victory, handing the Gigantes their first postseason loss and just their second loss of the season.

Feetham's (2-4, 4 R, HR, 3 RBI, BB) 3-run homer in the 1st, his second of the postseason, helped set the tone early on in the game. Teammate Daniel Braz (3-5, 3 R, RBI) chipped in with 3 hits and 3 runs scored while Nate Knowles (4 IP, 7 H, 3 ER) provided 4 strong innings on the hill to earn the win.

Unfortunately for the Rockies, that would turn out to be their only win of the series, as they fell to the Gigantes 7-2 in Game 4. The deep and balanced lineup of the Gigantes proved to be too much for the Rockies pitching, as they handed Solomon (7 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 6 K), the Rockies Game 4 starter, his first career playoff loss.

In their postseason run, the Gigantes produced an 8-1 record and outscored opponents 81-to-23. Carlos Escano was the breakout star, going 19-for-31 (.613) with a home run, 6 doubles, 17 RBIs, 8 stolen bases, and 0 strikeouts. His 19 hits set a new Masters Division record for most hits in a single postseason, breaking the previous record of 16 hits set by Chris Deane in 2016.

Congratulations to the Los Gigantes on taking home their first Masters Division championship, and hats off to the Avi Nelson Rockies on their second straight trip to the Masters Finals.