WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — Once inside Peligro Sports, one thing above all else is clear: if you ever need a baseball cap, jersey or a T-shirt for one of the six teams in La Liga de Béisbol Profesional de la República Dominicana, the Dominican winter baseball league (or LIDOM, as it is known), this is the place to be.
And that’s rare.
When it comes to LIDOM gear, whether you’re a diehard fan born and raised in the Dominican Republic, part of the Dominican-American diaspora in the United States, married into a Dominican family or just a collector who can never have enough baseball caps, finding merchandise, especially the caps, is way harder than it should be.
Options for merchandise are limited. You can go to a live game and check the stadium stores or try your luck at a Dominican mall. You can visit the official LIDOM website, but it often sells out. Or, just slightly less fun than a trip to the Dominican Republic, you can go to Peligro Sports, a baseball merchandise mecca centered around LIDOM, MLB, the World Baseball Classic and Latino pride. (Can’t make it to Washington Heights? Peligro is also on Amazon and eBay).
LIDOM hits full swing in the late fall and winter, nestled between the final out of the World Series and pitchers and catchers reporting for MLB spring training. The league’s six teams — Tigres del Licey, Estrellas Orientales, Leones del Escogido, Toros del Este, Gigantes de Cibao and Águilas Cibaeñas — jockey for the top four positions in the standings to qualify for the round robin tournament that determines a champion each season. That champion then represents the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean World Series. Multiple generations of Dominican baseball players have played in LIDOM over the years at the beginning and ends of their pro baseball careers from Miguel Tejada (Águilas) to Elly De La Cruz (Licey).
Before opening Peligro’s doors, a display window greets customers with two mannequins decked out in the full uniforms of Dominican baseball titans Águilas and Licey, the island nation’s two most popular teams and LIDOM’s most intense rivalry. It’s Santo Domingo vs. Santiago. A clash of blue and gold with a wealth of titles between the two. Think New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox or San Francisco Giants vs. Los Angeles Dodgers, and then sprinkle a lot of sazón on it. Licey is the current LIDOM champion, having won back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024 and has (for now) surpassed Águilas for most in LIDOM history with 24 to Águilas’s 22.
The mannequins speak without saying a word. At Peligro Sports, se habla LIDOM.
Jose Matias, the owner of the shop, arrived in Washington Heights from his hometown of La Vega, Dominican Republic in 1989, bringing with him his love of Dominican winter baseball. He started his first business in 1991, a semi-prelude to Peligro Sports called Peligro Sandwiches. The top draw was the “chimi,” a toasted Dominican specialty, but there were also arcade games to be played and baseball cards to be bought and traded. A local high school baseball star and fellow Dominican named Manny Ramirez was a regular customer and now a long-time friend of Matias’ (a signed and framed Ramirez jersey hangs in his office). When the record shop next to Matias’ sandwich business went up for sale, he bought it with the intent of turning it into a sporting goods store.
Between 2009 and 2010, after years of renovation and investment, Peligro Sports was born, offering a mix of LIDOM caps, jerseys and other memorabilia, baseball bats and gloves, shoes, and WBC merchandise. That fire, sky blue Mexico fitted from the WBC? Peligro’s got it.
Matias remembers the pre-internet days of the early ‘90s when Dominicans in New York had to go to extremes for LIDOM game recaps and box scores. Some would wait for days after a game until Dominican newspapers were delivered to New York. Others, who couldn’t wait that long, would purchase phone cards to make long-distance calls to relatives in the Dominican Republic who could give them live updates of games over the phone.
Passion for LIDOM baseball in New York was undeniable both then and now, giving Peligro an ongoing purpose in Washington Heights’ vibrant Dominican community.
“(Peligro Sports) happened with a little bit of business vision,” Matias said in Spanish. “I saw (Dominican fans in New York) had needs for (LIDOM) products because no one else had them anywhere, and the Dominican community (in Washington Heights) was growing. People would ask where they could get this (hat) and that (T-shirt). More than just me being a fan of Dominican baseball, I realized as much as I like (LIDOM merchandise) other people can like it too.”
Matias is a LIDOM encyclopedia for anyone who enters Peligro Sports with questions on the league’s merchandise. And not just because LIDOM is also a family affair for him. His cousin, Wellington Cepeda, is the manager of Gigantes de Cibao, the last team to win a LIDOM title before Licey’s current reign.
Matias points out that LIDOM’s baseball cap situation is unique. If you want to wear the same caps that the players wear on the field (a common desire for any baseball fan), you’ve got to pay attention. New Era, the official maker of every MLB team’s caps, is the current manufacturer for four of LIDOM’s six teams: Gigantes, Toros, Estrellas and Águilas.
San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. could be seen in previous LIDOM seasons wearing an Estrellas uniform alongside his father, former St. Louis Cardinal Fernando Tatis Sr., who manages the team. Another former Cardinal and Puerto Rico World Baseball Classic team manager Yadier Molina (recently named LIDOM manager of the year), now wears the black and yellow cap of Águilas. That star power combined with New Era’s brand recognition as the official cap of the grandes ligas is a powerful combination for fans when considering a purchase.
“What people like most are the New Era caps,” Matias said. “They’ve got más flow.”
Licey and Escogido have their hats manufactured by a Dominican company called 4Fans, and with Licey winning consecutive championships and Escogido managed by Albert Pujols that local brand is getting a boost.
“It could be 4Fans, it could be another company, (LIDOM) fans are still going to get it,” Matias said. “There was a time when every team (in LIDOM) used New Era for their caps. But just like here in the United States, sometimes sports teams (in the Dominican Republic) change the companies that make their uniforms. Escogido and Licey haven’t used New Era for years, but I feel they’ll return to New Era soon.”
Keeping up with the business logistics of LIDOM’s cap manufacturing can be a complicated dance at times. Sometimes Matias has ordered directly from LIDOM. Other times New Era. 4Fans being in the mix means he’ll always have to make more than one call if he wants every LIDOM cap in stock at Peligro Sports.
Ordering LIDOM jerseys is similarly complex, according to Matias. Mexican company Arrieta makes the jerseys for Estrellas, Águilas and Gigantes. Escogido’s jerseys are manufactured by Wilson. Licey has jerseys manufactured by Wilson and Arrieta. Matias hasn’t bothered trying to sell Toros jerseys because the team doesn’t have much of a following in New York, but you can get Toros caps at Peligro.
The most popular LIDOM jerseys at Peligro Sports? Águilas. Which Matias attributes to the team’s history of success and many of Washington Heights’ Dominican residents hailing from El Cibao, where Águilas fandom is commonplace.
One jersey that could soon be a best seller for Peligro is that of Juan Soto — but not just his New York Mets jersey. Soto has reportedly asked the Mets if he could play for Licey in the future. If that happens, Matias could see many of the Soto fans who bought Yankee caps at Peligro Sports when Soto was traded to the Bronx returning for Soto Licey jerseys, given his popularity in New York’s Dominican community. Matias said many of the Soto fans who bought Yankee caps have already returned to purchase Mets caps.
Peligro Sports allows its customers to personalize purchased jerseys with names and numbers on the back, although Matias points out that no LIDOM team puts player last names on the back of its jerseys (that’s prime real estate for advertising). If a customer wanted a Licey jersey with “Soto” on the back they could request it for as simple a reason as their own last name being Soto. But Matias is holding off on proactively making any Juan Soto merchandise for now.
“Supposedly, Soto might play five or 10 games (for Licey),” Matias said. “Out of respect I won’t make a Soto jersey until a deal is done. Not all money is welcome money. But from the moment I can (legally), I will. I don’t want to break the good relationships I’ve built with LIDOM. (A Soto Licey jersey) would be a great impact for the league and for me as a businessman. Soto is in his moment right now. Many (superstar) Dominican players play in LIDOM when their careers are coming to an end. It would be incredible if it could happen.”
Matias has been in Washington Heights for over three decades and selling LIDOM merchandise more than half of that time. From the titans to the contenders and pretenders, he says LIDOM continues to be good business for him because of the passion he believes the Dominican Republic will always have for baseball and the pride those baseball fans share in their nation.
“It’s a way to identify where you’re from,” Matias said. “Latinos, even more so the youth, love to say ‘I’m Dominican,’ ‘I’m Puerto Rican.’ Each person wants to represent their country. The Dominican league is so strong in popularity, the people feel it in their soul. People want to show where they’re from and where their allegiances are.”
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(All photos: David Betancourt)
