The hottest things selling in town, next to the SARS-proof N95 masks, were brooms that fans brought out to the ballparks this weekend, because all three series in the CPBL actions ended in sweeps.
Leading off was the Sinon Bulls' four-game series sweep against the President Lions, which began last week with a one-game lead over the Bulls in league standings.
The Bulls took a two game lead from before going to a hostile Tainan Stadium on Friday night, where they quieted the crowd by beating the Lions 5-3. Bulls starter Jeff Andra was the hero on Friday night as he gave up only three runs on nine hits over eight solid innings for his sixth win of the season. Saturday night's 5-1 Bulls stampede featured a stellar performance by starter Osvaldo Martinez, whose four-hit effort over eight innings earned him the game-MVP honor. The seven strikeouts by Martinez gave him a total of 53 for the season, making him No.3 in the league.
PHOTO: CHANG CHUNG-YI, TAIPEI TIMES
The Lions are now in the middle of a six-game losing streak.
"Over the course of a season, it's normal for every team to hit some highs and lows," first-year manager Hsieh Chang-hern (謝長亨) said after Saturday's loss. "As long as our players do what they are supposed to do, I'm sure we'll get over this very soon."
ChinaTrust Whales, began last week in third-place, without losing the last eight games. Behind an offense that has cranked out 32 runs and a pitching staff that has yielded only 14 runs in the last four games, the Whales proceeded to sweep the struggling Makoto Gida in a four-game series to take sole control of the second-place spot in league standings. The last time that the Whales suffered a defeat was on April 18th against the President Lions in a 5-9 contest.
Designated hitter Hung Chi-fong's (洪啟峰) latest hitting spree (nine for 14 in the last four games) was the main reason that the Whales are enjoying their first sweep of the season after Sunday night's 4-2 victory over the Gida.
Hung now leads all hitters in the league with a .400 batting average. The Gida dropped a notch down to No.5 in league standings.
Last but not least, the Brother Elephants' swept a three-game series against the First Securities Agan, which put the Elephants two games ahead of the Gida and firmly fourth place. The visiting Elephants set the tone for the series by winning the opening game on Thursday night in Kaohsiung, 11-1. That turned out to be the only run that the Agan would put on the board the rest of the series, thanks to two outstanding showings by the Elephants' pitching staff on Saturday and Sunday that held the Agan scoreless for a total of 21 innings over the course of the three games.
Sunday night's match-up between the two teams was a classic pitching duel as the Elephants sent ace hurler Jonathan Hurst to the mound against Agan ace Liang Rue-hao (梁如豪). Bothered by nagging injuries since mid-March, Liang turned in one of his best performances of the season by taking a no-hitter into the eighth before giving up two singles and handing the ball to reliever Hsu Wen-hsiung (許文雄) in a scoreless game.
Not to be outdone by Liang, Hurst also kept the Agan hitters at bay by scattering five harmless hits over nine innings of work and dodging a big bullet in the top of the ninth to keep the game scoreless. With a runner on third and one out, Hurst managed to strike out one flied out to close the ninth.
"The key was that [Agan] didn't take advantage of the scoring opportunity in the ninth, and that turned the luck to our side," Elephants Manager Lin Yi-tseng (林易增) said after the game.
In extra innings, the Elephants bats suddenly came alive, blowing the game wide open. Leading off the 10th for the Elephants was designated hitter Hsu Ming-lang's (許閔嵐) single to right, which triggered a six-run inning that brought 11 Elephants batters to the plate.
Although the final score of 6-0 was not indicative of how closely the game was actually played, the combined scoring margin of 24-to-1 between the two teams for the series indicates the dominance that the Elephants had over the Agan.
This was the second consecutive series that these Elephants managed to win, after having lost all but one series previously this season.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely