Taiwan stormed past Mexico in their second game at the IBAF Final Olympic Qualification Tournament in high-flying fashion, with a 6-1 victory at the Douliou stadium yesterday afternoon to remain unbeaten.
Taiwan, clearly energized by the sellout crowd of 14,000-plus, ripped 13 hits off the Mexican pitching to silence any critics who might have had doubts about their lack of fire power on offense, given the absence of big-name hitters such as Chen Chin-fong and Hsieh Jia-shien, who are both out of the competition with injuries.
Leading the attack for Taiwan with three hits and a pair of RBIs was Peng "Chia Chia" Cheng-min who collected his second multi-RBI game in as many days and accounted for a good part of the scoring.
PHOTO: LIN CHENG-KUN, TAIPEI TIMES
Also starring for the hosts were Chang Jien-ming, Lin Tseh-hsuen and Chang "Prince of the Forest" Tai-shan, who hit the three different Mexican pitchers twice each and produced four RBIs.
Taking the mound for Taiwan and putting in an impeccable performance was veteran right-hander Yang Jien-fu, who allowed the lone run for Mexico after five scattered singles, before being relieved in the sixth.
Equally impressive was reliever Cheng Kai-wen, who kept the damage to a minimum in the sixth by picking up two quick strikeouts before giving up a run-scoring double. Cheng would end up tossing three-and-a-third innings of shutout ball on three hits and three strikeouts before handing the ball to fellow closer Luo Jia-ren one out into the ninth.
PHOTO: LIN CHENG-KUN, TAIPEI TIMES
The contest began with the Taiwanese hitters getting to Mexico starter Pablo Ortega early, with three hits over the first two innings even though they would come up empty in both cases, keeping it a scoreless affair.
That would end in a hurry in the top of the third when Chang Tai-shan's chopper to short with men on second and third made its way to shallow-left for a two-run single that made it 2-0 in favor of the hosts.
The home team then doubled their lead in the next inning as Chang Jien-ming's grounder through the right side of the infield with men on second and third scored both runners.
Mexico threatened to score in the bottom of the fourth, with two singles and a walk off Yang. But a pick-off play that was executed to perfection by Yang and fellow shortstop Lin Chih-sheng, coupled with a diving stop by third baseman Lin Yi-chuan, kept the Mexicans from crossing the plate.
After Mexico finally broke through in the bottom of the sixth, the momentum suddenly swung in favor of the North Americans.
Tension remained high with Cheng pitching out of a couple of jams in the seventh and eighth, until Peng delivered his third hit of the game, a two-run single with the bases loaded that ultimately made the game safe.
Germany 1, Spain 0
German starting pitcher Enorbel Marquez-Ramirez threw a five-hit complete game shutout against the Spanish yesterday in a sparsely attended Douliou stadium, outdueling hard-luck Spanish starter Yoel Hernandez to earn the victory.
German CF Sacha Lutz provided the game's only offense with a solo-shot to right field in the top of the 8th inning.
Marquez-Ramirez struck out three and walked none in the contest.
South Korea 16, Australia 2
The Koreans overwhelmed the Aussies in a mercy rule victory -- and joined Taiwan and Canada at the top of the standings -- after helping themselves to big runs in the first, third and fourth innings at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium.
Canada 10, South Africa 0
Canada also enjoyed a mercy rule win over the South Africans earlier yesterday at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium, thanks to a six-run haul at the bottom of the fifth inning.
Carlos Alcaraz on Monday powered into the French Open second round with a resounding win to start his title defense, while world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and three-time defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek also progressed at Roland Garros. Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz struck 31 winners in a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri and is to face Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan in round two. Alcaraz is now on an eight-match winning streak at the French Open and also took Olympic silver at Roland Garros last year, losing the final to Novak Djokovic. “The first round is never
‘DREAM’: The 5-0 victory was PSG’s first Champions League title, and the biggest final win by any team in the 70-year history of the top-flight European competition Paris Saint-Germain won the Champions League for the first time as Luis Enrique’s brilliant young side outclassed Inter on Saturday in the most one-sided final ever with teenager Desire Doue scoring twice in an astonishing 5-0 victory. Doue supplied the pass for Achraf Hakimi to give PSG an early lead and the 19-year-old went from provider to finisher as his deflected shot doubled the advantage in the 20th minute. Doue scored again just after the hour mark, ending any doubt about the outcome before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ran away to get the fourth and substitute Senny Mayulu, another teenager, made it five. Inter were
FRUSTRATION: Alcaraz made several unforced errors over four sets against Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, who had never made it past the third round in a major competition Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz reached the fourth round of the French Open after laboring past Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the Friday night session. The second-seeded Spaniard had never before played Dzumhur, a 33-year-old Bosnian who had never been past the third round at any major tournament. “I suffered quite a lot today,” Alcaraz said. “The first two sets was under control, then he started to play more deeply and more aggressively. It was really difficult for me.” Dzumhur hurt his left knee in a fall in the second round, and had treatment on Friday on his right leg during the
The horn sounded on Wednesday night to signal a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final, as the Florida Panthers celebrated merely by hopping over the boards and several heading over to congratulate goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. It was a subdued celebration seemingly more befitting a regular-season win for the reigning Cup champs. “I remember a few years ago, it felt like such an accomplishment from where we were at one point,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said, adding: “It’s all business and we’ve got a bigger goal in mind.” The Panthers closed out the Carolina Hurricanes in five games, with a 5-3 victory in