The La New Bears bounced back from a pair of narrow losses with a sound 8-5 win over the top-ranked President Lions at the Taipei County Baseball Stadium in Sinjhuang on Sunday to end the week on a high note.
Staff ace Mike Johnson of Canada improved to 6-0 for the season by tying the Lions’ Louis Pote for a share of the lead in total wins by pitching seven innings of three-run ball while Yu Jin-deh batted a perfect 3-for-3 with an RBI to lead the rambunctious Bears in the victory over their nemeses from Tainan.
Neither lineup needed any introduction against the opposing starter as they traded a run each in an eventful first that featured a double and a triple between the two squads in a 1-1 tie.
After two scoreless innings, the Bears would strike again against Lions starter Gregory Wiltshire of Australia in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI-groundout from Chen Fong-min and a double-steal that was executed to perfection to open a 3-1 lead.
Kuo Dai-chi’s two-run home run off Johnson promptly tied the game at 3-3 in the top of the sixth only to see the Bears answered with four runs of their own in the bottom of the same inning, highlighted by Tseng Hao-jui’s solo blast to right and a two-run triple by Tsai Jien-wei to make it 7-3 in favor of the Bears.
Yu’s one-run single to left with runners on first and second gave the Bears some breathing room in a 8-3 game after the seventh before the Lions fought back with two runs in the eighth to keep the score somewhat respectable until the end.
The win by the Bears was only theirs second in eight chances against the league-leading Lions, the lone club in the league against which the Bears hold a losing record.
Bulls 5, T-Rex 3
Yu Wen-pin struck out a season-high nine over seven strong innings of work and Chang “Red Monkey” Jia-hao drove in a pair of runs on a 3-for-4 effort to pace the Sinon Bulls past the dmedia T-Rex in a 5-3 win at the Taichung Municipal Baseball Stadium on Sunday.
The win not only avenged a humiliating 3-12 trouncing by the T-Rex for the Bulls in their series-opener on Friday, but also dug them out of the cellar in the latest standings.
An RBI-double by Chang “Prince of the Forest” Tai-shan helped the Bulls to a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first before Tseng Hua-wei made it 2-0 in the second with a run-scoring single.
The two-run lead was short-lived as the T-Rex fought back with two runs in the bottom of the second on a sacrifice-fly by Kao Wei and a two-out double by Chen Keh-fan that scored the runner all the way from first to tie the game at 2-2.
Back-to-back fielding errors by dmedia third baseman Napoleon Calzado would lead to three unearned runs in the fourth that put the Bulls ahead 5-2.
That was more than ample for Yu as he cruise through the seventh without surrendering another run en route to his fourth win of the year.
Taking the loss on behalf of the T-Rex was starter Chang Hsien-chih who fell victim of three deadly errors by the dmedia defense that made four of the five runs he allowed unearned.
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