■ BASEBALL
Little League turns to video
Little League Baseball will use instant replay at this year’s World Series to review questionable home runs and other close plays at the outfield fence. The limited replay system would be in place on an experimental basis when this year’s tournament begins Aug. 15 and be reevaluated following the series, Little League president Stephen Keener said on Tuesday. Replay would be used “to overturn an obvious wrong,” said Dennis Lewin, chairman of Little League’s Board of Directors. The rule limits replay to instances in which a batted ball “leaves the field of play at or near the outfield fence, or should have been ruled out of the field of play” at or near the fence. A Little League “game operations replay official” would need “clear and convincing” evidence to overturn an umpire’s ruling on the field, according to the rule. Replays would likely be rarely used, Keener said, and if used would likely cause a delay of 30 to 45 seconds. “I think that’s easily a fair trade off,” Keener said on Tuesday. “I think everyone would agree that getting it right is most important.”
■ BASEBALL
Suzuki reaches 3,000 hits
Ichiro Suzuki reached 3,000 combined hits in US Major League Baseball and the Japanese leagues with a first-inning single on Tuesday night against the Texas Rangers. The Seattle Mariners leadoff man hit a soft liner to left-center on the game’s first pitch from Luis Mendoza. Standing on first base, Suzuki received an ovation from the Texas crowd and tipped his helmet when his achievement was posted on the scoreboard. The 34-year-old Suzuki has 1,722 hits in 1,224 games during his eight seasons with the Mariners. He had 1,278 hits over 951 games in nine seasons with the Orix Blue Wave of Japan’s Pacific League. Only one player in Japanese league history reached 3,000 hits: Isao Harimoto with 3,085. A total of 27 players have compiled at least 3,000 hits in US MLB history. “That’s a tremendous achievement for the short time he’s been over here,” Mariners manager Jim Riggleman said before the game.
■ BASEBALL
Minor leaguers suspended
Three St. Louis Cardinals minor leaguers were suspended for 50 games each after testing positive for steroids. The Major League Baseball commissioner’s office said on Tuesday the suspensions of pitchers Braulin Beltre and Yedilson Pena and outfielder Andres Beras take effect immediately. All are on the Cardinals’ Dominican Summer League team. Beltre and Beras tested positive for boldenone and Pena for stanozolol.
RSS