NATIONAL LEAGUE
REUTERS AND AP, MIAMI
Colorado maintained their hold on the National League wild-card lead after Clint Barmes and Brad Hawpe hit two-run homers to help the Rockies beat the Florida Marlins 7-3 for a split of their doubleheader on Sunday.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Jorge De La Rosa (11-8) struck out nine in 5-2/3 innings to get his ninth win in his last 10 decisions as Colorado remained 1.5 games ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the wild-card race, and five games shy of National League West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers.
In Major League Baseball, the team that holds the best record in each league outside the three division winners is awarded the wild-card play-off spot.
“Every win we can get is a big win,” Barmes told reporters. “There is no game we can give away at this point. We’re battling for the wild card and we still think we have a shot at the division too, so every game is important. Losing two today would have been pretty bad.”
Florida won the opener 10-3 as Chris Volstad (9-9) pitched five strong innings and added a two-run single in a five-run second inning.
Hanley Ramirez and Chris Coghlan also homered for the Marlins, who ended the day two games behind the Rockies in the wild-card hunt.
“This is a very good baseball club that we just faced,” Colorado manager Jim Tracy said. “Their approach, to their credit, was relentless. We had to work really hard in the second game to win the game.”
Rain on Saturday night forced the rare traditional doubleheader to Sunday, with both games going back-to-back after a 30-minute break.
De La Rosa allowed seven hits and just one unearned run, walking three to go with his nine strikeouts to continue his run of good form.
DODGERS 9, DIAMONDBACKS 3
Randy Wolf finished a triple short of the cycle and pitched neatly into the eighth inning to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday that snapped a three-game skid.
Wolf (7-6) retired 20 straight batters after Ryan Roberts singled with one out in the first inning. Arizona rookie second baseman Rusty Ryal broke the streak with his first major league homer leading off the eighth inning.
Also on Sunday, it was:
• Phillies 4, Braves 1
• Astros 8, Brewers 5
• Nationals 5, Reds 4
• Mets 3, Giants 2
• Cardinals 7, Padres 5
AMERICAN LEAGUE
AP, BALTIMORE, MARYLAND
Torii Hunter celebrated his return from the disabled list by driving in the go-ahead run in a nine-run 13th inning as the Los Angeles Angels outlasted the Baltimore Orioles 17-8 in the American League on Sunday.
Chone Figgins had four hits for the Angels, including the 1,000th of his career, an RBI single in the sixth inning. Los Angeles’ leadoff hitter scored three runs and drove in three.
After missing 32 games with a groin injury, Hunter had two hits and two RBIs in his first action since July 7. He lined into a double play with the bases loaded in the 11th but redeemed himself with a bases-loaded bouncer up the middle in the 13th off Brian Bass (5-3).
RANGERS 4, RED SOX 3
At Arlington, Texas, Ian Kinsler homered and drove in two runs and Dustin Nippert pitched six solid innings as Texas passed Boston in the AL wild-card race.
Also on Sunday, it was:
• Royals 3, Tigers 2, 10 innings
• Rays 5, Blue Jays 2
• Indians 7, Twins 4
• Athletics 3, White Sox 2
• Mariners 10, Yankees 3
Major League Baseball Standings
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Eastern Division
W | L | PCT | GB | |
New York | 74 | 44 | 0.627 | - |
Boston | 66 | 51 | 0.564 | 7.5 |
Tampa Bay | 63 | 54 | 0.538 | 10.5 |
Toronto | 55 | 61 | 0.474 | 18 |
Baltimore | 48 | 69 | 0.41 | 25.5 |
Central Division
W | L | PCT | GB | |
Detroit | 62 | 55 | 0.53 | - |
Chicago | 60 | 58 | 0.508 | 2.5 |
Minnesota | 56 | 61 | 0.479 | 6 |
Cleveland | 51 | 66 | 0.436 | 11 |
Kansas City | 46 | 71 | 0.393 | 16 |
Western Division
W | L | PCT | GB | |
Los Angeles | 70 | 45 | 0.609 | - |
Texas | 66 | 50 | 0.569 | 4.5 |
Seattle | 61 | 57 | 0.517 | 10.5 |
Oakland | 52 | 65 | 0.444 | 19 |
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Eastern Division
W | L | PCT | GB | |
Philadelphia | 66 | 49 | 0.574 | - |
Florida | 63 | 55 | 0.534 | 4.5 |
Atlanta | 61 | 56 | 0.521 | 6 |
New York | 55 | 62 | 0.47 | 12 |
Washington | 43 | 75 | 0.364 | 24.5 |
Central Division
W | L | PCT | GB | |
St. Louis | 67 | 52 | 0.563 | - |
Chicago | 60 | 55 | 0.522 | 5 |
Milwaukee | 58 | 59 | 0.496 | 8 |
Houston | 57 | 61 | 0.483 | 9.5 |
Cincinnati | 50 | 67 | 0.427 | 16 |
Pittsburgh | 46 | 70 | 0.397 | 19.5 |
Western Division
W | L | PCT | GB | |
Los Angeles | 70 | 48 | 0.593 | - |
Colorado | 65 | 53 | 0.551 | 5 |
San Francisco | 63 | 54 | 0.538 | 6.5 |
Arizona | 54 | 64 | 0.458 | 16 |
San Diego | 49 | 70 | 0.412 | 21.5 |
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
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