NATIONAL LEAGUE
Washington’s Ryan Zimmerman scored on Alfredo Simon’s wild pitch with two outs in the 10th inning, helping the Nationals beat the Cincinnati Reds 3-2 on Thursday and extend their best start since moving to the capital.
The Nationals improved to 5-2, top of the National League East, and gave the sellout crowd a win in a home opener for the first time since 2008.
Photo: Reuters
Simon (0-1) hit Zimmerman with a pitch leading off the 10th, and one out later Jayson Werth singled. A groundout pushed the runners to second and third. Simon then threw in the dirt, the catcher retrieved it and tossed it to Simon racing into home plate, but Zimmerman slid under the tag.
Washington’s Craig Stammen (1-0) had struck out the side in the top of the 10th for the win.
DODGERS 3, PIRATES 2
In Los Angeles, Chris Capuano struck out seven in his first home game with Los Angeles, which completed a three-game sweep of Pittsburgh.
The Dodgers scored all of their runs to set up a win that made them 6-1 — their best start since 1981, when they went on to win the World Series.
Capuano (1-0) allowed two runs with no walks in 5-1/3 innings. He struck out five of his first eight batters, four of them on called third strikes.
Los Angeles closer Javy Guerra pitched a perfect ninth for his fifth save in five attempts — all in a span of eight days.
Pirates starter Jeff Karstens (0-1) gave up seven hits.
DIAMONDBACKS 3, PADRES 1
In San Diego, California, Arizona pitcher Ian Kennedy struck out nine in six innings to remain perfect in six career starts against San Diego.
Kennedy (2-0) allowed one run and improved his career ERA against the Padres to 1.95. He is 8-0 in his past nine starts against all opponents.
Jason Kubel doubled in the go-ahead run in the sixth inning for the Diamondacks and Chris Young added a solo homer in the eighth.
San Diego’s Micah Owings (0-2), pitching against his old team, took the loss after allowing an unearned run in the sixth.
CUBS 8, BREWERS 0
In Chicago, Matt Garza pitched 8-2/3 scoreless innings to help Chicago beat Milwaukee and avoid a four-game series sweep.
Garza (1-0) struck out nine and had a spell where he retired 16 of 17 batters from the second inning on. He left after 119 pitches and overthrowing the first baseman for a two-base error.
Brewers starter Zack Greinke (1-1) allowed eight earned runs for the first time in two seasons.
He needed 84 pitches to get through 3-2/3 innings.
PHILLIES 3, MARLINS 1
In Philadelphia, Shane Victorino and Ty Wigginton homered in Philadelphia’s defeat of Miami.
Phillies starter Joe Blanton (1-1) pitched seven strong innings, allowing one run in his first start.
The Marlins lost their second straight game without manager Ozzie Guillen, who was suspended by the club for saying he admired Cuban dictator Fidel Castro — a comment that upset many in Florida’s Cuban community.
Miami starter Mark Buehrle (0-2) allowed three runs in 6-1/3 innings.
GIANTS 4, ROCKIES 2
In Denver, Colorado, the Rockies’ 49-year-old Jamie Moyer failed in his second attempt to become the oldest pitcher to win a major league game.
Moyer (0-2) surrendered four runs in 5-1/3 innings and left to a standing ovation from forgiving home fans.
Opposing pitcher Madison Bumgarner (1-1) — a 22-year-old who was not born when Moyer debuted in the majors — took a no-hit bid into the sixth and stifled a Rockies lineup that had produced 17 runs the night before. He gave up one run while throwing 117 pitches.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
AP, DETROIT, Michigan
Detroit’s Brennan Boesch drove in four runs on his 27th birthday, leading the Tigers to a 7-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday for their fifth win in six games to start the season.
Despite having the American League’s best record, Detroit’s starters have not yet had a win and that continued on Thursday as Drew Smyly went empty handed from his major league debut. Instead, Collin Balester (1-0) won this one with two innings of relief.
The Tigers trailed 1-0 until scoring three runs off Jeff Niemann (0-1) in the fifth.
RANGERS 5, MARINERS 3
In Arlington, Texas, Michael Young hit a two-run homer and had four RBIs to power Texas past Seattle.
Young put Texas ahead with an RBI single. Then with the Rangers leading 1-0 in the fifth inning, he hit an opposite-field homer for a 3-0 lead against Jason Vargas (1-1). Young added a run-scoring single in the eighth.
Texas starter Derek Holland (1-0) allowed two runs in 7-1/3 innings, struck out eight and walked none. However the 22-2/3 innings scoreless streak by the Rangers starters ended in the sixth.
TWINS 10, ANGELS 9
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, Justin Morneau hit a two-run, tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning to complete Minnesota’s comeback from a six-run deficit against Los Angeles.
Joe Mauer went deep, too, hitting a three-run shot in the fifth. Every Twins batter had at least one of the team’s 20 hits, enough to make up for the 14 men left on base, including eight in scoring position.
Angels pitcher Rich Thompson (0-1) gave up Morneau’s first home run of the season.
Jeff Gray (2-0) picked up the victory and Matt Capps notched his second save, despite giving the Angels two runs back.
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but