Taiwan were no match for Cuba in the bronze-medal game of this year’s 18U Baseball World Cup, losing 6-1 at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium yesterday to finish fourth overall.
Three runs off a wild Chiang Chen-yen in the opening frame immediately gave the Cubans a lead that chased the Taiwanese starter just two outs into the bottom of the first.
Although replacement Lin Tzu-wei kept things close over the next two innings to give the Taiwanese offense a chance to plate a run in the top of the second, the damage was done. Cuba tacked on a run off Lin in the bottom of the second on an RBI single by Orlando Roas and added two more in the fourth.
Cuba starter Ruben Hernandez held the home team to a lone run on three hits over 2-2/3 innings of play before reliever Vladimir Gutierrez followed with 6-1/3 of scoreless innings of one-hit ball to shut down the Taiwanese offense.
Four different hitters had multi-hit games for Cuba, led by Luis Robert’s 2-for-4 effort with an RBI, while Peng Ming-yu’s pinch-hit triple was the lone highlight for an anemic Taiwanese attack that mustered just four hits on the day.
Gutierrez was credited with the win for his outstanding work.
Venezuela 1, South Korea 6
In the battle for fifth place, South Korea easily handled Venezuela yesterday afternoon.
The Asians took a 5-0 shutout two outs into the seventh before reliever Hwang Young-kuk gave up a bases-loaded walk to Nelson Torres.
Picking up the win for South Korea was starter Park Se-woong, who allowed a run on three hits over 6-1/3 innings.
Japan 2, USA 3
The US came back from a run down and held off a late-game rally by Japan to earn a 3-2 win and gold in this year’s competition.
It was the second straight win over Japan for the Americans, following Saturday night’s 10-4 blowout in the final game of the second round.
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two