MAJOR LEAGUES
Chris Tillman allowed just three hits into the eighth inning as the Baltimore Orioles moved within 1.5 games of idle Tampa Bay for the second AL wild-card spot by beating the New York Yankees 4-2 on Monday.
The Yankees fell three games behind Tampa Bay after a game that featured an on-field confrontation between the teams’ managers.
Photo: Reuters
Both dugouts emptied briefly after the first inning, when Orioles manager Buck Showalter angrily exchanged words with Yankees manager Joe Girardi after Girardi apparently said something to Baltimore third-base coach Bobby Dickerson. Showalter had to be restrained by home plate umpire Ed Hickox.
Alex Rodriguez hit his 652nd homer.
In Miami, NL’ Atlanta (86-57) passed Boston (87-58) for baseball’s best record after Evan Gattis drove in two runs to highlight the Braves’ highest-scoring inning in more than a month to break a four-game losing streak with a 5-2 win over the Marlins.
Justin Upton, Freddie Freeman and Gattis all doubled to lead off what became a five-run fourth, Atlanta’s biggest inning since a five-run fifth against Philadelphia on Aug. 2. Kris Medlen (13-12) was the beneficiary that night against the Phillies and again on Monday, getting the win after allowing six hits and two runs in 6-1/3 innings.
Cleveland’s Ubaldo Jimenez struck out 10 batters over seven innings and Asdrubal Cabrera, Yan Gomes and Carlos Santana each hit solo homers to lead the Indians to a 4-3 win over the Kansas City Royals in a matchup between two teams in the thick of the AL wild-card chase.
The Indians, who won despite having only five hits, stayed even with Baltimore, 1.5 games back from Tampa Bay for the second wild-card spot. The Royals dropped to four games behind the Rays.
Alex Gordon hit a two-run homer off Cody Allen in the eighth.
In other AL games, the Minnesota Twins downed the Los Angeles Angels 6-3, the Chicago White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 and the Houston Astros defeated the Seattle Mariners 6-4. The Pittsburgh Pirates blanked the Texas Rangers 1-0 in interleague play.
In the NL, Travis Wood beat Cincinnati for the first time in his career, repeatedly pitching out of threats for seven innings as the Chicago Cubs shut out the Reds 2-0.
Gio Gonzalez held the Mets hitless into the seventh, before pinch-hitter Zach Lutz broke up the bid with a soft single as the Washington Nationals trounced the Mets 9-0.
The San Francisco Giants beat the Colorado Rockies 3-2 over 10 innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers thrashed the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-1.
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
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and