Taiwan Cooperative Bank rode the right arm of Huang Chien-lung all the way to victory by winning the first-ever game in the newly established Popcorn Baseball League last night with an 8-0 blanking of the Topco Scientific Falcons at the Taipei Tianmu Baseball Stadium.
The perennial powerhouse in local amateur baseball made the most of a rare public TV appearance by dominating their opposition from the get-go, thanks to a stellar effort by Huang, who went the distance for the Bankers on 109 pitches in an eight-hitter without a walk to pocket the impressive victory.
What many had considered an evenly matched contest was all-Bankers as they broke through against Topco Scientific starter Cheng Wen-hao with a three-run first, with hired guns Luis Rivera and Kody Kirkland singling off Cheng to drive in a run each before His Chih-fong’s RBI triple made it 3-0 after one inning of play.
That was all the offense that Huang needed to give him the necessary confidence to throw first-pitch strikes against the Falcon hitters, a much-craved luxury that made Huang even harder to face.
“I wouldn’t want to disappoint the fans that have come to cheer us on tonight,” Huang said.
The normally soft-spoken hurler, who is not known for blazing velocity, more than made up for his lack of speed with a pinpoint control that netted him a walkless outing.
He also received plenty of help from a defense that turned two double plays to end a pair of legitimate scoring threats by the Falcons, on a night the Falcons managed to reach base safely often, but could not come up with the clutch hits to deliver any runs.
Today’s Game
Taipower are to take on Taitung’s Chi Lih Coral this afternoon in Tianmu, where the Chi Lih are to feature former Cleveland Indian minor leaguer Chen Chun-shiu at the cleanup spot in Chen’s Taiwanese professional debut.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
Rafael Nadal on Tuesday lost in straight sets to 31st-ranked Jiri Lehecka in the fourth round at the Madrid Open, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the semi-finals in the women’s doubles. Nadal said that he was feeling good about his progress following his latest injury layoff. Nadal called it a “positive week” in every way and said his body held up well. “I was able to play four matches, a couple of tough matches,” Nadal said. “So very positive, winning three matches, playing four matches at the high level of tennis. I enjoyed a lot playing at home. I leave here with
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at
When 42-1 underdog James ‘Buster’ Douglas shocked ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson 34 years ago at the Tokyo Dome, the result reverberated worldwide. Spectators at the 45,000-plus seater venue witnessed one of boxing’s biggest upsets as unbeaten heavyweight champion Tyson was knocked out in the 10th round by the unheralded Douglas in February 1990. Boxing returns to the famous venue on Monday for the first time since that unforgettable encounter when Japan’s undisputed super-bantamweight world champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue puts his belts on the line against Mexican Luis Nery. The 31-year-old Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs) is a huge star in Japan and is just