The Elephants marched into Taichung on Tuesday for their crucial four-game series against the Bulls with all the momentum in the world, having won four straight over the then-leading President Lions last week to claim the top spot in the standings.
PHOTO: CPBL
That was before they got a good look at Osvaldo Martinez's new-found fastball which consistently hit the high 140kph mark in Tuesday's series opener. Except for surrendering a first-inning solo home run to the Elephants' Lin Ming-shien, the Sinon righty from the Dominican Republic was in full control over the six frames he pitched in the 12-1 blowout victory.
Elephant starter Wu Jung-yi (吳俊億), who had earned his nickname as the "Bull Slaughterer" with a perfect 4-0 record against the Bulls last year, was no match against the Sinon lineup that rang up seven runs against the side-armer over 5-2/3 innings in a losing effort.
Led by first baseman Chueh Shu-mu's fourth grand slam and outfielder Chang Jia-hao's (
Game 2 on Wednesday was an extension from the night before as the Bulls pounded the Elephant pitching staff again for six more runs in the 6-1 sequel.
Bulls' ace starter Yang Jien-fu (
Offensively for the home Bulls, shortstop Cheng Jau-hang and designated hitter Chen Tsung-fu each knocked home a pair of runs to treat the sold-out crowd of over 10,000 with some sorely missed offense. Prior to this week, the Bulls had averaged just two runs per contest in their 10 previous games.
With their 17-game winner Jonathan Hurst out nursing a fractured tip of his right thumb, the Elephants must look to Japanese veterans Yokota Hisanori and Nakagomi Sin to come up big in the remaining two games of the series.
"We should be fine for the next two [games] because they [Bulls] already used both of their top starters and we have not," Elephant manager Lin Yi-tseng pointed out the fact that the Bulls will be short on starting pitching when they face Yokota and Sin in Games 3 and 4 this weekend.
Lin will also need big games on offense from his two big guns: Chen "the Golden Warrior" Chih-yuan and Peng "Chia Chia" Cheng-ming (
Elsewhere in the league, the Lions will be on the road in Kaohsiung for a three-game visit to the La New Bears as the first-half champs look to rebound from their four-game sweep at the hands of the Elephants last week. It will not be a walk in the park for the Lions because the new-and-improved Bears had just taken three out of four from the Macoto Cobras and are playing as well as any team in the league since early September.
For the Lions, a strong showing against the Bears would not only provide the big cats with a huge mental boost, it could possibly give them the second-half title outright, which would mean an automatic one-game lead in the upcoming best-of-seven championship series. As for the Bears, running the table in their six remaining games with some help from the Cobras next week could still put them in the postseason.
The same situation applies to the Whales as well. Win out the season with some help from other clubs and they are in the postseason.
What does this all mean?? We are heading towards the wildest finish ever in the history of the league.
Japan’s Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball “superhuman” following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to US sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady. Not since Ruth a century ago has there been a baseball player capable of both pitching and hitting at the top level. The 30-year-old’s performances with the Los Angeles Dodgers have consolidated his position as a baseball legend in the making, and a national icon in his native Japan. He continues to find new ways to amaze, this year becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
RSS