With the first-half title on the line in a one-game playoff situation, the Macoto Cobras dominated the Sinon Bulls in a 4-0 shutout victory at Chiayi on Thursday night for their first-ever regular season crown.
The serpents could have won the first-half title outright with a win over the President Lions in Tainan on June 30. But a ninth-inning collapse by the Cobras bullpen blew a 1-0 lead that eventually ended in a 2-1 loss to give them and the Bulls n identical records (28-20-2), forcing the one-game playoff.
On Thursday, neither club could score through the first five innings, with the Bulls being kept in complete check by Cobras starter Lin Ying-jeh in a no-hit bid, while Bulls right-hander Lenin Picota kept the Cobras in check.
PHOTO: LIAO YAO-TUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
It took three consecutive singles by the Cobras' Mario Encarnacion, Luo Ming-ching, and Deng Shih-yang, all with two outs, to score the Cobras' first two runs off Picota in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Leading 2-0, the serpents doubled their lead in the seventh on one swing by cleanup man Hsieh Jia-shien, whose two-run home run off Bulls reliever Osvaldo Martinez to right-center, again with two outs, to put the Cobras up 4-0.
"I'd be lying to you if I told you I was not nervous during the at-bat, especially after failing to come up anything in my first three at-bats," Hsieh said after the game, referring to his league-leading 17th homer of the season that sealed the win for the Cobras.
PHOTO: LIAO YAO-TUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Rookie righty Lin En-yu pitched a perfect ninth, after Lin Ying-jeh's eight magnificent innings of two-hit ball to nail down the win, sending waves of orange-and-black ribbons onto the field as the players stormed out of the dugout to celebrate.
"It's simply awesome," Cobras manager Kuo Tai-yuan said after the game. "Words can't even begin to describe all the hard work that we as a team have done.
"Outstanding job by everyone in the organization all around."
Missing two of their regular starters -- outfielder Tseng Hua-wei and shortstop Cheng Jau-han to injuries -- the normally powerful Bulls' offense was limited to a pair of singles off Lin Ying-jeh.
It was the first time that the Bulls have been shut out this season.
"He [Picota] did a good job for us as far as keeping us in the game." Bulls manager Liu Rong-hua said. "It's too bad that our hitters never came around like we had hoped to back him up."
SAFETY CONCERNS: The Asian Cup is still expected to take place in Saudi Arabia next year, despite multiple sporting events being postponed after the Houthi attack in Riyadh The Asian Cup soccer tournament is on track to take place in Saudi Arabia early next year, local organizers said yesterday, but golf’s Asian Tour has postponed the Saudi International indefinitely in the aftermath of a deadly attack on Riyadh. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the strike on Riyadh’s international airport, which killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300. Australia also withdrew its team from the urban cycling World Championships yesterday, citing safety concerns over travelling to Riyadh, where the event is scheduled to take place early next month. The Six Kings Slam exhibition tennis tournament in Riyadh
COMPETiTIVE FINISH: Powering through the tournament in China, Lin Yun-ju finished second, losing in the final to the world No. 1 in a close-fought match Taiwan’s Lin Yun-ju finished second in the men’s singles at the World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash on Sunday in the final against world No. 1 Sora Matsushima of Japan. Lin, the world No. 6, recovered from a loss in the first two games to take a 3-2 lead, but was overtaken by Matsushima, who won the match 4-3. In the 55-minute final at Shougang Park in Beijing, Lin finished as the runner-up, with game scores of 7-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 9-11. Lin entered Sunday’s final with a 6-1 career record against Matsushima, although the Japanese player had won their
There is much debate over who should win the Ballon d’Or this year, but if Lamine Yamal’s recent form continues over the season, handing out next year’s award would be simple. The teenage winger was at his mesmerizing best as Barcelona waltzed to a 4-1 win at Galatasaray in the Champions League on Tuesday, to make it 10 victories from 10 matches this season across all competitions. Hansi Flick’s irresistible side have scored 43 goals in that spell, including seven in the last two games, even without talisman Raphinha. A sensational dribble from Yamal helped create a goal for Anthony Gordon in Istanbul,
Taiwanese roller skaters Chuang Wei-ning and Liu Yi-hsuan won gold and silver in their 500+D sprint events at the World Skate Games in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Monday. Chuang, a student at Kaohsiung Municipal Tsoying Senior High School, won gold in the junior men’s 500+D sprint in 41.215 seconds. Italy’s Edoardo Abis took silver, while Colombia’s Juan Silva Rodriguez claimed bronze. Liu, competing in the senior women’s event, clocked 43.837 seconds, finishing behind Colombia’s Sara Munoz Moreno, who took gold in 43.496 seconds. Liu won the women’s marathon title at the World Speed Skating Championships in China last year. Athletes from 37 countries are competing
RSS