NATIONAL LEAGUE
AFP, NEW YORK
Disgraced baseball player Manny Ramirez endured jeers and catcalls from New York Mets fans before being ejected in the fifth inning for throwing a piece of his equipment toward home plate.
PHOTO: EPA
The Dodgers outfielder joked about his 50-game suspension in his first game in southern California, but his demeanor was vastly different during Tuesday’s game in front of a hostile crowd at Citi Field.
He was booed for 20 seconds prior to his opening at bat and then threw a hissy fit after striking out with the bases loaded in the fifth inning, which led to his ejection. One fan held up a cardboard sign with a drawing of a syringe.
But it wasn’t enough to spoil the Dodgers’ 8-0 win as Ramirez also had a pair of hits.
“That booing is something he is used to,” Dodgers manager Joe Torre said.
Ramirez is the first marquee player to be suspended under Major League Baseball’s stepped-up drug policy. He was slapped with a 50-game ban on May 7 after testing positive for a common masking drug for steroids.
Umpire John Hirschbeck sent Ramirez to the showers in the fifth inning after he flung an elbow pad over his right shoulder in the direction of Hirschbeck.
The 12-time all-star Ramirez didn’t like the called third strike.
“I just threw my pad when I was walking to field and he saw my pad close to him and threw me out,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez struck out in his first at bat, arguing that third strike call, which brought more hooting from the stands. In his next plate appearance Ramirez smiled at Hirschbeck and spread his hands about a foot apart in an apparent attempt to show the umpire how much he missed the last call by.
After Ramirez was ejected Torre came on to the field to argue with Hirschbeck.
Last week, Ramirez downplayed his 50-game suspension, jokingly calling it a “criminal record.”
Ramirez gave a half-hearted apology prior his first game back from the ban, saying he was sorry — not for the failed drug test — but to the fans for not being able to perform in front of them.
The Dodgers went 29-21 without Ramirez, who was hitting .348 with six homers and 20 RBI prior to his suspension on May 7.
In other NL games, it was:
• Cardinals 5, Brewers 0
• Reds 4, Phillies 3
• Giants 3, Marlins 0
• Diamondbacks 4, Padres 3
• Rockies 5, Nationals 4
• Braves 2, Cubs 1
• Pirates 6, Astros 3
AMERICAN LEAGUE
AP, ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA
The Texas Rangers moved back into a tie with Los Angeles for leadership of the American League West division with an 8-5 win over the Angels on Tuesday.
Andruw Jones hit a three-run homer to key Texas’ decisive six‑run fifth inning. The homer, a score on a wild pitch, and a two-run single all came with two outs in the fifth as the Rangers overhauled Los Angeles’ 3-0 lead.
Los Angeles pitcher John Lackey gave up six runs in 4 2-3 innings.
YANKEES 10, TWINS 2
In Minneapolis, pitcher C.C. Sabathia allowed just one run in seven innings, steering New York past Minnesota.
The bottom third of the Yankees batting order combined for seven hits and six RBIs.
Twins pitcher Scott Baker was 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in his only two previous starts against the Yankees, but gave up five runs in three innings, his shortest outing of the season.
RAYS 3, BLUE JAYS 1, 11 INNINGS
In St Petersburg, Florida, Pat Burrell hit a two-run homer in the 11th inning to give Tampa Bay victory over Toronto.
The AL champions stopped a four-game losing streak that included three losses to rookie pitchers.
They still struggled at the plate, managing just two hits in six innings against the Blue Jays debutant pitcher Marc Rzepczynski.
In other AL games, it was:
• Red Sox 5, Athletics 2
• Tigers 8, Royals 5
• Orioles 12, Mariners 4
• White Sox 10, Indians 6
SEESAW CONTEST: The Pistons remain top of the Eastern Conference after battling to a win over the Hawks in a game that saw the lead change 27 times The Phoenix Suns on Monday shrugged off an injury to Devin Booker to end the Los Angeles Lakers’ seven-game winning streak with an emphatic 125-108 victory on the road. Booker exited in the first quarter, but the loss of the star point guard did little to halt the flow of Phoenix points over the remainder of the game. Dillon Brooks led the Phoenix scoring with 33 points, while Collin Gillespie added 28 — including eight three-pointers — as the Suns romped to victory. The Lakers were left ruing a colossal 22 turnovers — at a cost of 32 Suns points — on a
New Zealand yesterday reached 231-9 at stumps on a first day of the first Test against the West Indies shortened by rain after Justin Greaves triggered a middle-order collapse with the wicket of Kane Williamson. New Zealand tumbled from 94-1 to 148-6 on a bowler-friendly wicket after Williamson was dismissed for 52, his 38th Test half-century. Michael Bracewell and Nathan Smith arrested the slide with a 52-run stand for the seventh wicket. Smith eventually fell for 23 and Bracewell for 47. After Matt Henry went for 8, Zak Foulkes and Jacob Duffy were both on 4 when bad light stopped play after 70
Robin Smith, the batter who shone for England in a period when it was beaten regularly in Test cricket, has died. He was 62. Smith’s family said in a statement from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) that he died unexpectedly at his home in Perth, Australia, on Monday. No cause was given. He played 62 Tests for England from 1988 to 1996, scoring 4,236 runs at an average of 43.67 with nine centuries. His signature shot was the square cut. Smith also played in 71 one-day internationals and was part of England’s squad who reached the 1992 ICC World Cup final. His unbeaten
SSC Napoli on Sunday joined AC Milan at the top of Serie A after winning 1-0 at title rivals AS Roma, as Inter kept pace with the leading pair by beating Pisa SC 2-0. David Neres stroked home the only goal of a feisty game in the 36th minute at the Stadio Olimpico, ending a blistering counterattack with a calm finish which put Napoli on 28 points. Napoli are behind Milan on goal-difference, and just one point ahead of both Roma and Inter in a tight scudetto battle in which Antonio Conte’s team are to host Juventus at the weekend. “To come to
RSS