INTERLEAGUE
AP, WASHINGTON
The Washington National’s Stephen Strasburg set a strikeout record in front of US President Barack Obama — but both had left the game by the time the Chicago White Sox won it in the 11th.
The baseball holiday — every fifth day — known as Strasmas was again a spectacle on Friday night. The 21-year-old rookie sensation struck out 10 to run his tally to an unprecedented 32 through three starts, yet he experienced his first no-decision in the White Sox’s 2-1 victory.
Mark Kotsay singled and scored on Alex Rios’ infield hit off Drew Storen (2-1) in the 11th inning for the White Sox, who have won four straight and eight of nine. J.J. Putz (2-2) worked the 10th to get the win, and Bobby Jenks the 11th for his 14th save. The Nationals have lost six of seven, with Strasburg accounting for the only victory during that stretch.
TIGERS 7, DIAMONDBACKS 5
At Detroit, Michigan, Brandon Inge hit a tiebreaking RBI triple in the eighth inning as Detroit edged Arizona.
The Tigers wasted leads of 4-0 and 5-4 before sending Arizona to its 14th consecutive road loss, extending its franchise record.
Brennan Boesch started the eighth-inning rally with a one-out walk against Chad Qualls (1-4). Boesch advanced on a groundout and scored on Inge’s drive over the head of center fielder Chris Young.
Phil Coke (5-0) got two outs to earn the win.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
RED SOX 10, DODGERS 6
At Boston, David Ortiz homered as Boston beat Los Angeles in Manny Ramirez’s first game back since his acrimonious departure from the team he helped win two World Series titles.
David Ortiz hugged Ramirez to welcome him back to Fenway Park.
Then he hit the home run to move alongside his former teammate on the Boston’s all-time home run list.
Ortiz hit his 274th homer for the Red Sox to tie his quirky former teammate for fifth on the franchise’s all-time list.
Adrian Beltre hit a two-run homer in a seven-run, fifth inning that helped 22-year-old left-hander Felix Doubront (1-0) win in his major league debut. J.D. Drew also homered for Boston before leaving with a strained right hamstring in the third inning.
Josh Bard earned his third save, striking out Ramirez looking with two on and two outs to end the game.
METS 4, YANKEES 0
At New York, Hisanori Takahashi outpitched Javier Vazquez as the New York Mets beat the New York Yankees.
With the bases loaded in the ninth inning, Francisco Rodriguez struck out Derek Jeter and retired Nick Swisher on a foulout to end it. The Mets have won eight straight.
David Wright scored in the first with a nifty slide and made a key defensive play at third base. Angel Pagan added a two-run double in the eighth and the Mets opened the second Subway Series of the year with their third consecutive victory over the defending World Series champs.
In other interleague play, it was:
Padres 3, Orioles 2
Phillies 9, Twins 5
Braves 6, Royals 4
Rangers 9, Astros 3
Cardinals 6, Athletics 4
Marlins 7, Rays 4
Pirates 4, Indians 3
Angels 7, Cubs 6
Blue Jays 3, Giants 2
Mariners 1, Reds 0
Rockies 2, Brewers 0
At Denver, Colorado, Jason Hammel pitched seven-and-one-third sharp innings and brought in a run with a squeeze bunt, lifting the injury-riddled Colorado Rockies to a 2-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
The right-hander ran his streak of scoreless innings to a career-best 25 1-3, proving to be a nice complement to Rockies ace Ubaldo Jimenez.
Hammel (5-3) also contributed offensively in the absence of Troy Tulowitzki, who will be out for about six weeks after breaking his left wrist when he was hit by a pitch in Minnesota on Thursday.
Hammel finished 1 for 2 with a double and a well-placed squeeze bunt in the second for just his second career RBI.
Manuel Corpas pitched the ninth for his ninth save in 11 chances.
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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