MAJOR LEAGUES
Vernon Wells broke out of his big slump with a pinch-hit, three-run double as the Yankees rallied to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 7-5 in New York on Saturday.
Wells was in a nine-for-87 slide that landed him on the bench the past two days, with rookie outfielder Zoilo Almonte starting in his place.
Photo: Reuters
However, with the Yankees trailing 5-4 in the seventh inning, Wells batted for No. 9 hitter Chris Stewart with the bases loaded and two outs.
Wells’ vital hit got C.C. Sabathia (8-5) off the hook after he allowed five runs in seven innings. Mariano Rivera worked a scoreless ninth for his 26th save.
In other AL games, the Chicago White Sox downed the Kansas City Royals 3-2, the Detroit Tigers trounced the Boston Red Sox 10-3, the Cleveland Indians edged the Minnesota Twins 8-7 and the Seattle Mariners were 7-5 winners over the Oakland Athletics.
In the National League, Jhoulys Chacin pitched seven shutout innings and hit an RBI single as the Colorado Rockies snapped their five-game losing streak by beating the Washington Nationals 7-1.
D.J. LeMahieu hit his first home run and Michael Cuddyer’s RBI single in the first extended his hitting streak to 20 games, the longest active streak in the majors and tied for the longest this season. Nolan Arenado also went deep for Colorado.
Chacin (6-3) held Washington to five hits with one walk and three strikeouts to win his third straight start.
The Arizona Diamondbacks staged a ninth-inning rally behind Jason Kubel’s two-run single to beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-3.
Jay Bruce’s second home run of the game gave the Reds a 3-2 lead in the top of the ninth inning.
In San Francisco, Hector Sanchez singled home the winning run in the 11th inning as the Giants beat the Miami Marlins 2-1.
Giants right fielder Hunter Pence made a diving catch to rob Placido Polanco of a likely go-ahead single to end the 11th. The Giants beat the Marlins at home for the first time since July 28, 2010.
In other NL games, the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Mets 8-7, the Milwaukee Brewers blanked the Atlanta Braves 2-0 and the Los Angeles Dodgers downed the San Diego Padres 6-1.
The Texas Rangers defeated the St Louis Cardinals 4-2, the Pittsburgh Pirates downed the Los Angeles Angels 6-1 and the Houston Astros edged the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in interleague games.
Taiwan’s Lee Hao-yu on Friday went 0-for-3 in his MLB debut for the Detroit Tigers against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, becoming the 19th Taiwan-born player to reach the big leagues. The Tigers ultimately lost 1-0 in 10 innings, ending their six-game winning streak. The 23-year-old started at third base and batted eighth for Detroit. He was promoted from Triple-A Toledo ahead of the four-game series against the Red Sox at the latter’s home stadium, replacing injured utility player Zach McKinstry. “Being right-handed, and given our schedule, I think six of the next 12 games are going to
Matheus Cunha on Saturday fired Manchester United toward the UEFA Champions League with a 1-0 win at Chelsea, while Tottenham Hotspur remain in the relegation zone after twice blowing the lead to draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. Chelsea failed to take advantage of a United defense ravaged by injury and suspension as a fourth straight league defeat for the Blues left their Champions League hopes in ruins. United have missed out on the riches of Europe’s elite competition for the past two seasons, but are closing in on a return thanks to an upturn in fortunes under interim manager
Denmark’s double Olympic badminton champion Viktor Axelsen, long a rival of Taiwan’s former world No. 2 Chou Tien-chen, yesterday announced his retirement at age 32, saying back problems meant he could no longer “compete and train at the highest level.” Axelsen, who won gold at the Tokyo Games in 2021 and again in Paris in 2024, had back surgery in April last year and said he had not overcome his physical issues. “Accepting this situation has been incredibly difficult,” he said in a statement. “But I have now reached a point where my body won’t allow me to continue.” Axelsen retires as one
Italian soccer is at its lowest ebb in nearly 40 years after a wholesale European exodus at club level followed the nation’s failure for the third successive time to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, and compounded a leadership and structural crisis. The exits suffered by Bologna and ACF Fiorentina on Thursday in the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League respectively meant no Italian teams are left in European competition this season. Italy’s last remaining UEFA Champions League contenders, Atalanta BC, went out in the round of 16 last month. It is the first time since the 1986-1987 campaign that Italian clubs
RSS