Alex Rodriguez hit a three-run homer to break Lou Gehrig’s American League record for RBIs as the New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 4-2 on Wednesday to finish a three-game sweep.
Michael Pineda (6-2) rebounded from consecutive losses, while Brian McCann hit a solo shot for the Yankees, who outscored the AL champions 23-4 in their first home sweep of at least three games against Kansas City since August 2007.
Chris Young (4-1) gave up both Yankees home runs, with the slumping Royals having dropped four straight for the first time since Aug. 28 to Aug. 31 last year.
Photo: AFP
MARINERS 3, RAYS 0
In St Petersburg, Florida, Felix Hernandez pitched a four-hitter to become the major’s first eight-game winner, while Nelson Cruz hit his AL-best 18th homer to snap a scoreless tie in the ninth inning as the Mariners completed a three-game sweep by beating the Rays.
Hernandez (8-1) got four double plays in his second shutout this season.
Brad Boxberger (2-3) relieved after Chris Archer pitched two-hit ball for eighth innings, while Boxberger walked Seth Smith and Robinson Cano with two outs before Cruz connected.
Archer tied a career high with 12 strikeouts for the Rays, who have lost five in a row. The right-hander had stretches where he retired 12 and 11 batters in a row.
INDIANS 12, RANGERS 3
In Cleveland, Ohio, Carlos Santana capped and eight-run third inning with a three-run homer, leading the Indians past Texas to end the Rangers’ seven-game winning streak.
Carlos Carrasco (6-4) allowed only Robinson Chirinos’ solo homer in the fifth while pitching eight sharp innings. The right-hander held Texas to five hits and struck out eight.
Texas starter Colby Lewis (4-3) allowed 10 runs and 11 hits in 2-2/3 innings. He was chased in the third when the Indians sent 12 men to the plate.
TWINS 6, RED SOX 4
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, Aaron Hicks homered for the first time in more than a year as the Twins extended their winning streak to five games with a victory over the Red Sox.
Eddie Rosario also homered for Minnesota, who have won nine of 11. The Twins swept Boston for the first time since June 13 to June 15, 2006.
Dustin Pedroia homered twice for the Red Sox, who have lost six of eight.
Minnesota starter Phil Hughes (4-4) allowed four earned runs in 6-2/3 innings.
Rick Porcello (4-4) allowed six earned runs in seven innings for Boston.
NATIONALS 3, CUBS 0
In Chicago, Illinois, Bryce Harper hit his 18th home run, while Max Scherzer struck out a season-high 13 to outduel Jon Lester as Washington beat Chicago.
The top two free-agent pitchers on the market last off-season, Scherzer and Lester (4-3) faced off in a memorable matchup in the finale of the three-game series. Scherzer (6-3) was better than his counterpart, throwing seven scoreless innings while allowing five hits and one walk to win his fifth straight start.
In other games, it was:
‧ Cardinals 4, Diamondbacks 3
‧ White Soc 5, Blue Jays 3, (10)
‧ Giants 3, Brewers 1
‧ Mets 7, Phillies 0
‧ Pirates 5, Marlins 2
‧ Rockies 6, Reds 4
‧ Tigers 3, Athletics 2
‧ Orioles 5, Astros 4
‧ Braves 3, Dodgers 2
‧ Padres 5, Angels 4
‘SU-PENKO’: Hsieh and Ostapenko face a rematch against their Australian Open final opponents, the same duo Hsieh played in last year’s Wimbledon semi-finals Taiwanese women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei and Latvian partner Jelena Ostapenko on Wednesday survived a near upset to the unseeded duo of Sorana Cirstea of Romania and Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya, setting up a semi-final showdown against last year’s winners. Despite losing a hard-fought opening set 7-6 (7/4) on a tiebreak, the fourth seeds turned up the heat, losing just five games in the final two sets to handily put down Cirstea and Kalinskaya 6-3, 6-2. Nicknamed “Su-Penko,” the pair are next to face top seeds Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic and Taylor Townsend of the US in a reversal of last
Taiwanese tennis veteran Hsieh Su-wei (謝淑薇) and her Latvian partner Jelena Ostapenko finished runners-up in the Wimbledon women's doubles final yesterday, losing 6-3, 2-6, 4-6. The three-set match against Veronika Kudermetova of Russia and Elise Mertens of Belgium lasted two hours and 23 minutes. The loss denied 39-year-old Hsieh a chance to claim her 10th Grand Slam title. Although the Taiwanese-Latvian duo trailed 1-3 in the opening set, they rallied with two service breaks to take it 6-3. In the second set, Mertens and Kudermetova raced to a 5-1 lead and wrapped it up 6-2 to even the match. In the final set, Hsieh and
Taiwanese tennis veteran Hsieh Su-wei and her Latvian partner, Jelena Ostapenko, advanced to the Wimbledon women’s doubles final on Friday, defeating top seeds Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic and Taylor Townsend of the US in straight sets. The fourth-seeded duo bounced back quickly after losing their opening service game, capitalizing on frequent unforced errors by their opponents to take the first set 7-5. Maintaining their momentum in the second set, Hsieh and Ostapenko broke serve early and held their lead to close out the match 6-4. They are set to face the eighth-seeded pair of Veronika Kudermetova of Russia and Elise Mertens
Outside Anfield, the red sea of tributes to Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva, has continued to grow this week, along with questions over whether Liverpool could play at Preston today, their first game since the brothers’ tragic loss. Inside Anfield, and specifically a grieving Liverpool dressing room, there was no major debate over the pre-season friendly. The English Premier League champions intend to honor their teammate in the best way they know how. It would be only 10 days since the deaths of Jota and Silva when Liverpool appear at Deepdale Stadium for what is certain to be a hugely
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