BASEBALL
Ichiro to stay with Miami
Miami Marlins’ Japanese outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, who owns the Major League Baseball record for consecutive 200-hit seasons, has signed a one-year deal to stay with the team for next year’s season, the team said on Tuesday. Suzuki, who in 2001 became the first Japanese position player in MLB history, will open next season 65 hits shy of becoming the 30th member of the 3,000-hit club. The 41-year-old outfielder is coming off his first campaign with the Marlins in which he had 91 hits in 398 at-bats along with a .229 batting average, 21 runs batted in and 11 stolen bases. Suzuki made his MLB debut with the Seattle Mariners and went on to win the American League’s Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player awards. He also opened his MLB career with 10 consecutive seasons of more than 200 hits.
SOCCER
US beat Panama 4-0
Sluggish in the first half, the US needed some kind of catalyst. So the team called on Jerome Kiesewetter and Jordan Morris, ending their nights off. Kiesewetter sparked the offense with a goal and an assist in the second half, and the US beat Panama 4-0 in CONCACAF Olympic qualifying in Commerce City, Colorado, on a rainy Tuesday. Already through to the semi-final round, the US did not have much to play for and rested several of their starters. Scoreless at halftime, coach Andi Herzog turned to his bench for a lift, sending in Kiesewetter and Morris. The US caught a break early in the second half when Panama defender Fidel Escobar knocked in a crossing shot. Kiesewetter then scored about three minutes later and Morris right after that. Luis Gil wrapped up the scoring by converting a penalty-kick, helping the US advance out of Group A with a 3-0 record. Canada finished second.
BASEBALL
Arroyo’s yacht stolen, sold
A former personal assistant for Bronson Arroyo secretly sold the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher’s yacht and kept the money, authorities in Florida said on Tuesday. Anthony Acosta, 38, of Tampa, Florida, was charged with grand theft and forgery and is being held in Hillsborough County Jail on a US$50,000 bond, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said in a statement. Acosta is accused of forging Arroyo’s signature on a bill of sale document and selling his 2006 Concept Boat to an unaware buyer in Opa-locka, Florida, pocketing the US$22,000 from the transaction in 2013, according to an arrest warrant. However, his plan unraveled when the buyer learned of a US$100,000 lien still on the boat and contacted Arroyo, the warrant said. Arroyo had fired Acosta as his personal assistant in 2012 because he made mistakes, was unreliable and took prescription drugs, according to the arrest warrant. An All-Star in 2006 while pitching for the Cincinnati Reds, Arroyo currently plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but is on the disabled list.
CRICKET
Warne, Tendulkar in US
Australian Shane Warne and India’s Sachin Tendulkar will captain two All-Star sides in a three-match Twenty20 series in the US in a bid to spark interest in a sport alien to most Americans. The ICC-sanctioned matches will be played on drop-in pitches at major baseball fields in New York, Houston and Los Angeles next month, with plenty of superstar talent on show. Among the throng of cricketing greats signed up are Brian Lara, Courtney Walsh, Curtly Ambrose, Muttiah Muralitharan, Wasim Akram, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Glenn McGrath and Brad Haddin.
‘REMARKABLE’: Gaelic football is a traditional Irish sport that blends the skills of soccer and rugby, and hurling is an ancient sport played with a wooden stick and ‘sliotar’ The Taiwan Celts Gaelic Football Club marked a milestone achievement at the Asian Gaelic Games in Bangkok on Nov. 23 and 24, with two sides advancing to the knockout stages and competing at hurling for the first time. The event brought together 68 teams from 16 clubs across Asia, with more than 800 players in men’s and women’s tournaments. Gaelic football is a traditional Irish team sport that blends the skills of soccer, rugby union and basketball. Hurling is an ancient Irish sport played with a wooden stick, called a hurley, and a small ball, or sliotar. The Taiwan Celts’ women’s team reached
LIVERPOOL WIN: The 50th Champions League goal by Mohamed Salah helped the leaders of the Premier League to keep their perfect record intact Real Madrid’s big stars on Tuesday turned on the style to revive the Spanish giant’s faltering UEFA Champions League title defense. Galacticos Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham all scored in a thrilling 3-2 win against Serie A leaders Atalanta BC. However, Madrid still had to ride their luck as Mateo Retegui fired over from in front of goal in stoppage-time when handed a golden chance to level the game. It was only Madrid’s third win in the competition’s revamped league phase and leaves the 15-time champions in the unseeded playoff positions in 18th place. “It’s a very important win. Not everyone wins
TO NO AVAIL: The Denver Nuggets’ Serbian center Nikola Jokic surpassed his 53-point performance in the 2023 Western Conference semi-finals against Phoenix The Washington Wizards withstood a 56-point explosion from Denver star Nikola Jokic to beat the Nuggets 122-113 on Saturday and snap their 16-game NBA losing streak. Jokic, who won his third NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) award last season, posted a career scoring high — surpassing a 53-point performance in game four of the 2023 Western Conference semi-finals against Phoenix and a 50-point regular-season best against Sacramento in 2021. The Serbian big man added 16 rebounds and eight assists, but it was all to no avail as Washington, buoyed by 39 points from Jordan Poole, won for the first time
Taiwan’s Lin Cheng-jing won a bronze medal in the clean and jerk in the women’s under-49 kg division at the 2024 IWF World Weightlifting Championships in Bahrain on Saturday. Lin won her first medal at a World Weightlifting Championships for lifting 107kg in the clean and jerk in her weight class, 2kg more than Rosegie Ramos of the Philippines. However, Ramos won bronze for the combined lift after topping Lin by 5kg in the snatch. Ri Song-gum of North Korea won gold in the division’s combined lift with a total of 213kg, while Xiang Linxiang of China took silver with