Yuya Kamada continued his mastery over opposing hitters with seven frames of shutout ball, while Pan “TAKE” Wu-hsiung drove in a pair of runs on 2-for-5 hitting to help the Uni-President Lions humble the Brother Elephants 8-0 at the Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium last night to take the weekend series in northern Taiwan.
The win not only extended the Cats’ current win streak to nine, but more importantly clinched the first-half title for the defending champs, as they needed only 50 games to secure a spot in the postseason with an amazing 37-13 mark in the first half.
Orange ribbons blanketed both sides of the infield seats as the Lions fans celebrated their franchise’s record-high 12th half-season title, thanks to another dominating outing by Kamada, as he improved to a league-best 11-0 for the season.
Back-to-back doubles by Pan and Chang “OEO” Tai-shan off Elephants starter Lin Yu-ching knocked in a pair of runs for the Lions in the opening inning to give the visiting Cats a quick 2-0 advantage, a lead they held until through the fourth before doubling it in the fifth with Pan’s second RBI double of the game and Deng Chih-wei’s bases-loaded walk off Lin.
That was more than the Elephants could handle as they were cuffed by Kamada and his relievers all game long in a losing cause.
Bulls 10, Monkeys 0
The Sinon Bulls took advantage of a five-run third to take a 6-0 lead and went to blank the Lamigo Monkeys at the Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Greater Taichung last night to nip a six-game slide.
Lin Yi-chuan was a triple shy of hitting for the cycle to lead a Sinon attack that mowed through the Monkeys’ pitching as they collected an even dozen off the Primates en route to the blowout victory.
Lin Yi-chuan had two chances to get the elusive triple in the sixth and eighth innings, but failed to connect on either occasion, as the Monkeys’ pitchers was fully aware of the situation.
“The triple is always the hardest to get when you are trying to hit for the cycle, as you can see tonight,” he said after the game.
Spotted with an early lead, Sinon starter Lin Chen-hua backed up his top-pick status with 7-1/3 innings of shutout ball on five hits before turning the game over to reliever Wu Cheng-hsien, who ably kept the shutout intact by retiring five of the final six hitters he faced.
US righty Ken Ray did not have his usual stuff for the Monkeys as he lasted only two-plus innings, allowing six runs on five hits in his shortest start of the season. He is now 4-6 with an ERA of 4.44.
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen has become the first female player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after the Golden State Valkyries selected her in the third and final round of the league’s draft on Monday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship earlier this month. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament’s most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen (陳凱玲) has become the first player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after being selected by the Golden State Valkyries in the third and final round of the league's draft yesterday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship on April 6. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament's most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as a
Japan yesterday secured a second consecutive Billie Jean King Cup finals appearance with a 2-1 win over 2023 champions Canada, thanks to Ena Shibahara and Shuko Aoyama’s 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 win over Kayla Cross and Rebecca Marino in the qualifying doubles decider. Shibahara and Aoyama powered through the opening set 6-3, breaking twice for a quick 3-0 lead. Cross and Marino hit back in the second, edging it 7-5 to level the match, before the Japanese pair regained control in the third. Canada’s 18-year-old Victoria Mboko edged Shibahara 6-4, 6-7 (8/10), 7-5 in a marathon opening clash. Mboko fired eight aces to
DAY OF BLOWOUTS: Elsewhere, the Lakers clinched the third seed in the Western Conference with a 140-109 pounding of the under-strength Houston Rockets The Denver Nuggets on Friday improved their playoff position, with a triple double from Nikola Jokic helping them to a 117-109 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. The Serbian put up 26 points, 13 assists and 16 rebounds. The triple-double performance, his 34th this season, ensured that he will finish the regular season as just the third NBA player to average a triple double across an entire season. The win meant the Nuggets improved to 49-32 on the season and gave them a real chance of grabbing fourth place and home-court advantage in the playoffs. Aaron Gordon top scored with 33 points for Denver,
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