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| Author: | Cl11234566 [ Tue Jan 21, 2020 2:57 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Grand Slam final |
CLEVELAND -- A night after flexing their muscles, the Cleveland Indians used a different tactic to beat the Texas Rangers. While the offence was limited to run-scoring singles by Lonnie Chisenhall and Nick Swisher in the sixth inning, five pitchers combined on a five-hitter for a 2-0 victory on Saturday night. "We got a couple of big hits and we were able to piece it together," Indians manager Terry Francona said. Scott Atchison (4-0) pitched 1 2-3 innings and worked out of a two-on, no-out jam in the sixth. Cody Allen worked a shaky ninth for his 14th save. J.P. Arencibia drew a leadoff walk and Leonys Martin singled, but Allen regrouped. Pinch-hitter Jim Adduci struck out and Rougned Odor fouled out before Daniel Robertson struck out to end the 24-pitch inning. "Luckily, I was able to make some pitches to get out of it," Allen said. "Youre going to get in jams. Youre facing very good hitters who are going to beat you. Its just part of being a closer." The win moved the Indians (55-55) back to .500 while the Rangers have dropped 18 of 21 away from home and are the worst team in the majors (43-67). The Indians pounded out 16 hits in a 12-2 win Friday, but couldnt do anything with Texas starter Miles Mikolas, who went into the game with an 8.54 ERA, through five innings. That finally changed in the sixth. Jason Kipnis started the rally with a single, took second on a sacrifice and went to third on a groundout. The Rangers elected to walk Carlos Santana intentionally on a 2-0 count, but Chisenhall foiled that strategy by dropping a single into centre field on the first pitch. Swisher lined a single to right for a two-run lead. "Lonnie found some outfield grass and Swish got the hit," Francona said. "He tried to get in on Chiz and he jammed him, but there was just enough there for him to hit," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "That was a tough break for Miles." T.J. House, called up from the minors before the game, pitched five scoreless innings for Cleveland. House, who struck out seven and allowed three hits, was pulled in the sixth when Elvis Andrus drew a leadoff walk and took second on Alex Rios infield hit. Atchison retired Adrian Beltre on a groundout that moved both runners into scoring position. Andrus was tagged out in a rundown trying to score on Arencibias grounder. Martin struck out on a 3-2 pitch to end the inning. Mikolas (1-4) allowed two runs in seven innings. BIG FAN Francona led his players and coaching staff to the pregame ceremony in which the Indians unveiled a statue of Jim Thome. As an opposing manager, Francona always respected Thomes power. "If you go to a game, you dont really want to go get something to eat when hes hitting," Francona said. His strategy to stop Thome seldom worked. "When he walked to the plate Id gave him the bunt sign," Francona said. "Hed always smile and hit one in the upper deck." TAKE IT INSIDE The plan for Indians outfielder Michael Bourn (strained left hamstring) to run the bases was scrubbed by an afternoon thunderstorm. So he was sent across the street to Quicken Loans Arena, where the Cleveland Gladiators were hosting an Arena League playoff game. Bases were set up on the carpeted playing surface and Bourn was able to get in his work before the football game. TRAINERS ROOM Rangers: Catcher Geovany Soto (strained right groin) was scheduled to catch seven innings Saturday on his rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Round Rock. He went 1 for 2 with a walk Friday in his debut with the Express. Soto has only played in three major league games this season after undergoing right knee surgery in late March. Indians: Outfielder Chris Dickerson missed his second straight game with a sore left knee, but Francona said he will probably be able to play Sunday. Dickerson left Thursdays game when he made an awkward attempt to catch a fly ball that fell for a double. ON DECK Rangers: Right-hander Yu Darvish (10-6) will start the finale of the three-game series on Sunday. Darvishs 1.24 ERA in day games is the second-lowest in the AL, while his 2.90 season ERA ranks ninth. Indians: Right-hander Trevor Bauer (4-5) starts for Cleveland. He faced Texas for the first time in his career on June 6, allowing four earned runs in 6 1-3 innings and taking the loss. . -- Zach Johnson asked his short-iron approach on the par-4 18th to "Do something right, baby. . Dr. James Andrews is to operate next week on the 24-year-old pitcher, who made the AL All-Star team last year. Moore will be the first Rays pitcher to undergo Tommy John surgery since Jason Isringhausen in June 2009. http://www.prochiefsauthentic.com/Youth ... ersey/.com) - Pavel Datsyuk and Gustav Nyquist both scored in the shootout as the Detroit Red Wings denied the Minnesota Wilds comeback bid with a 5-4 win on Tuesday. . After losing Brett Cecil to groin tightness on Friday, the Blue Jays watched as R. . -- A year ago, Flavia Pennetta was close to retiring from tennis.Melbourne, Australia (SportsNetwork.com) - Stanislas Wawrinka defeated an injured Rafael Nadal in Sundays mens final at the 2014 Australian Open. The eighth-seeded Swiss upset the world No. 1 star 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 at Melbourne Parks Rod Laver Arena, where the Spaniard labored mightily with a back injury on Australia Day. Trailing a set and a break, Nadal actually left the court for a medical timeout in the second set, only to return to a chorus of boos. The Grand Slam title is the first of Wawrinkas career, in his 36th major event, as he becomes only the second-ever Swiss to corral a major singles championship, joining the great Roger Federer, who was blown out by Nadal in a semifinal here on Friday. "Rafa, Im really sorry for you, I hope your back is going to be fine, youre a really great guy, good friend and really amazing champion," Wawrinka said during the trophy presentation. "Last year I had a crazy match, I lost it. I was crying a lot after the match. But in one year a lot happened -- I still dont know if Im dreaming or not but well see tomorrow morning." In the fourth and final set on Sunday, Wawrinka broke Nadal for a 4-2 lead, only to see the gritty Spaniard break right back to hang in there. Wawrinka, however, promptly broke Nadal again and then served out the bout on his first match point by swatting one final forehand winner. Wawrinka blew through the first set and was ahead in the second when Nadal first showed signs of a back problems, as a retirement looked like a real possibility at the time, with Nadal striking sub-80-mph serves. The Lausanne native Wawrinka was aggravated during Nadals medical timeout, demanding that officials tell him why the Spaniard needed the break. Wawrinka then aggressively finished off the second set before Nadal fought back in the third. Nadal saved break points to hold in the opening game of the third set and then broke Wawrinka and held for a 3-0 lead. He won the third set as Wawrinka started piling up some errors, with the Swiss appearing unable to handle the pressure of being in his first Grand Slam final. But Wawrinka composed himself once again in the fourth and ultimately cruised to victory. Thhe Swiss slugger prevailed in 2 hours, 21 minutes by firing 19 aces among his 53 winners (53-19) and tallying three more service breaks (5-2) than Nadal on Day 14.dddddddddddd "He deserves to win the title," Nadal said of Wawrinka. "Im very happy for him, hes a great guy. "Im obviously disappointed and very sad about what happened. But thats life, thats sport. Ive really had a lot of great moments in my career. Thats a tough one. Just accept it and try to keep working hard for whats coming." Nadal has had a tough go of it with injuries at the Aussie Open. He missed last years edition during a seven-month layoff with knee injuries and illness, and his quarterfinal losses in 2010 and 2011 were affected by injuries. Wawrinka had been 0-12 lifetime against Nadal, including a round-of-32 Aussie Open loss in 2007, and had never taken a set off the Spanish great prior to Sunday. The 2009 champion Nadal was playing in his third career Aussie Open final (1-2) and second in three years. The 28-year-old Wawrinka appeared in his first career Grand Slam final. The 27-year-old Nadal played in his 19th career Grand Slam final overall (13-6), tying Ivan Lendl for second on the mens all-time list. Wawrinka will move up to a career-high No. 3 in the world on Monday after beating the top-two players in the world this week. He improved to 6-9 in his career finals overall, including 2-0 already in 2014, as he has yet to lose this year (10-0). The last player to beat the top-two seeds at a Grand Slam was Sergi Bruguera at the 1993 French Open. Nadal fell to 61-25 in his career finals, as he was trying to become the first man in the Open Era to win each Grand Slam twice. Wawrinka became the first player to beat both Nadal and Djokovic at a major event. The "Big Four" of Nadal, Djokovic, Andy Murray and Federer had won 34 of the previous 35 Slams. American legend and 14-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras was on the court for the trophy presentation Sunday. A win by Nadal would have tied him with Sampras on the mens all-time list. Wawrinka colleted $2.35 million for the biggest win of his career, while Nadal settled for $1.175 million. ' ' ' |
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