MLB: Yankees slugger suspended over 'Jackie' taunt

NEW YORK -- New York Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson was suspended for one game and given an undisclosed fine by Major League Baseball on Monday for a remark to Chicago White Sox player Tim Anderson that triggered accusations of racism.

Donaldson sparked uproar during the Yankees' ill-tempered clash with the White Sox on Saturday after addressing African-American shortstop Anderson as "Jackie".

The remark was seen as a reference to Jackie Robinson, the civil rights icon who became the first Black player in Major League Baseball when he started for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.

White Sox manager Tony LaRussa later characterized Donaldson's comment as "racist."

Donaldson, who is white, denied wrongdoing, claiming the remark referenced a 2019 interview in which Anderson described himself as "today's Jackie Robinson."

"MLB has completed the process of speaking to the individuals involved in this incident," Major League Baseball's vice president for on-field operations Michael Hill said in a statement on Monday.

"There is no dispute over what was said on the field. Regardless of Mr Donaldson's intent, the comment he directed toward Mr Anderson was disrespectful and in poor judgment, particularly when viewed in the context of their prior interactions."

Hill said the incident had contributed to a bench-clearing clash between players from both teams later in the game.

"Donaldson's remark was a contributing factor in a bench-clearing incident between the teams, and warrants discipline," Hill said.

On Saturday, Anderson had accused Donaldson of making a "disrespectful comment" with his 'Jackie' taunt.

"Basically he was trying to call me Jackie Robinson. 'What's up, Jackie?' I don't play like that," Anderson told reporters.

"I wasn't really going to bother nobody today, but he made the comment and you know it was disrespectful and I don't think it was called for. It was unneccessary."

The controversy was the latest flashpoint involving Anderson and Donaldson.

In a game on May 13, the Yankees and White Sox benches cleared after Anderson reacted to a rough tag by Donaldson.

On Sunday, Anderson was booed by Yankees fans as he rounded the bases after blasting a three-run homer into the Yankees Stadium stands, a day after the latest controversy with Donaldson.

Agence France-Presse

Jose Altuve’s HR in 9th sends Astros to World Series over Yankees

HOUSTON — Jose Altuve, the 5-foot-6 driving force of Houston, delivered a swing that will play in Astros’ highlights forever.

Altuve homered off Aroldis Chapman with two outs in the ninth inning and Houston outlasted the New York Yankees 6-4 Saturday night to advance to the World Series for the second time in three years.

“That’s one of the best moments of postseason history,” Houston general manager Jeff Luhnow said.

In a bullpen Game 6 with a back-and-forth finish, DJ LeMahieu hit a tying, two-run shot off Astros closer Roberto Osuna in the top of the ninth. Altuve answered with a two-run drive to left-center, setting off a wild celebration at Minute Maid Park and earning himself AL Championship Series MVP.

“Beautiful game,” Altuve said.

Astros ace Gerrit Cole was waiting to pitch a potential Game 7 on Sunday. Instead, the postseason star — undefeated since May 22 — can be lined up for Game 1 at home against the NL champion Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.

Yuli Gurriel hit a three-run homer in the first inning, and flashy outfield defense helped Houston’s relievers defeat the Yankees and their vaunted bullpen.

It almost fell apart in the ninth. Gio Urshela singled off Osuna leading off for his third hit of the game, and LeMahieu put a ball into the first row of seats in right field — inches over the glove of leaping George Springer — to tie it at 4.

Altuve, a sparkplug touted as Houston’s heart and soul, didn’t let this one get away.

“I get asked to describe Jose Altuve all the time,” manager AJ Hinch said. “I think MVP is what he is.”

The teams combined to use 14 pitchers in a drawn-out game that lasted 4 hours, 9 minutes.

Houston’s Will Harris, who got four outs over the sixth and seventh innings and has yet to allow a run this postseason, was glad Houston’s bullpen got to show its stuff.

“We have a lot of guys with a lot of pride that are really good at their jobs,” he said. “And I was excited for the opportunity for us to prove that today.”

The defense helped. Right fielder Josh Reddick dived for Brett Gardner’s liner for the second out of the sixth. An inning later, left fielder Michael Brantley laid out for Aaron Hicks’ shallow floater and doubled off Aaron Judge at first.

Gurriel, a holdover from Houston’s 2017 championship team, was 1 for 20 to start the ALCS before his drive in the first inning. He jumped all over a high-and-tight fastball from opener Chad Green, and his shot into the Crawford Boxes was his first connection this postseason.

It’s the third time Houston has eliminated New York in the past five postseasons. The Astros won the 2015 wild-card game in the Bronx and beat the Yankees in seven games in the 2017 ALCS before winning their first title.

“I feel like we are on equal footing with them,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “Unfortunately, sports can be a little bit cruel for the team that goes home.”

Washington is seeking its first championship in the 51-season history of the Montreal Expos/Nationals franchise. The original Washington Senators won their only championship for the nation’s capital in 1924 and last reached the World Series in 1933 before becoming the Minnesota Twins for the 1961 season.

Gary Sánchez had an RBI single in the second and Urshela homered in the fourth for the Yankees.

Alex Bregman gave the Astros an insurance run with an RBI on a forceout in the sixth inning.

Brantley’s double play elicited one of the loudest ovations of the night — before Altuve’s blast — from the sellout crowd of 43,357 which included Hall of Famers Nolan Ryan and Craig Biggio and Rockets stars James Harden and Russell Westbrook, who watched from the front row in personalized orange Astros jerseys.

New York was 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position and 3 for 24 over the final five games of the series. The franchise lost its fourth straight ALCS after falling in 2010, 2012 and 2017. The Yankees will go without a World Series appearance in a calendar decade for the first time since the 1910s.

“The work never ends,” Boone said. “And we’ll continue to try and I guess close that gap.”

Altuve doubled off Green with one out in the first inning and Bregman drew a walk with two outs. After a short visit to the mound, Gurriel knocked the next pitch into the seats in left field for a 3-0 lead. The runs were Houston’s first with two outs in the series.

Houston had been 4 for 40 with runners in scoring position before that big swing.

Brad Peacock, who threw eight pitches in a scoreless eighth inning Friday night, became the fourth pitcher ever to finish a postseason game and then start the next day, and the first since 1924.

He needed seven pitches to retire the side in the first before running into trouble with two outs in the second. Josh James ended the inning by striking out Gardner.

Ryan Pressly had another gutsy escape, too. He hurt his right knee again fielding a bases-loaded grounder by Didi Gregorius but limped over to tag him for the final out of the third. Pressly, who grimaced as he went toward the dugout after one pitch, had arthroscopic surgery on the same knee on Aug. 22 and returned Sept. 20. Pressly also got two strikeouts with the bases loaded in Game 4.

He said that some scar tissue broke off on the play but that he’ll be ready to go this week.

“It’s the World Series,” Hinch said. “It will be all hands on deck.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Alex Rodriguez accepts season-long suspension from Major League Baseball

NEW YORK — Alex Rodriguez accepted his season-long suspension from Major League Baseball on Friday, the longest penalty in the sport’s history related to performance-enhancing drugs.

The decision came nearly four weeks after arbitrator Fredric Horowitz issued his decision largely upholding the penalty issued to the New York Yankees third baseman last summer by baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.

Rodriguez had repeatedly proclaimed his innocence and sued MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association in federal court to overturn the penalty.

But 27 days after Horowitz’s decision, the three-time American League MVP withdrew the lawsuit and a previous action filed in October claiming MLB and Selig were engaged in a “witch hunt” against him. Rodriguez became the 14th and final player to accept a suspension following baseball’s investigation of the Biogenesis of America anti-aging clinic.

“I think it’s a good move for him,” former Commissioner Fay Vincent said. “A-Rod had no chance legally, and the commissioner got his authority validated.”

MLB issued low-key statement calling the decision to end the litigation “prudent.”

“We believe that Mr. Rodriguez’s actions show his desire to return the focus to the play of our great game on the field and to all of the positive attributes and actions of his fellow major league players,” the sport said. “We share that desire.”

Rodriguez had angered many of his fellow players by suing his own union in an attempt to avoid a suspension.

“Alex Rodriguez has done the right thing by withdrawing his lawsuit,” the union said in a statement. “His decision to move forward is in everyone’s best interest.”

After Horowitz issued his decision on Jan. 11, Rodriguez put out a defiant statement proclaiming “no player should have to go through what I have been dealing with” and promising “I am exhausting all options to ensure not only that I get justice, but that players’ contracts and rights are protected.”

But a few hours after the Arizona Diamondbacks became the first team this year to start spring training workouts, and with the Yankees a week from opening camp, Rodriguez folded quietly.

“We stand by the statements issued and have no further comment,” Rodriguez spokesman Ron Berkowitz said.

Rodriguez will lose most of his $25 million salary — Horowitz ruled he is entitled to 21-183rds, $2,868,852.46. He will be 39 when he is eligible to return in a year, and he has incentive to play during the final three seasons of his contract. The Yankees owe him $21 million in 2015 and $20 million in each of the final two seasons of the record $275 million, 10-year deal.

But the 14-time All-Star has been hobbled by injuries in recent years and hasn’t played a full season since 2007.

The timing of Rodriguez’s decision was set in motion by U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos, who on Jan. 30 told the player’s lawyers to respond by Friday to arguments from MLB and the union that the case should be dismissed.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Yankees Jeter done for year with ankle injury

BALTIMORE—Derek Jeter began the season on the disabled list, and that’s how it will end.

The New York Yankees shortstop will miss the rest of the year after being placed on the DL on Wednesday with an injured left ankle.

Jeter missed the first part of the season after breaking his left ankle in the 2012 playoffs. He returned to the DL twice more and played only 17 games, batting .190 with one homer and seven RBIs.

And now, he’s been shelved for a fourth time.

“This entire season has been a nightmare for me physically,” Jeter said. “It’s a fitting end.”

The captain fully intends to return next year, even though he turns 40 on June 26.

“I truly believe with a full offseason, working out and getting my strength back that I can get back to doing what I always have,” Jeter said. “I don’t think you think about the end of anything. Our job is to get ready to play. I tried to come back this year as quickly as possible. Maybe that was not the best thing to do. My job now is to get ready for next year. And I have to do that.”

Jeter last played Saturday against Boston. He was removed for a pinch runner after hurting his left ankle, and although a CT scan was negative, general manager Brian Cashman said the injury will need significant time to heal.

“You have to let the pain dissipate and then give it a chance to let the ankle strengthen back up,” Cashman said. “We’re just not going to have the time to do that in any capacity right now. It puts him in a vulnerable situation and risks re-injury or further injury. And that’s not something we are willing to do.”

His departure comes with New York in the thick of the AL wild-card hunt.

“It’s very disappointing not to be able to play, especially at this time of year,” Jeter said. “This is when I want to play the most.”

The Yankees will miss him, but they’re counting on having Jeter in 2014.

“I have seen him do this over and over and overcome a lot of things people thought he would not overcome,” manager Joe Girardi said. “That just who he is. When you talk about what’s inside Derek, he’s special. That’s what made him great for so long.”

The current ankle injury is seemingly related to the one that occurred last October in the AL championship series against Detroit.

“There is no new medical information other than the fact there were conversations that he has pain most likely stemming from weakness surrounding the bone, the muscles, tendons and ligaments, and it was not going to solve itself anytime soon,” Cashman said. “And he would be vulnerable.

Something’s going to give the more we run him out there. So we feel it’s best to shut him down. Let him prepare for next year. That’s the safest thing to do.”

Next year? Cashman is certain of it.

“I have not thought I have watched his last game,” Cashman said. “Not one time.”

New York’s career leader with 3,316 hits, Jeter made his season debut on July 11 but hurt himself in that game and returned to the disabled list on July 19 (retroactive to July 12) with a right quad strain. After being activated on July 28, he was placed on the DL on Aug. 5 with a strained right calf.

“It seemed like when he came back, he was fine and then he would play a couple of games and something would happen,” Girardi said. “It seemed to be the repeated days seemed to get to him a little bit. That was frustrating for him. That was frustrating for all of us because we wanted him out there. I think that’s why we decided to shut him down.”

Jeter was a regular in the lineup after his return on Aug. 26 before again running into problems with the ankle. Now he’s done for good.

“I think it’s just a matter of me not having any strength,” Jeter said. “I have not been able to work out my legs or lift my legs since October of last year.

I really think it’s from lack of strength. When I came back, I had two other leg issues because of weakness there. I’ll have a whole offseason to get back to being able to work out. ”

Brendan Ryan, obtained in a trade with Seattle on Tuesday, was in the starting lineup at shortstop against the Orioles on Wednesday night.

“I don’t think it’s the most enviable position to step in after a legend,” Ryan said. “He’s not going anywhere. I don’t want it to sound like that. I don’t even know what his status is really. If I play today, and not anymore after that, whatever it is I can do to help.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Yankees vs. Orioles: Jim Johnson redeems himself, Baltimore evens series

As unlikely as the Baltimore Orioles-New York Yankees ALDS matchup is by itself, consider the pitching matchup in Monday’s Game 2. One lefthander was retired in 2011, and the other was pitching in Japan.

There was 40-year-old Andy Pettitte, the all-time leader with 19 postseason wins, facing Wei-Yin Chen, the only Orioles pitcher with a double-digit win total this season. Both pitched very well, but it was Chen who exited with a 3-2 lead in the seventh.





But it all came down to Orioles closer Jim Johnson, who allowed five earned runs in a disastrous ninth-inning meltdown in Game 1 and had to face the top of the Yankees’ order in the ninth in Game 2.

This time, Johnson recorded three uneventful outs for a bullpen that now has won all 76 games it has led after seven innings this season (postseason included), and for a team that now is 30-9 in one-run games.

Three strikes from the Orioles’ 3-2 win in Game 2:

1. Elusive Ichiro

In three of his five at-bats in Game 2, Yankees left fielder Ichiro Suzuki reached base despite not hitting the ball out of the infield.

In the first inning, he reached on an error by Orioles first baseman Mark Reynolds. And that set up one of the wildest plays at the plate in … well, ever. Ichiro was waved home on a double into the right field corner by Robinson Cano and should have been out by at least 10 feet. But he twice eluded the tag of catcher Matt Wieters, first running around him and then diving over him to tag the plate. After he should have been out twice in the inning, Ichiro gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead.

In the third, Ichiro reached safely on a weak grounder toward second base. He was stranded, but the 38-year-old provided more proof that he still can be a pest this late in his career.

In the seventh, Ichiro beat out the back end of what appeared certain to be a double play. He then stole second base before advancing to third on a passed ball—again wreaking havoc after he should have been out on a ball that never left the infield. However, he again was stranded.

2. Hard-luck Hardy

While Ichiro was guilty of stealing a run in the first, the Orioles were guilty of giving one back in the third. After Baltimore mounted a two-out rally against Pettitte to take a 2-1 lead, Adam Jones hit a grounder that just eluded shortstop Derek Jeter. J.J. Hardy, who was on second base at the time, stopped at third despite third base coach DeMarlo Hale emphatically waving him home.

Hardy, who would have scored easily, took his eye off the ball and off his third base coach. And it appeared that Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez was responsible for the confusion, successfully deking Hardy. Hardy heard all about it from the crowd after was stranded at third when Wieters popped out in the next at-bat. He would have caught another earful if his sixth-inning error had led to any damage and if the Orioles had lost.

3. Home away from home

The first two games of this series were at Camden Yards, but the next three (if it goes the full five games) will be at Yankee Stadium. And that’s just fine with Baltimore, which went 6-3 there this season thanks in large part to Reynolds (.321-4-8), Hardy (.275-3-5) and Wieters (.364-2-4).

In what now is a best-of-three series, there is reason to believe the Orioles can prevail. However, the Yankees won 10 of their final 11 home games in the regular season and haven’t lost a home series since Aug. 31-Sept. 2. That series was against—you guessed it—the Orioles.

source: aol.sportingnews.com