Gagne hoping for a return
Nearly a decade since he last pitched in the big leagues, Eric Gagne is gearing up for the World Baseball Classic — and maybe a major comeback.
T h e f o r m e r C y Yo u n g Award closer pitched a scoreless inning Tuesday for Team Canada in a 7-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in Dunedin, Fla., consistently hitting 93 mph with his fastball.
“Nervous, didn’t know what to expect, and it went well,” he said. “I just didn’t want to embarrass myself.”
Gagne, 41, turned a oneshot deal into this opportunity. Out of the majors since playing for Milwaukee in 2008, Gagne started for Ottawa of the independent Can-Am League last year as part of a promotion in the team’s regular-season finale. After retiring his first 12 batters, Gagne allowed one earned run, two hits and striking out six in five innings against Quebec.
“I know I’m ready physically and mentally, but going out there is a different story,” Gagne said. “It’s a great test right now to go against some major league guys and see where you’re at. For me it was a really, really successful day.”
Gagne relieved in the third inning against Toronto and retired Darwin Barney and Ezequiel Carrera on flyballs. After Jake Elmore walked on a 3-2 change-up and Kevin Pillar singled, Gagne ended the inning by getting a grounder from Melvin Upton Jr. on his 18th pitch.
“Looked like the old Gagne,” Canada first baseman Freddie Freeman said. “Throwing strikes.”
Nationals: Reigning NL Cy Young award winner Max Scherzer threw a live batting practice session for the first time this spring as he rehabs a stress fracture in the lower knuckle of his right ring finger. Scherzer threw 44 pitches during the outing, the majority of which were fastballs.
P i r a t e s : P ro s p e c t Jo s e Osuna hit his third home run of the spring in Tuesday’s 6-3 win over the Braves.
P h i l l i e s : T wo - t i me C y Young Award winner Roy Halladay is in camp as a guest instructor in spring training. Halladay, 39, plans to work with pitchers on the mental side of the game along with the fundamentals and mechanics of pitching.
World Baseball Classic
Japan 11, Cuba 6: Nobuhiro Matsuda had four hits, including a three-run homer, to key a five-run fifth inning as twotime champion Japan defeated Cuba in Tokyo. Yoshitomo Tsutsugo added a two-run homer for Japan.
Israel 15, Taiwan 7: Ryan L ava r nway hi t a t wo - r un homer in the third inning and Nate Freiman added a threerun homer in the ninth to help Israel rout Taiwan in Seoul.
Netherlands 5, S outh Korea 0: Jurickson Profar and Randolph Obuder each hit two-run homers as the Netherlands beat South Korea in Seoul. Former MLB starter Rick van den Hurk allowed three hits in four shutout innings for the win.
Sergei Bobrovsky made 33 saves for his third consecutive shutout as Columbus handed New Jersey its eighth straight loss. Oliver Bjorkstrand and Cam Atkinson scored third-period goals. Atkinson’s came into an empty net and was his 30th of the season.
Nazem Kadri scored early in the second period for a 3-0 lead, and Frederik Andersen made 22 saves as Toronto held on and ended a five-game losing streak. Detroit’s Gustav Nyquist scored his second goal of the game 36 seconds into the third period. Left wing James van Riemsdyk scored his first goal since Feb. 4 for Toronto.
Henrik Lundqvist made 43 saves to earn his 30th win of the season for the Rangers. They took a 4-1 lead 33 minutes into the game on Nick Holden’s goal, driving James Reimer from the net. Backup Reto Berra stopped eight shots in his first NHL action since Dec. 9. 2015, for Colorado.
Radko Gudas had a goal and two assists, and Jordan Weal and Travis Konecny had a goal and assist each as Philadelphia vaulted ahead of Tampa Bay into 10th place in the Eastern Conference. The Flyers are 3-0-1 in their past four games and stand two points behind Toronto for a playoff spot. Jack Eichel had two goals and an assist for Buffalo, extending the NHL’s longest active point streak to 11 games. Jake Allen made 13 of his 32 saves in the third period and came within 10.5 seconds of his second straight shutout before Mikko Koivu scored. David Perron and Vladimir Tarasenko scored for St. Louis. Late Late Late Late