Rangers’ Choo hits 150th career home run
Choo Shin-soo of the Texas Rangers has hit his 150th career major league home run.
Choo launched a solo shot off Brad Hand of the San Diego Padres at Petco Park in San Diego on Monday (local time) in the top of the seventh inning. The blast cut the Rangers’ deficit to 4-1 but the Padres added a run in the bottom half of that inning to take the interleague game 5-1.
Choo’s homer, his fourth of the season, was also one of just two hits the Rangers managed against four San Diego pitchers.
Choo, batting eighth and playing in the right field, went 1-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base, his second of the season and 120th of his career. He’s batting .243 for the season.
Choo leads all South Korean position players in career home runs and steals in the bigs.
The 34-year-old was also the only South Korean to see action on this day. Baltimore Orioles’ outfielder Kim Hyun-soo sat out for the third straight game as the O’s faced left-handed starter Gio Gonzalez of the Washington Nationals. Kim, who bats left-handed, has had just one plate appearance against a left-handed pitcher all season.
St. Louis Cardinals’ closer Oh Seung-hwan watched from the bullpen as his teammates handled the Miami Marlins 9-4, behind a solid start by Carlos Martinez. Reliever Miguel Socolovich was credited with the save after throwing three innings in relief. (Yonhap)
After their late, late show, Cubs get a well-earned break
DENVER (AP) — Kris Bryant was in a race to beat the rising sun on Monday morning. He won too, with his head hitting the hotel pillow in Denver moments before daybreak.
That was a well-earned victory for the Chicago Cubs third baseman after a draining 5-4, 18-inning loss to the New York Yankees in a game that lasted 6 hours, 5 minutes and spilled into Monday morning. By innings, it was the longest interleague game in Major League Baseball history.
At least the Cubs got a chance to kick back and unwind — before another grueling day.
Their game Monday with Colorado was postponed by rain and will be made up as part of a split doubleheader on Tuesday. There was so much hail before the game that it had to be swept off the tarpaulin and the sprinklers turned on to melt the ice in the outfield.
There’s was no rest for the Yankees, who arrived in Cincinnati after a short flight from Chicago at 5:08 a.m.
“As rough as it was yesterday, it’s kind of cool to experience it, just to have that story in your pocket and to say, ‘Look, we played 18 innings, got in (early), had to play in Colorado and there’s a hail storm,”’ said Bryant. “It’s crazy.”
The Cubs arrived at the ballpark a little later than usual. Coffee was the sought-after refreshment in the clubhouse and a seat on the sofa was a coveted commodity.
Maybe Bryant’s plan worked. He purposely didn’t sleep on the plane so he would be completely worn out when they arrived at the team hotel. Keeping his eyes open proved difficult after Chicago’s longest home game since an 8-7 loss in 18 innings on Sept. 2, 1986, against Houston — a contest that was suspended and finished the next day.
“I’ve never been the type to pull an all-nighter in college, studying, or stay out super late,” Bryant said. “Anytime I experience anything like that, it’s so weird for me.”
The Yankees know the feeling. Players drank caffeinated beverages in the clubhouse before the first game of their interleague series against the Reds on Monday. Reliever Tommy Layne yawned as he headed to his locker.
Manager Joe Girardi called off on-field batting practice for his players. Aaron Judge and Starlin Castro got the day off.