Dominicans rally to beat U.S.
Nelson Cruz hit a go-ahead three-run homer off Andrew Miller in the eighth inning, Starling Marte added a solo shot off the All-Star reliever and the defending champion Dominican Republic overcame a five-run deficit to beat the United States, 7-5, Saturday night in the World Baseball Classic at Miami.
The comeback delighted a clamorous crowd of 37,446, the largest for baseball in the five-year history of Marlins Park.
The U.S. fell to 1-1 and is in jeopardy of being eliminated in the first round. The Americans, who play Canada on Sunday, failed to reach the three previous WBC finals.
The Dominicans improved to 10-0 in the past two Classics, including 2-0 this year. They can clinch first place in Pool C and advance to the second round by beating Colombia on Sunday.
The frenzied sellout crowd was the night’s biggest star — and a rare sight at Marlins Park, with even the upper deck packed. U.S. fans were far outnumbered in the stands, not a surprise in a city that is a gateway to the Caribbean.
Adam Hadwin made birdie putts from 35 feet and 55 feet on the back nine at the Valspar Championship in Palm Harbor, Fla., and stretched his lead to four shots. And a six-foot par putt on the final hole made it 31 straight holes without a bogey, put him at 14-under 199 and gave him the four-shot lead over Patrick Cantlay.
More than a big lead, there is not a lot of experience chasing the Canadian. Of the three players within six shots of him, only Jim Herman has experienced winning on the PGA Tour. Herman won the Shell Houston Open last year for his first victory. He had a 71 playing in the final group and fell five shots behind.
The Seattle Seahawks have signed former No. 2 overall pick Luke Joeckel as they look to bolster their offensive line. It’s believed to be a one-year deal. Joeckel was supposed to anchor Jacksonville’s line when he was selected second overall in 2013. He started all 39 games in his four seasons with the Jaguars, mostly at left tackle. He moved to left guard last season, but played in only four games because of knee surgery.
The Kansas City Chiefs and safety Daniel Sorensen agreed to a $16-million, four-year contract that keeps the restricted free agent off the market, a person with knowledge of the deal told the Associated Press . ... A person with knowledge of the deals said that the Denver Broncos have agreed to terms with free-agent defensive tackles Domata Peko of the Cincinnati Bengals and Zach Kerr of the Indianapolis Colts.
Joey Logano pulled away from Kyle Larson ona restart with four laps left and held on to win the NASCAR Xfinity race in Las Vegas. Logano chose the outside lane on the last restart and moved in front of Larson out of the fourth turn at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for his first Xfinity victory since October at Charlotte.
Daniel Suarez put Cup regulars in the top three spots. Justin Allgaier was fourth, followed by Austin Dillon and Darrell Wallace Jr.
Toronto Blue Jays reliever T.J. House has been released from a hospital, one day after he was hit on the head by a line drive during a spring training game. House arrived at Toronto’s spring training ballpark during Saturday’s game between the Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies. He was struck in the ninth inning of a game against the Detroit Tigers and taken to Lakeland Regional Medical Center. Test results were normal and he was held overnight for observation, according to the Blue Jays.
“No fractures of the skull or anything, which is great, especially for the force it took,” House said.
California scoring leader Jabari Bird is recovering from a concussion sustained in his team’s Pac-12 tournament semifinal loss to Oregon on Friday night. The senior guard’s status for potential postseason play was not immediately clear.
Illinois basketball Coach John Groce was fired after an 18-14 season in which his team was ninth in the Big Ten. The Illini made one NCAA appearance in his five seasons at the school. Assistant Jamall Walker was appointed interim coach while the school searches for a successor.
Mikaela Shiffrin clinched her World Cup fourth slalom title in five seasons before she took her first run and then capped off an electric day with the win at Squaw Valley, Calif.