Connect with us

Published

on

ANAHEIM, Calif. — An infield fly and interference call loomed large in a game for the second time in less than a week.

This time it was the New York Yankees and Juan Soto.

The Yankees had the bases loaded with no outs in the first inning Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Angels when they were done in by an unconventional double play.

Despite the strange start to the game, the Yankees were able to rally for a 2-1 victory.

“A tough way to start things when you load the bases there in the first inning and you’ve got a good pitcher on the ropes. But by the letter of the law it was probably the right call,” said New York manager Aaron Boone, who was ejected.

Giancarlo Stanton hit a high popup near the bag at second. Umpires called an infield fly, but Soto bumped into Angels shortstop Zach Neto with his hip as he tried to get back to second base, causing Neto to lose track of the ball and it landed in the infield.

Second base umpire Vic Carapazza ruled that Soto interfered with Neto, leading to the second out.

“Obviously, a wonky play. Once Juan commits to getting there and he’s trying to stay out of the way, if Neto catches it, he might catch it on the bag for a double play. It’s like, ‘Where do you go?'” Boone said.

Carapazza said in a pool report after the game that it was his opinion that Soto didn’t intentionally make contact with Neto to interfere, but Soto was not standing on the base, which is the only time the baserunner is protected.

“I had him interfering with the infielder and called the infield fly first, which now the batter is out. The interference after that was the second out,” Carapazza said.

Neto also agreed that Soto wasn’t trying to interfere. It was just bad timing.

“There was no intention for me to get in his way or him to get in my way, the play just happened and I was trying to catch the ball,” Neto said. “It just got a little behind me. The umpire said every big league shortstop catches that ball. I was trying to catch it, and he happened to be there.”

Boone came out to argue the call and was ejected by Carapazza. It was Boone’s third ejection of the season and 36th of his career.

Tyler Anderson and the Angels got out of the inning unscathed when Alex Verdugo grounded out.

Bench coach Brad Ausmus, who managed the Angels in 2019, took over after Boone was ejected.

Last Thursday in Chicago, umpires ruled White Sox designated runner Andrew Vaughn interfered with Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson on a popup by Andrew Benintendi, ending the game, won by Baltimore 8-6.

MLB said after that game that there is some discretion to not call interference, but Carapazza said that did not apply here.

“I called the infield fly rule first, which now the batter is out. That was not the case of that [White Sox-Orioles] play. It’s a little bit different,” Carapazza said.

Boone, like White Sox manager Pedro Grifol, is hoping MLB can provide even more clarity on interference plays.

“I mean, the sequence matters. But hopefully maybe we can get to revisit a little bit,” Boone said. “Juan is in jeopardy of getting doubled off, and if he doesn’t get there and if you don’t nail the get back the exact way, he gets stuck with Neto probably misjudging a little bit. But what do you do as a runner there?”

Continue Reading

Sports

Allar injured, out for year as PSU loses again

Published

on

By

Allar injured, out for year as PSU loses again

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State quarterback Drew Allar, who left the Nittany Lions’ stunning 22-21 loss to Northwestern on Saturday, is out for the season, coach James Franklin said in his postgame media availability.

Allar hobbled off the field after a third-down play in the fourth quarter, and was eventually carted off to the locker room. He was replaced by Ethan Grunkemeyer.

“Drew will be done for the year,” Franklin said.

Penn State (3-3) has now lost three straight games, with two of those coming in Happy Valley. The reeling Nittany Lions will take on Iowa next Saturday.

It’s a different story for the Wildcats. They surged to 4-2 as Caleb Komolafe ran for 72 yards and a touchdown to stun the Beaver Stadium crowd. Preston Stone threw for 163 yards with a touchdown pass to Griffin Wilde, and Jack Olsen kicked three field goals for the Wildcats, who won their third straight and moved to 2-1 in the Big Ten.

The Wildcats, who hadn’t won in Beaver Stadium since 2014, took the lead for good with 4:51 remaining when Komolafe bulled his way through Penn State’s defense to cap a 75-yard drive.

The Nittany Lions, who fell to 0-3 in the league, got the ball back, but that’s when Allar suffered his injury. Grunkemeyer was immediately stopped on a fourth-down run, and the Wildcats ran the clock out from there.

“It’s 100 percent on me,” Franklin said of the loss. “And we got to get it fixed. And I will get it fixed.”

Allar, Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen ran for touchdowns for the Nittany Lions. It was the fifth time a Franklin-coached Penn State team has lost at least three consecutive games in a season.

The Nittany Lions, who committed six penalties for 71 yards in the first half, could never get out of their way. Meanwhile, the Wildcats played steady, almost mistake-free football in front of a flat Penn State crowd that chanted “Fire James Franklin!” early.

Allar was intercepted on Penn State’s opening drive when he threw the ball right to defensive back Ore Adeyi in the end zone. Adeyi returned it to the Northwestern 33, and the Wildcats turned it into three points 12 plays later with Jack Olsen’s 27-yard field goal with 2:51 left in the first quarter.

The Nittany Lions finally got their offense moving with Allen. He carried five times on Penn State’s next possession and gave his team a 7-3 lead when he muscled in from 11 yards out early in the second.

Northwestern marched into Penn State’s territory on its next possession, and Stone found a wide-open Wilde for a go-ahead 28-yard touchdown pass.

The Wildcats appeared to get a stop on defense but fumbled away the ensuing punt. The Nittany Lions needed nine plays from Northwestern’s 26 but finally broke through on a fourth-and-goal when Singleton slashed around the Wildcats’ left flank for a 2-yard touchdown.

Olsen made a 34-yarder with three seconds left to cut Penn State’s lead to 14-13 at halftime.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Continue Reading

Sports

Indiana topples No. 3 Oregon to stay unbeaten

Published

on

By

Indiana topples No. 3 Oregon to stay unbeaten

EUGENE, Ore. — Fernando Mendoza threw for 215 yards and a key fourth-quarter touchdown and No. 7 Indiana remained undefeated with a 30-20 victory over No. 3 Oregon on Saturday.

Roman Hemby added a pair of scoring runs for the Hoosiers (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten), who frustrated the Ducks (5-1, 2-1) with stout defensive play.

The victory was Indiana’s second against an AP top-five opponent in program history. The Hoosiers entered Saturday having lost 46 consecutive games vs. AP top-five opponents, tied with Wake Forest for the longest streak in the AP poll era, according to ESPN Research.

Dante Moore threw for 186 yards and a touchdown for Oregon. He had two interceptions and was sacked six times.

With Oregon down 20-13 going into the fourth quarter, Brandon Finney Jr. intercepted Mendoza’s pass and ran it back 35 yards to tie the game with 12:42 left.

Mendoza answered with an 8-yard scoring pass to Elijah Sarratt with 6:23 to go. On Oregon’s next series, Dante Moore’s pass was intercepted by Louis Moore.

Brendan Franke added a 22-yard field goal for the Hoosiers with 2:06 left.

Both teams were coming off weeks off. In their last game, the Ducks beat Penn State 30-24 in double overtime on the road in the annual White Out game. The Hoosiers beat Iowa 20-15 on the road.

On the first series of the game, the Ducks failed at a fourth-and-1 attempt, giving the Hoosiers good field position for their opening drive. It ended with Nico Radicic‘s 42-yard field goal.

Oregon pulled ahead with Dante Moore’s 44-yard touchdown pass to Malik Benson, but Hemby rushed for a 3-yard touchdown before the end of the first quarter to make it 10-7.

Atticus Sappington‘s 40-yard field goal tied it up for the Ducks, but a later 36-yard attempt that would have given Oregon the lead went wide left.

Franke kicked a 58-yard field goal as time ran out to give Indiana a 13-10 advantage at the break.

Sappington’s 33-yard field goal in the third quarter tied it again for Oregon, but Hemby added his second touchdown for the Hoosiers, a 2-yard dash late in the period.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Continue Reading

Sports

Manning powers Texas to upset win over No. 6 OU

Published

on

By

Manning powers Texas to upset win over No. 6 OU

DALLAS — Ryan Niblett returned a punt 75 yards for a decisive touchdown in the fourth quarter and Texas got a much-needed 23-6 win over sixth-ranked Oklahoma in their annual Red River Rivalry game on Saturday.

Arch Manning completed 21 of 27 passes for 166 yards and the go-ahead 12-yard TD to DeAndre Moore Jr. on the opening drive of the second half for the Longhorns (4-2, 1-1 Southeastern Conference), who were coming off a loss at Florida that knocked the preseason No. 1 team out of the AP Top 25.

Texas retained the Golden Hat trophy and should get back into the next poll on Sunday. More importantly, the Longhorns avoided a loss that likely would have ended any realistic chance of getting into the College Football Playoff for the third year in a row.

John Mateer was 20-of-38 passing with three interceptions in his return to the lineup for Oklahoma (5-1, 1-1) only 17 days after surgery on his throwing (right) hand.

Niblett worked up the sideline in front of the Texas bench, and after making a cut inside near midfield bounced off a teammate and continued his sprint to the end zone for a 20-6 lead with 9:59 left.

When the Sooners gained 38 yards on three plays to the Texas 27 on the ensuing drive, Mateer had an incompletion before being sacked on consecutive plays and then had another incompletion on fourth-and-22. They finished with only 258 total yards.

Mason Shipley kicked field goals of 22, 48 and 39 yards for the Longhorns. He had two long misses, the first a 55-yard attempt that ricocheted off the right upright, and was later short on a 56-yard attempt.

Tate Sandell kicked a 42-yard field goal on the game’s opening drive for the Sooners. He made it 6-0 with a 41-yarder in the second quarter, but they didn’t score again.

Continue Reading

Trending