On Bark at the Ballpark night at the Oakland Coliseum, the Blue Jays unleashed their own Bassitt hound.
Sports
Chris Bassitt brings his A game against his former A’s team to spark Blue Jays’ rout
Toronto will go for a series sweep Wednesday with the chance of returning home with a 5-1 mark and a wild-card spot firmly in its hands.
Fans were able to take their four-legged companions into the ballpark as part of MLB’s dog-friendly initiative.
The sound of barking far outweighed the sounds of applause on a night when hitting went to the dogs, for most of the night that is.
Waldichuk, a lefty, issued three free passes in six complete innings.
Neal, a righty, would walk three in one inning.
The Jays batted around to score six runs in the seventh, more than enough to support Bassitt.
Oakland finally got to Bassitt in the home half of the seventh to score one run.
The Jays had been waiting to pounce on an inferior opponent and it arrived Tuesday.
Bassitt was lights out, the offence exploded in the seventh and the Jays’ defence was good in the team’s most complete and most dominant game on its current trip.
There’s no reason why a series sweep won’t be produced Wednesday given the obvious difference in talent between the A’s and Jays.
A three-game weekend series against Kansas City will follow at Rogers Centre, three more winnable games against a weak opponent.
The Rangers will be town once the Royals leave town.
By then, the wild-card picture will look differently.
The Jays provide a glimpse of what is possible when an outing such as Bassitt’s night plays out and when the offence explodes like it did in the seventh inning.
Still, it was against the A’s once Waldichuk’s evening expired.
First it was Davis Schneider making quite the impression when the Blue Jays called him up for a weekend series in Boston that turned epic.
Ernie Clement hasn’t earned the Babe moniker, but he hasn’t looked out of place either, save for a few errors at short.
In the second inning of Tuesday night’s game, he fielded a high chopper before he threw to the bag at second where Schneider executed the pivot and throw to record the 6-4-3 double play.
The game began when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit into a double play following a leadoff single by George Springer.
The news surrounding Bo Bichette continues to improve as he recovers from a right quad strain that landed the stud shortstop on the injured list.
Bichette accompanied the team on its road trip, which began in Colorado before shifting to the Bay Area.
Once again, he was able to field groundballs, ran and took part in batting practice.
Without Bichette, the Jays have cobbled together a lineup to compensate for the loss of the team’s incumbent No. 2 hitter.
Schneider was in the No. 2 hole Tuesday night after the Jays did not have Schneider in Monday’s lineup when Cavan Biggio batted in Bichette’s slot.
Biggio started in right field Tuesday night.
INJURY UPDATES
1B/DH Brandon Belt continues to be out because of a stomach virus; during the team’s current trip, which wraps up Wednesday, Belt was a late pre-game scratch when his back tightened up … One-time Oakland A’s third baseman Matt Chapman, whom the Jays placed on the 10-day injured list with a right middle finger sprain on the same day as Bichette, has resumed taking groundballs and playing catch; the catch is that Chapman has not been cleared to swing the bat … Danny Jansen’s status should be made much clearer at some point Wednesday when he’s scheduled to visit a hand specialist in Pennsylvania; the hard-luck catcher took a foul tip off his throwing hand in Colorado; an initial diagnosis revealed a fracture in his middle finger; with the Jays scheduled to have an off day Thursday, it’s possible no definitive and official word on Jansen’s status moving forward won’t be known until manager John Schneider’s pre-game availability Friday night.
Sports
Fernandez and Dabrowski headline Canadian lineup for Billie Jean King Cup Finals
TORONTO – Singles star Leylah Fernandez and doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski will anchor Canada’s five-player lineup when the team tries to defend its Billie Jean King Cup title in mid-November.
The 26th-ranked Fernandez, the 2021 U.S. Open finalist from Laval, Que., is the lone Canadian in the top 100 of the WTA Tour’s singles rankings.
Dabrowski, from Ottawa, is ranked fourth on the doubles list. The 2023 U.S. Open women’s doubles champion won mixed doubles bronze with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the recent Paris Olympics.
Marina Stakusic of Mississauga, Ont., returns after a breakout performance last year, capped by her singles win in Canada’s 2-0 victory over Italy in the final. Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino is also back and Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion from Mississauga, Ont., returns to the squad for the first time since 2022.
“Winning the Billie Jean King Cup in 2023 was a dream come true for us, and not only that, but I feel like we made a statement to the world about the strength of this nation when it comes to tennis,” Canada captain Heidi El Tabakh said Monday in a release. “Once again, we have a very strong team this year with Bianca joining Leylah, Gaby, Rebecca and Marina, making it an extremely powerful team that is more than capable of going all the way.
“At the end of the day, our goal is to make Canada proud, and we’ll do our best to bring the same level of effort and excitement that we had in last year’s finals.”
Fernandez, who beat Jasmine Paolini to clinch Canada’s first-ever title at the competition, is ranked No. 42 in doubles.
Canada, which received an automatic berth as defending champion, will play the winner of the first-round tie between Great Britain and Germany on Nov. 17 at Malaga’s Martin Carpena Arena.
Australia, Italy and wild-card entry Czechia also received first-round byes. The tournament, which continues through Nov. 20, also includes host Spain, Slovakia, the United States, Poland, Japan and Romania.
Stakusic is up 27 spots to No. 128 in the latest world singles rankings. Marino is at No. 134 and Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, is ranked 167th.
Canada will look to become the first team since Czechia in 2016 to successfully defend its Billie Jean King Cup title.
Malaga will also host the Nov. 19-24 Davis Cup Final 8. The Canadian men qualified over the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Great Britain in Manchester.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Sports
Penguins re-sign Crosby to two-year extension that runs through 2026-27 season
PITTSBURGH – Sidney Crosby plans to remain a Pittsburgh Penguin for at least three more years.
The Penguins announced on Monday that they re-signed the 37-year-old from Cole Harbour, N.S., to a two-year contract extension that has an average annual value of US$8.7 million. The deal runs through the 2026-27 season.
Crosby was eligible to sign an extension on July 1 with him entering the final season of a 12-year, $104.4-million deal that carries an $8.7-million salary cap hit.
At the NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas last Monday, he said things were positive and he was optimistic about a deal getting done.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion is coming off a 42-goal, 94-point campaign that saw him finish tied for 12th in the league scoring race.
Crosby has spent all 19 of his NHL seasons in Pittsburgh, amassing 592 goals and 1,004 assists in 1,272 career games.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Sports
Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar wins Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal
MONTREAL – Tadej Pogacar was so dominant on Sunday, Canada’s Michael Woods called it a race for second.
Pogacar, a three-time Tour de France champion from Slovenia, pedalled to a resounding victory at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal.
The UAE Team Emirates leader crossed the finish line 24 seconds ahead of Spain’s Pello Bilbao of Bahrain — Victorious to win the demanding 209.1-kilometre race on a sunny, 28 C day in Montreal. France’s Julian Alaphilippe of Soudal Quick-Step was third.
“He’s the greatest rider of all time, he’s a formidable opponent,” said Woods, who finished 45 seconds behind the leader in eighth. “If you’re not at your very, very best, then you can forget racing with him, and today was kind of representative of that.
“He’s at such a different level that if you follow him, it can be lights out.”
Pogacar slowed down before the last turn to celebrate with the crowd, high-five fans on Avenue du Parc and cruise past the finish line with his arms in the air after more than five hours on the bike.
The 25-year-old joined Belgium’s Greg Van Avermaet as the only multi-time winners in Montreal after claiming the race in 2022. He also redeemed a seventh-place finish at the Quebec City Grand Prix on Friday.
“I was disappointed, because I had such good legs that I didn’t do better than seventh,” Pogacar said. “To bounce back after seventh to victory here, it’s just an incredible feeling.”
It’s Pogacar’s latest win in a dominant year that includes victories at the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.
Ottawa’s Woods (Israel Premier-Tech) tied a career-best in front of the home crowd in Montreal, but hoped for more after claiming a stage at the Spanish Vuelta two weeks ago.
“I wanted a better result,” the 37-year-old rider said. “My goal was a podium, but at the same time I’m happy with the performance. In bike racing, you can’t always get the result you want and I felt like I raced really well, I animated the race, I felt like I was up there.”
Pogacar completed the 17 climbs up and down Mount Royal near downtown in five hours 28 minutes 15 seconds.
He made his move with 23.3 kilometres to go, leaving the peloton in his dust as he pedalled into the lead — one he never relinquished.
Bilbao, Alaphilippe, Alex Aranburu (Movistar Team) and Bart Lemmen (Visma–Lease) chased in a group behind him, with Bilbao ultimately separating himself from the pack. But he never came close to catching Pogacar, who built a 35-second lead with one lap left to go.
“It was still a really hard race today, but the team was on point,” Pogacar said. “We did really how we planned, and the race situation was good for us. We make it hard in the last final laps, and they set me up for a (takeover) two laps to go, and it was all perfect.”
Ottawa’s Derek Gee, who placed ninth in this year’s Tour de France, finished 48th in Montreal, and called it a “hard day” in the heat.
“I think everyone knows when you see Tadej on the start line that it’s just going to be full gas,” Gee said.
Israel Premier-Tech teammate Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpétue, Que., was 51st.
Houle said he heard Pogacar inform his teammates on the radio that he was ready to attack with two laps left in the race.
“I said then, well, clearly it’s over for me,” Houle said. “You see, cycling isn’t that complicated.”
Australia’s Michael Matthews won the Quebec City GP for a record third time on Friday, but did not finish in Montreal. The two races are the only North American events on the UCI World Tour.
Michael Leonard of Oakville, Ont., and Gil Gelders and Dries De Bondt of Belgium broke away from the peloton during the second lap. Leonard led the majority of the race before losing pace with 45 kilometres to go.
Only 89 of 169 riders from 24 teams — including the Canadian national team — completed the gruelling race that features 4,573 metres in total altitude.
Next up, the riders will head to the world championships in Zurich, Switzerland from Sept. 21 to 29.
Pogacar will try to join Eddy Merckx (1974) and Stephen Roche (1987) as the only men to win three major titles in a season — known as the Triple Crown.
“Today gave me a lot of confidence, motivation,” Pogacar said. “I think we are ready for world championships.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.
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