Kimitake Sato again tormented the Sendai 89ers, scoring a game-high 24 points in the Niigata Albirex BB's 86-73 triumph over the hosts on Friday.The veteran standout knocked down 6 of 8 3-point shots in the rematch as Niigata improved to 20-7, becoming the first bj-league team this season to get 20 wins. In the Thursday opener, he had 32 points, sank 5 of 10 3s and 8 of 9 shots from inside the arc.The Albirex trailed 45-37 at halftime.After intermission, coach Matt Garrison's squad outscored Sendai 49-28 to secure the victory.Nile Murry added 15 points, eight assists, six rebounds and two blocks for Niigata. Yuichi Ikeda had 14 points and Taj Finger and Chris Holm each scored 12 points for the 89ers. Holm also grabbed 17 rebounds.Takuya Komoda paced Sendai (8-15) with 23 points and shot 10-for-14 from 2-point range, while T.J. Cummings, back in the rotation after missing Thurday's contest due to an ankle sprain, scored 20 points and made 9 of 11 shots from the field. Hikaru Kusaka scored eight points and Sam Coleman had seven. Takehiko Shimura handed out six assists and Sam Willard pulled down 11 boards.The three-game series concludes on Saturday.Cinq Reves 92, Northern Happinets 81In Tokyo, Dennis Carr scored 23 points and grabbed 14 rebounds and Jonathan Jones had 19 points and 12 boards for the hosts in a series-opening win over Akita.Rasheem Barrett contributed 16 points and three assists for Tokyo (10-15) and Cohey Aoki poured in 15 points, including 8-for-8 at the free-throw line. Akihito Inoue scored 13 points for the Cinq Reves.Akita led 32-20 after the first quarter, but saw its scoring total drop to 18, 18 and 13 points over the final three quarters.Marshall Brown had 26 points for the Happinets (13-8), Yuki Kikuchi added 15 and Dion Harris and Shigehiro Taguchi both scored 14.Tokyo raked in 60 rebounds to Akita's 29. In addition, the Cinq Reves shot 38 free throws (33 makes), while the visitors were 7-for-12.***League leaders (through Thursday)Scoring—1. Jonathan Jones, Tokyo, 21.0; 2. T.J. Cummings, Sendai, 20.8; 3. Draelon Burns, Yokohama, 20.7; 4. Michael Parker, Shimane, 20.0; 5. Dominique Keller, Gunma, 19.3.Field-goal percentage—1. Dillion Sneed, Iwate, 63.2; 2. Gyno Pomare, Kyoto, 59.6; 3. Joe Werner, Chiba, 59.5; 4. Anthony Kent, Akita, 59.0; 5. Marcus Cousin, Kyoto, 59.0.Rebounds—1. Chris Holm, Niigata, 13.3; 2. Reggie Warren, Fukuoka, 12.5; 3. Sam Willard, Sendai, 12.4; 4. Wendell White, Hamamatsu, 12.1; 5. Mike Bell, Osaka, 11.8.Assists—1. Narito Namizato, Ryukyu, 6.1; 2. Kevin Galloway, Hamamatsu, 5.9; 3. Kensuke Tanaka, Chiba, 5.8; 4. Takehiko Shimura, Sendai, 5.6; 5. Draelon Burns, Yokohama, 4.8.3-point percentage—1. Kazuhiro Shoji, Akita, 46.8; 2. Shinya Ogawa, Shiga, 45.7; 3. D'Andre Bell, Chiba, 44.4; 4. Masayuki Kabaya, Yokohama, 43.7; 5. Kimitake Sato, Niigata, 43.0.Steals—1. Draelon Burns, Yokohama, 2.4; 2. Masato Tsukino, Iwate, 2.3; 3. Anthony McHenry, Ryukyu, 2.3; 4. Ira Brown, Toyama, 2.0; 5. D'Andre Bell, Chiba, 1.9.Blocked shots—1. Jeral Davis, Shimane, 3.5; 2. Lawrence Blackledge, Iwate, 3.0; 3. Wayne Marshall, Shinshu, 2.0; 4. Thomas Fairley, Miyazaki, 1.9; 5. Paul Williams, Takamatsu, 1.7.Free-throw percentage—1. Kohei Mitomo, Oita, 93.3; 2. Cohey Aoki, Tokyo, 93.2; 3. Marquin Chandler, Chiba, 91.1; 4. David Palmer, Kyoto, 89.9; 5. John Humphrey, Saitama, 87.5.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Rose speaks out about Hall of Fame passing on big stars
LOS ANGELES — Pete Rose recently went to Cooperstown to film an episode of his upcoming reality television show. His fiancee got choked up when baseball's career hits leader had to watch the Parade of Legends and other Hall of Fame festivities as just another face in the crowd.Rose doesn't share Kiana Kim's disappointment in his continued banishment from baseball, but he hopes he can provide a few lessons in patience to the rest of his sport's tarnished superstars."It doesn't matter how long it takes," Rose said Thursday over lunch in Sherman Oaks, California. "I'm in no hurry, unless you know something I don't know. You just have to try to be a productive citizen and live your life, and hopefully someday somebody calls you and says, 'Hey, we want to give you a second chance.' I won't need a third, and believe me, nobody is going to find me betting on baseball. What's that old cliche? I don't bet on baseball because I know too much about it."The 71-year-old Rose, nattily attired in a tan hat and a colorful striped shirt with "Hit King" embroidered on the collar, says he's "a little sad" nobody was elected to the Hall of Fame on Wednesday.Yet Rose sees both sides of the Hall debate: Although he's a friend of Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa and every star of baseball's Steroids Era, Rose also says anything that artificially alters the game's statistics shouldn't be praised or honored.And if a player linked to steroid use ever broke Rose's record of 4,256 hits, Charlie Hustle would object vehemently."I don't know who did what, and I really don't care," Rose said. "All I can tell you is if there's drugs involved, the most sacred thing in baseball is the stats. We've been taking stats since 1869 . . . and whenever you do something that can alter the statistics of the game, it's not good for the game."Rose wonders what Babe Ruth or Roger Maris would have to say about Bonds, Sosa and Mark McGwire being kept out of the Hall."Because those were the records that were assaulted, not mine," Rose said. "Not my record. If someone came up with 4,257 hits and was linked to steroids, I would have a lot to say. If I had taken steroids, I would have got 5,000 hits, so it wouldn't have been fair."Rose reserved his greatest praise for Craig Biggio and Mike Piazza, saying both players should have easily gained first-ballot Hall admission from their offensive statistics. Rose also stumped for Dave Parker and Jim Kaat."I think everybody got caught up in the steroid situation and forgot" about Biggio and Piazza, Rose said.Rose treads more lightly around first-time nominees Bonds, Clemens and Sosa, warmly praising all three while still reserving full endorsement of their Hall worthiness."The only person I'm going to defend (from) yesterday . . . I've got to give Roger Clemens some slack," Rose said. "Here's a guy that says to this day that he didn't take steroids. He's never flunked a drug test, and he went to two courts and they both ruled in his favor. So I don't know. And I know there's suspicion, but you don't not vote for a guy because of suspicion."Rose agreed to a permanent ban from baseball in 1989 after the former Cincinnati Reds player and manager was accused of betting on baseball. He is also banned from inclusion on the Hall of Fame ballot, although four voters gave him write-in votes this week.
Jaguars give Mularkey the boot after just one season
JACKSONVILLE, Florida — The more Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan watched his team play, the more he realized one thing:"We needed a rebuild from the ground up," Khan said.So the Jaguars fired coach Mike Mularkey on Thursday after just one season, the worst in franchise history. The move came 10 days after Khan fired general manager Gene Smith.Khan also introduced new GM David Caldwell on Thursday, and by parting ways with Mularkey, gave him a clean slate heading into 2013."I've always been a part of a winner," said Caldwell, who signed a five-year deal. "I've never been a part of a losing team."But maybe the biggest news of the day came when Caldwell said New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow, a Jacksonville native who starred at nearly Florida, is not in the team's plans."I can't imagine a scenario in which he'll be a Jacksonville Jaguar — even if he's released," Caldwell said.Caldwell took slightly more time to decide on Mularkey.Mularkey, who went 2-14 this season, became the eighth head coach fired since the end of the regular season. He looked like he would be one and done when Khan parted ways with Smith last week and gave Mularkey's assistants permission to seek other jobs.Even though Khan ultimately hired Mularkey, Smith directed the coaching search last January that started and ended with the former Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator."I felt like we needed a fresh start here," Caldwell said. "Coming in here as a first-time general manager, I'm looking for a co-builder of our team. When I talked to Shad in terms of a culture change along the football side, I felt like it was more of that. I felt like it was an atmosphere of change. I felt like that to do that, you've got to have a fresh start across the board."Mularkey's brief tenure — he didn't even last a year — was filled with mistakes. His biggest one may have been his loyalty to Smith, who assembled a roster that lacked talent on both sides of the ball.Mularkey probably stuck with Smith's franchise quarterback, Blaine Gabbert, longer than he should have. And the coach's insistence that the team was closer than outsiders thought and his strong stance that he had the roster to turn things around became comical as the losses mounted. The Jaguars lost eight games by at least 16 points, a staggering number of lopsided losses in a parity-filled league.CLEVELAND — Rob Chudzinski's first head coaching job will be with the team he loved as a kid.Chudzinski, who spent the past two seasons as Carolina's offensive coordinator, has been hired by the Cleveland Browns as their sixth full-time coach since 1999.The Browns are hoping the first-time head coach can end years of despair and constant losing and maybe resurrect a franchise that has made just one trip to the playoffs in the past 14 years.A Browns spokesman confirmed Chudzinski's hiring Thursday night and said he will be introduced at a news conference on Friday.Chudzinski will be the Browns' 14th coach in team history. For the past two years, the 44-year-old has worked with talented Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.Chudzinski has had two previous stints with the Browns as an assistant coach. He coached tight ends for Butch Davis in 2004, and then came back to the Browns in 2007 and was Cleveland's offensive coordinator for two seasons under Romeo Crennel.Chudzinski grew up in Toledo, Ohio, where he pulled for the Browns. Chudzinski interviewed with the team on Wednesday, and was viewed by many to be a long shot for the job.NEW YORK — When he ended his life last year by shooting himself in the chest, Junior Seau had a degenerative brain disease often linked with repeated blows to the head.Researchers from the National Institutes of Health said on Thursday the former NFL star's abnormalities are consistent with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.The hard-hitting linebacker played for 20 NFL seasons with San Diego, Miami and New England before retiring in 2009. He died at age 43 of a self-inflicted gunshot in May, and his family requested the analysis of his brain."We saw changes in his behavior and things that didn't add up with him," his ex-wife, Gina, said. "But (CTE) was not something we considered or even were aware of. But pretty immediately (after the suicide) doctors were trying to get their hands on Junior's brain to examine it."The NIH, based in Bethesda, Maryland, studied three unidentified brains, one of which was Seau's, and said the findings on Seau were similar to autopsies of people "with exposure to repetitive head injuries."
Corporal punishment doesn't work in sports, says ex-MLB pitcher Kuwata
Former Yomiuri Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Masumi Kuwata has spoken out against corporal punishment in sports following the suicide of a Japanese high school student who endured repeated beatings by his basketball coach.Kuwata said in an interview with National Broadcaster NHK: "I don't think corporal punishment as a form of instruction makes one stronger. I think those teaching sports need to change their methods to fit the times."According to the Osaka municipal board of education, the 17-year-old student at Sakuranomiya Senior High School told his mother he had been struck 30 to 40 times the day before he hanged himself last month.The 47-year-old coach, whose name has not been disclosed, admitted slapping the teen when he made a mistake and said it was intended to "fire him up," the board said.
Ex-Carp pitchers Ono, Sotokoba elected into Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame
For the second straight season, the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame was left seeing red.
The Hall opened its doors to three more players this year, chief among them former Hiroshima Carp pitchers Yutaka Ono and Yoshiro Sotokoba, who joined former high school standout Kazuo Fukushima as the newest members of the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, it was announced on Friday.Ono was selected by the Players Selection Committee, garnering 273 votes, comfortably above the 75 percent threshold (243 votes) he needed for induction."I'm so pleased, but at the same time overwhelmed," Ono said at a news conference at the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, which is located at Tokyo Dome. "Looking back, I joined the Hiroshima Toyo Carp as a test player and went through so many things, and now this day has come. I'm extremely pleased."Sotokoba was chosen from the Expert Division, collecting exactly the 29 votes he needed, while Fukushima was selected from the Special Selection Committee and received 13 votes, two more than he needed for induction.Among those missing out in the Players Selection Committee vote were former Seibu Lions and Daiei Hawks outfielder Koji Akiyama, who received 235 votes and former Yokohama BayStars and Seattle Mariners reliever Kazuhiro Sasaki, who received 230. Yakult Swallows catching great Atsuya Furuta garnered 147 votes in his first year on the ballot.Ono pitched for the Carp for 22 seasons, ending his career with a 148-100 record to go along with 138 saves. The left-hander finished his career with a 2.90 ERA and 1,733 strikeouts, was a 10-time All-Star and won the Sawamura Award in 1988, when he went 13-7 with a 1.70 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 183 strikeouts over 185 innings. Ono's 13 wins that season remain the fewest by a Sawamura winner.He played alongside Sachio Kinugasa and Koji Yamamoto during the golden age of the Hiroshima franchise, and helped guide the Akaheru (red helmets) to five Central League pennants and Japan Series victories in 1979, '80 and '84."Mr. (Takeshi) Koba, who was the manager at that time, Koji Yamamoto and Sotokoba, my senior teammates who are actually here today, the rest of my teammates, and the ballclub supported me really well, and I have so much appreciation for them." Ono said. "As I got the nod today, I would like to work harder and contribute to baseball even more."The first three years of the 57-year-old Ono's career overlapped with the final chapter of Sokotoba's tenure with the team.Sotokoba was 131-138 in 20 years with the Carp and was named to six All-Star teams in addition to being the 1975 Sawamura Award winner. The righty finished his career with a 2.88 ERA and 1,678 strikeouts over 2,419 1/3 innings."I never thought I would be inducted into the Hall of Fame," Sotokoba said. "So I'm extremely surprised. I've been involved in baseball for a long time and I want to reiterate that it was really great to have played for the Hiroshima Carp."Sotokoba recorded his first professional victory by throwing a no-hitter against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium on Oct. 2, 1965. Nearly three years later, Sotokoba struck out an NPB record 16 batters while tossing a perfect game against the Taiyo Whales on Sept. 14, 1968. He threw his third and final no-hitter against the Yomiuri Giants on April, 4, 1972.Sotokoba's standout season came in 1975, when he made 40 starts and had a 20-13 record with a 2.95 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 193 strikeouts and was an All-Star as well as a CL Best Nine selection."Although what I can do may be limited, I'd like to continue to contribute to baseball and its development for as long as I physically can," the 67-year-old Sotokoba said.The selection of Ono and Sotokoba marks the second consecutive year a pair of players who spent their entire careers with the Carp were chosen for induction at the same time. Former Hiroshima pitchers Manabu Kitabeppu and Tsunemi Tsuda were inducted in 2012.Overall 18 Carp have been elected to the Hall of Fame, including Tetsujin Kinugasa (1996), former holder of the world's consecutive games streak (2,215), and Yamamoto (2008), Mr. Akaheru himself and Japan's current World Baseball Classic manager."Last year it was Kitabeppu and Tsuda, and this year Sotokoba and Ono, "Yamamoto said. "Two years in a row, players from the Hiroshima Carp have been inducted. So it feels like there is a strong wind behind the team. "Obviously I'm from this team, so hopefully that helps us win the WBC."Fukushima, who rounds out the class, was a high school pitcher for Fukuoka's Kokura Junior High, which has since been remained Kokura High School and led the school to summer National High School Baseball Tournament titles in 1947 and 1948.Staff writer Kaz Nagatsuka contributed to this report.
The Hall opened its doors to three more players this year, chief among them former Hiroshima Carp pitchers Yutaka Ono and Yoshiro Sotokoba, who joined former high school standout Kazuo Fukushima as the newest members of the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, it was announced on Friday.Ono was selected by the Players Selection Committee, garnering 273 votes, comfortably above the 75 percent threshold (243 votes) he needed for induction."I'm so pleased, but at the same time overwhelmed," Ono said at a news conference at the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, which is located at Tokyo Dome. "Looking back, I joined the Hiroshima Toyo Carp as a test player and went through so many things, and now this day has come. I'm extremely pleased."Sotokoba was chosen from the Expert Division, collecting exactly the 29 votes he needed, while Fukushima was selected from the Special Selection Committee and received 13 votes, two more than he needed for induction.Among those missing out in the Players Selection Committee vote were former Seibu Lions and Daiei Hawks outfielder Koji Akiyama, who received 235 votes and former Yokohama BayStars and Seattle Mariners reliever Kazuhiro Sasaki, who received 230. Yakult Swallows catching great Atsuya Furuta garnered 147 votes in his first year on the ballot.Ono pitched for the Carp for 22 seasons, ending his career with a 148-100 record to go along with 138 saves. The left-hander finished his career with a 2.90 ERA and 1,733 strikeouts, was a 10-time All-Star and won the Sawamura Award in 1988, when he went 13-7 with a 1.70 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 183 strikeouts over 185 innings. Ono's 13 wins that season remain the fewest by a Sawamura winner.He played alongside Sachio Kinugasa and Koji Yamamoto during the golden age of the Hiroshima franchise, and helped guide the Akaheru (red helmets) to five Central League pennants and Japan Series victories in 1979, '80 and '84."Mr. (Takeshi) Koba, who was the manager at that time, Koji Yamamoto and Sotokoba, my senior teammates who are actually here today, the rest of my teammates, and the ballclub supported me really well, and I have so much appreciation for them." Ono said. "As I got the nod today, I would like to work harder and contribute to baseball even more."The first three years of the 57-year-old Ono's career overlapped with the final chapter of Sokotoba's tenure with the team.Sotokoba was 131-138 in 20 years with the Carp and was named to six All-Star teams in addition to being the 1975 Sawamura Award winner. The righty finished his career with a 2.88 ERA and 1,678 strikeouts over 2,419 1/3 innings."I never thought I would be inducted into the Hall of Fame," Sotokoba said. "So I'm extremely surprised. I've been involved in baseball for a long time and I want to reiterate that it was really great to have played for the Hiroshima Carp."Sotokoba recorded his first professional victory by throwing a no-hitter against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium on Oct. 2, 1965. Nearly three years later, Sotokoba struck out an NPB record 16 batters while tossing a perfect game against the Taiyo Whales on Sept. 14, 1968. He threw his third and final no-hitter against the Yomiuri Giants on April, 4, 1972.Sotokoba's standout season came in 1975, when he made 40 starts and had a 20-13 record with a 2.95 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 193 strikeouts and was an All-Star as well as a CL Best Nine selection."Although what I can do may be limited, I'd like to continue to contribute to baseball and its development for as long as I physically can," the 67-year-old Sotokoba said.The selection of Ono and Sotokoba marks the second consecutive year a pair of players who spent their entire careers with the Carp were chosen for induction at the same time. Former Hiroshima pitchers Manabu Kitabeppu and Tsunemi Tsuda were inducted in 2012.Overall 18 Carp have been elected to the Hall of Fame, including Tetsujin Kinugasa (1996), former holder of the world's consecutive games streak (2,215), and Yamamoto (2008), Mr. Akaheru himself and Japan's current World Baseball Classic manager."Last year it was Kitabeppu and Tsuda, and this year Sotokoba and Ono, "Yamamoto said. "Two years in a row, players from the Hiroshima Carp have been inducted. So it feels like there is a strong wind behind the team. "Obviously I'm from this team, so hopefully that helps us win the WBC."Fukushima, who rounds out the class, was a high school pitcher for Fukuoka's Kokura Junior High, which has since been remained Kokura High School and led the school to summer National High School Baseball Tournament titles in 1947 and 1948.Staff writer Kaz Nagatsuka contributed to this report.Sato lands sponsor for IndyCar season
INDIANAPOLIS — AJ Foyt Racing has signed Takuma Sato to drive the No. 14 Honda in this year's IndyCar season.The signing announced Thursday fills the seat left open by Mike Conway, who said he didn't feel comfortable racing on ovals during practice for last September's season finale at Fontana.Foyt said Sato's aggressive driving style caught his attention in last year's Indianapolis 500. Sato charged to the front of the field and challenged Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon in the closing laps, only to crash trying to pass Franchitti for the win on the final lap.The Japanese driver has completed three seasons in IndyCar, winning two poles and five top-five finishes in 49 starts. His best finish was second in 2012 at Edmonton.
Yanks mull Matsui pinstripe sendoff
PARADISE VALLEY, Arizona — The New York Yankees are considering signing Matsui to a one-day contract so he can retire as a member of the organization, team co-owner Hal Steinbrenner said Thursday.Hailing the 38-year-old Matsui, who retired last month after 20 years of baseball on either side of the Pacific, as one of the all-time Yankee greats, Steinbrenner also said the Japanese slugger could throw out the first pitch as a token of appreciation for his seven seasons of service with the Yankees.Matsui played for the Yankees from 2003 to 2009, helping the team win the World Series in his last year as the Series MVP.
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