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Baseball United announces rosters for Dubai All-Star Showcase

Baseball United's All-Star Showcase in Dubai will take place on Nov. 24-25 (Baseball United)
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Updated 31 October 2023
Arab News
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Baseball United announces rosters for Dubai All-Star Showcase

  • 44 of Baseball United’s recently drafted players will compete on East and West All-Star Teams on Nov. 24 and 25
Updated 31 October 2023
Arab News

DUBAI: Baseball United has announced the official rosters for the league’s inaugural event — next month’s All-Star Showcase in Dubai.

Forty-four players — 22 on each team — will participate in the two-game series between the East All-Stars and West All-Stars. The event will be held on Nov. 24 at 25 at Dubai International Stadium.

“We are honored to bring many of our best players to Dubai for our first-ever professional games,” said Kash Shaikh, chairman, CEO and majority owner of Baseball United. “Our All-Stars come from 16 different countries and have played at the highest levels of professional baseball. This is truly something the region has never seen. Our fans will get to witness history. It’s the perfect way to launch our league.”

Seventy-five percent of Baseball United’s All-Stars have played Major League Baseball, with others competing in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball Organization and various international leagues and tournaments.

Baseball United East All-Stars

The Baseball United East All-Stars are led by Bartolo Colon, a four-time MLB All-Star and the winningest Latin American-born pitcher in the competition’s history. Colon, who was selected 16th overall by the Karachi Monarchs in Baseball United’s inaugural draft, will be the East team’s starting pitcher on Nov. 24. When he takes the field in Dubai, he will become one of the oldest professional players in history, having turned 50 earlier this year.

The East team’s starting infield has a total of 32 years of MLB playing experience, with players from the Dominican Republic, the US, Curacao, and Venezuela.

The group includes:

First baseman, Jefry Marte, who hit 15 home runs in 88 games for the Los Angeles Angels in 2016, and 24 home runs in Japan’s Nippon League in 2021. Marte was selected 20th overall in Baseball United’s recent draft by the Karachi Monarchs.

Second baseman, Shed Long, who was drafted out of high school by the Cincinnati Reds in 2013 and played for the Seattle Mariners as recently as 2021. Long was selected 19th overall by the Mumbai Cobras in Baseball United’s draft.

Shortstop, Andrelton Simmons, who played 11 years in the MLB and won four Gold Glove awards — two each with the Atlanta Braves and the Angels. Simmons was selected in the first round — eighth overall — in the draft by the Mumbai Cobras.

Third baseman, Pablo Sandoval, who played 14 years in the MLB and won three World Series Championships, a World Series MVP, and reached two MLB All-Star games. Sandoval had over 1,000 hits and 150 home runs during his MLB career. He was the first selection by the Falcons — one of two UAE-based Baseball United franchises — and the fourth overall pick in the draft.

The East team’s outfield is comprised of a trio of former MLB players, including:

Former MLB first-round draft pick, Dwight Smith Jr., who batted .331 with 22 home runs in the Atlantic League (Independent) this year.

Smith Jr. was selected 17th overall by Baseball United’s Wolves franchise.

Former Detroit Tigers and current Canadian National Team member, Jacob Robson, who was drafted 22nd overall by the Cobras.

Former Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Angels prospect, Dillon Thomas, who most recently played for the Guerreros de Oaxaca of the Mexican League. Thomas was chosen 11th overall by the Falcons in the Baseball United draft.

The starting catcher for the East All-Stars is seven-year MLB veteran and Venezuelan star, Hector Sanchez. Sanchez was selected 30th overall by the Karachi Monarchs.

Retired 15-year MLB veteran, Dennis Cook, who will manage the Baseball United East All-Stars, along with co-manager, Miguel Tejada. Tejada was a six-time MLB All-Star and former American League MVP.

Baseball United West All-Stars

The Baseball United West All-Stars are captained by eight-time MLB All-Star second baseman, Robinson Cano.

Cano won a World Series Championship with the New York Yankees in 2009, and a World Baseball Classic Championship with the Dominican Republic in 2013 at which he was named MVP. Cano, who is also a co-owner of Baseball United, was selected sixth overall in the Baseball United draft by the Wolves.

Former MLB All-Star, Jair Jurrjens, will be the starting pitcher for the West All-Stars on opening night. Jurrjens, who posted double-digit wins three times for the Atlanta Braves from 2008 to 2011, was selected 10th overall by the Wolves in the Baseball United draft.

The rest of the starting infield for the Baseball United West All-Stars includes:

First baseman, Alex Liddi, who played for the Seattle Mariners from 2011 through 2013, and for the Chinatrust Brothers of the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 2019. He is the first player born and raised in Italy to play in the MLB and the CPBL. Liddi was selected fifth overall by the Falcons in the draft.

Shortstop, Didi Gregorius, who played 11 years in the MLB, most notably with the New York Yankees, where he hit 20 or more home runs in three straight seasons from 2016 to 2018. Gregorius was the top pick by the Wolves franchise, and third player chosen overall in the draft.

Third baseman, Brandon Laird, who played in the MLB as well as the NPB, including five years where he hit over 30 home runs for the Nippon-Ham Fighters and the Chiba Lotte Marines. Laird was selected with the 40th overall pick by the Cobras.

The starting catcher for the West All-Stars is five-year MLB veteran Wilin Rosario, who had back-to-back 20-plus home run campaigns with the Colorado Rockies in 2012 and 2013. Rosario also had back-to-back 30-plus home run seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization with the Hanwha Eagles. Rosario was the 24th overall pick in the draft by the Wolves.

Long-time MLB coaching veteran, John McLaren, will manage the Baseball United West All-Stars, along with co-manager, Chris Sabo. Sabo was a three-time MLB All-Star, World Series Champion, and is a member of the Cincinnati Reds’ Hall of Fame.

Topics: baseball Dubai All-Star Showcase

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Ex-India coach Shastri expects Rohit to ‘pull plug’ on Test career

Updated 8 sec ago
AFP
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Ex-India coach Shastri expects Rohit to ‘pull plug’ on Test career

  • The 37-year-old opener has had a poor Australia series and failed to show up for India’s eve-of-match presser
  • India’s coach Gautam Gambhir instead fronted the media and declined to throw his support behind Rohit Sharma
Updated 8 sec ago
AFP

SYDNEY: Former India coach Ravi Shastri said Friday he expected skipper Rohit Sharma to “pull the plug” on his red-ball career after being left out of the fifth Test against Australia in Sydney.
The 37-year-old opener has had a poor series and the writing was on the wall when he failed to show up for India’s eve-of-match press conference.
Coach Gautam Gambhir instead fronted the media and declined to throw his support behind him.
Stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah insisted at the coin toss Friday that Rohit had “opted to rest” for the good of the team rather than being forced out.
But Shastri suspects it is the end of Rohit’s 67-Test career, predicting a retirement announcement after the game.
“It still is a brave call for a captain to own up and say, ‘I’m prepared to take the bench in this game,’” Shastri said while commentating on Fox Sports.
“If there was a home season coming up he might’ve thought of carrying on, but I think he might just pull the plug at the end of this Test.
“It’s not that India don’t have youngsters. There are very, very good players in the wings and it’s time to build.
“Tough decisions, but there is a time for everything.”
Rohit quit T20 international cricket last year after lifting the World Cup, but is yet to call time on his ODI career.
He missed the first Test in Perth for the birth of his second child and has not looked fully engaged since, failing to get past 10 runs in any of his five innings.
His recent form comes on the back of a similarly poor return during India’s 3-0 home series loss to New Zealand during October-November.
“Our captain has shown his leadership, he’s opted to rest in this game,” Bumrah said at the toss.
“So that shows there’s a lot of unity in our team, there’s no selfishness, whatever is in the team’s best interest, we are looking to do that.”
Should Rohit call it quits, it would be the second retirement of the tour with off-spinning great Ravichandran Ashwin heading home after the third Test at the Gabba.
Ashwin was not selected for Brisbane, which appeared to be the final straw for the 38-year-old.

Topics: australia vs india

Tom Hoge leads at Kapalua where good golf exceeds expectations in PGA Tour opener

Updated 03 January 2025
AP
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Tom Hoge leads at Kapalua where good golf exceeds expectations in PGA Tour opener

  • Hideki Matsuyama tried out a new putter and he had a birdie-eagle-birdie stretch on the back nine that carried him to a 65
  • Most of the 60-man field is coming off a short winter’s nap with the holidays, looking to shake off some rust on a Plantation course with some of the widest, most generous fairways
Updated 03 January 2025
AP

KAPALUA: Tom Hoge grew up in North Dakota and found the ideal vibe for Kapalua on Thursday, keeping expectations low and riding the momentum of good golf on his way to a 9-under 64 to take a one-shot lead at The Sentry in the PGA Tour season opener.

Hideki Matsuyama tried out a new putter — he saw someone else use it and figured it would work for him — and he had a birdie-eagle-birdie stretch on the back nine that carried him to a 65 and was one back along with beefed-up Will Zalatoris.

That was the theme for the first day of a new PGA Tour season with so much more at stake than previously. Most of the 60-man field is coming off a short winter’s nap with the holidays, looking to shake off some rust on a Plantation course with some of the widest, most generous fairways they will see all year.

Xander Schauffele, the double major winner and highest-ranked player in the field, was among the few who showed up on the weekend at Kapalua. He twice had a fruitless search for his golf ball that led to bogey on the back nine for a 72.

Hoge, among the 29 players who made it to Kapalua without winning — the field includes the top 50 in the FedEx Cup last year — and wasn’t sure what to expect.

The weather didn’t allow for much practice in Fort Worth, Texas, where he now lives. Neither did the birth of his first child, a boy named Thomas Bennett, born a few weeks ago.

“I played all the way through Mexico the first week of November, then was just at home,” he said. “We had our first child in early December, so kind of forced time off. I feel like with the changes in the schedule, last year was a lot of golf from now until the Tour Championship. I felt like I was pretty burned out at that point.”

If the game was rusty, his putter was not. He made a 15-foot birdie out of the gate, saved par with a 6-foot putt on the next hole, holed an 18-foot birdie on the third and chipped in from a dicey spot on the fourth hole.

“It just kind of frees you up. And you’re in Maui, just no expectations, just let it go and see what you can do,” he said.

Zalatoris arrived looking a lot bigger. He took two months off after failing to reach the Tour Championship and used that time to build some muscle, which he hopes will give him a little more longevity from back issues that have forced him to miss too much time.

He missed the last four months of 2022, then the rest of 2023 with back surgery when he had to withdraw from the Masters.

“I don’t feel like I’ve even had surgery now,” Zalatoris said. “The ceiling is something that I wanted to keep raising, because I knew that if I was going to be sitting at 160 pounds and trying to hit it 300 yards out here, it’s not a recipe for longevity.”

He left the BMW Championship in August at 163 pounds. He weighed in at 182 pounds when he got on a plane from Dallas to Maui.

“I’m hoping that this year my best golf is at the end of the season,” he said.

The first day of the new season wasn’t bad. Zalatoris played bogey-free, though a three-putt on the par-5 fifth — the easiest hole on the Plantation — felt like a bogey.

Collin Morikawa, Cameron Young and Corey Conners were at 66, while Tony Finau was in the group at 67 in his first tournament in four months because of surgery on his left knee.

Matsuyama, who had been playing in Japan during the fall, fell back with a three-putt bogey from 15 feet on the 13th hole. He followed with a pedestrian tee shot on the next hole, but hit wedge to 10 feet for birdie and was on his way. He hit 5-wood to 5 feet for eagle on the 15th, wedge to 4 feet for birdie on the next and had a chance to tie Hoge until he didn’t catch all of his 3-wood on the downhill 18th and failed to get up-and-down for birdie.

The new season starts without Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world who punctured his hand on broken glass preparing Christmas dinner.

It also is the start of a new structure when only the top 100 players in the FedEx Cup — down from 125 players — keep full cards for next year.

Topics: Tom Hoge PGA golf

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Thunder stretch NBA win streak to 13 as Celtics edge T-Wolves 118-115
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Thunder stretch NBA win streak to 13 as Celtics edge T-Wolves 118-115

Updated 03 January 2025
AFP
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Thunder stretch NBA win streak to 13 as Celtics edge T-Wolves 118-115

  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had game highs of 29 points and eight assists to spark the Thunder over the Los Angeles Clippers 116-98
  • Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton scored 33 points and added 15 rebounds to lead the Pacers over host Miami 128-115
Updated 03 January 2025
AFP

WASHINGTON: Oklahoma City stretched the NBA’s best win streak to 13 games with a home victory Thursday while the reigning champion Boston Celtics held on for a last-shot win at Minnesota.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had game highs of 29 points and eight assists to spark the Thunder over the Los Angeles Clippers 116-98 at Oklahoma City, improving the Western Conference leaders to 28-5.

The Thunder’s win streak is the longest since the team relocated from Seattle after the 2007-08 season.

“It’s just being present, going day by day, working on ourselves and I think we’re doing a good job on that,” said Isaiah Hartenstein, who added 11 points, nine rebounds and six assists for the Thunder.

Oklahoma City trailed 52-48 at half-time but outscored the Clippers 42-20 in the third quarter and Los Angeles never closed the gap.

“We wanted to come out and just pick up the pressure,” Hartenstein said. “We weren’t playing the way we wanted, with the force we wanted. We wanted to pressure them and I think we did a good job of that.”

At Minneapolis, the Celtics were without Jaylen Brown due to a right shoulder strain and Kristaps Porzingis with an ankle sprain but won for the third time in four games to start a difficult road trip, dispatching the Timberwolves 118-115.

Jayson Tatum sparked Boston with 33 points on 13-of-27 shooting, 6-of-17 from 3-point range, and added eight rebounds and nine assists.

“No JB. No KP. We’ve had a rough stretch this last eight or nine games,” Tatum said. “So this January we’re going to try to turn it around and get back to our identity.

“What better way than to come in on the road in a tough environment against a really good team down two of your best players and the way that we responded, figured out a way to win, we will take that any day.”

The Celtics (25-9) made only four turnovers while forcing 16 by the Timberwolves (17-16), who made it close by outscoring Boston 20-4 at the free throw line.

The T-Wolves led 35-28 after 12 minutes, matching their top-scoring first quarter of the season, but the Celtics pulled ahead 62-51 at half-time.

Minnesota capped a 20-7 run with a 3-pointer by Donte DiVincenzo to pull level at 94-94 with 9:16 remaining.

DiVincenzo sank three free throws with 28 seconds to play to pull the Timberwolves within 118-115 and Minnesota got the ball after a Tatum miss with 3.1 seconds remaining.

“Rule number one. If you leave it short, it never has a chance to go in,” Tatum said,

Anthony Edwards missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Boston the victory.

“Just had to stick with it,” Tatum said of Boston’s defensive work. “They were hitting some tough shots. You’ve got to live with something, can’t take everything away. Stick to the game plan, compete.”

Derrick White added 26 points for Boston. Julius Randle led Minnesota with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

The Celtics began a four-game road swing against top clubs with future stops at Houston, Oklahoma City and Denver.

“I love the way we competed. Our physicality was on point. That’s what it’s going to take,” Tatum said.

“We play four really good, difficult teams on the road. We’re going to need everybody in these games.”

Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton scored 33 points and added 15 rebounds to lead the Pacers over host Miami 128-115. Myles Turner added 21 points and Pascal Siakam contributed 18 points and 11 rebounds for Indiana.

Brooklyn’s Cameron Johnson scored 26 points and Cam Thomas added 24 off the bench as the Nets won 113-110 at Milwaukee.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 27 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for the Bucks while Damian Lillard added 23 points but the Milwaukee stars missed shots late to doom a late rally.

Lillard’s jumper pulled the Bucks within 111-110 with 37 seconds remaining, but after a Brooklyn turnover, Antetokounmpo missed a driving layup attempt and Ziaire Williams sank two free throws to give the Nets a 113-110 edge with six seconds to play.

Lillard missed a potential tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Topics: NBA

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Shan Masood wants ‘ruthless’ Pakistan to beat South Africa in second Test today

Updated 03 January 2025
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Shan Masood wants ‘ruthless’ Pakistan to beat South Africa in second Test today

  • South Africa narrowly beat Pakistan by two wickets in first Test match to secure WTC final berth
  • Pakistan have yet to announce a playing XI as South Africa bring in debutant Kwena Maphaka
Updated 03 January 2025
Shahjahan Khurram

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood said that he wants his side to be “ruthless” as they take the field against South Africa for the second and final Test match of the series to be played at Cape Town today, Friday. 

Pakistan are 1-0 down in the two-match series after losing a closely fought contest in the first Test at Centurion earlier this week. 

A brave partnership between Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen helped South Africa beat Pakistan in the first Test by two wickets and qualify for the World Test Championship final. 

Speaking at a news conference on Thursday, Masood said the best teams are able to win matches because they tend to “make a habit out of it,” 

“You want to compete against the best, not just compete you want to win against the best,” Masood said. “And for us it’s heartening to compete but we have to be ruthless and cross the line somewhere,” he added. 

South Africa have made some changes to the squad, with Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder and debutant fast bowler Kwena Maphaka coming into the side. Opener Tony de Zorzi has a thigh strain, while fast bowling allrounder Corbin Bosch and Dane Paterson also drop to the bench.

Pakistan have not yet named a squad for the series. 

Playing XI (probable):

1 Shan Masood (capt) 2 Saim Ayub 3 Babar Azam 4 Kamran Ghulam 5 Saud Shakeel 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk) 7 Salman Ali Agha 8 Aamer Jamal/Noman Ali 9 Naseem Shah 10 Mohammad Abbas 11 Khurram Shahzad

Topics: Pakistan vs South Africa Pakistan cricket Shan Masood

Sainz set to step out of comfort zone to defend Dakar Rally title

Updated 03 January 2025
AFP
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Sainz set to step out of comfort zone to defend Dakar Rally title

  • Five-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah of Qatar and France’s nine-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb will be piloting Dacia Sandriders, while Spain’s one-time Dakar winner Nani Roma will also be in a Ford
  • One notable absentee from the action will be France’s ‘Mr Dakar’, 14-time champion Stephane Peterhansel, who hung up his keys last year
  • A 434-strong colorful caravan made up of cars, bikes, quads and trucks sets out from Bisha with an opening prologue on Friday
Updated 03 January 2025
AFP

BISHA, Saudi Arabia: Veteran Spanish driver Carlos Sainz made history when he won his fourth Dakar Rally last year and is confident that he has what it takes to challenge for victory in this season’s grueling race in Saudi Arabia.

Sainz’s fourth title came when he was 61 — the oldest winner of the race and the first Dakar victory for German outfit Audi.

Now 62, the Spaniard — the father of Ferrari Formula One driver Carlos Sainz Jr — recently became a grandfather, but the two-time world rally champion known as ‘El Matador’ professes to be in fine form.

“Personally I’ve done everything I can to arrive in a good physical condition and I will give everything to try to have a good race,” Sainz said at the launch of his new Ford Raptor car.

“We are comfortable, we have done all the jobs we can.”

Sainz added: “I expect first of all to enjoy, to have really good fun driving.

“I expect to have not so many problems and I expect to fight for the victory. I’m happy to help to try to win this challenge, the Dakar.”

No one has managed to take a machine fresh from the factory to victory since Ari Vatanen, who triumphed with the Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 in 1987 and then with the 405 — its technical heir — in 1989, followed by the Citroen ZX in 1991.

But that hasn’t stopped Sainz’s rivals also choosing to blood new cars over the 5,115 kilometers (3,178 miles) of specials mapped out over 12 stages between Bisha and Shubaytah.

Five-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah of Qatar and France’s nine-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb will be piloting Dacia Sandriders, while Spain’s one-time Dakar winner Nani Roma will also be in a Ford.

One notable absentee from the action, however, will be France’s ‘Mr Dakar’, 14-time champion Stephane Peterhansel, who hung up his keys last year.

In the bike section, two-time winner Ricky Brabec (Honda) will be back to defend his title, with the American’s main rival likely to be Botswana’s Ross Branch (Hero), second last year.

A 434-strong colorful caravan made up of cars, bikes, quads and trucks sets out from Bisha with an opening prologue on Friday.

Twelve stages then await the 778 competitors from 72 countries, with a Jan. 17 finish in Shubaytah, on the border of the UAE.

This year’s route includes a second 48-hour stage in the Empty Quarter, a vast sea of sand with dunes as far as the eye can see.

Introduced last year, organizers said the concept of the stage, during which competitors have to bivouac on the sand and are not allowed outside help, was simple: “Juggling the twin challenges of endurance and performance while blasting through a thousand kilometers of desert in two days.”

“It’s the rally of maturity,” race director David Castera told AFP. “There’s a real level of difficulty, it’s a real, tough Dakar, which will push everyone beyond their limits, beyond their comfort zone.”

The 47th running of the event may be called the Dakar, but the last time the Senegalese capital actually hosted the finish was way back in 2007 — the security situation in Mauritania forced the 2008 cancelation.

It moved then to South America until finding a new home in Saudi Arabia since 2020.

Topics: 2025 Dakar Rally

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