Page 2B
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Saturday, October 7, 2017
Extra special: Indians edge Yankees 9-8 in 13
MLB PLAYOFFS
CLEVELAND (AP) —
They’ve won this season in
almost every way imaginable:
comebacks, walk-offs, blow-
outs, nail-biters.
No. 104 for the Cleveland
Indians topped them all.
Yan Gomes singled home
Austin Jackson from second
base with none out in the 13th
inning as Cleveland rallied
from five runs down to stun
the New York Yankees 9-8 on
Friday and snatch a 2-0 lead in
the AL Division Series.
Despite an atrocious start
by ace Corey Kluber, losing
slugger Edwin Encarnacion
with a severely sprained
ankle in the first and facing
the possibility of playing
their final game at home, the
Indians, with some help from
a call that went their way,
continued a charmed season
growing more and more
special by the day.
“The tendency of this team
is to never give up,” Kluber
said. “Even when we were
down 8-3, we didn’t believe
the game was over. We never
feel like we’re out of a game.”
Jackson drew a leadoff
walk in the 13th from Dellin
Betances and stole second.
Gomes went to a full count
before pulling his bouncer
just inside the third-base bag,
easily scoring Jackson and
touching off another one of
those wild celebrations inside
Progressive Field, where the
Indians have been so good
AP Photo/David Dermer
Cleveland Indians’ Jay Bruce, left, and Francisco Lin-
dor celebrate after the Indians defeated the New York
Yankees 9-8 in Game 2 of baseball’s American League
Division Series Friday in Cleveland.
while running away with
their division and winning 22
straight.
As Jackson sprinted home,
Cleveland’s players poured
out of the dugout and mobbed
Gomes at the conclusion of a
wild, 5-hour, 8-minute thriller
that featured 14 pitchers and a
call that may haunt Yankees
manager Joe Girardi for
months.
“We just were supposed to
win,” said Indians outfielder
Jay Bruce, who hit a game-
tying homer in the eighth.
“No words, honestly. I’m
speechless.”
Francisco Lindor hit a
grand slam in the sixth to
rally Cleveland, which will
try for a sweep in Game 3
Sunday at Yankee Stadium.
Carlos Carrasco will start for
the Indians against Masahiro
Tanaka, who will try to extend
New York’s season.
The Yankees had their
chances late, but they stranded
the go-ahead run at third in
the ninth and 10th — and had
pinch-runner Ronald Torreyes
picked off second in the 11th
by Gomes from the behind the
plate.
Josh Tomlin, who had
been scheduled to start later
in the series, pitched two
perfect innings for the win as
Francona ran out of relievers
in a game started by his best
pitcher.
Aaron Hicks hit a three-run
homer off Kluber and Gary
Sanchez and Greg Bird hit
two-run shots for the Yankees,
who may have caught a bad
break before Lindor’s homer.
New York’s Aaron Judge
went 0 for 3 and is hitless in
seven at-bats in the series with
five strikeouts.
CUBS 3, NATIONALS
0 — In Washington, Kyle
Hendricks goes about things
completely differently than
Stephen Strasburg does on
the mound.
The kid from Dartmouth
relies on a fastball that on a
good day reaches 88 mph
— about 10 mph slower
than Strasburg’s — and a
deceptive changeup. Instead
of power, he gets by on
precision, guile and smarts.
Hendricks
outpitched
Strasburg in Game 1 of the
NL Division Series, giving
up only two hits in seven
innings to help the Chicago
Cubs open defense of their
first World Series title in 108
years by beating the Wash-
ington Nationals.
“That’s why we call him
Professor,” Chicago second
baseman Javier Baez said
about Hendricks. “He knows
what he’s doing.”
Kris Bryant and Anthony
Rizzo produced RBI singles
with two outs in the sixth
inning for the first two hits
off an otherwise-dominant
Strasburg. Rizzo added a
run-scoring double in the
eighth off Ryan Madson.
ASTROS 8, RED SOX
2 — In Houston, Carlos
Correa homered, doubled
and drove in four runs, Jose
Altuve got two more hits and
the Houston Astros hammered
the Boston Red Sox to take a
commanding 2-0 lead in the
AL Division Series.
George Springer also
homered to back Dallas
Keuchel in Houston’s second
straight romp by the exact
same score.
The Astros will go for
a sweep in the best-of-five
matchup Sunday at Fenway.
A day after Altuve hit
three home runs in the
playoff opener, he got things
going with a two-out single
in the first inning off Drew
Pomeranz. Correa, who went
0 for 4 on Thursday, made
it 2-0 when he launched a
towering shot onto the train
tracks atop left field.
DODGERS
9,
DIAMONDBACKS 5 —
Justin Turner homered and
drove in five runs, Clayton
Kershaw won despite giving
up four homers and the Los
Angeles Dodgers roared to
a victory over the Arizona
Diamondbacks on Friday
night in their NL Division
Series opener.
Turner hit a three-run
homer and Yasiel Puig added
an RBI double before the
Dodgers made their first out
against Arizona starter Taijuan
Walker, who lasted just one
inning in his playoff debut.
Turner added an RBI single
in the fourth and another in
the eighth. The red-bearded
slugger tied a Dodgers record
for most RBIs in a postseason
game, sharing it with Pedro
Guerrero and Davey Lopes.
College Football
No. 11 Washington State heads to Oregon or first road trip
By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
Heading
into
the
half-way mark of the season,
11th-ranked Washington State
hits the road for the first time
for Saturday’s game against
the Oregon Ducks.
Due to fluky scheduling,
the Cougars played their
first five games at home in
Pullman. Coach Mike Leach
was asked this week whether
it’s weird to be leaving Martin
Stadium for the first time in
October.
“Yeah a little bit, I think
Pac-12
Wash. State
Oregon
Cougars
Ducks
(5-0)
(4-1)
• Sat., 5 p.m. (TV: FOX)
• at Autzen Stadium
everybody’s kind of anxious
for it at this point, you know,
and looking forward to it,”
Leach said. “This is a funny
conference, teams on the road
play well.”
The Cougars (5-0, 2-0
Pac-12) are coming off a
statement-making
30-27
victory over then-No. 5 USC
last Friday. Washington State
has opened the season 5-0
for the first time since 2001
and the team is enjoying its
highest ranking since the end
of the 2003 season.
Oregon (4-1, 1-1) is also
coming off a win, but it was
costly. The Ducks lost starting
quarterback Justin Herbert in
the first quarter with a broken
collarbone in a victory over
California.
Backup quarterback Taylor
Alie left the game against Cal
in the fourth quarter, paving
the way for true freshman
Braxton Burmeister to make
his first appearance in a game.
They combined for 90 total
yards passing, with the Ducks
turning to their running game.
Alie and Burmeister prac-
ticed this week. Coach Willie
Taggart was confident in both
quarterbacks.
“We’re not going to sit
around and feel sorry for
ourselves. Washington State,
or anyone else, is not going
to feel sorry for us. Next guy
up and go practice. Make sure
we’re ready to play,” Taggart
said.
FALK STOCK: Wash-
ington State quarterback
Luke Falk’s profile was raised
— again — against USC,
when he threw for 340 yards
and two touchdowns. With
the Heisman buzz growing
louder, the senior has thrown
for 16 TDs with just two
interceptions this season.
He’s ranked fifth nationally
with 1,178 passing yards, an
average of 343.6 per game
(sixth nationally).
WOUNDED DUCKS:
In addition to Herbert, the
Ducks lost running back
Royce Freeman and receiver
Dillon Mitchell to injury in
the first half against Cal. Both
Freeman and Mitchell are
starters. Oregon was already
missing receiver Charles
Nelson because of a right
ankle sprain.
Taggart officially listed
those players as “day-to-day”
earlier in the week, although
Freeman
practiced
on
Thursday. Herbert’s broken
collarbone will keep him out
for “a while,” the coach said.
Junior linebacker Kaulana
Apelu fractured his ankle
against the Golden Bears and
is out for the season.
Beavers head south to face Trojans Rams face big test with Seahawks
By DAN GREENSPAN
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES —
Southern California won its
final nine games last season
after losing at Utah in quar-
terback Sam Darnold’s first
start.
The No. 14 Trojans will
aim for another streak after
falling at No. 11 Washington
State. They play lowly
Oregon State on Saturday.
Coach Clay Helton has spent
the last week emphasizing
that every goal USC wants
to accomplish can still be
achieved.
“For us as a team, we’re
in a great situation right
now. You are always trying
to improve year in, year out,
and I remember this time
last year we’re sitting at
2-3,” Helton said.
But to meet those expec-
tations, injury-riddled USC
(4-1, 2-1 Pac-12) will need
to get healthy. Right guard
Viane Talamaivao is out
for the season with a torn
pectoral muscle that requires
surgery, and his likely
replacement,
freshman
Andrew Vorhees, was held
out of practice Thursday
with a tight back. However,
Pac-12
Oregon State #14 USC
Beavers
Trojans
(1-4)
(4-1)
• Sat., 1 p.m. (TV: Pac-12)
• at Los Angeles Coliseum
he’s still expected to play.
Right tackle Chuma
Edoga is doubtful with a
high-ankle sprain. The list of
bumps and bruises seems to
get longer every week.
Helton couldn’t help
but ruefully laugh when
recounting how linebacker
Jordan Iosefa and wide
receiver Jalen Greene
were injured when they
accidentally collided during
pregame warmups against
the Cougars.
“I’ve never seen it in 23
years,” Helton said. “It was
a bad deal. We’ve had some
bad luck lately. That’s about
as much as I can take as far
as injuries go.”
USC will handle those
injuries without a bye week
during the regular season.
The struggling Beavers (1-4,
0-2) might be the closest
thing to a win because of
their own injury woes.
Running back Ryan Nall is
a game-time decision after
spraining his ankle in a loss
to Washington last week,
and quarterback Jake Luton
remains out indefinitely with
a thoracic spine fracture.
Redshirt junior Darrell
Garretson will start for
Oregon State. In nine games
since transferring from
Utah State, Garretson has
completed 50.6 percent of
his passes for 711 yards,
four touchdowns and four
interceptions.
Oregon State has been
outscored 200-71 in its four
games against FBS teams.
However, USC said it is not
overlooking a team that will
be desperate for an upset.
“USC is a lot of people’s
Super Bowl, especially a
team like Oregon State, so
we just got to stick to what
we do,” USC safety Chris
Hawkins said.
LA COLISEUM: Oregon
State hasn’t beaten USC in
Los Angeles since 1960 and
has lost 23 straight games
at the Coliseum. Only five
of those games have been
decided by one possession,
while USC has been ranked
in the Top 25 in all but six of
those meetings.
By GREG BEACHAM
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — The
Los Angeles Rams are 3-1 for
the second straight season.
They even beat the Seattle
Seahawks at the Coliseum
during that start last year,
but it quickly degenerated
into a 4-12 fiasco of a home-
coming.
Both the Rams and their
opponents seem to think
their current 3-1 record is no
mirage. The latest visit from
Seattle should tell them a
whole lot more.
“It’s very early in the
season, four games in,”
Rams quarterback Jared Goff
said. “We’re happy with
what we’ve done, but a lot of
work to do and a long season
ahead.”
The Seahawks (2-2)
revive this burgeoning West
Coast rivalry on Sunday
against coach Sean McVay’s
Rams, who are leading the
NFL in scoring . That’s a
stunning turnaround for a
team that had the NFL’s
worst offense for the past
two seasons, and the long-
time NFC West powerhouse
up north has noticed.
NFL
Seattle
Los Angeles
Seahawks
Rams
(2-2)
(3-1)
• Sun., 1:05 p.m. (CBS)
• at Los Angeles Coliseum
“The schemes don’t look
so much different, but the
production is just there,”
Seattle coach Pete Carroll
said. “Their tempo is really
good. It seems to have
played into Jared’s strengths.
He had a great offseason. He
had one of the great fresh-
man-sophomore jumps that
you can have.”
While the Rams have
new left tackle Andrew
Whitworth and a revamped
receiving corps, Seattle’s
veteran defense is even
more impressed by Goff’s
improvements — and Todd
Gurley’s
revitalization
as one of the NFL’s most
productive running backs.
The Seahawks didn’t allow
a touchdown by the Rams
in their two meetings last
season, but these Rams aren’t
the same pushovers, even if
some things appear similar
to
cornerback
Richard
Sherman.
“Honestly, they look a
lot the same,” the Compton,
California
native
said.
“They’re just executing. The
O-line is blocking better.
Gurley has got a lot more
room to run. They’re using
him more than they did in
the past, and they’re playing
with purpose.”
The Rams’ start includes
victories over rebuilding
San Francisco and Andrew
Luck-less Indianapolis, but
last week’s win at Dallas
added an air of legitimacy to
McVay’s quick turnaround
effort. Seattle presents
the Rams’ most daunting
challenge yet, despite the
Seahawks’ early-season road
losses to Green Bay and
Tennessee.
“We have a whole lot
of respect for the Dallas
Cowboys, but it is still four
games, and we’ve got 12
games left,” McVay said.
“While we certainly appre-
ciate the nice words, we
know it really doesn’t mean
anything if we don’t follow it
up with a good performance
against an excellent Seattle
team this week.”
Soccer
U.S. back on track for World Cup, Pulisic leads rout of Panama
By RONALD BLUM
AP Sports Writer
AP Photo/John Raoux
United States’ Jozy Altidore celebrates in front of fans
after scoring a goal against Panama during the first
half of a World Cup qualifying soccer match, Friday in
Orlando, Fla.
ORLANDO, Fla. —
Christian Pulisic burst up
the field, scoring with a
brilliant touch to complete
an 11-second, breakneck,
field-length attack just eight
minutes in.
Then his cross found Jozy
Altidore’s right foot like an
arrow striking a bull’s-eye ,
leading to a two-goal lead in
the 19th minute.
Exhale, U.S. fans.
Altidore converted a
penalty kick with a chip in
the 43rd after Bobby Wood
was fouled, Wood added
a goal in the 63rd and the
World Cup Qualifier
United States
Panama
4
0
United States routed Panama
4-0 on Friday night to put the
Americans back on track to
reach next year’s World Cup.
“We needed a win, but the
job’s not done,” Pulisic said.
The U.S. ended a three-
match winless streak in
qualifying and with 12 points
moved two ahead of Panama
into third place — the last
automatic berth — in the North
and Central American and
Caribbean region. Honduras
has nine points going into its
match Saturday at Costa Rica,
which is second with 15.
Goal difference means the
Americans put themselves in
great shape to reach an eighth
straight World Cup, almost
certainly with a win Tuesday
in their finale at already elim-
inated Trinidad and Tobago
and likely with a draw against
the Soca Warriors if Honduras
fails to win Saturday. The
U.S. is plus-five to minus-two
for Panama and minus-seven
for Honduras.
“We’re well positioned to
hopefully qualify for Russia.
The game in Trinidad is not
going to be an easy one,”
said coach Bruce Arena,
who led the U.S. at the 2002
and 2006 World Cups, then
returned after the Americans
opened the hexagonal last
fall with two losses under
Jurgen Klinsmann.
“This team went from 0-2
in November with a minus-
five goal differential, we’re
now at plus-what, five, right?”
Arena said. “I know everyone
thought we were going to
qualify in whatever, six games
in 2017. It doesn’t happen that
way. So I think we’re moving
along well. We’ve advanced
from sixth to third position
with goal differential. Now we
have to finish it off on Tuesday
in Trinidad.”