phelps

Korean series, game #2 AKA Kiwoom Heroes's disaster... despite an awful outing by the Bears' starting pitcher Lee Young-Ha (who gave up 5 runs in 5 innings), the Heroes couldn't take advantage of that and blew a 5-2 lead after 7 innings, with the supposed best part of their bullpen giving up 1 run in the 8th and the decisive 3 runs in the 9th... final score: Kiwoom Heroes, 5; Doosan Bears, 6 with this win, now the Bears also lead the series 2-0, before switching to the Gocheok Skydome (home of the Heroes) in the upcoming weekend... game #3 is scheduled for Friday @ 6.30 p.m. local time (11.30 a.m. CET)... game #2 Boxscore: https://mykbostats.com/games/7441-Kiwoom-vs-Doosan-20191023 game #2 Highlights: https://sports.news.naver.com/kbaseball/vod/index.nhn?category=kbo&id=600720&gameId=77771023WOOB02019&listType=game&date=20191023 game #2 Full Replay: https://sports.news.naver.com/kbaseball/vod/index.nhn?category=kbo&id=600724&gameId=77771023WOOB02019&listType=game&date=20191023

2019 Japan Series, game #3 once again, we had an illusive first couple of innings, with the Yomiuri Giants taking an early lead thanks to a solo shot by Kamei against the Hawks starter, @heywoodu the Dutch Van Den Hurk (who didn't have his best outing...pitching only 4 innings and giving up 4 hits, 2 walks and 2 earned runs)... the second and third innings saw the teams exchanging the lead and finally getting a transitory tie at 2 apiece...but when the Giants' starting pitcher got some early troubles, the Hawks, like the real birds of prey their nickname suggest, jumped on their rivals and in the 4th inning scored 4 runs that proved decisive for the outcome of the entire match... in fact, in the last 5 innings nothing happened, with the Hawks bullpen dominating the Giants bats and shutting them down with no mercy... final score: Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 6, Tokyo Yomiuri Giants, 2 now the Hawks lead the series 3-0 and are just a win away from their 3rd consecutive championship (it would be also the 5th in 6 years...they are the real powerhouse of the Japanese Pro Baseball in these last 8/10 years)... the possible clincher, game #4, is scheduled for Today in Tokyo @ 6.15 p.m. local time (11.15 a.m. CET)... game #3 boxscore: http://npb.jp/bis/eng/2019/games/s2019102201840.html

looking at this year's results, other than KOR and RUS, the only Countries with legitimate chances are FRA, SUI and IRL, with IRI having an outside chance among the men... https://www.theuiaa.org/ice-climbing-resultscentre/ p.s. at least, UIAA's website looks very well organized... by the way, as Italy's star Angelika Rainer is not even competing anymore, I don't see any reason why Milano-Cortina 2026 should push for this new sport to be added in the Olympic schedule (apart from having the event on the most amazing landscape in the world on the Dolomites)... on the other hand, it's absolutely necessary that they do whatever it takes to push for Natural Track Luge for national interests...

2019 Korean Series, game #1 amazing first episode of the Korean Series... the Doosan Bears started strong and got a 6-1 lead after 4 innings, thanks to their big bats and their starting pitcher, Josh Lindblom, who kept the Heroes at bay for quite a while... but when he was replaced after 5 innings, the Heroes started to hit hard against the Bears bullpen guys and came back, getting the game tied in the top of the 7th. finally, in a very dramatic 9th, the Bears loaded the bases and after a couple of winning hits denied by the video replay, the eventually hit a long ball to the center field that gave them the winning run... final score: Kiwoom Heroes 6, Doosan Bears, 7 boxscore (includes links to Highlights & Full Game Replay)... https://mykbostats.com/games/7440-Kiwoom-vs-Doosan-20191022

you've been very kind to them...actually, it sounds "completely hopeless"...just like those vote-baiting boutades of many Italian politicians, who once every while start talking of the Olympics in their city/region whenever the local elections are getting closer...

tbh, I don't like this logo that much...I still prefer the old bidding logo with the Tour Eiffel... by the way, imho they should have chosen a picture of a very young guy breakdancing with a smoking big city on the backdrop...it would have been more "youth and urban", like the Olympics they want to promote...

now I guess they have to keep going, instead...if they still want to have a good swimmer taking part into their main meets (Olympics included), as basically all the top swimmers in the world have already competed in at least once in the ISL meets... by the way, while nobody cares of the teams and their scores and the not-so-clear and fair rules of the competition itself, the single races are quite interesting (and we've already seen quite a few very fast times here and there)...

2019 Japan Series, game #2 it all started with 6 very quick scoreless innings, where the starting pitchers (R.Takahashi for Fukuoka, Chris Mercedes for the Giants) had their opposing linups totally under control... then, the Yomiuri Giants went to their bullpen...and the drama began almost immediately... first a 3-run blast in the 7th, followed by a solo-homer and a 3-run shot in the 8th opened up a 6-0 gap in favour of the Hawks, which basically killed any hope for the visiting team... so, despite a disgraceful 9th inning by the Hawks' relievers (first J.Takahashi, then the closer Mori), who allowed the Giants to score 3 runs and bring the tying run at the plate, the home team saved their asses and won the match by a score of 6-3... now they lead the series 2-0, with the 3rd game scheduled for Tomorrow (6.15 p.m. local time, 11.15 a.m. CET) at the Tokyo Dome in the Japanese Capital... Game #2 boxscore: http://npb.jp/bis/eng/2019/games/s2019102001839.html

List of Satellite Tournaments' winners updated... 1 weekend left...and then it's the real World Cup...

naaa...it's more complicated than that... for sure, offense sells tickets and defense wins championships...this unwritten rule is always good... but HOU is not (only) about a great pitching staff...they still won most of their games (last night's included) thanks to their HR power... and WSH is a great team, good but not the top in any department...they're just living the most classic "Cinderella story"...the pitching staff is basically the 3 big names (Scherzer, Strasburg and Corbin)...their bullpen is more than suspect, when not really stinky...and they have a guy like Rendon (this year's MVP in my opinion) in the lineup... Harper, instead, is the classic superstar with great skills, but at the same time having the natural tendency to mess the locker room chemistry up wherever they go (just look at this year's Phillies)... but despite that, if it wasn't for the Dodgers having a manager named Dave Roberts, the Nats wouldn't be ready to make their first WS appearance ever... the fact is that the MLB baseball has completely turned to be mono-dimensional game...all the batsmen always and only go for the big shots, the socalled small ball play is dead and gone in the Majors (and not only in the Majors...I'd rather say in all the North American leagues)...and if you still want to see it, you have to watch the Japanese NPB or the Korean KBO, a different world under any aspect...

last day of competition in Marrakech...and, as written before, Mixed Teams were on the stage today... as expected, Japan won the Gold Medal, beating Russia 4-2 in the final... Mixed Team Event Gold: Japan Silver: Russia Bronze: Georgia & France Full Results: http://www.ippon.org/wc_jun_teams2019.php

with today's wins, both Seo Chae Hyun (women) and Adam Ondra (men) won the 2019 Lead World Cup with 1 event still left in the calendar... congrats to them!

2019 Sport Climbing World Cup, Stage #11 (Xiamen, CHN) Women's Lead Gold: Seo Chae Hyun Silver: Akiyo Noguchi Bronze: Kim Ja In Men's Lead Gold: Adam Ondra Silver: Taisei Homma Bronze: Tomoa Narasaki

2019 World Series Schedule game #1, Tuesday, October 22nd @ Houston (19.08 local time, h.02.08 CET on Wednesday) game #2, Wednesday, October 23rd @ Houston (19.07 local time, h.02.07 CET on Thursday) game #3, Friday, October 25th @ Washington (20.07 local time, h.02.07 CET on Saturday) game #4, Saturday, October 26th @ Washington (h.20.07 local time, h.02.07 CET on Sunday) game #5 (if necessary), Sunday, October 27th @ Washington (h.20.07 local time, h.01.07 CET on Monday*) game #6 (if necessary), Tuesday, October 29th @ Houston (h.19.07 local time, h.01.07 CET on Wednesday*) game #7 (if necessary), Wednesday, October 30th @ Houston (h.19.08 local time, h.01.08 CET on Thursday*) * = DST ends in Europe, meanwhile in the United States it ends on the following Saturday, November 2nd

AMERICAN LEAGUE POST-SEASON BRACKET Wild Card Game* League Division Series** League Championship Series*** A New York Yankees 3 Minnesota Twins 0 New York Yankees 2 Houston Astros 4 Tampa Bay Rays, 5 B Houston Astros 3 Oakland A's, 1 Tampa Bay Rays (AL WCG winners) 2 NATIONAL LEAGUE POST-SEASON BRACKET Wild Card Game League Division Series League Championship Series A Atlanta Braves 2 St.Louis Cardinals 3 St.Louis Cardinals 0 Washington Nationals 4 Milwaukee Brewers, 3 B Los Angeles Dodgers 2 Washington Nationals, 4 Washington Nationals (NL WCG winners) 3 * = Single Game Match-up ** = Best-of-5 Series *** = Best-of-7 Series WORLD SERIES (Best-of-7 Series) Houston Astros (AL Champions) vs Washington Nationals (NL Champions)

Altuve's walk-off homer sends Astros to Series The Astros weren’t built to win just one championship. Raising the trophy one time was never going to be good enough. You don’t endure three consecutive years of losing 100 games to rebuild into a juggernaut and get just one taste of champagne at the end of October. Perhaps that’s what drove the Astros to wash away last year’s heartbreaking playoff loss to the Red Sox and come roaring back to a club-record 107 wins. Maybe that’s why they remained laser-focused despite being tested by the Rays in the American League Division Series and never took anything for granted when they pushed the mighty Yankees to the brink of elimination in the AL Championship Series. And when Yankees first baseman DJ LeMahieu hit a stunning two-run homer in the ninth inning of Game 6 of the ALCS to tie the game, that simply set the stage for Josè Altuve -- the only Astros player who endured the three 100-loss seasons in a row -- to send the Astros back to the World Series. Altuve crushed an Aroldis Chapman slider and hit a towering walk-off two-run homer in the ninth inning to score George Springer for a 6-4 win over the Yankees in Game 6 on Saturday night at raucous Minute Maid Park. The Astros won the best-of-seven series, 4-2, to punch their ticket to the World Series for the second time in three seasons. “We're not going to the World Series because of me,” said Altuve, who was named the ALCS MVP after hitting .348 with two homers. “We're going to the World Series because of everybody inside of the clubhouse.“ The Astros will play host to Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night at Minute Maid Park against the National League champion Washington Nationals, who overcame a 19-31 start to reach their first Fall Classic. Nearly eight months after the Astros and Nationals -- who share a Spring Training facility in West Palm Beach, Fla. -- began the season with an exhibition game, they will meet for the right to be called World Series champions. “We’ve said all along our goal was to win multiple championships,” Astros president of baseball operations and general manager Jeff Luhnow said. “We’re not there yet.” It’s the third time in five seasons the Astros have eliminated the Yanks, who battled with Houston for the best record in baseball all season before losing home-field advantage in the final week of the regular season. “I feel like we are on equal footing with them,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “Unfortunately, sports can be a little bit cruel for the team that goes home and such can happen in the series.” The Astros, who have been headlined all season by their star-studded starting pitching, had to turn to their bullpen to try to finish off the Yanks, saving dominant ace Gerrit Cole for a possible Game 7 -- and in a perfect world -- Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday. The start of the game couldn’t have gone any better, with Brad Peacock using seven pitches to breeze through the first inning. Needing a hero, Yuli Gurriel -- 1-for-20 in the ALCS entering the game -- blasted a three-run homer to left in the bottom of the inning to give the Astros a 3-0 lead. Gary Sánchez answered with an RBI single off Peacock in the second. “It's nice when you take the lead, especially in an elimination game on the other side, it puts an immense amount of pressure on those guys,” Astros manager AJ Hinch said. “It wouldn't surprise me that Yuli was in the middle of it, because he's been mere feet away from being in the middle of virtually every good thing that's happened to us offensively in this series.” Now it was up to Houston’s bullpen. Could it hold the lead? Ryan Pressley bailed Josh James out of a bases-loaded jam in the third but not before reinjuring the right knee that caused him to have surgery in August. Wide-eyed rookie Josè Urquidy allowed a solo homer to Gio Urshela in the fourth but managed to hold the lead through 2 2/3 innings. “He was incredible tonight,” Hinch said of Urquidy. “What's hard for a young player is not really knowing what was going to happen or how he was going to be used. It probably would have been easier on him emotionally just to start the game and have the normal routine, and we weren't going to do that. And we told him we weren't sure if or when he was going to pitch, but the way the game was progressing and we went through a lot of pitching early, we don't win this game if Urquidy doesn't come in and get the outs that he did at the time in which he did to turn it over to the back end of the bullpen.” Then there was steady veteran Will Harris, who got the final out in the sixth and three more big ones in the seventh, with an unreal assist from left fielder Michael Brantley. He made a diving catch of an Aaron Hicks fly ball and doubled up Aaron Judge at first to end the inning and make Minute Maid Park erupt with noise. Joe Smith worked a scoreless eighth, getting another spectacular play -- an Altuve-to-Carlos Correa-to-Gurriel double play -- to end the inning, with Correa’s throw to first registering 94.5 mph by Statcast. Roberto Osuna gave up the two-run dinger to LeMahieu, but Houston’s bullpen day was a success. “Our bullpen, we all read what everybody writes that everybody we face has a better bullpen than us and to do it on a bullpen day [was sweet],” Smith said. “It took everybody out there, though.” From pitching to defense, the Astros were doing everything they had to do to overcome their offensive shortcomings in the series. They were two outs away from a tense win when LeMahieu socked his game-tying homer just over the glove of a leaping Springer. Minute Maid Park sat in stunned silence. “I knew that was gone,” Osuna said. “That was a terrible feeling. I felt terrible. When Altuve hit the homer, obviously I came back to life and pretty excited right now.” In the end, it worked out like it should have for the Astros. It was Altuve sending the rocket into the night. It was Altuve humbly rounding the bases and into a mass of teammates. It was Altuve that sent the Astros back to the Fall Classic. “You make sure the ball is gone before you celebrate,” he said. “Then I'm thinking, ‘We're going to the World Series.’” All Credits: MLB.com

Sofia Grand Prix Day #3, Medallists Recap men's -80kg Gold: Saleh Elsharabaty Silver: Seif Eissa Bronze: Moises Hernandez & Icaro Miguel Martins Soares women's -49kg Gold: Wu Jingyu Silver: Kim So-Hui Bronze: Tijana Bogdanovic & Wenren Yuntao

well, they all had some different features and a not 100% straight design whch made them more "tv-friendly"... this one is really like the Prague's unwatchable channel...basically, there's also no room for course setters to build varied and interesting routes without getting "dirty tricky", which will make the competitions less enjoyable and exciting... looking at the test event results (at least the heats), on a course like that, physically strong paddlers have quite the edge over the most technical ones...

so, Game #1 of the 2019 Japan Series is in the bag... in a packed Yafuoku! Dome in Fukuoka, women's heavyweights Judo World Champion Akira Sone threw the ceremonial first pitch and then, after the illusive solo HR by Abe in the top iof the second inning for the Tokyo Giants, it was all a home team show... when the Yo,iuri's starting pitcher Yamaguchi tired up a bit, the home team bats started to pile hits up and between the 6th and the 7th inning they opened the score up to 7-1. It was all over...and the last HR by the Giants in the 9th and final inning was just cosmetic...7-2 the final score for the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in game #1, which means that now they lead the series 1-0... most notable players for the Home Team, left fielder/3rd baseman Gracial (hitting the 2-run HR that started it all for the Hawks in the second inning) and the starting pitcher Senga, with a dominant performance over 7 innings (only 3 hits and 1 earned run allowed, 5 K's)... here's the boxscore of Game #1 http://npb.jp/bis/eng/2019/games/s2019101901838.html game #2 is about to start (always in Fukuoka) in less than half an hour...

and since I'm crazy and these days I'm enjoying a Japanese IPTV with a 95 channels lineup to watch the finals of their Baseball league, this morning I've also noticed that NHK is broadcasting many events, included the Slalom Canoeing's... @hckosice tbh, it's a quite disappointing environment...it's just a straight concrete channel with plastic barriers on the side and a zig-zag course...it reminds me a lot the Prague channel, by far the least attractive in the regular Slalom Canoeing circuit... I already miss La Seu d'Urgell (not to mention the Natural River courses like the Noce River's or Bourg St.Maurice) so much... unfortunately, I just can't find any picture of today's races (and I can't take the Japanese Tv stream), but at least I found this video taken a couple of days ago during the training session before the test event heats started...

just found this interesting video featuring some points of the Olympic MTB CC circuit (pictures taken during the test event)...

Sofia Grand Prix Day #2, Medallists Recap men's +80kg Gold: Maicon Siqueira Silver: In Kyo-Don Bronze: Sun Hongyi & Ivan Sapina women's -67kg Gold: Ruth Gbagbi Silver: Lauren Williams Bronze: Julyana Al-Sadeq & Nur Tatar Askari women's +67kg Gold: Zheng Shuyin Silver: Bianca Walkden Bronze: Milica Mandic & Myeong Mi-Na

Men's Speed World Cup Final Ranking 1st, Bassa Mawem, 329.00 Pts 2nd, Vladislav Deulin, 312.00 Pts 3rd, Alfian Muhammad, 286.00 Pts 4th, Zhong Qi Xin, 285.00 Pts 5th, Dmitrii Timofeev, 283.00 Pts 6th, Reza Alipour, 236.00 Pts 7th, Sergey Rukin, 234.00 Pts 8th, Aleksandr Shikov, 203.00 Pts 9th, Kostiantyn Pavlenko, 181.00 Pts 10th, Jan Kriz, 162.00 Pts Full Ranking https://www.ifsc-climbing.org/index.php?option=com_ifsc&view=dr&layout=calendar&Itemid=102#!type=ranking&cat=ICC_MS&cup=19_WC

Women's Speed World Cup Final Ranking 1st, Song Yi Ling, 460.00 Pts 2nd, Anouck Jaubert, 355.00 Pts 3rd, Aries Susanti Rahayu, 333.00 Pts 4th, Elizaveta Ivanova, 261.00 Pts 5th, Niu Di, 201.00 Pts 6th, Anna Tsyganova, 197.00 Pts 7th, Aleksandra Kalucka, 194.00 Pts 8th, Patrycja Chudziak, 188.00 Pts 9th, Aleksandra Miroslaw, 180.00 Pts 10th, Iuliia Kaplina, 172.00 Pts Full Ranking https://www.ifsc-climbing.org/index.php?option=com_ifsc&view=dr&layout=calendar&Itemid=102#!type=ranking&cat=ICC_FS&cup=19_WC

last day of the individual weight classes in Marrakech...and Japan swept all the 4 Gold Medals awarded today, regaining on the finish line the top of the medal table... tomorrow the championship will end with the Mixed Team Event... women's -78kg Gold: Rinoko Wada Silver: Renèe Van Harselaar Bronze: Patricia Sampaio & Christina Faber women's +78kg Gold: Ruri Takahashi Silver: Kim Ha Yun Bronze: Tahina Durand & Marit Kamps men's -100kg Gold: Kazunari Kamigaki Silver: Ilia Sulamanidze Bronze: Mert Sismanlar & Zsombor Veg men's +100kg Gold: Sosuke Matsumura Silver: Erik Abramov Bronze: Kim Min Jong & Richard Sipocz Full Results: http://www.ippon.org/wc_jun2019.php