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1B Sports Friday October 4, 2013 A's, Tigers prepare for playoff rematch OAKLAND (AP) — Josh Donaldson mimics Miguel Cabrera whenever he can, and he has no problem copping to it. Donaldson spent a couple of days each week over the offseason studying tape of Detroit's star in the batter's box, trying to pick up on anything he could apply to his own hitting for Oakland. Indeed, Donaldson learned a thing or two that worked on the way to a breakout season: .301 batting average, 24 home runs, 93 RBIs in 158 games for the AL West champion Athletics. ''JD's the MVP of our team and Miguel Cabrera is the MVP of baseball,'' A's first baseman Brandon Moss said. These two talented third basemen will face off in the playoffs for the second straight October starting with Game 1 of the AL division series tonight. One is a household name, 2012 Triple Crown winner and widely considered the best hitter in baseball. The other is more anonymous up-and-comer whose spectacular September in his first full major league season earned him AL player of the month honors. Cabrera is making $21 million this season, Donaldson a mere $492,500. ''I've watched his videos a lot as far as a hitter,'' Donaldson said. ''He's a highly talented hitter, and I really appreciate the way he goes about hitting and I try to learn from him at what he's doing. I feel he's one of the best hitters in the game that goes to right field, and what's helped me be able to take it to the next level this year is the ability to be able to hit it to right field. Watching him over the course of time has definitely helped me.'' Cabrera was pleased to hear that Donaldson had studied his tape. ''Oh, that's great. That's awesome,'' Cabrera said. ''He's a great player. He's one of the reasons the Oakland A's are in the playoffs. He brings a lot of energy to their ballclub. I think you'll see he can change the game with his bat but his glove, too.'' And to think Donaldson had prepared to play catcher until he was called upon to fill in at third when Scott Sizemore went down with a season-ending knee injury at the start of spring training 2012. Aside from much focus at third base, the rematch of last fall's first-round series takes on a far different look this time around. Cabrera, Prince Fielder and the Tigers have something to prove after being swept by San Francisco in last year's World Series, while the A's were hardly a surprise division champion this time and know how close they were to beating the Tigers and reaching the ALCS. Max Scherzer (21-3) gets the ball opposite Oakland 18game winner Bartolo Colon for the opener. Tigers manager Jim Leyland is going with Justin Verlander in Saturday's Game 2 against rookie Sonny Gray. Verlander beat the A's in Games 1 and 5 last year. That's still plenty fresh for both sides, but so is the A's late August visit to Comerica Park in which they took three of four on Detroit's home field. The A's didn't need a last-second rally this year like their improbable late-September 2012 push in which they stunned Texas on the final day — and became the first team in major league history to win a division or pennant after trailing by five games with less than 10 to play. ''It's definitely a little more pressure when you're out in front than when you're playing from behind — when you're behind, you're still the underdog,'' A's center fielder Coco Crisp said Thursday. ''To be honest, I think we're still the underdog when we're in front.'' Cabrera's big bat will decide plenty. He hit .348 with 44 home runs and 137 RBIs but often has played through pain because of a variety of injuries — a troublesome back, a sore left hip, a lower abdominal strain — for a Tigers team coming off its third straight AL Central crown. ''I wish tomorrow at game time I'm 100 percent. I feel much better the last couple days,'' Cabrera said of his groin problem. ''I don't think it's going to be an issue for the playoffs. Anything can happen. I'm ready to give everything on the field.'' Leyland has seen improvement in Cabrera's leg strength. ''He's playable. He's not 100 percent,'' Leyland said. ''He's handicapped a little bit, but the last few days have been better.'' Donaldson will take note of Cabrera, even if not at fully healthy. ''Any time I can watch him hit, if I'm watching a game, I like to watch and see what he's doing,'' Donaldson said. ''That's what I do in the offseason.'' Still, the A's expect Cabrera to bring his best in October when the stakes are so much higher. Tehama Tracker Today's schedule FIELD HOCKEY Corning at Yuba City Tournament FOOTBALL Red Bluff at Shasta, 7:30 p.m.; Corning at Lassen; 7:30 p.m.; Los Molinos at Etna, 7:30 p.m. SWIMMING Norcal Varsity Invitational at Anderson, 10 a.m. Sports on TV AUTO RACING 9:30 a.m. FS1 — NASCAR, Sprint Cup, practice for Hollywood Casino 400, at Kansas City, Kan. 11 a.m. FS1 — NASCAR, Nationwide Series, practice for Kansas Lottery 300, at Kansas City, Kan. 2 p.m. ESPN2 — NASCAR, Sprint Cup, pole qualifying for Hollywood Casino 400, at Kansas City, Kan. 5:30 p.m. FS1 — ARCA, Kansas Lottery 98.9, at Kansas City, Kan. 10 p.m. NBCSN — Formula One, qualifying for Korean Grand Prix, at Yeongam, South Korea COLLEGE FOOTBALL 6 p.m. ESPN — Nevada at San Diego St. GOLF 10 a.m. TGC — PGA Tour, Presidents Cup, second round, at Dublin, Ohio MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL PLAYOFFS 10 a.m. MLB — NLDS, Game 2, Pittsburgh at St. Louis Noon TBS — ALDS, Game 1, Tampa Bay at Boston 3 p.m. TBS — NLDS, Game 2, Los Angeles at Atlanta 6:30 p.m.TBS — ALDS, Game 1, Detroit at Oakland AP photo United States' Brandt Snedeker, right, congratulates International's Jason Day, of Australia, following a four-ball match at the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club on Thursday in Dublin, Ohio. Day and Graham DeLaet, of Canada, won 1-up. Americans lead Presidents Cup DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — The Americans survived a late rally Thursday and put the International team in a familiar hole at the Presidents Cup. Steve Stricker blasted out of a plugged lie in the face of a bunker to 3 feet to save par as he and 20-year-old Jordan Spieth hung on for a 1-up win in the final match on the course at Muirfield Village. That win gave the Americans a 3 1/2-2 1/2 lead, the fourth straight time they have led after the opening session in the Presidents Cup. The Presidents Cup at least was close for one day, and it was entertaining beyond the golf. Former president George W. Bush was on the first tee — not the greatest omen because he also met with the Americans at Medinah before they coughed up the Ryder Cup — and Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel made light of their bad haircuts by wearing wigs onto the tee. Assistant captain Davis Love III found a pet squirrel small enough to fit into his pocket, and Olympic ski champion Lindsey Vonn gave Tiger Woods a brief scare when she put the squirrel on his back. After all that, the Internationals have never been so happy to be trailing. The Americans led in every match early in the session and were ahead in five of them when thunderstorms and a few bursts of rain stopped play for 1 1/2 hours. None of the matches had gone more than 10 holes, though the delay at least gave the International team a sense of starting over. ''The break did us really good,'' Oosthuizen said. ''We came back out, felt refreshed and just played well.'' Jason Day and Graham DeLaet rallied from 3 down to Hunter Mahan and Brandt Snedeker, winning on the 18th hole when Day made a 20-foot birdie putt. In the best match of the day, Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama battled from 2 down to Bill Haas and Webb Simpson with five holes to play to earn a halve when the 21-year-old Japanese star hit his approach to 2 feet for birdie on the last hole. Oosthuizen and Schwartzel gave Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson their first loss. The South Africans, best of friends since junior golf, took their first lead on the 11th hole and didn't lose another hole until they had a 2-and-1 win. The Internationals looked as if they might even pull even at the end of the day. Ernie Els made his first birdie of the round at just the right time, a 12-foot putt on the 17th hole that extended their match with Stricker and Spieth. Spieth, who overcame a nervous start with several big putts, pulled his tee shot into the water on the 18th. Stricker's approach plugged into the bunker. Brendon De Jonge had a birdie chance from 18 feet, and it looked for a moment like even a par might win the hole and end the match in a halve. Stricker popped it out of the sand and watched it trickle to 3 feet as he lightly pumped his fist. De Jonge's putt missed and the Americans had the lead. The Presidents Cup began with fourballs for the first time since 1996, which should have favored the Internationals. Instead, the Americans won their first fourballs session in 10 years, dating to the second day in South Africa. Still, this was a moral victory for the International team. ''What we showed today was plenty of heart,'' Scott said. He said that a one-point deficit was not a problem. ''We can make that up with the first match tomorrow.'' Muirfield Village was set up for birdies, and there were plenty of them. Ten of the 12 teams were at least 8-under par in their rounds. The exceptions were Angel Cabrera and Marc Leishman, who were only 3 under in the shortest match of the day. They lost, 5 and 4, to Woods and Matt Kuchar. The Americans used a handshake from ''Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,'' and they used it a lot. ''That was definitely all me,'' Kuchar said. ''That stems from 'Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.' I figured this guy was the perfect Carlton.'' Woods turned out to be a decent partner, too. Kuchar was his 19th partner in the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup, and it was a solid debut. Kuchar won at Muirfield Village in June, while Woods is a five-time Memorial champion. ''We both have the low stroke averages in this tournament's history,'' Woods said. ''Put us together and we feel very comfortable how to play this golf course.'' Jason Dufner and Zach Johnson in the anchor match were 3 up through three holes and never looked back. Branden Grace and Richard Sterne, the only all-rookie team for the International side, were 2 down after 10 and never got any closer. The match ended on the 15th hole. Mickelson and Bradley were 3-0 as partners in the Ryder Cup last year and had a 2-up lead through seven holes on Bradley's eagle. They didn't win another hole the rest of the way, however. ''I had good rhythm early on and when we went back out (after the delay), I was just a little bit tight and didn't make very good swings,'' Mickelson said. Beltran leads Cards in rout of Pirates ST. LOUIS (AP) — Carlos Beltran's three-run homer sparked a seven-run third inning and the St. Louis Cardinals got seven stingy innings from Adam Wainwright, delivering a reality jolt to the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 9-1 rout Thursday in their NL division series opener. The first eight Cardinals reached safely in the third to chase A.J. Burnett, saddling the right-hander with the second-shortest outing of his career and putting Game 1 out of reach early. A sellout crowd roared early and then settled in for an easy victory. Lance Lynn (15-10) faces Pirates rookie Gerrit Cole (10-7) in Game 2 Friday. The Pirates ended a 21- year postseason drought and entered their first best-offive division series with apparent momentum after beating Cincinnati in the wild-card game Tuesday. They never threatened to rally against the Cardinals' ace and finished with only four hits. Pittsburgh also was sloppy in the field, committing three errors. St. Louis was sharp on defense, with reliever Carlos Martinez turning in the top play by slinging an off-balance throw to first to nip Russell Martin. ''What a play!'' Cardinals manager Mike Matheny mouthed in the dugout. Wainwright remained unbeaten in the postseason, going to 3-0 with a 2.27 ERA in 14 games, five of them starts. Wainwright allowed a run on three hits in seven innings, striking out nine without a walk. The only damage coming on a homer by Pedro Alvarez to start the fifth. The right-hander tied for the NL lead with 19 wins this year and was 4-0 in his last five starts. Wainwright also started the Cardinals' big burst with a leadoff, full-count walk. Beltran, who has never reached the World Series, reprised his role as one of the game's greatest playoff sluggers. His 443-foot drive put St. Louis ahead and was the second-longest shot by a left-handed batter at 8-yearold Busch Stadium. Beltran has 15 home runs, 10 doubles and 28 RBIs in 35 postseason games. He also has scored 40 runs and stolen 11 bases. His 13 career RBIs against Burnett are the most of any player. Beltran's homer got the Cardinals going, and Jon Jay later walked with the bases loaded. David Freese added a two-run single that cleared the bases when right fielder Marlon Byrd's throw to the plate deflected away. While the Pirates may have had trouble at the plate and in the field with the shadows, the late-afternoon start didn't seem to bother the Cardinals. PREP ROUNDUP TENNIS The Red Bluff Lady Spartans tennis team went into Thursday's matchup against Shasta undefeated after downing Enterprise, 9-0 on Sept. 24 and taking down West Valley on Tuesday. Red Bluff's No. 1 singles player, Ginger Shaffer, finished undefeated in league play and will enter the League of Champions tournament with the No. 1 seed. FIELD HOCKEY Lassen 4, Corning 3 The Corning Lady Cardinals fell to Lassen after both teams went to overtime, where neither team scored, and Lassen claimed the win in penalty flicks. Corning's Kaitlyn Huntley played 50 minutes with six saves. Sarah Boone notched 10 minutes with one goal scored on. Audrey Mora and Maricruz O'Campo led the Cards in shots. Mora scored 15:07 into the first half. Lassen scored with 2:58 left in the game. The Lady Cards next play in the Yuba City tournament, which starts today.