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2B – Daily News – Tuesday, May 3, 2011 Matsui’s 10th-inning homer lifts A’s KINGS OAKLAND (AP) — Hideki Mat- sui would much rather have hit his first home run at home in the Coliseum weeks ago. Yet Oakland’s new designated hitter could hardly complain about how the clout finally came — even if an announced crowd of 9,193 was all that saw him do it during a rare Monday matinee. Matsui clobbered the first pitch of the 10th inning from Darren Oliver and sent it deep into the right-field seats for a game-winning homer, lifting the Oakland Athletics to a 5-4 victory over the Texas Rangers. ‘‘Hopefully after today’s game there will be 100 more people,’’ Matsui quipped. Grant Balfour (2-1) walked three batters in the top of the 10th to load the bases for pinch-hitter Yorvit Torrealba, who struck out swinging on the right- hander’s 30th pitch. Josh Willingham hit a tying home run leading off the eighth against Texas reliever Arthur Rhodes, and the A’s took three of four from the reigning AL champions. Matsui’s clout against Oliver (1-3) was the third of the season for the slug- ger and Oakland’s first walkoff homer of 2011. He added an RBI groundout in the fifth. ‘‘If you saw it or heard it, you knew it was way back there,’’ A’s teammate Andy LaRoche said of the winning drive. Texas has lost six of eight and 12 of 19 following a 9-1 start. Michael Young hit a two-run dou- ble and a sacrifice fly but the bullpen couldn’t hold a one-run lead for Texas starter Derek Holland, who allowed eight hits and three runs in seven innings. The Rangers were hoping to gain some momentum from the series finale heading into a three-game series at Seattle in which Texas will miss Mariners ace and reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Felix Hernan- dez. ‘‘We’re not where we want to be but we’re not going to panic either,’’ man- ager Ron Washington said. ‘‘It was real tough. I thought we played hard, things just didn’t fall into place.’’ Oakland’s Kurt Suzuki homered for the second time in three games and went 6 for 16 with two homers, five RBIs and three runs scored during the series. The first-time father was activat- ed from the paternity leave list before Friday’s opener with the Rangers fol- lowing the birth of daughter, Malia, on Thursday. Matsui is batting .242 in his first season with the A’s and still finding himself at the plate. ‘‘The adjustments are ongoing on a daily basis,’’ he said. ‘‘That’s what I have been doing and it’s what I will keep doing.’’ Young and Adrian Beltre had back- to-back sacrifice flies in the fifth but Texas couldn’t bounce back from a 7-2 loss Sunday. Washington sat second baseman Ian Kinsler and used third baseman Beltre as the designated hitter to give him a day off his legs. Brandon McCarthy, facing Texas for the first time since 2006, allowed four runs and six hits in six innings, struck out four and walked two. The A’s overcame two more errors — both by McCarthy — that gave them an AL-leading 27, one more than the Rangers after Texas also had one Monday. Oakland is also tied with Houston for most errors in the majors. ‘‘We’ve been up and down through April,’’ McCarthy said. ‘‘To start May like this is something we needed. The bullpen was outstanding. They stood up and got my back.’’ David DeJesus put the A’s ahead when he scored on a safety squeeze bunt by Cliff Pennington in the second. Suzuki hit his third home run leading off the fourth. Oakland third baseman LaRoche did his part to keep himself in the line- up with a pair of base hits. He batted 6 for 11 during the four games with Texas. A’s center fielder Coco Crisp had the day off as a precaution after he returned Sunday from a three-game absence with tightness in his left ham- string. Lee Greenwood’s ‘‘Proud to Be An American’’ blared between the first and second innings a day after Presi- dent Barack Obama announced the death of terrorist Osama bin Laden. A’s public address announcer Dick Calla- han asked fans to ‘‘Raise their Bud- weisers’’ in appreciation for those who serve our country. One female fan sported a short-sleeved flag shirt. Notes: Injured A’s closer Andrew Bailey (strained forearm) will throw to hitters on the field Wednesday. ... Oakland LHP starter Dallas Braden played catch for the first time since being placed on the 15-day DL with a shoulder injury April 18. Gorzelanny pitches Nationals past Giants WASHINGTON (AP) — Tom Gorzelanny allowed only three hits in eight sharp innings against a struggling San Francisco lineup, and Michael Morse and Jerry Hairston Jr. drove in runs for Washington, helping the Nationals beat the Giants 2-0 Monday on Military Appreciation Night. Gorzelanny (1-2) hadn’t lasted eight innings in a game since Aug. 12, 2007, when he threw a shutout for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Giants. On Monday, he gave up Aaron Rowand’s double leading off the game and single in the third, as well as Cody Ross’ single in the eighth. Drew Storen pitched the ninth for his sixth save in six chances, closing out a game that took just 2 hours, 2 minutes. Madison Bumgarner (0- 5) retired Washington’s first 12 batters but wound up giv- ing up two runs and five hits in seven innings. That was enough for Gorzelanny, in part because the Giants continue to have problems at the plate. The World Series cham- pions were shut out for the third time in their last six games, including twice dur- ing this series, when Wash- ington took three of four. Jason Marquis pitched the Nationals to a 3-0 victory Friday. San Francisco has lost eight of its last 11, scoring 23 runs in that span. Gorzelanny retired 15 consecutive batters at one point Monday. He was helped by a diving catch by center fielder Rick Ankiel on Miguel Tejada’s sinking liner in the fifth. Bumgarner was nearly as good as Gorzelanny. The first Nationals play- er to reach base was rookie catcher Wilson Ramos, hit- ting cleanup on a day off for first baseman Adam LaRoche. Ramos doubled to start the fifth inning and was sacrificed to third, but Bumgarner got out of it by striking out Morse and Hair- ston. That part of the lineup was trouble for the Giants’ pitcher in the seventh, though. With two outs and no one on, Ramos singled off Tejada’s glove at third. That was the first of four consecutive hits for Wash- ington: Ian Desmond sin- gled, Morse hit an RBI sin- gle and Hairston hit an RBI double. Sharks take 2-0 lead into Detroit DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings need their home ice to be an advantage against the San Jose Sharks or they will probably be making vacation plans soon. The Sharks have taken a 2-0 lead over Detroit with a pair of one-goal wins at home in their Western Conference semifinal. ‘‘You can’t feel sorry for yourself,’’ Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lid- strom said. ‘‘We have to rebound as a team. It’s been two close games and they’ve got the break each time.’’ San Jose went ahead by two goals early in the third period of Game 2 on Sunday and held on for a 2-1 win. Benn Fer- riero scored 7:03 into overtime of the series opener for a 2-1 win Fri- day night. When the series shifts to Joe Louis Arena for Game 3 on Wednesday night, the Sharks are hop- ing to match Detroit’s sense of urgency. ‘‘We’re going to expect two desperate teams to be playing — we want to be one of them,’’ said San Jose coach Todd McLellan, a former Red Wings assis- LOCAL REC National Softball WL Pct GB DRT Livestock 1 0 1.000 — Elite Automotive 1 0 1.000 — Gibb Auto Young Guns 0 1 .000 1 0 1 .000 1 ————————————————— Thursday’s results DRT Livestock 27, Gibb Auto 17 Elite Automotive 23, Young Guns 18 May 5 games — Frey Field Young Guns at Gibb Auto, 6:30 p.m. DRTLivestock at Elite Automotive, 7:45 p.m. tant. ‘‘We know it’s going to be a tough task in Detroit. They’re a proud organization and proud franchise. They believe in what they’re doing and we’ve been there before to experi- ence it.’’ The Red Wings have lost the first two games of a series seven times during their two-decade postseason streak and they’ve rallied only once, beating Vancouver in six games of the first round in 2002 before going on to win the Stanley Cup. Detroit took Monday off as the Sharks flew to the Motor City. Both teams planned to practice Tuesday. ‘‘They’re obviously desperate now,’’ said San Jose’s Ian White, who scored the first goal of Game 2. ‘‘They have nothing to lose. They’re going to come out hard. They’re comfortable in their own barn. They’ve done some good things NBA PLAYOFFS Conference Semifinals Monday’s results Atlanta 103, Chicago 95 Atlanta leads series 1-0 Dallas at L.A. Lakers, late Series tied 0-0 Today’s games Boston at Miami, 4 p.m., TNT Miami leads series 1-0 Memphis at Okla. City, 6:30 p.m., TNT Memphis leads series 1-0 there in the past. We’re going to have to match their intensity level and raise our game even high- er.’’ The Red Wings may have the sinking feeling that this postseason is playing out like the last one. They got past Phoenix in the first round for the second straight year and then fell behind with narrow losses at San Jose. The Sharks won the first three games of last year’s second-round series — all by 4-3 scores — lost the next game by six goals at Joe Louis Arena and ended Detroit’s season with a 2- 1 win in Game 5. If the Red Wings are going to get past San Jose, they’re going to have to figure out a way to win on the road. ‘‘We’re disappointed that we weren’t able to MLS WESTERN CONFERENCE WL T Pts GF GA Galaxy 4 2 3 15 11 9 Salt Lake 4 1 0 12 8 2 Seattle 3 2 3 12 10 7 Colorado 3 3 1 10 9 8 FC Dallas 3 3 1 10 10 10 Portland 3 3 1 10 10 13 Chivas USA 2 2 3 9 8 6 Vancouver 1 4 3 6 11 14 QUAKES 14 2 5 6 10 EASTERN CONFERENCE WL T Pts GF GA New York 4 1 2 14 10 2 Philadelphia 4 1 1 13 5 2 Houston 3 1 3 12 11 6 Columbus 3 1 3 12 7 5 N. England 2 3 3 9 8 12 D.C. 2 4 17 10 NHL PLAYOFFS Conference Semifinals Monday’s result Boston 3, Philadelphia 2, OT Boston leads series 2-0 Today’s games Washington at Tampa Bay, 3:30 p.m., VS Tampa Bay leads series 2-0 Vancouver at Nashville, 6 p.m., VS Series tied 1-1 Other series San Jose leads Detroit 2-0 16 Toronto FC 1 3 4 7 7 13 Chicago 1 3 3 6 10 13 Kansas City 1 4 1 4 10 13 NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie. ————————————————— Saturday's results Philadelphia 1, San Jose 0 Chivas USA 3, New England 0 Columbus 2, Vancouver 1 New York 1, Sporting Kansas City 0 Portland 1, Real Salt Lake 0 Seattle FC 3, Toronto FC 0 Colorado 1, Chicago 1, tie Sunday’s result FC Dallas 2, Los Angeles 1 steal game here,’’ Detroit coach Mike Babcock said Sunday in San Jose. ‘‘We have to steal a game here to win the series.’’ But first, the Red Wings have to win at home to simply extend the series. Sharks captain Joe Thornton expects to see them at their best. ‘‘We feel good, but their backs are against the wall,’’ Thornton said. ‘‘They have home ice. They are going to try to take advantage of us. They’re going to be sharp and try to take it to us Wednesday.’’ MLB West Division American League WL Pct GB Angels 16 13 .552 — Texas A’s 16 13 .552 — 15 14 .517 1 Seattle 13 16 .448 3 East Division WL Pct GB New York 17 9 .654 — Tampa Bay 15 13 .536 3 Baltimore 13 14 .481 4.5 Boston 13 15 .464 5 Toronto 13 15 .464 5 Central Division WL Pct GB Cleveland 19 8 .704 — Kansas City15 13 .536 4.5 Detroit 12 17 .414 8 Chicago 11 19 .367 9.5 Minnesota 9 18 .333 10 ————————————————— Monday’s results Oakland 5,Texas 4, 10 innings Boston 9, Los Angeles 5 Chicago 6, Baltimore 2 New York 5, Detroit 3 Today’s games Cleveland (Carmona 2-3) at Oakland (T.Ross 1-2), 7:05 p.m. Toronto (Jo-.Reyes 0-2) at Tampa Bay (W.Davis 3-2), 3:40 p.m. New York (Sabathia 2-1) at Detroit (Penny 1-3), 4:05 p.m. Los Angeles (Haren 4-1) at Boston (Lester 3-1), 4:10 p.m. Baltimore (Bergesen 0-3) at Kansas City (Francis 0-3), 5:10 p.m. Minnesota (Liriano 1-4) at Chicago (E.Jackson 2-3), 5:10 p.m. Texas (Ogando 3-0) at Seattle (Bedard 1-4), 7:10 p.m. Wednesday’s games Cleveland at Oakland, 7:05 p.m. Minnesota at Chicago, 11:10 a.m. Toronto at Tampa Bay, 3:40 p.m. New York at Detroit, 4:05 p.m. Los Angeles at Boston, 4:10 p.m. Baltimore at Kansas City, 5:10 p.m. Texas at Seattle, 7:10 p.m. (Continued from page 1B) mayor has the answers and we’re willing and able to lis- ten. He’s got to have a plan. We never want to be untruth- ful to the fans of Sacramen- to. There is a sense of urgency, and that’s up to Mayor Johnson and his political team.’’ Stern praised Johnson, a former NBA All-Star, for his Herculean effort at mobiliz- ing the community to keep the team. Stern’s support for another chance for Sacra- mento is a far cry from his stance during the All-Star break in February, when he said the league would spend no more time trying to get an arena built in California’s capital city. At that point, the Kings’ departure seemed almost inevitable. But after two extensions of a March 1 deadline for relocation, and Johnson’s efforts to arrange $10 million in sponsorship pledges from the corporate community, the city gets another chance. Stern said he is sending a team of nine league officials to Sacramento this week to assist with marketing, tickets and the arena. ‘‘We’re going to put all of our efforts in Sacramento and make it happen and make it succeed,’’ Stern said. ‘‘But if it can’t and this becomes yet the fifth or sixth or seventh, it will be the last as far as we’re concerned, for an effort in regards to an arena. I pledged support for a move to another market.’’ A feasibility study for a new arena in Sacramento is scheduled to be completed later this month. There has always been a divide between Kings fans and the broader public on how to finance a facility. Four California lawmak- ers, including the leader of the state Senate, sent a letter to Stern last week pledging to work with local leaders over the next year to try to build a sports and perform- ing arts complex to replace the Kings’ outdated arena. Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, a Democ- rat from Sacramento, said he would use his clout to make sure his district gets its share of state bond money that could go to build the com- plex. ‘‘We came away with a strong sense that this was worth the additional year because it seemed to us to be so important to the leaders of Sacramento that they would not allow the opportunity to pass without getting it done,’’ Stern said. Sacramento was once a thriving NBA franchise that produced sellout streaks of 497 and 354 straight games. The building formerly known as Arco Arena pro- vided one of the most notori- ous home-court advantages in the league, a place where MLB West Division National League WL Pct GB Colorado 17 9 .654 — Dodgers 14 15 .483 4.5 GIANTS 13 15 .464 5 Arizona 12 15 .444 5.5 Padres 11 17 .393 7 East Division WL Pct GB Florida 18 9 .667 — Philadelphia18 9 .667 — Atlanta 15 15 .500 4.5 Washington 14 14 .500 4.5 New York 12 16 .429 6.5 Central Division WL Pct GB St. Louis 16 13 .552 — Cincinnati 14 14 .500 1.5 Milwaukee 13 15 .464 2.5 Pittsburgh 13 15 .464 2.5 Chicago 12 15 .444 3 Houston 11 17 .393 4.5 ————————————————— Monday’s results Washington 2, San Francisco 0 Atlanta 6, Milwaukee 2 Florida 6, St. Louis 5 Chicago at Los Angeles, late Pittsburgh at San Diego, late Houston at Cincinnati, ppd., rain Today’s games San Francisco (Vogelsong 1-0) at New York (Dickey 1-3), 4:10 p.m. Washington (L.Hernandez 3-2) at Philadelphia (Hamels 3-1), 4:05 p.m. Houston (Happ 1-4) at Cincinnati (Leake 3-0), 4:10 p.m. Milwaukee (Estrada 1-0) at Atlanta (Hanson 3-3), 4:10 p.m. Florida (Ani.Sanchez 1-1) at St. Louis (McClellan 4-0), 5:15 p.m. Colorado (De La Rosa 4-0) at Arizona (J.Saunders 0-3), 6:40 p.m. Pittsburgh (Karstens 2-1) at San Diego (Latos 0-4), 7:05 p.m. Chicago (Dempster 1-3) at Los Angeles (Billingsley 2-1), 7:10 p.m., WGN Wednesday’s games San Francisco at New York, 4:10 p.m. Houston at Cincinnati, 9:35 a.m. Chicago at Los Angeles, 12:10 p.m. Pittsburgh at San Diego, 3:35 p.m. Washington at Philadelphia, 4:05 p.m. Milwaukee at Atlanta, 4:10 p.m. Florida at St. Louis, 5:15 p.m. Colorado at Arizona, 6:40 p.m. fans clanked cowbells so loud opposing coaches and players pleaded to have the noisemakers banned. The Kings won an NBA- best 61 games in the 2001- 02 season behind Chris Webber and Vlade Divac, losing to the eventual cham- pion Lakers in the Western Conference finals at home in a decisive Game 7. Sacramento, with budget deficits and heavy job losses during the economic down- turn, has turned down initia- tives for years to contribute public dollars to replace or upgrade the aging arena. ‘‘If we want to be a major league city, you have to have major league facilities,’’ Johnson said. ‘‘And what you saw happen today and over the last couple of weeks, is the community stepped up and said we can make big things happen.’’ If Johnson’s plan doesn’t come to fruition, Anaheim could once again be an option for the Kings next year with the Honda Center and its luxury suites waiting in Orange County. Anaheim’s City Council already issued the bonds needed to entice the Kings to move, but the Maloofs decided to give Sacramento one more chance. ‘‘I think it’s the fair thing to do,’’ Maloof said. ‘‘We’ve always said we think Sacra- mento has the best NBA fans in the world. Their over- whelming show of support was incredible. But now they realize that we’re giving them another opportunity and we’re anxious to play basketball.’’ Maloof said he appreciat- ed the support and encour- agement from Anaheim offi- cials and said he believed the city would get an NBA team in the future. Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait said his city proved it’s ‘‘NBA-ready’’ and should be considered its own market separate from Los Angeles, which already has the Lakers and Clippers. Stern praised Anaheim’s efforts and said he believes the city will one day have an NBA team. ‘‘This process only moved it along, rather than detracting from it,’’ Stern said. The Kings are coming off their fifth straight losing sea- son, finishing 24-58. With a core of young players led by 2009-10 Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans and big man DeMarcus Cousins, the team believes the future can be bright. The Kings should have another high draft pick and room in the salary cap to add key pieces necessary to get back to the postseason. ‘‘Our future is very bright on the basketball court because of our young up- and-coming team,’’ Maloof said. ‘‘We’re going to have a top five pick and then we’re going to have a great amount of money to spend on free agents.’’ NASCAR Sprint Cup Points Leaders 1. Carl Edwards 2. Jimmie Johnson 3. Kyle Busch 4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 5. Kevin Harvick 6. Kurt Busch 7. Clint Bowyer 8. Ryan Newman 9. Matt Kenseth 10. Tony Stewart 11. A J Allmendinger 335 326 305 301 300 289 284 277 276 275 263 12. Juan Pablo Montoya 262 13. Mark Martin 14. Greg Biffle 15. Paul Menard 16. Jeff Gordon 17. Denny Hamlin 18. Kasey Kahne 19. David Ragan 20. Jeff Burton 21. Joey Logano 22. Martin Truex Jr. 23. Marcos Ambrose 24. Jamie McMurray 25. Bobby Labonte 26. Brian Vickers 27. David Reutimann 28. Brad Keselowski 29. Regan Smith 30. David Gilliland 31. Robby Gordon 32. Dave Blaney 33. Casey Mears 34. Andy Lally 35. Bill Elliott 36. Tony Raines 37. Ken Schrader 38. Terry Labonte 39. Michael McDowell 40. J.J.Yeley 41. Michael Waltrip 42. David Stremme 43. Brian Keselowski 44. Steve Park 256 250 249 240 238 236 231 214 212 210 209 207 198 189 187 179 169 168 137 136 132 116 100 92 56 40 29 27 20 10 3 2 Upcoming schedule May 7 — Showtime Southern 500, Dar- lington, S.C. May 15 — FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks, Dover, Del. May 21 — x-NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Concord, N.C. May 21 — x-Sprint Showdown, Concord, N.C. May 29 — Coca-Cola 600, Concord, N.C. x = non-points race Texas 4 A’s 5, 10 inn Washington 2 Giants 0 San Jose Sharks