Giménez ends his scoring drought with Milan

Ap

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, September 24, 2025, p. a11

Milan. Santiago Giménez's goal drought with Milan has come to an end. The Mexican striker scored his first goal of the season in his team's 3-0 victory over Lecce, which took them to the round of 16 of the Coppa Italia, in the match played at San Siro.

The Cruz Azul youth player opened the scoring for the Rossoneri in the 20th minute after finishing off a powerful cross from Davide Bartesaghi's left flank in the six-yard box, which proved impossible for German goalkeeper Christian Früchtl.

Chaquito 's most recent goal for his club was on August 9 in a preseason match against Leeds United.

In the second half, Frenchman Christopher Nkunku added another goal with an acrobatic effort from close range (51). It was his first since joining from Chelsea in August. In the 64th, American Christian Pulisic redirected a cross from Youssouf Fofana shortly after coming off the bench to seal the final score.

Milan's next opponent will be Lazio, one of the eight highest-ranked teams that have a direct place in the round of 16. The Rossoneri were unseeded, finishing eighth in Serie A last season, which also led to their absence from the European competitions, so coach Massimiliano Allegri has made this tournament a prime objective.

▲ The Mexican scored his first goal of the season with the Rossoneri yesterday in the Coppa Italia match against Lecce at the San Siro. Photo: AFP

Meanwhile, Fulham, with Raúl Jiménez as a starter, advanced to the third round of the English League Cup by beating Cambridge 1-0.

In La Liga, Kylian Mbappé scored twice in the space of three minutes, and Argentine teenager Franco Mastantuono scored his first goal for Real Madrid in a 4-1 away win against Levante, a result that extended the club's perfect start to the season.

Vinicius Jr. also scored for the Merengue team, which secured its sixth consecutive league victory.

"We're in a growth phase, a construction phase. We've been here for 51 days, and there's still a long way to go. We're building a solid foundation to be competitive in the Champions League , La Liga, and Copa del Rey," explained manager Xabi Alonso, who took over the reins of the club for this season.

▲ The Automated Ball and Strike System has been tested in the minor leagues since 2019. AP Photo

Ap

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, September 24, 2025, p. a12

New York. Robot umpires will be recalled to the Major Leagues next season after the so-called Automated Ball and Strike System was approved for use in the majors starting in 2026.

Humans will still call balls and strikes , but teams will be able to challenge two calls per game and receive additional appeals in extra innings. Challenges must be made by a pitcher, catcher, or batter, signaled by touching their helmet or cap, and a team retains its challenge if successful. Appeals will be displayed as digital graphics on the field's video screens.

The introduction of robot umpires could reduce ejections. According to MLB, 61.5 percent of ejections among players, managers, and coaches last year were related to balls and strikes , as were 60.3 percent this season through last Sunday.

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said players will have to adapt. “It’s a big change,” he said before the start of a three-game series against Detroit. “We saw it a little bit in spring training. It’s a new rule, and we’re going to have to learn how to use it. You may like it or not, it doesn’t matter. It’s here. It’s going to change the game forever.”

The automated system, which uses Hawk-Eye cameras, has been tested in the minor leagues since 2019. The independent Atlantic League tried it at its 2019 All-Star Game, and MLB installed the technology for the Arizona Fall League season, which recruits top prospects.

In Triple-A, at the start of the 2023 season, half of the games used robots for balls and strikes , and the other half had a human making decisions subject to team appeals.

MLB used the challenge system this year at 13 spring training stadiums hosting 19 teams for a total of 288 exhibition games. Teams won 52.2 percent of their ball-and -strike challenges.

This season in Triple-A, the average number of challenges per game increased to 4.2 from 3.9 through Sunday, and the success rate fell to 49.5 percent from 50.6 percent. Defenses were successful on 53.7 of those challenges this year, and offenses were successful on 45 percent.

MLB has experimented with different forms and interpretations of the strike zone within the system, including three-dimensional versions. Currently, it calls strikes solely based on where the ball crosses the midpoint of the plate.

“Throughout this process, we have worked to implement the system in a manner that is acceptable to players,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement.

This will be MLB's first major rule change since sweeping tweaks in 2024. These included a pitch clock, restrictions on defensive shifts, attempts to prevent stolen bases by pitchers, and larger bases.

The challenge system introduces the robotic umpire without eliminating pitch framing, a subtle art where catchers use their body and glove to try to make boundary-bound pitches look like strikes . Framing has become a critical skill for catchers, and there was concern that a complete system would make some defensive catchers obsolete.

Not everyone loves it.

“The idea that people are paid to cheat, to steal strikes , to move a non -strike pitch into the zone to fool the official into making it a strike is beyond me,” manager Bobby Valentine said.

Latin Press

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, September 24, 2025, p. a12

Havana. Cuba remains confident of participating in the upcoming World Baseball Classic, scheduled for March 5-17, 2026, despite not yet receiving a license from the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

During a press conference in the Adolfo Luque Hall of the Latinoamericano Stadium, the president of the Cuban Baseball Federation (FCBS), Juan Reinaldo Pérez, expressed that "we are optimistic and hope to receive permission to attend the tournament, as has happened in the five previous editions."

The executive added that they are already working on pre-selecting players, including those who live outside the country and others of Cuban descent born abroad who are interested in wearing the island's uniform.

He also clarified that without OFAC authorization, they cannot conduct any official business with Major League Baseball, an organization that requires this approval to engage with Cuba due to the current economic embargo regulations.

A few days ago, the FCBS issued a protest note denouncing that, unlike the rest of the qualifiers, Cuba had not been invited to submit the preliminary roster of 50 players, a process that began on September 1.

According to the statement, the tournament organizers acknowledge having requested permission from Washington well in advance, but the response remains pending. The statement describes the situation as an "unjustified delay that creates uncertainty and affects the technical process of compiling the roster" and denounces the United States' restrictions as "contrary to the spirit of sport."

The federation emphasized that Cuban baseball players earned their right to participate in the Classic on the field, and reaffirmed that Cuba is not asking for privileges, but rather for equal conditions.

Although in previous editions, such as 2006 and 2023, the license was granted just months before the tournament's start, the current political climate between Havana and Washington adds uncertainty. Specialized media have reported that the organizers of the Clásico are even considering an alternative plan if the authorization doesn't arrive in time.

▲ Mexican Paralympian Jesús Gutiérrez (pictured) won the silver medal in the 200m individual medley SM6 final, setting a record for the Americas, clocking 2:37.06 minutes, on the third day of competition at the Singapore 2025 World Para Swimming Championships. Ángel Camacho, a multi-medallist at Paris 2024, claimed his second bronze medal after finishing third in the 150m individual medley SM4, clocking 2:37.65 minutes. Photo: Conade

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, September 24, 2025, p. a12