Zack Greinke threw six shutout innings while leading the Houston Astros to an 8-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics. AFP
Zack Greinke threw six shutout innings while leading the Houston Astros to an 8-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics. AFP
Zack Greinke threw six shutout innings while leading the Houston Astros to an 8-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics. AFP
Zack Greinke threw six shutout innings while leading the Houston Astros to an 8-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics. AFP

MLB round-up: Zack Greinke and the Houston Astros ignore the jeers to thrash Oakland Athletics on opening day


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Zack Greinke pitched six shutout innings, Michael Brantley and Alex Bregman homered back-to-back in the eighth, and the Houston Astros hushed an unwelcoming crowd in beating the reigning AL West champions Oakland Athletics 8-1 on Thursday night.

A’s fans had to wait an extra year to properly boo the Astros, who were supposed to play their first road game of the coronavirus-shortened 2020 season here last spring. Houston’s sign-stealing scandal was brought to light by A’s right-hander Mike Fiers against his former club, and many in the crowd chanted “Cheaters!”

Among the biggest cheers of the night: when Carlos Correa was drilled by Chris Bassitt's fastball in the fourth inning. With a runner in scoring position, it didn't appear to be intentional.

Backed by a two-run double from Yordan Alvarez, Greinke (1-0) allowed three hits, struck out four and didn’t walk a batter in Houston’s club-record ninth straight win on opening day.

“He was kind of in midseason form," Astros manager Dusty Baker said of Greinke. "He’s in much better shape this year."

Greinke hopes wins like this might help silence some of the haters. “Got to hear some boos finally, that wasn’t that fun to listen to,” Greinke said, “but we played good so it ended up being better.”

Albert Pujols' stellar career has included many big hits and big home runs, but the Los Angeles Angels first baseman got the job done with an infield chopper that traveled all of about 50 feet.

Still, it was enough to drive in the winning run in the Angels' 4-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox in Anaheim, California.

The Angels scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, turning a 3-2 deficit into a win. The rally included an RBI single by Mike Trout and a clutch plate appearance from Justin Upton, whose 11-pitch walk set the stage for Pujols.

Pujols, making an opening day start for the 21st consecutive season, came to the plate with the bases loaded, one out and the game tied at 3-3.

White Sox reliever Aaron Bummer got Pujols to hit a high chopper that hugged the third base line. Pujols was thrown out, but Shohei Ohtani scored from third.

Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols made an opening day start for the 21st consecutive season. AFP
Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols made an opening day start for the 21st consecutive season. AFP

Chris Owings had three hits and scored three runs, Trevor Story and C.J. Cron had two hits apiece, and the Colorado Rockies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-5 in at Denver.

Jake Cronenworth tripled leading off the seventh inning and scored on a sacrifice fly to snap a tie and give host San Diego Padres an 8-7 win over Arizona Diamondbacks.

Randal Grichuk hit a tiebreaking double in the 10th inning, lifting Toronto Blue Jays to a 3-2 win at New York Yankees.

Miguel Cabrera smacked a two-run homer in the first inning and host Detroit Tigers blanked Cleveland Indians until the ninth, holding on for a chilly opening day 3-2 victory.

Orlando Arcia drove in the winning run in extra innings as host Milwaukee Brewers rallied from a three-run deficit in the ninth to beat Minnesota Twins 6-5.

Ke'Bryan Hayes belted a two-run homer in his first at-bat of the season and Adam Frazier drove in two runs as Pittsburgh Pirates opened the season with a victory at Chicago Cubs.

Dylan Carlson's three-run homer highlighted a six-run first inning, and Paul Goldschmidt had four hits as visiting St Louis Cardinals recorded a season-opening 11-6 win over Cincinnati Reds.

Jean Segura hit the game-winning single to left field with two outs in the 10th inning to score Bryce Harper and lift hosts Philadelphia Phillies to a 3-2 win over Atlanta Braves.

Michael A. Taylor made his Royals debut with three hits and three RBIs as Kansas City Royals defeated visiting Texas Rangers 14-10. Taylor also threw out two runners at the plate.

Austin Meadows broke open a scoreless pitching duel with an eighth-inning homer, leading Tampa Bay Rays to a win at Miami Marlins.

Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera celebrates with Nomar Mazara after hitting a two-run homer in the snow against the Cleveland Indians. Reuters
Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera celebrates with Nomar Mazara after hitting a two-run homer in the snow against the Cleveland Indians. Reuters
Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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EA Sports FC 25

Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Date: Sunday, November 25

What are the influencer academy modules?
  1. Mastery of audio-visual content creation. 
  2. Cinematography, shots and movement.
  3. All aspects of post-production.
  4. Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
  5. Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
  6. Tourism industry knowledge.
  7. Professional ethics.
The biog

Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball

Key products and UAE prices

iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229

iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649

iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179

Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.

THE LOWDOWN

Photograph

Rating: 4/5

Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies

Director: Ritesh Batra

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
Brave CF 27 fight card

Welterweight:
Abdoul Abdouraguimov (champion, FRA) v Jarrah Al Selawe (JOR)

Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (TUN) v Alex Martinez (CAN)

Welterweight:
Mzwandile Hlongwa (RSA) v Khamzat Chimaev (SWE)

Middleweight:
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Rustam Chsiev (RUS)
Mohammad Fakhreddine (LEB) v Christofer Silva (BRA)

Super lightweight:
Alex Nacfur (BRA) v Dwight Brooks (USA)

Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (JOR) v Tariq Ismail (CAN)
Chris Corton (PHI) v Zia Mashwani (PAK)

Featherweight:
Sulaiman (KUW) v Abdullatip (RUS)

Super lightweight:
Flavio Serafin (BRA) v Mohammad Al Katib (JOR)

COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3EName%3A%20DarDoc%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Samer%20Masri%2C%20Keswin%20Suresh%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20HealthTech%3Cbr%3ETotal%20funding%3A%20%24800%2C000%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Flat6Labs%2C%20angel%20investors%20%2B%20Incubated%20by%20Hub71%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi's%20Department%20of%20Health%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%2010%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company%20profile
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The specs

Price: From Dh529,000

Engine: 5-litre V8

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Power: 520hp

Torque: 625Nm

Fuel economy, combined: 12.8L/100km

JAPAN SQUAD

Goalkeepers: Masaaki Higashiguchi, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt
Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Tomoaki Makino, Maya Yoshida, Sho Sasaki, Hiroki Sakai, Sei Muroya, Genta Miura, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Midfielders: Toshihiro Aoyama, Genki Haraguchi, Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Shoya Nakajima, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Ritsu Doan
Forwards: Yuya Osako, Takuma Asano, Koya Kitagawa

The Kites

Romain Gary

Penguin Modern Classics

The Transfiguration

Director: Michael O’Shea

Starring: Eric Ruffin, Chloe Levine

Three stars

The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)

The Beach Bum

Director: Harmony Korine

Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Isla Fisher, Snoop Dogg

Two stars

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Rating: 2/5
 
UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

Another way to earn air miles

In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.

An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.

“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.

UAE Rugby finals day

Games being played at The Sevens, Dubai

2pm, UAE Conference final

Dubai Tigers v Al Ain Amblers

4pm, UAE Premiership final

Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Jebel Ali Dragons

Innotech Profile

Date started: 2013

Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari

Based: Muscat, Oman

Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies

Size: 15 full-time employees

Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing 

Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now. 

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates