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Inside baseball? Siri knows

Apple's voice assistant is now a baseball savant.

Terry Collins Staff Reporter, CNET News
Terry writes about social networking giants and legal issues in Silicon Valley for CNET News. He joined CNET News from the Associated Press, where he spent the six years covering major breaking news in the San Francisco Bay Area. Before the AP, Terry worked at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis and the Kansas City Star. Terry's a native of Chicago.
Terry Collins
2 min read

Siri wants you to take her out to the ball game.

Apple's voice-activated digital assistant has been updated with a slew of historical baseball statistics just in time for Major League Baseball's Opening Day on Sunday. Siri also knows the history and stats of 27 other pro, minor and international leagues.

Siri definitely knows who National League All-Stars Andrew McCutchen (left) of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Dee Gordon of the Miami Marlins (right) are. The players look at Gordon's iPhone during the 2015 MLB All-Star workouts in Cincinnati.

Tannen Maury/epa/Corbis

Want to know the last time a pitcher fanned four batters in an inning? Just ask your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch or Apple TV. (It was October 4, 2015 when Milwaukee Brewers' hurler Will Smith struck out four Chicago Cubs in the ninth. The Brew Crew still lost, dropping the game 3-1.)

Apple is also hoping Siri may come in handy for MLB teams. Last week, it said its 12.9-inch iPad Pro will be in every big league dugout this year to help coaching staffs make real-time decisions during games.

Siri will also provide the latest scores, team rosters, injury reports and upcoming games.

I asked Siri a few questions to get a sense of how well she'll do when called up to the Show.

Q: Hey Siri, who won last year's National League batting title?
Siri: Dee Gordon. She also provided two links showing the Miami Marlins second baseman was the National League's best hitter with a .333 average that was 3 points better than NL MVP Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals.

How many career strikeouts did four-time Cy Young winning pitcher Steve Carlton have?
Siri: Steve Carlton had 4,136 strikeouts during his career. Carlton had a 24-year career and he's fourth all-time in strikeouts.

When was the last time the Boston Red Sox won a World Series?
Siri: The Red Sox won the World Series 4-2 over the St. Louis Cardinals. The Sox won the last game 6-1 on October 30, 2013.

Are the Cubs finally going to win the World Series this season and end a 107-year drought?
Siri: No response.

Look at that, I stumped Siri.