until the Rio Olympics in 2016. | Forum
miaowang123
Jan 12 '18
KANSAS CITY, Mo. Tyler Ervin Jersey . -- The Royals were trailing the Twins by a run in the ninth inning Tuesday night, and Kansas City manager Ned Yost was on the top step of the dugout, conferring with catching coach Pedro Grifol about the potential decisions he would have to make. Thats when Yost heard a voice pipe up. "The bat boy who never says anything turns around and says, Esky is going to get a hit and Gordos taking him in the fountain," Yost said. "I said, OK. Sounds like a pretty good plan." One that worked out perfectly, too. Alcides Escobar led off with a blooper to shallow right for a single, and Alex Gordon swatted the second pitch he saw over the right-field wall to give the AL Central-leading Royals a dramatic 2-1 victory over Minnesota -- and help them avoid their first three-game skid since mid-July. "Got a slider over the plate and put a good swing on it," Gordon said. "Really didnt have any offence going all night and was able to muster up something, so that was great." The Royals had been shut down all night by Ricky Nolasco, who scattered three hits over seven innings. But after going quietly in the eighth, they managed to break through against Perkins (3-1), who had converted 18 consecutive saves on the road. "We had a really good game out of Ricky. I feel bad for him because he pitched seven shutout innings and threw the ball well," Perkins said. "He and the team dont have anything to show for it. Its not a fun feeling." Wade Davis (7-2) earned the win with a perfect ninth inning in relief. Danny Duffy was nearly as sharp for the Royals as Nolasco was for Minnesota. The left-hander allowed four hits and a pair of walks over 6 2-3 innings, but was in line for the loss after giving up a double to Brian Dozier and a slicing single to Joe Mauer to start the seventh. The Royals had several chances to push a run across much earlier -- and with much less drama. Billy Butler was hit by pitches from Nolasco on two occasions, and the first time -- in the second inning -- he advanced to third before getting stranded. Christian Colon was left standing on second in the third inning, and Jarrod Dyson was picked off first base in the sixth. Dyson was also picked off first base in Monday nights 1-0 loss to the Yankees. The Twins also had opportunities to push across an early run. Trevor Plouffe grounded into inning-ending double plays in the second and fifth, and Danny Santana was picked off first base in the fourth. Eduardo Escobar was stranded at second base in the sixth. Those missed chances proved to be important when the ninth inning rolled around. "I dont think anybody saw that coming," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said, "a bloop and a blast and a big walk-off for them." SPARSE CROWD There were only 13,847 fans in attendance, and the empty seats certainly caught Yosts eye. "Were in a pennant race," he said. "Weve been working hard to try to make our fans happy and make our fans proud of us for a lot of years, and wed like them out here to enjoy a night like this with us, because this was a special night. A fun night. I just wish there could have been more out here to enjoy it with us." NOLASCOS BUG Nolasco may have benefited from a warm, muggy night at Kauffman Stadium, where the temp at first pitch was 91 degrees. Hed been battling a flu bug thats been going through the clubhouse. "The heat may have helped him," Gardenhire said. "He sweat some of that out." TRAINERS ROOM Twins: OF Byron Buxton, one of baseballs top prospects, is headed for the Arizona Fall League. Buxton is still recovering from post-concussion symptoms -- primarily headaches -- that he sustained after an outfield collision at Double-A New Britain on Aug. 13. Royals: RHP Yordano Ventura will miss his start Wednesday night with soreness in his back, and 2B Omar Infante could miss a couple days with shoulder inflammation. "Everybody is dealing with something this time of year," Yost said. "My feet hurt." UP NEXT Twins: RHP Phil Hughes (14-8, 3.65 ERA) tries to win his fifth straight when he faces Kansas City for the fifth time this season. Royals: RHP Liam Hendriks makes his Royals debut after arriving in a trade from Toronto. Hendriks spent his first three seasons with Minnesota. "Itll be interesting," Hendriks said of facing his former team. "It could be really good or really bad." Joel Heath Jersey . The premature end left 26 players still to finish the round in the Asian Tour event. Siddikur, who shot a bogey-free first round to share the lead with five others, eagled the par-5 first hole before bogeying twice and rebounding with six birdies. DeAndre Hopkins Jersey . "Theyve been good against everybody," he said. Carlos Gomez launched a three-run homer and Matt Garza battled into the seventh inning for his first win in four starts to help the Brewers continue their mastery of the Rockies with a 7-4 victory Saturday.LONDON -- Roger Federer could play for another four years and add to his tally of 17 Grand Slam titles, according to former No. 1 Pete Sampras. Speaking ahead of an exhibition match against Andre Agassi in London on March 3, Sampras said on a conference call Wednesday that he is impressed by Federers longevity. "Im amazed that he is up for more tennis," Sampras said. "He has done everything in the game and he could walk away tomorrow feeling great about it. But he still wants to travel and compete and Im in awe of it. He is a true lover of the sport." Following a disappointing 2013 season marred by back problems, Federer started this year on a high. Now working with new coach Stefan Edberg, he reached the final of his first tournament, at Brisbane, and then made the semifinals of the Australian Open for the 11th consecutive year. His run at Melbourne included wins over 2008 finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Wimbledon champion Andy Murray. Sampras, who retired after winning his 14th Grand Slam title at the 2002 U. Brian Cushing Jersey. S. Open, said Federer should be comforted by a streak that finally ended with a defeat to Rafael Nadal. "I thought his level was quite good," Sampras said. "When youre playing against Rafa and if youre not quite on your game then it can seem like youre struggling. Rafa is a rock. But I do see Roger building from that, I think hes going to do well this year." Asked if Federer could win another Grand Slam title, Sampras said the Swiss "can do it" if he plays his best tennis. "Thats why hes playing, I dont think hes playing for anything else but to win some more majors," said Sampras, adding that Federers best chance would be on his favourite grass surface, at Wimbledon. Sampras was 31 when he decided to hang up his racket for good, while the 32-year-old Federer has hinted he could keep playing until the Rio Olympics in 2016. "As long as Roger is enjoying it and hes healthy, I can see him playing for another two, three, four more years," Sampras said. Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
Share:
