Plauderecke » too, although he jokes he "cant swin

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Prince Fielder ended his Texas home run drought, and Robbie Ross finally got some help from the offence as a starter. Fielder and Kevin Kouzmanoff hit back-to-back homers, Ross limited Seattle to five singles in seven-plus innings and the Texas Rangers beat the Mariners 5-0 Tuesday night. Fielder ended a 13-game homerless streak to start the season with a line drive to right-centre field off former Texas first-round pick Blake Beavan (0-1) to lead off the second inning. Two pitches later, Kouzmanoff went deep to left. Told before the game that he was a game away from tying the longest drought to start a season in his career, Fielder casually figured it was about time for a long ball. "I was just messing around," said Fielder, in his first season with the Rangers after a trade that sent fan favourite Ian Kinsler to Detroit. "But I guess it worked." The Mariners didnt get a runner past second base in their third shutout loss in a week. "Probably the first night where I was probably a little disappointed in our approach a little bit," Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said. "I thought we should have done better." Kouzmanoff also had two doubles, the second one driving in two runs to put the Rangers up 4-0 in the eighth inning. Fielder scored from first base after he was intentionally walked following a pair of strikeouts. Ross (1-0), a former reliever, got his first win as a starter in his third try as the Rangers recorded their third straight win by shutout and fourth in seven victories overall. Fielders homer was the first run the Rangers scored with Ross on the mound. He had gone 12 1-3 innings without Texas scoring, tops in the majors. "Its funny because Im just trying to go out there and do the best I can to keep it close because I know were going to start scoring," said Ross, who has allowed two earned runs in 18 innings as a starter. Ross struck out Abraham Almonte and Brad Miller to start the game, but didnt have another strikeout. After Robinson Cano and Corey Hart followed with singles, Ross ended the first inning on Stefen Romeros groundout to short -- the first of seven straight outs on grounders and 16 overall. The left-hander didnt walk anybody in 7 2-3 innings, but hit Miller with a pitch twice. The second one made Cano the potential tying run in the eighth, but Ross got him on a flyout to centre before Alexi Ogando replaced him. "I think he was able to get in on us and I guess kind of mix it up," Miller said. "We really just didnt string together our good at-bats often, but credit to him." Beavan was called up from Triple-A Tacoma to fill in for rookie left-hander James Paxton, who is out with a strained muscle in his back. He gave up six hits -- the other four besides the homers were singles -- in four innings with one strikeout. He came out for Dominic Leone because of shoulder soreness. The right-hander who grew up in nearby Irving spent most of last season with Tacoma after losing his spot in the rotation after two starts. It was his first start since April 10, 2013, and first appearance since a relief outing last July 9. NOTES: It will be a battle of aces Wednesday night when Seattles Felix Hernandez facing Texas Yu Darvish. The Japanese right-hander is the first AL starter since Hernandez in 2007 to begin the season with two starts of at least seven shutout innings in April. Darvish lost to Hernandez twice during his rookie season in 2012. They didnt face each other last year. ... The Rangers had multiple homers in a game for the first time this season. They went deep just twice in their first seven home games. ... The Mariners had a double play that went down as a routine 6-4-3, but was far from it. The ball caromed off shortstop Millers glove straight to Cano just as he was getting to second base, and Cano made the easy throw to first. Patrick Robinson Saints Jersey . 1. Did the Senators trade the wrong goalie? Lets make one thing clear: The Ottawa Senators acquired Ben Bishop from the St. Louis Blues for one reason and one reason alone. TreQuan Smith Jersey . With the suspension, Nigeria is unable to take part in any kind of international fixtures. FIFA had issued a warning to the NFF last week after the federation was served with court proceedings from the government that prevented the NFFs president from running the NFFs day-to-day affairs. http://www.saintsrookiestore.com/Saints-Marcus-Davenport-Jersey/ . According to a report from the Hamilton Spectator, Infrastructure Ontario has informed the City of Hamilton and the Tiger-Cats the stadium may not be ready by the June 30 deadline. Kurt Coleman Saints Jersey .com) - Thursday marks the official debut of a new dirt racing surface at Meydan Racecourse. Cameron Meredith Jersey . Crawford hit his slam off Pirates starter Edinson Volquez to give San Francisco a four run lead in the fourth and they never looked back. Brandon Belt had three runs batted in as well. Bumgarner pitched all nine innings and allowed just four hits.DUNEDIN, Florida – Despite a tweet reporting Ervin Santana to the Blue Jays as a done deal Saturday morning, the last marquee pitcher on the market remains a free agent. The report made for an interesting day at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium, a day that began with reporters scratching their heads at the absence from camp, for a second consecutive day, of starter J.A. Happ, whos battling pain and inflammation in his back. "If the doctor tells you to stay off your feet, you stay off your feet," said manager John Gibbons. The skipper then joked, "Hes not dead, Ill tell you that." Happ has struggled in two spring training appearances. His back hasnt been right during either, which led general manager Alex Anthopoulos to openly muse that there are two, rather than one, available spots in Torontos starting rotation. If multiple reports suggesting Santana has dropped the term demand of a new contract to one year are true, the Blue Jays will continue to kick the tires. There were reports on Saturday that Toronto had offered Santana $14 million for the season, which is roughly the value of the qualifying offer he turned down from his former team, the Kansas City Royals. The Baltimore Orioles also are believed to be interested, with reports they had tabled an offer with a $13 million base salary that could escalate with incentives reached. On the surface, Santana is a risky proposition. While he has been durable, throwing at least 211 innings in four of the last six seasons, he is 31 years old and there are concerns about the health of his right elbow. Santanas patented slider accounts for more than 32 per cent of the pitches hes thrown in his career, a heavy reliance on a pitch that puts severe torque on the shoulder and the elbow. The risk is reduced to almost nothing if Santana is signed only for 2014. The Blue Jays have the money, can afford to cough up the second round selection in Junes draft (their first round picks, ninth and 11th overall, are protected) and Santana is a better option than Happ. The club shouldnt, and fans likely wouldnt, balk at a rotation of R.A. Dickey, Brandon Morrow, Mark Buehrle, Santana and Drew Hutchison. What to do with Happ would be a matter for a later date. While some in the organization are concerned about Santanas propensity to give up the home run, the Jays learned through a raft of injuries last season that a club can never have enough quality pitching. If Santana struggles in the meat-grinder that is the American League East, again, there is no fretting when there is no long-term commitment. The Blue Jays value the arms of Hutchison and Marcus Stroman, believing both to be ready to contribute soon to a successful team. While neither would be hurt by more seasoning at Triple-A Buffalo, Hutchison appears ready to return to the Blue Jays after a lengthy injury absence and Stromans major league debut doesnt have to be far behind. Santana could serve as a viable, experienced, bridge to Stroman and Aaron Sanchez. Hutchison started and threw three innings in Saturdays 4-3 win over Minnesota. His only blemish was a two-run home run by top prospect Byron Buxton in the third. He struck out five Twins, including the side in the second, and was routinely registering 93-95 miles per hour on his fastball. McGRIFFS STILL GOT IT Former Blue Jays first baseman Fred McGriff is back in the fold, serving as a consultant and an in-uniform coach this spring. Hes out on the field, stretching with the players and taking infield. Those are get-to-know-you opportunities for the long-time big leaguer. "Im just trying to get to learn these guys," said McGriff. "This is my first time in big league camp with the Blue Jays and just trying to see what makes guys tick and everything and help the pitchers. If Im running sprints or taking ground balls with the guys its just about getting to know guys." Now 50 years old, McGriff appears fit enough to still be able to play. He does P90-X workouts, Insanity too, although he jokes he "cant swing (a bat) … those days are over.dddddddddddd "Just by me stretching and running with these guys, there may be a pitcher that says, Hey, Fred, what did you look for in this situation as a hitter or what did you do right there," said McGriff. "If Im taking ground balls, theyre trying to make Moises Sierra a first baseman a little bit and theyve got Adam Lind and those guys so trying to tell them little secrets I had, little things I did because I was blessed to play 18 years." McGriff spent four full seasons with the Blue Jays, from 1987-90. He was traded to San Diego, along with Tony Fernandez, in the famous deal that brought Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter to Toronto prior to the 1991 season. Since retiring in 2004, McGriff has dabbled in broadcasting and served as an ambassador for the Rays, his hometown team and the club for which he played twice (1998-2001, 2004) While he enjoyed visiting patrons in the luxury suites to take pictures and sign autographs, he wanted more. As a consultant, hell spend a week out of each month visiting one of the Blue Jays farm cities, treks that will take him to, among other places, Buffalo, Manchester, New Hampshire and Lansing, Michigan. McGriff could see himself in a front office one day. "Ive got a brain, I was blessed to play and Ive got some knowledge," said McGriff. "I would love to try to help the Blue Jays in any way I can to get back to a World Series. Use my brain, ask me some questions about some different pitchers, hitters, maybe try to get into management, be a decision maker. Say a team may be interested in making a trade, maybe they can ask me, Hey Fred, why dont you go check out this player, see what you think or make some phone calls and see how this guy is off the field." McGriff, known as the "Crime Dog," is able to relate to todays player despite the many differences he sees. "They make a lot more money now," said McGriff. "When I was a rookie the minimum was $62,000 and now the minimum is $500,000. Its a whole lot different ballgame with social media and everything. Its so different. Guys, you may see them leave the field and go hop on the phone and get on their Twitter account or Facebook or something like that. "The game of baseball is still the same," he continued. "Youve got to try to get 27 outs and if our pitcher is better than your pitcher were going to win ballgames. Even though the dollars have changed and everything and everything else that goes on, its still baseball." WILSON PLAYS HERO Kenny Wilson played the hero in the Blue Jays 4-3 victory over Minnesota on Saturday. His ninth-inning triple, a drive off the centerfield wall, cashed Erik Kratz with the game-winning run. "It was just two strikes, looking for a pitch up in the zone and I was able to put a pretty good swing on it," said Wilson. Wilson, 24, was a second round pick in the 2008 draft. Hes been slow to develop offensively but the Blue Jays saw enough value in the defensively sound speedster to protect him from Decembers Rule 5 draft. He was added to the 40-man roster. "When I got the call from Charlie Wilson it was pretty surreal," said Wilson. "I went to the (Arizona) Fall League, playing there and I was really hoping I could get added to the 40-man in November and when he asked me I was really excited." A native of Tampa, Wilson has worked with the likes of McGriff on ways to shorten his swing. Hell need to improve on a six-year minor league batting average of .229 and OPS of .640. But if Wilson gets on base, hes a threat to run. Hes stolen 194 bases in 490 minor league games. RASMUS UPDATE Colby Rasmus reported no problems with his neck after playing catch and taking swings in the batting cage. Hes been out for more than a week with neck spasms and received a cortisone injection to settle down the affected muscle. The plan is for Rasmus to work out tomorrow, enjoy the team day off on Monday, then play on Tuesday in St. Petersburg against the Canadian Junior team. Authentic Steelers Jerseys Authentic Cowboys Jerseys Authentic Raiders Jerseys Authentic Chiefs Jerseys Authentic Eagles Jerseys Authentic Redskins Jerseys Authentic Falcons Jerseys Authentic Ravens Jerseys Authentic Browns Jerseys Authentic Cardinals Jerseys Authentic Bills Jerseys Authentic Panthers Jerseys Authentic Bears Jerseys Authentic Bengals Jerseys Authentic Texans Jerseys Authentic Broncos Jerseys Authentic Lions Jerseys Authentic Packers Jerseys Authentic Jets Jerseys Authentic Dolphins Jerseys Authentic Patriots Jerseys Authentic Jaguars Jerseys Authentic Titans Jerseys Authentic Chargers Jerseys Authentic Giants Jerseys Authentic Saints Jerseys Authentic Buccaneers Jerseys Authentic 49ers Jerseys Authentic Seahawks Jerseys Authentic Rams Jerseys Authentic Vikings Jerseys Authentic Colts Jerseys ' ' '