Freie Unterhaltung » attle opens the season with a pair

CHICAGO -- Anthony Rizzo stayed at the plate for an extra second as his towering drive headed toward right field. The big first baseman just wanted to make sure it was fair before he got started on one enjoyable trip around the bases. Rizzo hit a two-run homer in the 13th inning and the Chicago Cubs beat the Miami Marlins 5-3 on Friday for their season-high fourth consecutive victory. "I think theyre playing with a lot of confidence right now and theyre continuing to pick each other up," Cubs manager Rick Renteria said. "I think theyre starting to feel and know they can do this. You dont want every game to be like this, but theyre doing it right. Well take it." The Cubs recovered after closer Hector Rondon blew a three-run lead in the ninth, earning their first four-game winning streak since last July 6-9. Rizzo also had a two-run double in the eighth and Jason Hammel pitched seven shutout innings. Junior Lake hit a leadoff single against Kevin Slowey (1-1) before Rizzo connected for his 12th homer. It was Rizzos second homer in two days and the Cubs first game-ending shot since he connected against St. Louis on July 29, 2012. "I hit it up in the air and the wind was blowing, so you never know," Rizzo said. "I knew I got enough of it. I was just hoping it would stay fair." Carlos Villanueva (2-5) pitched two perfect innings for the win. Chris Coghlan and Nate Schierholtz each had two hits. Garrett Jones had three hits for Miami, which had won four in a row. Nathan Eovaldi gave up three runs and six hits in 7 2-3 innings in his first career appearance against the Cubs. "I felt like I threw the ball well," Eovaldi said. "Was able to use both sides of the plate, slider was good, and I was able to throw my curveball a lot today for strikes." The Marlins had just two hits in extra innings. Their last nine hitters went down in order. "Other than the ninth inning, you know, mounting the rally, which was good to see, we put together some nice at-bats and gave ourselves a chance to play some extras," manager Mike Redmond said. "But then really in the extra innings, we didnt get anything going at all." Hammel allowed six hits, struck out eight and walked one, extending his scoreless streak to 14 innings over his last two outings. The right-hander, who could be an attractive trade target for a contender at next months deadline, is 2-1 with a 1.42 ERA over his last four starts. "I did my best to stay in my counts so I could be advantageous throwing the heater," he said. "I was kind of pitching backwards today. Slider early and fastball late." Hammel was in line for his seventh victory, which would have matched his total from last season, before the Marlins rallied in the ninth. Justin Bour had a run-scoring grounder before Reed Johnson, another pinch hitter, sliced a tying, two-run single into right-centre against one of his former teams. Bour was initially ruled safe on his grounder to first, but the call was overturned when a replay review showed Rondon got his foot on the bag in time. There was another overturned call in the 10th inning when Schierholtzs diving try for Casey McGehees sinking liner to right was initially ruled a successful catch. Eovaldi retired his first 14 batters before Schierholtz reached on a two-out single in the fifth for his 500th career hit. Coghlan followed with a liner to right for his third RBI in 24 games this season, scoring Schierholtz all the way from first for a 1-0 lead. While Eovaldi was shutting down the Cubs, Hammel had to work hard to keep the Marlins down. Miami got at least one hit in each of the first five innings, but Hammel was at his best when the Marlins had runners on base. "Im very confident in my stuff right now and having a good game plan," Hammel said. NOTES: Cubs C John Baker returned to the lineup after taking a foul ball off his throat during Wednesdays 5-4 victory over the Mets. Renteria said Bakers vocal cords are "inflamed" and the catcher is taking medication. "Theres nothing there that we can actually do to hurt it any more or any less," Renteria said. ... Blackhawks forwards Patrick Sharp, Bryan Bickell and Michal Handzus and defenceman Sheldon Brookbank took batting practice and threw in the outfield before the game. "The wind must be blowing in because I didnt get one out," Sharp said with a grin. "I think Bicksy hit one off the wall." ... Cubs RHP Jeff Samardzija (1-5, 2.54 ERA) faces 37-year-old Marlins LHP Randy Wolf (1-1, 3.38) on Saturday. Cheap Adidas Superstar .com) - P.K. Subbans power-play goal 4:08 into overtime sent the Montreal Canadiens into the All-Star break with a 2-1 win over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday. Cheap Adidas Superstar Wholesale . Espanyol midfielder Sanchez intercepted Bilbao goalkeeper Gorka Iraizozs clearance and, having spotted a gap, risked using his less-favoured left foot to fire a beautifully precise long-range shot that bounced in from high up the near post in the 24th minute. http://www.cheapadidassuperstar.us/ . Consider it received. Attacking on offence early and often, the Penguins topped the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1 on Saturday night as Jussi Jokinen scored the go-ahead goal in the third period to help give Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference playoff series. Cheap Adidas Superstar Online .ca. Kerry, In the first period of Saturdays Montreal-Ottawa game, Brendan Gallagher is called for goaltender interference. Craig Anderson is outside the blue paint trying to make the save. Adidas Superstar Wholesale China .com) - The Golden State Warriors have started another winning streak and theyll try to pad it Tuesday night when they head to Staples Center to face the Los Angeles Lakers.Is Real Salt Lake still the class of the West, or can Seattle or Portland snatch the Conference title away? As Major League Soccer prepares to lift the curtain on another season, TSN.ca presents the second of our five part season preview, taking a look at the American based teams in the Western Conference. Chivas USA In 2013, Chivas USA took their usual spot at the bottom of the Western Conference standings. In fact, the only year since 2010 where anyone finished behind them was in 2011 when they managed to finish one place ahead of the expansion Vancouver Whitecaps. Former Colorado Rapids assistant coach Wilmer Cabrera will be the latest man charged with bringing chaos to order at Los Angeles second MLS team that very recently also became owned by the league with an eye on a new name and logo. Veteran Midfielder Mauro Rosales will be counted on to create and drive the offence while new defensive acquisition Andrew Jean-Baptiste will hope to improve a defence that easily allowed the most goals last season. As always, Chivas has a long way to go before they are considered contenders for anything, but at least theyve finally taken a positive step in the right direction. Chivas will open the season by welcoming the Chicago Fire to the StubHub Center on March 9th. They will face their first Canadian opponent in their second game when they host the Vancouver Whitecaps on March 16th. Whos In?: M Mauro Rosales (trade from Seattle), D Andrew Jean-Baptiste (trade from Portland), F Adolfo Bautista (free agent), D Tony Lochhead (free agent), D Andrew Ribeiro (free agent), D Fejiro Okiomah (free agent), D Donny Toia (free agent), M Agustín Pelletieri (free agent), F Luke Moore (free agent), F Eriq Zavaleta (loan from Seattle) Whos Out?: D Mario de Luna (end of loan from CD Guadalajara), D Jaime Frias (end of loan from CD Guadalajara), M Edgar Mejía (end of loan from CD Guadalajara), F Julio Morales (end of loan from CD Guadalajara), GK Patrick McLain (option declined), D Steve Purdy (option declined), D Daniel Antunez (option declined), M Marvin Iraheta (option declined), M Josue Soto (option declined), F José Manuel Rivera (option declined), F Tristan Bowen (traded to Seattle), D Jorge Villafaña (traded to Portland), M Gabriel Farfan (loaned to Chiapas), M Carlo Chueca (waived), F Bryan de la Fuente (waived) SuperDraft: M Thomas McNamara (2-20) Colorado Rapids Pablo Mastroeni enters the season in the rare position of being an interim head coach at the beginning of a campaign. The team that he inherits, one that he partially played on last season, was one of the surprise stories of 2013, forcing their way into the Western Conference playoffs. Gabriel Torres, the first designated player in franchise history, will be counted on to provide offence along with returning leading scorer Deshorn Brown and Edson Buddle. The Rapids were a team that counted on youth, speed and quick transitions from midfield to forward in order to generate the offence they needed to win games. If any of their young players take a step back this season they could lose a step themselves, and be on the outside looking in at the Western Conference playoff picture. Colorado opens the season on the road against the New York Red Bulls on March 15th after enjoying a first week bye. They will play their first Canadian team on April 5th when they travel to BC Place to take on the Vancouver Whitecaps. Whos in?: D/M Marc Burch (Re-Entry Stage 1), M Marvin Chávez (trade from San Jose), GK Joe Nasco (free agent) Whos out?: D Diego Calderón (loan expired), M Jaime Castrillón (option declined), GK Steward Ceus (option declined), M Jamie Smith (option declined), M/D Anthony Wallace (free agent), F Atiba Harris (traded to San Jose), M Jamie Smith (retired), M Tony Cascio (loaned to Houston), M Hendry Thomas (traded to FC Dallas), D Kory Kindle (retired) SuperDraft: M Marlon Hairston (1-12), D Grant Van De Casteele (1-19) FC Dallas In his first year in charge of the team, long time FC Dallas assistant, and most recently head coach of the Colorado Rapids, Oscar Pareja will be charged with getting the Texas based squad back into the playoff conversation. Forward Blas Pérez is the most talented player in the squad and will be the man central to the FC Dallas attack on most nights. The team has struggled when he has been absent or ineffective so keeping him healthy and in the squad is a major priority for Pareja. Where FC Dallas is going to struggle is on defence, where they have trouble keeping their best players on the field. If they can keep George John and Walker Zimmerman in one piece throughout the year, that should go a long way to locking down their back line. FC Dallas opens the campaign with their first game against a Canadian based MLS team when they lock up with the Montreal Impact at Toyota Stadium on March 8th. Whos in?: M Ryan Hollingshead (2013 SuperDraft), M Adam Moffat (trade from Seattle), M Brian Span (weighted lottery), M Hendry Thomas (traded from Colorado), F Andrés Escobar (loan from Dynamo Kiev), F David Texeira (transfer from FC Groningen) Whos out?: M David Ferreira (option declined), M Ramon Nuñez (option declined), M Erick (option declined), M Jackson (traded to Toronto), M Victor Ulloa (out of contract), D Ugo Ihemelu (option declined), F Kenny Cooper (traded to Seattle), M Bobby Warshaw (transferred to GIAS), F Bradlee Baladez (waived), GK Kyle Zobeck (waived) SuperDraft: F Tesho Akindele (1-6) Los Angeles Galaxy The two-time defending MLS Cup champions were finally unseated last season when they lost to eventual runner up Real Salt Lake in the opening round of the playoffs. No doubt, the Galaxy return one of the most talented teams in the entire league, with both Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan at the forefront of the attack. With Keane no longer involved in international play and no drama as to when Donovan is going to join the squad, Bruce Arenas team should be able to hit the ground running from the first kick of the season. Sean Franklin is going to be a loss felt in the Galaxy defence, as he was one of the key members on their championship squads but they have depth at every position and will be one of the teams to watch once again this season. The Los Angeles Galaxy will open the 2014 season on March 8th in a battle of the last two Western Conference champions when they host Real Salt Lake at the StubHub Center. They will play a Canadian team for the first time when they face Vancouver Whitecaps on April 12th. Whos in?: M Baggio Husidic (free agent), F Samuel (loan from Fluminense), F Rob Friend (free transfer), M Stefan Ishizaki (free transfer) Whos out?: M Colin Clark (option declined), M Laurent Courtois (option declined), D Sean Frranklin (option declined), M Michael Stephens (out of contract), GK Carlo Cudicini (contract terminated), M Pablo Mastroeni (retired), F Jose Villarreal (loaned to Cruz Azul), M Hector Jimenez (traded to Columbus), M Kyle Nakazawa (retired), D Bryan Gaul (waived), D Greg Cochrane (trade to Chicago) SuperDraft: --- Portland Timbers A hot stretch through April, May and June allowed the Timbers to secure first place in the Western Conference last season and raise the expectation of what they could do in the playoffs.ddddddddddddnbsp; Sadly their season of promise ended in the Western Conference Final. The hiring of head coach Caleb Porter has been credited with turning things around for Portland and if thats the case, his next job will solidifying the squad and proving that their improvement in form was more than just a one season aberration. Canadian midfielder Will Johnson will once again be key to the backbone of the squad and his ability to influence the game in both ends is important to the Timbers overall game plan. Portland opens the season with a pair of home games, including their March 8th debut against the Philadelphia Union. They will play host to the Vancouver Whitecaps on June 1st, the first Canadian team on their schedule. Whos in?: D Jorge Villafaña (trade from Chivas USA), M Steve Zakuani (Re-Entry Stage 1), GK Andrew Weber (free agent), F Gastón Fernández (transfer from Estudiantes de La Plata), D Norberto Paparatto (transfer from Tigre) Whos out?: D David Horst (option declined), D Ryan Miller (option declined), D Dylan Tucker-Gangnes (waived), F Brent Richards (waived), F Ryan Johnson (out of contract), D Brad Ring (out of contract), D Andrew Jean-Baptiste (traded to Chivas USA), M Sal Zizzo (traded to Sporting KC), D David Horst (traded to Houston), F Sebastián Rincón (loan expired), F José Valencia (loaned to Club Olimpo), GK Milos Kocic (retired), D Mikaël Silvestre (contract terminated) SuperDraft: M/F Schillo Tshuma (1-17) Real Salt Lake Three points from winning the Supporters Shield, one penalty kick short in the MLS Cup, and falling in the U.S. Cup Final, near misses defined a very successful season for Real Salt Lake, if you ignore the final outcomes. Assistant coach Jeff Cassar has now taken over the head coaching duties from long time bench boss Jason Kreis who left the club in the offseason to lead 2015 expansion side New York City FC. Cassars job will be to keep one of the older rosters in the league happy and healthy while continuing the great work his predecessor started. To help him achieve that goal, hell be able to lean captain Kyle Beckerman, striker Alvaro Saborio, Nick Rimando and defender Nat Borchers, all veterans that should be steady for the defending Western Conference champions. Real Salt Lake will open their season against LA Galaxy on March 8th and see their first Canadian action March 29th when they welcome Toronto FC to Rio Tinto Stadium. Whos in?: M Luke Mulholland (free agent) Whos out?: M Yordany Álvarez (out of contract), D Brandon McDonald (out of contract), GK Josh Saunders (out of contract), M Khari Stephenson (out of contract), D/M Lovel Palmer (traded to Chicago) SuperDraft: --- San Jose Earthquakes After as near a playoff miss as you can have in 2013, the San Jose Earthquakes are poised to make a run this season, but will only go as far as Chris Wondolowski can take them. After earning himself a new deal with a huge season in 2012, he played hurt last year and it showed in his end of the year totals. The continued improvement of Sam Cronin will be important to the Earthquakes regaining their spot as one of the best teams in the West. They have the talent to compete and it would be a surprise to see them not able to translate that back onto the field. San Jose Earthquakes will begin the 2014 season against Real Salt Lake on March 15th and will play their first Canadian opposition on May 3rd when they visit BC Place to take on Vancouver Whitecaps. Whos in?: M Jean-Baptiste Pierazzi (Discovery), F Atiba Harris (trade from Colorado), F Billy Schuler (weighted lottery)D Shaun Francis (Re-Entry Stage 2), D Brandon Barklage (Re-Entry Stage 2), GK Bryan Meredith (free agent) Whos out?: M Ramiro Corrales (retired), D Nana Attakora (option declined), D Dan Gargan (option declined), F Marcus Tracy (option declined), GK Evan Newton (option declined), D Peter McGlynn (option declined), F Cesar Diaz Pizarro (option declined), M Mehdi Ballouchy (out of contract), D Justin Morrow (traded to Toronto FC), M Rafael Baca (transferred to Cruz Azul), M Jaime Alas (loan expired), M Marvin Chávez (traded to Colorado), D Steven Beitashour (traded to Vancouver), GK David Bingham (loaned to San Antonio), M Sam Garza (2/27/14 - loaned to San Antonio) SuperDraft: M J.J. Koval (1-9) Seattle Sounders Despite the acquisition of Clint Dempsey, Seattle Sounders failed to achieve the success they were looking for last season. They remain one of the leagues most consistent franchises and will once again be in the playoff picture this season. How far they go beyond that will come down to the play of Dempsey and how well he gels with Kenny Cooper and Obafemi Martins as well as the kind of havoc they can create in the opponents third of the field. If the rumours of infighting during the tail end of last season are true and continue, the Sounders could be trending towards the bottom for the first time in franchise history. Seattle opens the season with a pair of home games, including their first Canadian matchup. They open the season at CenturyLink Field against the defending MLS Cup champion Sporting Kansas City on March 8th and then welcome Toronto FC on March 15th before heading to Montreal to play the Impact on March 22nd. Whos in?: GK Stefan Frei (trade from Toronto), F Tristan Bowen (trade from Chivas), D Chad Marshall (trade from Columbus), F Kenny Cooper (trade from FC Dallas), F Corey Hertzog (Re-Entry Stage 2), F Chad Barrett (Re-Entry Stage 2), D Jalil Anibaba (trade from Chicago), M Marco Pappa (allocation) Whos out?: GK Michael Gspurning (option declined), D Marc Burch (option declined), M Blair Gavin (option declined), F Steve Zakuani (out of contract), M Mauro Rosales (traded to Chivas USA), M Adam Moffat (traded to FC Dallas), F Eddie Johnson (traded to D.C. United), D Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (traded to Chicago), D Patrick Ianni (traded to Chicago), F Fredy Montero (transfer to Sporting CP), F Will Bates (waived), D James Ockford (loaned to New York Cosmos), F Eriq Zavaleta (loaned to Chivas USA) SuperDraft: D Damion Lowe (1-8) ' ' '