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shushu
Joined: 26 Feb 2019
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11 Mar 2019 03:45 |
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CLEVELAND -- Sporting sunglasses, a teal shirt and a backpack hanging from his shoulder, Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon looked like a tourist as he arrived late for his news conference. Maddon didnt have time to slip into his uniform and had a valid excuse. The Rays have been on the road. In the past week, theyve gone from Tampa to New York to Toronto to Texas to Cleveland, a journey covering 3,627 miles. On Wednesday night, the Rays hope to book a trip to Boston. Getting a complete game from starter David Price, Tampa Bay beat Texas 5-2 in a tiebreaker on Monday night, earning the Rays a wild-card spot for the third time in four years and a chance to face the Indians, making their first appearance in October since 2007. Forced to win almost every day down the stretch as they went neck-and-neck-and-neck with the Indians and Rangers in a thrilling wild-card scramble in the final weeks of September, the Rays won in Toronto on Sunday before travelling deep in the heart of Texas and surviving a win-or-go-home scenario. "Ill tell you what," said Maddon, whose team went 14-5 after Sept. 12. "Weve already played this wild-card game a couple times. We did it in Toronto a couple days ago. We did it yesterday in Texas, and were going to come here tomorrow and do it again. I dont know if theres a battle-tested component to that, if you get immune to whatever that pressure is and you go play." Wednesdays winner will meet the Red Sox in Game 1 of the division series on Friday. The Rays always believed theyd be in position to make a run at a first World Series title. And although theyve racked up some frequent-flyer miles and lived out of their suitcases to keep their season alive, theyre confident their season isnt about to end. "When you get into this momentum kind of a thing on a daily basis and youre playing great competition and youre going from city to city to city and its an adverse territory, all of this stuff is what you train for and you really dig and you love it," Maddon said. "You dont have time to get nervous or overthink, youve just got to get ready and go play -- and for our guys, they kind of like that moment right now." Like the Rays, the Indians had to scrap their way into the post-season. Cleveland ended a topsy-turvy regular season under manager Terry Francona by ripping off 10 wins in a row, playing error-free ball during the stretch. Now, when every mistake is magnified and theres no room for lapses, the Indians want to keep rolling and will start rookie Danny Salazar in their biggest game in six seasons. "This team wasnt expected to do anything," said right fielder Nick Swisher, one of the teams high-profile free-agent signings. "Just to be where we are right now is awesome, man." Tampa won four of the six games against Cleveland this season, but the teams havent met since early June. Rays starter Alex Cobb (11-3) was asked what he learned about the Indians in his one start against them on April 6. "That was so long ago, I dont know if that really applies anymore," he said. "Plus," Maddon said, interrupting his young right-hander. "That was before you got hit in the head." Fortunately, the Rays can now make light of the scary situation involving Cobb, who was struck in the head by a line drive hit by Kansas Citys Eric Hosmer on June 15. Cobb missed 50 games with a concussion, but hes been a different pitcher since the injury, going 5-1 with a 2.41 ERA in nine starts. Cobb said two months of rest may have helped, but he was also driven to pitch in the post-season after missing out in 2011 when he underwent surgery to remove a blood clot in his ribs. "Watching the post-season and just the feeling of being left out is indescribable," he said. "Its a terrible feeling that you dont want to have again, so I think it was extra motivation to get back and it definitely fueled the fire even more to get back to the post-season and know that we have a special group that can go far." The Indians feel just as strongly about making this an unforgettable season, perhaps even ending Clevelands 65-year drought between World Series titles. Francona has no hesitation in handing the ball to Salazar (2-3), an unflappable 23-year-old who began the season at Double-A Akron but zoomed to the majors and carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning of his debut. The Rays have never faced him. "Believe me, we wouldnt pitch him if we werent confident in him giving us the best chance to win," Francona said. "Danny has done nothing to make us think he cant handle this. Hes so poised. If I had stuff like him, Id be poised, too. But theres a difference between throwing 100 mph and being able to get major league hitters out. Danny can do that." NOTES: Indians CF and leadoff hitter Michael Bourn did some agility drills and ran the bases before working out with his teammates. He pulled up with a leg injury on Sunday in Minnesota, and his status for Wednesday is not yet known. ... The teams have to have their 25-man rosters set by 10 a.m. Wednesday. .... Francona followed up on his joke about the Indians avoiding chicken and beer during his September surge, a jab at his final days in Boston. "I lied about that," he said. "We have had some chicken." Jamie McGinn Jersey .C. -- Al Jefferson knows few people will be giving the Charlotte Bobcats a chance to upset the Miami Heat in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Radim Vrbata Jersey . Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas appeared to be on track to gain election from the Baseball Writers Association of America on Wednesday, and Craig Biggio could join them. http://www.cheapfloridapanthersjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-roberto-luongo-jersey . Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse will reunite at this weekends season-opening World Cup at Canada Olympic Park as they begin their buildup to the Winter Games in Sochi. Adidas Aaron Ekblad Jersey .K. Subban and Matt Duchene will be the two skaters sitting out the teams opening game. Keith Yandle Jersey . The 18-time champions, who havent won the title since 1990, moved two points behind Arsenal after the leaders were stunned 6-3 at Manchester City on Saturday. Defending champion Manchester United trails Arsenal by 10 points after winning 3-0 at Aston Villa to avoid a third successive league loss.FLORENCE, Italy - Fiorentina striker Federico Bernardeschi is set to undergo surgery Tuesday on a fractured ankle.The club says Bernardeschi has a compound fracture after a collision during training on Monday.Fiorentina has not said how long Bernardeschi wiill be out, but the Italy under-21 international will likely be sidelined for three months.ddddddddddddMario Gomez returned from a lengthy injury layoff in Sundays 3-1 loss at Sampdoria, but forward Giuseppe Rossi is out after knee surgery. ' ' '
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