ST.
NFL Jerseys Wholesale . PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Back on the mound at Tropicana Field, Kansas Citys James Shield looked and felt right at home. The right-hander
sparkled in his return to the stadium where he earned a living for the first
seven seasons of his career, limiting the Tampa Bay Rays to three hits and
striking out 10 in seven innings to help the Royals beat his former team 6-0 on
Monday night. No pitcher has had more success at The Trop than Shields, who
remains Tampa Bays all-time leader in victories with 87, including a
franchise-best 47 at home. "Its definitely special to come back here," said
Shields (9-4), who was dealt to the Royals in December 2012 as part of a
seven-player trade in which Kansas City sent 2013 AL rookie of the year
Wil Myers and another top young prospect, Jake Odorizzi (4-8), to Tampa Bay.
"Theres so many memories. Ive thrown some shutouts here and Ive also thrown some
champagne on the field," the 32-year-old said. "The fans were great tonight to
me, welcoming me back, and thats always a great feeling." Shields allowed
singles to Ben Zobrist and James Loney in the first two innings, then worked
through a jam in the third after giving up a one-out double to Kevin Kiermaier.
He retired 10 straight, six by strikeout, before hitting Evan Longoria with a
pitch leading off the seventh. Alex Gordon and Omar Infante drove in runs in the
third inning for the Royals, giving Shields all the offensive support he would
need to beat Odorizzi. "Weve seen that act before," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon
said of the performance by Shields. "Wrong uniform this time, though." Shields,
who had struggled in his three most recent starts, rebounded from allowing five
runs and nine hits over five innings of a 10-2 loss at Minnesota last week. "You
could tell right off the bat that, OK, lets get this guy a couple of runs and
lets ride with it," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "Thats exactly what happened."
The Royals tacked on two runs in the eighth and two more in the ninth -- with
Infante and Gordon both collecting their second RBIs of the game -- and finished
with 14 hits. Wade Davis, another former Tampa Bay pitcher the Royals obtained
in the Shields trade, worked a perfect eighth. Scott Downs finished the combined
four-hitter, giving up a ninth-inning single to Zobrist. The loss was just the
third in 13 games for the Rays, who were coming off a road trip in which they
went 9-2 to climb out of the AL East cellar. Odorizzi allowed two runs and six
hits, struck out eight and walked two in his third career appearance against the
Royals, who beat the 24-year-old in Kansas City on April 9. "All the series we
played on the road we played fantastic. I guess we were kind of due for one of
these games," Odorizzi said. "I dont think this game is really going to set us
back that much in the long run." Shields won his only previous matchup against
his former team 8-2 at Kansas City on April 30, 2013. He remains Tampa Bays
career leader in starts, strikeouts and innings pitched, in addition to wins. He
won the franchises first-ever post-season game and owns the clubs only World
Series victory. NOTES: Rays RHP Jeremy Hellickson will make his season debut
Tuesday night, returning from right elbow surgery. The Royals will counter with
LHP Jason Vargas (8-3, 3.32 ERA). ... Kansas City DH Billy Butler, who entered
mired in a 3-for-23 slide, was dropped to seventh in the lineup. Its the lowest
spot for him this season. ... The Royals sent OF Nori Aoki (strained left groin)
to Double-A Northwest Arkansas for a rehab assignment. ... The Rays announced
the signing of Dominican Republic prospect Adrian Rondon for $2.95 million on
the shortstops 16th birthday. Minor league pitcher Matt Ramsey was traded to
Miami for the Marlins second, third and fourth international bonus slots, a move
that provided the team with more than $1 million to go toward the signing of
Rondon.
NFL From China . - San Diego Padres centre fielder Cameron Maybin is going to be out two to three months after rupturing his left biceps tendon during a
game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday.
NFL Jerseys China . Moments after scoring and setting off another wild celebration at Minsk arena, Platt leapt into the arms of Belarusian captain
Alexei Kalyuzhny. HOUSTON -- Matt Schaub has managed to keep his starting job,
and the beleaguered Houston quarterback vowed to turn things around this week.
"I need to be better," he said, "and Ill be the first to admit that." Houston
coach Gary Kubiak said Wednesday that Schaub would start on Sunday against St.
Louis, but added that staying with him wasnt an easy choice. "It was a tough
decision -- real tough," Kubiak said. "But I feel like its the best thing for
our football team this weekend." Schaub has had a terrible three weeks. He has
thrown six interceptions -- three of them returned for touchdowns -- and the
Texans have dropped three straight. Kubiak said Monday that Schaub remained the
starter, but added that he would evaluate the quarterback situation this week.
After two days of deliberating, he decided to stick with the 10-year veteran. "A
lot of thought went into it, a lot of evaluations and things going on, but I
thought it was the best decision going into this game," Kubiak said. Schaub will
have to direct the offence this week without tight end Owen Daniels, who was
placed on the injured reserve/designated for return list with a broken fibula in
his right leg and will be out eight weeks. Schaubs recent poor play has prompted
vitriol and a call to bench him in favour of backup T.J. Yates from a segment of
Texans fans. Some people have recently began driving by his home and taking
photos, causing Schaub to call NFL security. He admitted to contacting security
about the drive-by photos, but denied a report of a fan going to his door and
shouting obsceniities Tuesday night.
NFL Jerseys Cheap. Schaub said despite the incidents, hes happy at his home and has no plans to move to a gated community.
He was troubled by the situation and acknowledged being worried about the safety
of his wife and three young daughters. But said theres a simple solution to
ending the harassment. "Its the world we live in," he said. "Theres passionate
fans out there for better or worse and I understand that ... you hate for it to
come to that because were better than that as a society and a community. But its
the nature of what we do. The only thing that can correct that is going out and
beating the St. Louis Rams this week." Kubiak has expressed concern that such a
brutal stretch may have shaken his quarterbacks confidence. When asked about
that, the 32-year-old Schaub denied any struggles in that area. "Not one bit,"
he said as he stood perfectly straight looking even taller than his already
imposing 6-foot-5. "Im supremely confident in my abilities and what I can do on
the football field. I just need to get back to being conscious of the details
and being technically sound." Kubiak, a former quarterback, has talked often
with Schaub this week, but knows that talking doesnt change anything. He has to
see results on the field. "Youre OK when you start playing better and your team
starts winning games," he said. "Thats when you get OK. I understand that. Im
just trying to help him work through it. Im trying to do ... everything I can,
from my perspective as a coach, to help a player work through something."
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