TORONTO -- Marcus Stroman was nearly unhittable, and his Blue Jays teammates couldnt stop hitting. Stroman gave up one hit over seven shutout innings as Torontos bats pounded Boston Red Sox pitching on the way to a 8-0 victory Thursday afternoon at Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays took three of four games against the Red Sox to move within 2 1/2 games of the American League East-leading Baltimore Orioles. Like fellow prospect Aaron Sanchez did over two shutout innings Wednesday night, Stroman (6-2) put on a show that was not only good for an important victory in a division race but tangible evidence of a strong future. The right-hander tamed a dangerous Red Sox lineup with six strikeouts while not giving up a hit until the seventh inning. At the plate, the Blue Jays kept the good times rolling. Since getting blown out by Boston 14-1 Monday in the series opener, theyve scored 20 runs. First baseman Juan Francisco led the onslaught Thursday, going 3-for-4 with four RBIs and three runs scored. Francisco finished a double short of being the third player in franchise history to hit for the cycle. Left fielder Melky Cabrera went 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Runs came early and often for the Blue Jays (54-49) against Boston starter Rubby De La Rosa (3-3), whose earned-run average rose from 2.64 to 3.54 with his rough outing that included giving up six earned runs on nine hits in four-plus innings. A couple of walks and a single in the first inning led to Torontos first run when catcher Christian Vazquez was charged with a passed ball that Cabrera scored on. Francisco was credited with a triple to lead off the second, though Red Sox centre fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. got to the ball and couldnt make the catch. Either way, it spelled more doom for Boston (47-55), as Ryan Goins drove in Francisco with an RBI double and scored on one by Cabrera to make it 3-0. After a leadoff single in the third by catcher Dioner Navarro, Francisco blew the game wide open with a two-run home run, his 15th of the season. Hitting Jose Bautista and surrendering singles to Navarro and Johnson marked the end of the day for De La Rosa. Reliever Burke Badenhop gave up Franciscos two-run double that gave the Blue Jays a seven-run lead. All the while, Stroman went about his work with efficiency. The 23-year-old handed out three walks but was otherwise flawless for the first six innings and 91 pitches he threw. Leading off the seventh, Shane Victorino broke up the no-hit bid with a bloop single that just dropped into centre field in front of Anthony Gose. The sellout crowd of 46,683 then saluted Stroman with a nice ovation. Stromans magical day wasnt over, as he managed to get David Ortiz -- who tormented the Blue Jays all week -- to fly out before inducing an inning-ending double play out of Mike Napoli. The rookie finished with 66 strikes on 97 pitches and his sixth career major league victory. The Blue Jays tacked on another run in the eighth as Cabrera doubled to drive in Jose Reyes and was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. Notes -- Ortiz appeared to tweak his back on a swing in the ninth and left the game. ... The Blue Jays begin a three-game series Friday at the New York Yankees. ... By starting at second base, Bostons Brock Holt became the first player in franchise history to start a game at every position except pitcher and catcher in a season. . Goodell said in an ESPN Radio interview Monday (
http://es.pn/1gkbauy ) that participants played harder and made the game very competitive. Goodell says he had fun watching the game Sunday and thinks fans did, too. . Snedekers best result so far this year is a tie for eighth place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He sits 113th in FedEx Cup standings and has dropped to 31st in world rankings — not the results expected from a player ranked fourth in the world only two years ago.
http://www.cheapyeezyswholesale.com/yee ... .html.Fiji striker Roy Krishna scored in the 14th minute to give Wellington its fourth win, along with a draw, from its past five matches, putting the Phoenix fourth but only a point behind third-placed Adelaide. . -- Wichita State is all alone in the record book. . While plenty of statistics illustrate Torontos turnaround in the second year of manager Ryan Nelsens tenure, stopping goals is not one of them. RENTON, Wash. -- Earl Thomas was late to the announcement for his own contract extension, proving the Seattle Seahawks All-Pro free safety isnt just fast on the field. Driving a little too speedy to the Seahawks facility on Tuesday morning made Thomas late after getting pulled over. "I didnt try and bulldog him and say, My name is Earl Thomas. Because then he would be like, This dude is cocky, and give me a ticket," Thomas joked. "He let me off. Thats the moral of the story." Thomas was locked up through the 2018 season when the Seahawks announced a four-year contract extension making him the highest-paid safety in the NFL. The deal is worth $40 million over four years and includes $27.7 million in guaranteed money. Thomas wanted the title of highest-paid safety. He also wanted the responsibility that comes with that. Thomas was hoping to get a long-term deal in place before the Seahawks start organized team activities later this month so there were no distractions heading into the 2014 season. "I compete in everything that I do and I want to set the bar. That was my goal," Thomas said. Thomas was Seattles second first-round pick in the 2010 draft, the first with coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider leading the franchise. Its turned out to be one of the most important selections the team has made since starting a makeover with the duo in charge of moulding the Seahawks into a championship club. Thomas is a two-time first-team All-Pro selection and regarded as the top safety in the NFL. The Seahawks would be a different defensive team if they didnt have Thomas skills at their disposal. His speed allows Thomas uncommon range in coverage. Hes become more disciplined staying within Seattles defensive framework, and Thomas has remained reliable at cleaning up any problems in the back. "II think the thing that comes to the front for me is this program has always been based on competition.dddddddddddd When we look for players and coaches to add to our club were always looking for great competitors," Carroll said. "When we had the chance to take Earl, I dont know that I appreciated it as much as I do now the great competitor that he is. He has throughout the time hes been with us as a very young man, has played at the highest level he can generate every single day that hes played for us in this organization." Thomas gets the second major extension Seattle has announced this off-season after locking up Carroll through 2016. Now the question is if the Seahawks can get an extension done with All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman. Staying in-house has been the Seahawks priority this off-season; they also took care of bringing back defensive end Michael Bennett. "Sherm has everything under control. Hell take care of it," Thomas said. Schneider said the commitment to Thomas is another signal that Seattle doesnt intend on being a contender or a champion just once. "I think youre seeing an evolution of our development in terms of acquisition and how were building this team to be a consistent championship-calibre team," Schneider said. "We talk about it all the time we dont want to be a team that cruises in and cruises out." Thomas wanted to share the day with those close to him. He made sure one of the photo ops before the formal announcement included most of the defensive coaching staff, along with teammate Kam Chancellor, who signed an extension through 2017 last off-season. "Thats my family. Thats the people that have helped me," Thomas said. "... You learn from everybody, every opportunity you get. I dont waste my time. I invest everything." ' ' '
