Offtopic/fun » players like David Eldridge and Warren

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Elvis Andrus had been dealing with flu symptoms and kept his celebration rather subdued after the Texas Rangers clinched the AL West, so he asked manager Jeff Banister afterward to please put him in the lineup again Saturday. He promised to be ready to play.The lone veteran in the lineup a day after Texas won captured another division title, Andrus showed it by hitting a pair of two-run homers in the Rangers 5-0 victory against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday.Yesterday unfortunately it was the first time I couldnt celebrate with the guys or go after the game and celebrate, so I was like I might as well play tomorrow if I wont be able to celebrate the right way, he said.Texas wants to keep winning to earn home-field advantage.Yu Darvish (6-5) had all the run support he needed on a couple of big swings from Andrus, who had his first career multi-homer game. Andrus, who will get a break Sunday, also established career highs for homers with eight and RBI with 68.Andrus said it means a lot to have that production, and told teammates he would one day have two home runs in a game.Theyre going to laugh when I bring up a conversation about homers, for sure, I dont have too many in my career, he said. They didnt today.Darvish allowed only Stephen Vogts two-out single in the first until Yonder Alonso singled with one out in the fifth. Marcus Semien followed with a walk, but Darvish escaped unscathed.Banister rested his regulars aside from right fielder Nomar Mazara and Andrus, who had his second career four-RBI game.Robinson Chirinos added an RBI double in the ninth for Texas (92-63), which moved 29 games above .500 for the first time since exactly four years ago on Sept. 24, 2012.Darvish had been 0-3 on the road, winning for the first time in seven away starts, but he had no-decisions in his last three. Darvish allowed two hits, struck out nine and walked one in seven innings a day after Texas became the first AL team to clinch a playoff spot with its second straight division title and seventh AL West title overall.Certainly today thats as good as weve seen Darvish pitch in a while, As manager Bob Melvin said.Three relievers finished the five-hit shutout. Darvish had lost to the As his previous time out, allowing seven runs over five innings in an 11-2 loss last Saturday in Arlington.Now, ace lefty Cole Hamels and Darvish seem poised to give the Rangers a powerful 1-2 to start the playoffs.Im sure the confidence level is high, Banister said.As rookie Raul Alcantara (1-2), someone Melvin considers a candidate for the rotation next season, struck out six with one walk over six innings. He allowed four runs on seven hits and has surrendered five home runs in four major league starts.Oakland had the bases loaded in the eighth but Vogt flied out.TRAINERS ROOMRangers: RHP Tony Barnette threw 20 pitches to hitters as he works back from a strained oblique and could get into games early in the week. He has no lingering discomfort in his left side. Im ready to roll, he said. Back to normal. ... OF Shin-Soo Choo hit against Barnette. On Friday, he took batting practice for the first time since August surgery to have a plate inserted for a fracture near the left wrist. ... LHP Derek Holland is moving to the bullpen as Banister, his staff and general manager Jon Daniels evaluate how the Rangers playoff roster might look. Carrying eight relievers over the seven Texas had a year ago for a five-game division series defeat to Toronto is Banisters leaning right now.Athletics: RHP Sonny Gray threw close to 50 pitches between his warmups and a simulated game with the hopes he still can get into a game situation before seasons end. Gray hasnt pitched since Aug. 6 because of a strained right forearm. How Melvin uses him is still to be determined. I know his routine suggests hes used to starting, Melvin said. Well see.UP NEXTRangers: RHP Colby Lewis (6-3, 3.40 ERA) seeks his first win in three starts since coming off a two-month stint on the disabled list with a back strain. Lewis, projected the No. 3 playoff starter, has won four straight starts at the Coliseum since June 2014 and is 7-2 with a 2.65 ERA in 12 outings in Oakland since returning to the U.S. from Japan in 2010.Athletics: Rookie RHP Jharel Cotton (1-0, 1.50), another young pitcher chasing a rotation spot for 2017, has allowed one or fewer earned runs and pitched at least five innings in his first three major league starts. Wholesale Bulls Jerseys . -- In one brief spurt, Brazil turned a close game into a rout and proved again it will be a strong World Cup favourite. Fake Bulls Jerseys .C. United of Major League Soccer. United chose the defender in the second round of the 2013 MLS re-entry draft. https://www.cheapbulls.com/ . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Custom Chicago Bulls Jerseys . - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is not a fan of his teams use of the wildcat formation, saying "it makes you look like a high school offence. Bulls Jerseys 2020 . The Montreal Canadiens announced on Friday that the veteran forward will return to the teams line-up on Saturday night when the Habs visit the Nashville Predators. Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall has a pretty good idea who his starting quarterback will be, but hes not ready to make that decision public just yet.An announcement will likely come by the middle of next week, the Cavaliers first-year coach said Friday, and he thinks the players have an idea already.I think so, just simply by the amount of repetition and how weve been distributing it, he said of practice reps. He said quarterbacks coach Jason Beck and offensive coordinator Robert Anae have communicated with all three contenders on a daily basis, so I dont think it will be a surprise to anyone.The contenders are incumbent Matt Johns, who threw for 20 touchdowns with 17 interceptions last season, fellow fifth-year senior Connor Brewer and East Carolina transfer Kurt Benkert, who began preseason camp getting more reps than the other two because he was not at Virginia for spring practice.Only the Cavaliers first three practices were open to the media.Mendenhall, who replaced Mike London after last season, won 99 games in 11 seasons at BYU and took the Cougars to a bowl game in each of his 11 seasons.The Cavaliers have not been to a bowl game since the 2011 Peach Bowl.Mendenhall, who will serve as the defensive coordinator, said hes not a fan of using more than one quarterback.I think the team, the offensive identity struggles. I also think the team identity struggles, he said on a conference call. Thats not something I prefer to do. Id rather have a single starting quarterback.An exception might be if a team has two quarterrbacks with distinctly different styles, he said, but thats not the case at Virginia.dddddddddddd. All three are drop-back style quarterbacks, although Benkert is viewed as the most mobile and probably has the strongest arm of the three.He and Brewer also have more familiarity with the fast-paced offense the Cavaliers will employ.Beyond quarterback, Mendenhall said he has been impressed with the teams stable of running backs, and pleasantly surprised at how some players have impressed enough to be considered options at wide receiver. The latter was thought to be a weak spot, he said, but when injuries sidelined Olamide Zaccheaus and Andre Levrone during camp, players like David Eldridge and Warren Craft have shown themselves to be more than capable.Mendenhall still expects Zaccheauu and Levrone to be ready for the Sept. 3 opener against Richmond, he said.At tailback, Taquan Smoke Mizzell distinguished himself last season, running for 671 yards and four touchdowns and catching 75 passes for 721 yards and four more scores. His receiving yardage was a record for an Atlantic Coast Conference running back, but hes far from the only ball-carrying option.A lot of people know about Smoke, but Daniel Hamm, and Jordan Ellis and Albert Reid -- those three players have really set the tone for our entire team in camp and I didnt expect that Id be that impressed, but I am with those three, Mendenhall said. ' ' '