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CINCINNATI - The Toronto Blue Jays have quite the act to follow. The American League East leaders take aim at a second straight victory on Saturday afternoon in the middle contest of a three-game set with the Cincinnati Reds. The Blue Jays seemed well on their way to an eighth loss in 10 games in Fridays opener, falling behind 8-0 after the second inning. However, they began to chip away, starting with Edwin Encarnacions three-run homer in the third frame, and trailed 9-3 after the fifth inning before catching fire and battling back for a 14-9 win. Toronto tied the contest in the eighth inning on Dioner Navarros RBI double and Encarnacion highlighted a five-run ninth frame with another three-run homer, his MLB-leading 23rd longball of the year. Juan Francisco had a two-run homer and Brett Lawrie added a solo shot as Toronto snapped a three-game losing streak. "What a ballgame. Those things are some kind of rare," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said on his teams website. "Were down 8-0, youre scrambling, and basically all youre thinking is, How are we going to get through this game with the pitching? Then of course Edwin got us on the board, we had some other action, we kind of held them in check and then we just kind of exploded." Devin Mesoraco and Jay Bruce hit two-run homers in the big second inning for the Reds, and Mesoraco added a run-scoring groundout in the fifth inning, but Cincinnati ended up losing its second straight game after winning six of seven. "Fortunately, tonights loss counts as one loss. Unfortunately, it was an ugly loss," Reds manager Bryan Price said on his teams official website. "And that is one of the types of losses that affects everybody." Despite the epic comeback, the Blue Jays hope that starter J.A. Happ can prevent the club from falling behind big again today. Happ has won five of his last seven starts and is coming off a 5-2 victory in Baltimore on Sunday. The left-hander had one of his better outings of the year, allowing one run on seven hits over six innings while striking out six without a walk. Happ, 31, improved to 6-3 with a 4.05 earned run average on the year and is 1-2 lifetime versus the Reds with a 5.64 ERA in five meetings. Looking to right the Reds ship will be Mike Leake, but he will need to put his June struggles behind him to do so. Leake has pitched to an 8.22 ERA in three outings this month, losing the first two before getting plenty of support in a 13-4 victory over Milwaukee on Sunday. The 26-year-old righty needed the help as he allowed four runs on nine hits and three walks in five innings of work. Leake is 4-6 with a 3.80 ERA on the season and lost his only previous start against the Blue Jays on June 17, 2011, though he allowed just three runs over seven innings. Toronto is 9-4 versus Cincinnati dating back to the 2003 campaign. Cheap Minnesota Twins Jerseys . During the morning loop on TSN, SportsCentre presents Purple Hearts, a TSN Original feature on Daron Richardson, daughter of former NHL defenceman Luke Richardson, who took her own life at the age of 14. Cheap Chicago White Sox Jerseys . There is considerable interest from fans around the league as well, with all eight teams vulnerable to poaching. Perhaps his best option at landing his first choice at QB, the expansion draft also poses problems for general manager Marcel Desjardins. http://www.chinawholesalejersey.us.com/mlb-jerseys...sey-chi na/ . -- Canadian Kevin Pangos had 18 points, Drew Barham matched his career high with 17 points off the bench, and Gonzaga beat Pacific 70-53 on Thursday night to clinch the outright West Coast Conference regular season title. Cheap Detroit Tigers Jerseys . Berdych, coming off a semifinal run at the Australian Open and Davis Cup win over the Netherlands, didnt face a break-point. A semifinalist two years ago here, he will play the winner of an all-French faceoff between Gilles Simon and Nicolas Mahut. wholesale jerseys . Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema scored two goals each Wednesday night in a 6-1 rout of Schalke in the first leg of their second-round matchup. "We played a very, very good match," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "We got well into the match, scored two early goals and that opened the game and left us able to counter and to use the speed of our players.With the trade deadline passed and the stretch run to the NHL season beginning, its time for Scott Cullens latest update to the NHL Awards races. On one hand, there are familiar names throughout, with previous Hart, Norris, Selke and Jack Adams winners named as best through three quarters of this season. However, as we get more games in the file, the leading candidates begin to separate from the rest of the class. Its not to say that others cant mount a strong finish to alter the outcomes, but as the season gets closer to the end, there isnt as much wiggle room. Anyway, here are my picks for awards through first three quarters of this season: HART TROPHY Winner: Sidney Crosby, C, PittsburghRunners-up: Ryan Getzlaf, C, Anaheim; Alex Ovechkin, RW, WashingtonComment: Its no surprise that a healthy Crosby is in position to win the award as the leagues Most Valuable Player, because hes 14 points up in the scoring race and playing at the level to which weve become accustomed, when hes in the lineup. This year, he hasnt missed a game, and that is the biggest reason that Crosby at the forefront of the MVP discussion. Getzlaf is scoring at a career-best rate of 1.17 points per game, leading the team that sits on top of the standings. While his possession numbers are solid, Getzlafs line has been particularly fortunate in terms of shooting percentage, which leads to a dominant goal differential (57 for, 25 against) when Getzlaf is on the ice during 5-on-5 play. Its not the kind of thing that can be sustained long-term (as in year-over-year) but, this year, it puts him in contention for the Hart. I recognize there may not be a lot of observers that would consider Ovechkin among the most valuable in the league this year, yet I do despite his deficiencies. Hhes so far ahead of the rest of the league as a goal-scorer, that I cant ignore that contribution. Right now, Ovechkin is on pace for a 57-goal season. Second-place Phil Kessel is on pace for a 42-goal season. The last player to win the goal-scoring race by 15 goals or more was Brett Hull, in 1991-1992, when Hull scored 70 and Kevin Stevens scored 54. (Incidentally, in 1990-1991, Hull scored 86 goals, 35 more than a trio of players -- Theo Fleury, Cam Neely and Steve Yzerman -- tied for second.) Its just not that often that the leagues top goal-scorer is that far ahead of the field and, this year, Ovechkin is. Additionally, while he does plenty of damage on the power play, Ovechkin also leads the league with 26 even-strength goals, so its not all one-timers from the faceoff dot with the man advantage. Looking beyond those three, Kessel, Joe Pavelski and Jonathan Toews are among others who could warrant consideration. NORRIS TROPHYWinner: Duncan Keith, ChicagoRunners-up: Erik Karlsson, Ottawa; Victor Hedman, Tampa BayComment: This season hasnt been all that different from Duncan Keiths 2010 Norris Trophy-winning campaign. Hes played his typically-strong two-way game, though he is down more than three minutes per game compared to his peak playing time, and has added more offence this season, scoring at the second-best rate of his carerr (0.79 points per game). There are some that decry the play of the Senators Erik Karlsson, because hes not a hard-hitting block of granite on the blueline and thats their vision of a defenceman, but Karlsson is a game-changer. Hes a rare defenceman that can drive his teams offence and his negative plus-minus is more a function of relatively bad luck on percentages (both shooting and save) when hes on the ice. After Keith and Karlsson, there are a number of worthy candidates, with my preferred choice being Victor Hedman, who has been great, while adding an offensive component that is far ahead of his previously established levels. Im not sure that Team Sweden is on board with this vote, but thats their prerogative. Some familiar names -- Shea Weber, P.K. Subban and Alex Pietrangelo -- are also viable candidates, close enough that a really strong finish could alter the outcome. VEZINA TROPHYWinner: Ben Bishop, Tampa BayRunners-up: Tuukka Rask, Boston; Semyon Varlamov, ColoradoComment: As a 27-year-old who had played 45 career games coming into this season, Bishop has been a major surprise, a rock for a LLightning team that has maintained its playoff position despite missing Steven Stamkos for a couple of months.dddddddddddd. Rask has pretty much always been a top puck-stopper, with a .929 save percentage over the past three seasons, and hes played a career-high 46 games this year, handling a number one workload over a full season for, really, the first time in his career. It hasnt been a smooth and steady road to the top for Varlamov, who has rebounded from a career-low .903 save percentage last season to post a career-best .925 save percentage this season. That might be a matter of arbitrary end-points, with Varlamovs real performance level somewhere between those two extremes but, for this season, his numbers warrant award consideration. If not Varlamov, Carey Price and Jonathan Bernier have both had strong seasons, strong enough that an impressive finish could push them into the discussion. CALDER TROPHYWinner: Nathan MacKinnon, C, Colorado Runners-up: Tyler Johnson, C, Tampa Bay; Olli Maatta, Pittsburgh Comment: Having set the record for the longest point streak by an 18-year-old rookie, MacKinnon is already looking like the kind of game-breaking skilled forward that teams hope to get with the No. 1 pick in the draft. Nothing like having a great pedigree and living up to it. MacKinnons closest challenger may be Johnson, an undrafted, 5-foot-9, 23-year-old who has simply scored wherever hes played and when Stamkos got hurt, Johnson took on more responsibility and continued to play at a high level. Its not easy for a teenage defenceman to step into the NHL and consistently play with poise, but dont tell that to Maatta, who has been a revelation for the Penguins. Injuries on the Pittsburgh blueline have forced the Penguins to use Maatta more than might have been initially anticipated, but hes risen to the challenge. Bruins power play quarterback Torey Krug and Johnsons left winger, Ondrej Palat, are other contenders. SELKE AWARDWinner: Patrice Bergeron, BostonRunners-up: David Backes, St. Louis; Jonathan Toews, ChicagoComment: This isnt an easy award to hand out, though there are some consistent performers that tend to be in consideration year after year. Heres a list of centres that face a decent level of competition yet still have strong possession stats. In addition to Bergeron, Backes and Toews, who have been at the top of my lists for past couple seasons at least, Anze Kopitar, Gabriel Landeskog and Alexander Steen are first-rate two-way performers that warrant attention. JACK ADAMS AWARDWinner: Bruce Boudreau, Anaheim Runners-up: Ken Hitchcock, St. Louis; Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay. Comment: It can be difficult to gauge exactly what a coachs role is in a teams performance, so there is some guess work involved here. One of the factors I try to take out of the equation, or at least minimize in importance, is goaltending, because great goaltending can mask all manner of shortcomings. Anyway, Im not sure that Bruce Boudreau has done anything revolutionary with the Ducks that allows them to score on such a high percentage of their shots, but getting strong contributions from so many throughout the lineup has to be considered in some way a reflection of Boudreaus approach. Oh, yeah, the Ducks are also first place in the standings, so he has that working for him too. The St. Louis Blues play such a relentless, grinding game that Im inclined to credit a coach that can keep his team playing that style so effectively. Enter, Ken Hitchcock. Admittedly, Jon Cooper has the benefit of outstanding goaltending, thanks to Ben Bishop, but his team has survived without Steven Stamkos and has done so with a lineup full of young, inexperienced players playing significant roles. For that, Cooper gets my nomination. There are many other qualified candidates. Patrick Roys Avalanche are exceeding expectations, Mike Yeo and Mike Babcock have managed to get through significant injuries and Claude Julien keeps the Bruins rolling with a steady spproach; all of these coaches deserve credit for their work behind the bench this season. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. cheap nfl jerseys cheap jerseys ' ' '
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