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« on: Apr 8th, 2015, 2:51am » |
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Certain Toronto Blue Jays were so intent on bringing in free agent pitcher Ervin Santana as a teammate that they were will to defer some of their salaries. First reported by FOX Sports Ken Rosenthal, its unknown if the impetus for the deferral proposal came from players or management, but it never left the preliminary stages. Rosenthal says that a pair of agents had heard word of the plan, but that they were never approached by Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos. Santana turned down a one-year, $14 million offer from the Jays and signed with the Atlanta Braves on the same deal after the Braves lost Kris Medlen for the season with Tommy John surgery. Whether or not the actual deferral proposal would fly in practice is another discussion altogether, as there would likely have been significant hurdles from the MLBPA, who is normally loath to allow its players to concede any sort of contractual edge without commensurate compensation. "I never took it that seriously," an agent told Rosenthal. "No way it would have ever passed the (union) unless there was some gain for the players who did that." In an interview with Matt Galloway on CBCs Metro Morning, Blue Jays president and CEO Paul Beeston confirmed that such discussions took place, but maintained that payroll was there if needed. "There was discussion about that and, to be very honest with you, I think, had it gone that way, it would have been fine, but we are at $140 million [in payroll] right now," said Beeston. "The one thing that we do have is a very generous owner from the point of view of what they have committed to try to build the team. I think that the Rogers people, more importantly [former Rogers Communications CEO] Nadir [Mohamed] last year and carried on this year with [current CEO] Guy Laurence and the Rogers family, have given us the dollars weve wanted, that we need to put a contending team on the field. Its up to us to bring them together." For his part, Anthopoulos believed the deal was done. He would not, however, get into the specifics of how the pact would have been structured. "The takeaway for me is we felt that we had an agreement in place," Anthopoulos told reporters prior to teh Jays Friday home opener. "He was prepared to come here. We had the dollars. How we choose to structure those dollars, those are things that we keep in house. "But I believe if Kris Medlen had not been hurt, Ervin Santana would be here today." Not that Anthopoulos was about to hold that against the 31-year-old. "He had a lot more interest going into the NL, which is his right," he said. When pressed on whether or not the teams spending was capped, Beeston insisted that it wasnt. "Were a business, so the answer to that is that we have a budget," said Beeston. "Its not a cap. If we can increase our revenue, we can increase our expenses, but we run it as a business." With the Jays only signing catcher Dioner Navarro during the offseason, Beeston said that free agency is not the only avenue to improve his team and that trades could be made over the course of the season. "You have to organize it in manner that you might have to make some trades," Beeston explained. "You may have to look at different ways of bringing your players along, but I dont think from the point of view of money, money is our problem. One of the issues that we have is that we had to build our farm system up and we have done that over the last three or four years, but its not like hockey or basketball, where you come right out of the colleges or out of the minor leagues and move right into the Majors. So some of the pitchers that we have down there like [Marcus] Stroman and [Aaron] Sanchez, theyre just ready to come, but those are the guys that you will want to have introduced into your organization because they have to play three or four years before they make the big dollars. So you need a mixture of the players who are at the minimum, as well as your stars. But you dont win without stars." While Beeston acknowledged that teams can win with smalled budgets, free-spending teams are the ones most likely to find success. "Lets be realistic about it," said Beeston. "You can do it, but youre gonna get lucky and have everybody pop at the same time. Ultimately, teams like the Dodgers and the Yankees and Boston, that are spending all kinds of money, are basically the teams that have star players at every position." The Jays open a three-game set with the New York Yankees on Friday night at the Rogers Centre. Ted Lindsay Red Wings Jersey . The delighted Vancouver Whitecaps coach was "lost for words" after his club scored three goals in the first 20 minutes en route to a 3-2 win over the San Jose Earthquakes. Nicklas Lidstrom Authentic Jersey . The stadium gasped. Reliever Drew Storen, already with men on first and second with none out in the seventh inning of a tie game, was on the ropes. Then Storen threw Stanton a slider. Swing and a miss. Strike three. Momentum shifted. Two popouts later, the inning was over with no damage done, and the Washington Nationals scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the inning to take a 4-3 win over the Miami Marlins. http://www.hockeyredwingsstore.com/authentic-johan-franzen-red-wings-jer sey-sale/.5 forward somersault dive may have fallen a little short on Sunday, but the two-time Olympic silver medallist says he feels encouraged by his performance at the Montreal Canada Cup. Jimmy Howard Red Wings Jersey . Midfielder Michael Bradley, one of the teams new designated players, will make his debut, while striker Gilberto could see his first action for TFC in the contest. Ted Lindsay Authentic Jersey . The Bruins suffered their share of setbacks, a notable one just a week earlier. Once the Pac-12 tournament got rolling, the Bruins took off.TORONTO - The Raptors (2-1) face their toughest test of the young season Tuesday when the defending champion Miami Heat (2-2) visit the Air Canada Centre, still looking for their first road win. You can catch the action live at 7pm et/4pm pt on TSN2 and on TSN Radio 1050 Toronto. After splitting a back-to-back set on the road this weekend, the Raptors return home hoping to steal a win from a team thats had their number since LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh joined forced in 2010. Miami has outscored Toronto by an average of 13.3 in 10 meetings - all wins - since their talented trio came together. The Heat have won 11 straight in the series overall, Torontos longest active losing streak against any opponent. "Theyre champions twice for a reason," Dwane Casey said of the Heat after shoot around Tuesday morning. "This is an opportunity for us to come in and see what were made of against the two-time champions in our house. Were not going to out-talent them but theyre not going to outwork us, thats the mentality weve got to have. "The Heat bounced back after suffered consecutive loses, their first two road games of the season, with a decisive 103-93 home win over the Wizards on Sunday. Their Big Three combined for 69 points, each of them scoring 20 or more, and shot 61 per cent from the field. "What we have to this year is the same thing we last year, we have to reinvent ourselves," said veteran forward Shane Battier. "We cant assume that what worked last year is going to work this year. Thats the fun part of the journey." The defending champs will be a man down Tuesday with Bosh back home following the Monday morning birth of his second child, a daughter, Dylan Skye. Click here to listen as Josh Lewenberg and Duane Watson preview the Raptors match-up with the Heat and look back at the first week of the season in TSN 1050s Raptors Report podcast. Despite shooting just 40 per cent, the Raptors came away with a much-needed 97-90 victory in Milwaukee on Saturday, thanks in large part to their improved defensive approach from the night before - a disappointing loss in Atlanta - and a dominant performance on the boards. "Theyve improved this offseason and part of it is just having a young team together, the core players and you add another year," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the Raptors. "Theyre extremely athletic, theyre long [and] they have size at all the positions." Trends and Tidbits Although the Raptors have made a concerted effort to get Jonas Valanciunas involved early in the first three games, he has not had a major impact after the opening period. The sophomore centre, whos played fewer than 18 minutes in each of the last two games, has not been on the floor much down the stretch, as Casey still feels more comfortable with Amir Johnson anchoring the small lineup hes been using. Per NBA.com, Valanciunas has attempted 14 shots in 25 first-quarter minutes but has taken just seven in 40 minutes after the opening frame. The Raptors most efficient offensive spurts (106.1 points per 100 possessions) have come when playing in their small lineup, according to NBA.com. The last time Toronto was two games over .500 was Jan. 27, 2010 following a 111-103 win over Miami. Chris Bosh had 24 points and 18 rebounds for the Raptors in that game, months before leaving to join the Heat as a free agent. Miami has trailed by at least seven in the opening minutes in each of their first four games; Chicago led 9-2 in the opener, Philadelphia had a 19-0 advantage early, Brooklyn had an 11-3 lead and Washington was up 9-2 early. James double-digit scoring streak has reached 499 straight regular-season games, dating back to January of 2007. His teams - the Heat and Cavaliers - hold a 363-136 record in those contests. "We dont want to put a ceiling on him," Spoelstra said of the four-time MVP. "And even at the level he played last year hopefully he can reinvent himself and take us to a different level." What to Watch For Disrupting Miamis rhythm Now four years into the Big Three era, the Heat have become a well-oiled machine on both ends of the floor, specially offensively where they move the ball as well as any team in the NBA. Their pristine spacing and ball movement was on display in Sundays victory over Washington, registering 32 assissts on 37 made field goals.dddddddddddd The Heat are 54-3 when collecting at least 25 assists since the start of the 2010-11 season. In order for the Raptors to have a fighting chance against a far more experienced and superior offence, theyll have to take Miami out of its comfort zone - easier said than done - or catch them on a rare off day. Keeping them inside the arch Three-point shooting continues to be a big part of what makes the Heat so dangerous, aided by their excellent ball movement. Miami shot 11-for-27 from three-point range on Sunday and the Raptors hope to force them to settle for long twos in Toronto. "You cant take away everything from them," Casey cautioned. "When you try to take away everything, you take away nothing. One thing we do want to do is make them take tough twos [and] try to limit the number of threes they get. They have to have the three to be successful so we want to run them off the three-point line." After adding Ray Allen a year ago, the Heat finished the 2012-13 season shooting 40 per cent from long range, good for the second best mark in the league. Control the boards Unexpectedly the Raptors strength through three games has been on the boards, where they struggled through most of the preseason. They havent just been impressive rebounding the basketball, theyve been dominant, which could present a problem for a small Heat team if it carries over into Tuesdays game. The Raptors have out-rebounded opponents 150-108 through three games, including a 47-20 advantage on the offensive glass, a category in which they lead the league early in the campaign. Nearly a quarter of Torontos points (22.5 per cent) have come off second-chance opportunities. Miami was last in the league on the boards a year ago and will be without their leading rebounder with Bosh unavailable Tuesday. Who to Watch For Rudy Gay The Raptors forward has struggled with shot selection and offensive efficiency early in the season, shooting just 33 per cent from the field and leading the team in turnovers. Coming off one of his worst games as a Raptor in Fridays loss to Atlanta, Gay had a better night in Milwaukee 24 hours later. Despite another rough evening in the shooting department (4-of-14 from the field) and some careless ball handling down the stretch, Gay contributed in other areas, grabbing a career-high 15 rebounds, getting to the line 10 times and playing inspired defence. Gay will be counted on as both a scorer and a defender in Tuesdays match-up against James. Gay always relishes the opportunity to face the leagues premier players at his position and has played the reigning MVP competitively in the past. Offensively, Gay also rose to the occasion against the Heat last season, averaging 25.7 points on 48 per cent shooting in three games. "Rudy is a scorer," Battier said of his former Grizzlies teammate. "Any given night hes capable of putting big numbers on the board. I think hes settled a little more now [in Toronto]." Dwyane Wade On the wrong side of 30 and having battled a series of knee injuries over the last couple years, Wade has been forced to adapt and change his game. "He used to be pretty reckless, attacking the rim with reckless abandon," Battier said of the 31-year-old Wade. "When you get over 30 you cant do that as much, you need to pick your spots." Even without his trademark explosiveness, Wade is still an elite player at his position and always seems to have big nights against the Raptors. Coming off the most efficient season of his 11-year career, shooting 52 per cent, Wade has averaged 28.0 points on 62 per cent from the field in the last seven meetings with Toronto. Hes smarter," said Casey. "He lets the game come to him. Hes a very wise veteran. People dont even talk about [him], everyone talks about LeBron but hes the wise old owl sitting back and waiting for you to make a mistake." Injury Report Steve Novak, who has been inactive over the last two games battling a sore back, could be available for Tuesdays game. Casey said hes doing better and the team will decide on his status prior to the game. Bosh will miss Tuesdays game against his former team, still with his wife after the birth of their daughter and Greg Oden will continue to be inactive for Miami rehabbing back from his knee injury. cheap jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '
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