01-17-2020, 12:48 AM
TORONTO -- In the hours leading up to baseballs trade deadline, Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos heard small bits of news about moves around the American League but didnt have time to digest them. Air Force 1 Shell . "Youre not really spending time to sit back and analyze what your competitions doing and things like that," Anthopoulos said. "Youre so focused on what were trying to get done." Ultimately, while the landscape around them changed with trades both major and minor, the Blue Jays did nothing before Thursdays non-waiver deadline. The chase for the AL East continues after the Baltimore Orioles burnished their bullpen and the New York Yankees beefed up their infield while Toronto stood pat. "We werent going to do deals that we didnt think were going to make us better," Anthopoulos said on a conference call. "I know probably everyone would like to make a splash and add players, but to add players to make the team worse just to say we did something, that wouldnt make a whole lot of sense for us." Entering Thursdays action, the Blue Jays held one of the ALs two wild-card spots. They were 2 1/2 games back of Baltimore and three games ahead of New York. On deadline day, the Orioles added left-handed reliever Andrew Miller from the Boston Red Sox, who had their own fire sale by also sending Jon Lester to the Oakland Athletics, John Lackey to the St. Louis Cardinals and Stephen Drew to the Yankees. New York also got infielder Martin Prado from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ace left-hander David Price left the division as the Tampa Bay Rays sent him to the Detroit Tigers in a three-way deal that also included the Seattle Mariners. As part of the return, the Rays got centre-fielder Austin Jackson from Detroit. Refusing as usual to discuss specific names, Anthopoulos said the Blue Jays "got the prices on most if not all the players that got moved." He also said, in general terms, that young and established players on the major-league roster were asked for by other teams in trade talks. Undoubtedly starters Marcus Stroman and Aaron Sanchez came up at some point, and the Blue Jays understandably did not want to part with either of their top pitching prospects. Anthopoulos said the team was open-minded but unwilling to discuss pulling from its 25-man roster. "To be talking about those guys, youd be filling one hole and then youd create a new hole," he said. Jose Bautista told reporters in Houston before Thursday nights game against the Astros that he had "mixed feelings" about the Blue Jays inaction at the trade deadline. "Of course its a little disappointing that we somehow werent able to get anything done, but everyone around us thats in contention -- and even some teams that arent in contention like the Red Sox -- somehow figured it out," he said. "Maybe they believe enough in our talent that they didnt feel like they wanted to break up our group and sacrifice our talent and what weve got going." In recent weeks, Bautista and other players made similar comments in favour of Anthopoulos adding to this team. "In terms of players wanting to improve the club, I expect that," Anthopoulos said. "We want to improve the club. I wouldnt expect anything less. Theres a great group of guys in that clubhouse that are very competitive, that want to win." Amid reports that financial limitations prevented Anthopoulos from making trades, the GM stressed that the biggest payroll in franchise history wasnt a hindrance. "We absolutely had the financial resources to add at this trade deadline," Anthopoulos said. "Any deal that we felt was a good baseball deal, the finances were certainly there for us. That has never been a problem." One problem of late for the Blue Jays has been injuries. They expect to have Edwin Encarnacion, Brett Lawrie of Langley, B.C., and Adam Lind back in the lineup sooner rather than later, which could give them a post-deadline boost. Anthopoulos also didnt rule out making a trade within the next month, though the need to put players on waivers could make that more difficult. "Maybe some things get done in the next month here," he said. "Im not going to promise or guarantee that. Were definitely not going to stop being active and going over the wire and probably going to make some claims and things like that, see if we can add a player or two, and well see where things go." Playing "armchair quarterback" a half-hour after the deadline passed, Anthopoulos judged "off the cuff" that contending teams improved by adding some great players. And while the Blue Jays didnt get any of them, Price and Lester going to other divisions might be a silver lining. "Certainly any time great players leave the AL East its certainly not a bad thing for us," Anthopoulos said. Sf Air Force 1 Mid Nere . 98 jersey in a game yet, and already its a big seller. Air Force 1 Alte Flax . Miralem Pjanic dribbled through the defence to score an extraordinary goal in the 43rd minute at the Stadio Olimpico and Gervinho added another from a rebound in the 65th for Romas ninth straight victory — ending Milans five-match winning streak. http://www.airforce1outletitalia.it/scon...te-07.html . So he and his Toronto FC teammates say they will have no problem getting up for their Amway Canadian Championship final against rival Montreal Impact, even if the result doesnt count toward Major League Soccer standings.PINEHURST, N.C. -- Martin Kaymer set a U.S. Open record Friday with a game so dominant that he did more than just build a six-shot lead. He managed to bring Tiger Woods into the conversation at a major hes not even playing. Kaymer opened with a short birdie and rolled his way to a second straight round of 5-under 65 -- this one without a bogey. He set the 36-hole scoring record at 10-under 130 and left the rest of the field wondering if the 29-year-old German was playing a different course, or even a different tournament. "If he does it for two more days, then were all playing for second spot," said Adam Scott, the worlds No. 1 player. Such talk once was reserved for Woods, still home recovering from back surgery. Kaymer played early on a Pinehurst No. 2 course that received a burst of showers overnight. That red 10 on the leaderboard next to his name was a daunting sight the rest of the day. He led by eight shots when he finished, and only three players in the afternoon cut into that deficit. "I heard he played the No. 3 course. Is that true?" Kevin Na said after a 69 put him seven shots behind. "Its unbelievable what hes done. Is 4 or 5 under out there? Yes. Ten under out there? No, I dont think so. I guess it was out there for him. I watched some of the shots he hit and some of the putts hes made and he looks flawless." Brendon Todd kept this from really getting out of hand. He made two tough pars from the bunker late in his round for a bogey-free 67 to get within six shots, putting him in the final group on the weekend in his first major. "Kaymers performance has been incredible," Todd said. "Hes playing a brand of golf that we havent seen probably in a long time, since maybe Tiger." Kaymer tied the record for the largest 36-hole lead at the U.S. Open, first set by Woods at Pebble Beach in 2000 and matched by Rory McIlroy at rain-softened Congressional in 2011. Woods went on to win by 15 shots. McIlroy set the 72-hole scoring record and won by eight. "I played Congressional and I thought, How can you shoot that low?" Kaymer said. "And thats probably what a lot of other people think about me right now." McIlroy thought the Germans feat was more impressive, mainly because of the nature of Pinehurst No. 2 and the turtleback greens created by Donald Ross. Yes, they were softer than expected and held quality shots. But there is trouble lurking around every corner. Kaymer just hasnt found it -- yet. "If someone had told me that I was going to be standing here 1-under par after 36 holes at the start of the week, I would have taken it," McIlroy said after his 68 left him nine shots behind. "But what Martin has done over the first couple of days has made 1-under par look pretty average." As impressed as everyone was, none was ready to concede just yet. Pinehurst No. 2 has not played close to its full length of 7,562 on the scorecard, and it has not been nearly as fast as it had been during the three days of practice. And strange things can happen at a U.S. Open. Even so, they all needed some help from Kaymer, who last month won The Players Championship. Air Force 1 Alte Gore-Tex. "I never played on tour when Tiger was doing this -- leading by six, seven, eight shots," said 20-year-old Jordan Spieth, who had a 70 and was nine shots back. "But I imagine this is what it was like the way Martin is playing this week." Brandt Snedeker had a 68 and joined Na at 3-under 137. Only nine others were under par going into the weekend. It wasnt a great day for Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask. The only Canadian in the field shot 5-over 75 for the second straight day to ensure he will miss the cut. It looks like a typical U.S. Open -- except for Kaymer. Dustin Johnson opened with a pair of 69s, a score he would have gladly taken at the start of the week and perhaps thought it would be good enough to lead. "I wouldnt have thought it would be eight shots behind," Johnson said. Brooks Koepka, the American who is carving his way through the European Tour, birdied his last hole for a 68 and joined the group at 2-under 138 with Brendon de Jonge (70), Henrik Stenson (69) and former PGA champion Keegan Bradley, who played in the same group with Kaymer and rallied for a 69. "Hes as dialled in as Ive seen," Bradley said. Starting on the back nine, Kaymer hit wedge into 5 feet for birdie on the par-5 10th. He made birdie putts from 20 and 25 feet, and then hit a gorgeous drive on the par-4 third hole, where the tee was moved up to make it play 315 yards. His shot landed perfectly between two bunkers and bounced onto the green to set up a two-putt birdie. And the lead kept growing. "I look at the scoreboards. Its enjoyable," Kaymer said. "To see whats going on, to watch yourself, how you react if youre leading by five, by six. ... I dont know, but its quite nice to play golf that way." Kaymer was the sixth player in U.S. Open history to reach double-digits under par, though McIlroy was the only other player to get there before the weekend. This is the "Germanator" everyone expected when he won the PGA Championship, and then a year later rose to No. 1 in the world. Kaymer felt his game was not complete enough, so he set out to develop a draw -- his natural shot is a fade -- and it took two years of lonely hours on the range to get it right. At the moment, he can do no wrong. Kaymer felt tired toward the end of the round, and it showed. He hit into bunkers on the sixth and seventh holes, and both times blasted out to short range. He also converted a difficult two-putt from the front of the eighth green. Even with a big lead, Kaymer did not consider changing his strategy. "Because if you think of defending anything, then youre pulling back, and thats never really a good thing," he said. "You just want to keep going. You want to keep playing. You want to challenge yourself. If you can stay aggressive and hit the right shots. And thats quite nice that its a battle against yourself." Thats what this U.S. Open is right now. A one-man show. ' ' '