TORONTO -- Rookie right-hander Marcus Stroman continues to sparkle for the Blue Jays. Cowboys Jerseys China . The 23-year-old blanked Texas for seven innings and Dan Johnson drove home two runs as Toronto held on to defeat the lowly Rangers 4-1 Saturday afternoon. Stroman has held opposing teams to three earned runs or less in eight of his nine career starts. And he bounced back from that lone subpar outing -- when he gave up six runs in 3 2/3 innings last time out -- with a gritty outing that got better as the day wore on. The five-foot-nine 185-pounder has blanked two of his last three opponents. "Since hes been here, hes been really good -- especially for a young kid," said Toronto manager John Gibbons. "You guys all know the arms there. But hes a lot more polished than I thought he was going to be. And he has a way of dialling it up at crunch time. "He got into a little jam there (in the fourth inning), got a couple of big punchouts after it was first and second no outs. Thats what hes capable of. ... Hes just a great competitor with a great arm. He pitches to win. Hes not worried about anything else but winning a game and it shows." After spending time in the bullpen, Stroman has gone 4-2 as a starter with a 2.50 ERA. The 2010 first-round pick kept the Rangers to four hits during his stint, striking out five with no walks while throwing 107 pitches including 70 strikes. After giving up back-to-back singles to open the fourth inning, he retired 12 straight with four strikeouts. "That definitely pumped me up going into the next inning ... That was huge," Stroman said of the fourth-inning escape. "Definitely a momentum shift." Stroman said it was all about raising ones intensity. "I feel like Im really able to get in the zone when I need to, and really focus and make big pitches on crucial counts. That was one of those moments and it was big. It was big for the team, it was big for us to kind of get us going." Toronto, which outhit Texas 12-6, survived the bases loaded with two outs in the eighth inning thanks to a Dustin McGowan strikeout -- his third of the inning -- of Jake Smolinski. "It got a little hairy there at the end," Gibbons acknowledged. Left-hander Aaron Loup, rather than right-handed closer Casey Janssen who was laid low by either food poisoning or a bug, pitched the ninth for his third save. An opening walk was negated by J.P. Arencibia hitting into a double play before Rougned Odor flied out. After dropping the series opener 5-1, Toronto (50-4 came into the game having lost three straight and nine of its last 11. "We desperately needed that today," Gibbons said of the win. Despite snapping an eight-game losing streak with Fridays win, the numbers were still ugly for injury-plagued Texas. The Rangers (39-5 came into Saturdays contest 2-12 in July and had lost 14 of 16 and 22 of 26. Texas winning percentage of .406 was worst in the majors. Misfiring at the plate in recent days, the Jays looked to find runs any way they could before a sellout crowd of 45,802 under the roof at Rogers Centre thanks to rain. Centre-fielder Colby Rasmus showed that in the fifth when, facing a shift, he bunted down the empty third-base line to get on base. That led to some jawing with Texas starter Colby Lewis. "Everybody saw it," Lewis said. "Youre up by two runs with two outs and lay down a bunt. I dont think thats the way the game should be played. I let him know and that was about it. "I just told him I didnt appreciate it," he added, accusing Rasmus of "looking out for batting average." The Jays saw it more as scratching out offence. "Sometimes youve got to force some things," said Gibbons. Toronto, outscored 18-4 in their three previous losses, looked to steal bases, sacrifice and take advantage of any fielding hesitation by the Rangers to get on base and advance runners. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didnt but the home side scratched out enough offence to win. Stroman and Lewis were both coming off rough starts, coincidentally on consecutive days against the Angels. Lewis coughed up 13 runs in 2 1/3 innings, raising his ERA to 6.54 from 5.51. Lewis (6-7) pitched five innings, giving up two runs on eight hits. He struck out five and walked three. Both teams feature patchwork rosters due to the injury bug, with seven active catchers between them. The Rangers injury woes grew Saturday when right-fielder Alex Rios sprained his right ankle in his first trip to the plate. Rios, a former Jay, was unable to continue his at-bat and left the game. He was replaced by Daniel Robertson. X-rays were negative and Rios was listed as day-to-day. It was also a painful first inning for Jays catcher Dioner Navarro, who fouled a ball off the top of his shin but was able to continue. The Jays opened the scoring in their half of the fourth with Johnson doubling home Rasmus, who had singled to lead off the inning and advanced to third on a wild pitch. One out later, Johnson went to third on a successful Anthony Gose bunt. Munenori Kawaskis infield single made it 2-0, with Toronto leaving two on the bases. Toronto added to its lead in the seventh on consecutive singles by Cabrera, Bautista and Navarro. After Rasmus reached first on a fielders choice, Johnson brought Bautista home on a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0. Brett Cecil and McGowan followed Stroman in the eighth, when the Rangers finally got on the board via an Elvis Andrus RBI single. Cecil had opened the inning by yielding a walk and a single. McGowan seemed to have the situation in control when he struck out the ever-dangerous Adrian Beltre with two outs. But Beltre made it to first base to load the bases thanks to a Navarro passed ball and McGowan found himself needing another out. The Jays have won six of their last seven series against the Rangers in Toronto. Saturdays win gave them a chance to make it seven of eight. Stitched Cowboys Jerseys . While Chelsea stayed two points behind leader Arsenal courtesy of Etoos hat trick, seventh-place United slipped 14 points from the summit this weekend. And the gap from the Champions League places is growing as well, with Liverpool six points ahead in fourth. Dallas Cowboys Store .Manager Brendan Rodgers told the Liverpool Echo on Friday that Sturridge pulled his calf muscle in training as he prepared to return from a five-week layoff due to a thigh strain. https://www.cowboysjerseysale.com/ . The Blue Jackets announced the injury through their official Twitter account Friday afternoon. Gaborik, 31, has scored five goals and six assists in 17 games with the Blue Jackets in 2013-14.JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars are moving from tarps to pools. The Jaguars provided a hard-hat tour of their $63 million stadium renovation Tuesday, showing off the worlds largest scoreboards, a pair of wading pools and a two-story party deck that will include 20 all-inclusive cabanas. Jacksonville removed 9,500 chair-back seats to make room for the new construction in the north end zone. That allowed the team to remove 12 of 16 tarps around EverBank Field. The tarps have been an eyesore for years and essentially made the Jaguars the brunt of jokes. Maybe more importantly for a small-market franchise trying to change perception after years of futility, the covered sections wont be seen on television. The Jaguars will unveil the scoreboards and cabanas at a Carrie Underwood concert July 26. Already, the team has sold 65 per cent of its cabanas for the 2014 season. Cabana seating is sold out for three home games: against Pittsburgh (Oct. 5), against the New York Giants (Nov. 30) and against Houston (Dec. 7). "Were trying to give fans a compelling reason to leave the comfort of their homes and to come and watch the Jaguars in person," Jaguars president Mark Lamping said. "We have to make sure the experience, when people spend their hard-earned money, is really good. But more importantly, it is unique and distinctly different than what you can get at home." The Jaguars are selling 12 upstairs cabanas for $3,000 a game, with a maximum of 20 people in each suite. The price includes all-you-can-eat food and all-you-can-drink beer, wine and soda. The eight downstairs cabanas -- the only tickets that include pool access -- are going for $12,500 a game, with a maximum of 50 people in each suite. Those also are all-inclusive. Throw in 120 bar-rail seats located in the north end zone and adjacent to the pools, and the Jaguars have completely changed the look and feel of their 20-year-old stadium. Those bar-rail seats cost $150 a game and include food and drinks. "This starts to give our building character, gives our building a personality that fits this market," ssaid Chad Johnson, the teams senior vice-president of ticket sales. Cowboys Jerseys 2020. "Were in a great warm-weather market where water, beaches, the river are all part of it. So this incorporates not only whats local, but it incorporates a high-end beach resort. You go to a high-end beach report and sit in a cabana, what do you have there? You have the luxury of the beach but the ability to pull away from it with comfort of shade, fans, televisions that you cant get with your chair parked in that sand. "It gives a mix of the two experiences. At the end of the day that football game is what were here to see, but they can experience it in a different way." Jacksonville increased capacity inside its "fan cave" from 400 to more than 600, giving anyone with a ticket access to the Internet and televisions in an air conditioned area overlooking the south end zone. The team also redesigned a section of club seats, adding tables and four swivel chairs to create a sports-bar atmosphere. Finally, the team added 180 field-level seats, providing fans an up-close look that closely resembles basketball or hockey. "Were trying to make sure we have a sustainable franchise here in Jacksonville, a team that is sustainable from a financial standpoint, a team that is sustainable from an on-field performance standpoint, which means a consistently competitive team." Lamping said. "And everything were doing is designed to support that." The pools have gotten the most attention. They are 25 feet long, 12 feet wide and 3 1/2 feet deep. Lifeguards will be in attendance, and the pools will have a glass front that overlooks the field. "From inside the seating bowl, youll be able to see into the pool," Lamping said. "This has been probably the most talked about of our enhancements. Its just one small part of what were doing, but its pretty meaningful. What weve really tried to do is give EverBank Field a unique personality and a personality thats legitimately north Florida, legitimately Jacksonville, and how do you do that without integrating water?" ' ' '  |
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