Kritik und Lob » e final against Australia A.Jayant, the 26-year-

CHICAGO -- Javier Baez is putting on quite a show for the Chicago Cubs. And he just might be turning these playoffs into his personal stage.Whether hes hitting a game-winning home run or making some spectacular defensive play, Baez has been hard to miss in these playoffs. And hes a big reason why the Cubs are in the NL Championship Series for the second straight year.Ive got a job to do, Baez said. Im not surprised. I know what I can do. I know what this team can do. Im just having fun right now and obviously trying to win.It must be fun to be Baez these days.The Cubs came into the postseason with the best record in the majors and their sights set on their first championship since 1908.They knocked out San Francisco in four games in the NL Division Series in no small part because of Baezs play at the plate and at second base. They open the NLCS against the Dodgers at Wrigley Field on Saturday, and if they take out Los Angeles, a franchise defined more by curses and heartbreak will go to the World Series for the first time since 1945.On a team loaded with stars, Baez has been putting on quite a show in the postseason.He hit the winning home run off Johnny Cueto in the opener against the Giants and the go-ahead single in the ninth in Game 4.On defense, playing mostly second base, it was as if the Baez highlight reel was on a nonstop loop with no shortage of diving stops and lightning quick tags.Even when he was chewing gum in the dugout Baez managed to amaze. Take this gem from Game 4 of the NLDS.The gum popped out after Baez put it in his mouth, but what happened next was about as impressive as any play he made in the field. He juggled it a few times, finally snagged it with his right hand. Baez pointed at a trainer as he was about to put it back in his mouth, then looked the camera, and grinned.I saw the camera, Baez said. I didnt know if he got it or not, but I caught it.No surprise.After all, the 23-year-old Baez has been catching just about everything that comes his way this season. And if thats not enough, he also hit .273 with 14 homers and 59 RBI in 142 games.Thats a big jump considering he struck out 95 times in 213 at-bats .169 after he debuted for the Cubs in 2014. But his swing is more compact now. He closed his stance and cut down the big leg kick he had when he first arrived.Now, hes looking like a breakout star.Manager Joe Maddon noticed the potential watching Baez in winter ball in Puerto Rico, right after he was hired two years ago.Everybody was talking about his hitting and the fact that he needed to hit better at the plate and be more selective, he said. And I was, `OK, I get that. I was impressed by everything else that he did. Sometimes we get caught up on somebodys weaknesses and dont glorify their strengths. I mean, his strengths are pretty outstanding.Baez was taken by the Cubs with the ninth pick in the 2011 amateur draft and worked his way through the minors as a shortstop. But with Addison Russell there, he has become a super-utility player.That could change down the line, depending on the moves the Cubs make. But they are relying on him to play multiple positions -- and to play them as well as anyone.Baez just might be the best defensive second baseman, shortstop and third baseman on the team. And considering Russell could win a Gold Glove, thats saying something.When the Cubs believe more balls will be hit to the right side, they put Baez at second. When they think the left side is where the action will be, he might start at third. And when Russell needs a breather, well, who better than Baez to fill in at shortstop?You have to get used to being flexible, not knowing what the lineups gonna look like and just jumping in there and being ready to help and do whatever you can, said Ben Zobrist, who has built his career around playing multiple positions. And hes done a great job of that this year. Theres been days he hasnt played. And theres been days he has. And theres been days hes come in mid-game or late in the game for defensive purposes. Whatever role they put him in this year, hes done really well and hes had a great attitude about it. Dennis Smith Broncos Jersey .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Brian Dawkins Womens Jersey . McPhee said that Ovechkins father Mikhail is in stable condition after having the surgery this week and is no longer in intensive care. "Weve told him to stay as long as necessary with your dad," he said. Ovechkin and his Russian national team were eliminated from the mens hockey tournament in Sochi on Wednesday with a 3-1 quarter-final loss to Finland. http://www.thebroncosstoreonline.com/Youth-Steve-Atwater-Broncos-Jerseys/ . -- Three close looks at the bucket, three misses. Gary Zimmerman Womens Jersey . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Dre Mont Jones Youth Jersey . -- Linebacker Myles Jack ran for four touchdowns, defensive end Cassius Marsh caught a scoring pass, and No. India have rested R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami for the first three ODIs of the upcoming series against New Zealand, which starts on October 16. All three are key bowlers in the Test team, and the selectors have chosen to give them a break with India set to play 11 more Test matches in the 2016-17 home season. Suresh Raina, who last played an ODI in October 2015, was recalled to the squad, while Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul were unavailable due to injuries.This was the first India squad picked by the new selection panel chosen during the BCCIs annual general meeting on September 21.In the absence of the three frontline bowlers and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was ruled out of the third Test in Indore with to a back strain, the teams seam options comprised Umesh Yadav, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, while Amit Mishra, Jayant Yadav and Axar Patel made up the spin options. Like Raina, Mishra too had not played an ODI since October last year. MSK Prasad, Indias chairman of selectors, said Rainas part-time spin was a factor in his recall.Indias previous ODI series was against Zimbabwe in June, for which the selectors had rested most of the senior players. Apart from captain MS Dhoni, seven players from that squad - Mandeep, Bumrah, Kedar Jadhav, Kulkarni, Manish Pandey, Axar and Jayant - were retained for the New Zealand matches.ddddddddddddMandeep, Jayant and Pandya were yet to make their ODI debuts. The 24-year-old Mandeep enjoyed a good stint with the India A side during its recent tour of Australia, scoring 198 runs in six matches in the Quadrangular A-team series, including two successive fifties, one of which was a match-winning innings of 95 in the final against Australia A.Jayant, the 26-year-old Haryana offspinner, played the two unofficial Tests on that tour, taking seven wickets at 22.57. Pandya, a regular member of Indias T20 side, having played all their matches at the World T20 earlier this year, has not featured in the 50-overs side yet.Raina was left out of Indias ODI squads for the tours of Australia (December-January) and Zimbabwe, and also missed the two T20Is against West Indies in the USA. In between, he had a disappointing run of form in the Asia Cup and the World T20. In the Asia Cup T20s, Raina scored 39 runs in three innings, and followed that with 41 runs in four innings at the World T20. Before his exclusion from the ODI team last December, Raina had managed only one century in the format in 26 matches. ' ' '