Kritik und Lob » there. Theyve been there since bas

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It might be too late, but the Kansas City Royals are making a push to get back into postseason play.After a disastrous 7-19 July, the Royals were seven games below .500, at 51-58, after an Aug. 5 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.But after winning 4-1 Wednesday night at Detroit to sweep the Tigers they evened their record at 60-60. The Royals have won four straight, seven of eight and nine of 11. They have won their past four series.Were playing like champions, said Royals rookie second baseman Raul Mondesi, who hit his first career home run on Tuesday.The defending World Series champion Royals return home Thursday to open a four-game series against the last-place Minnesota Twins. If the Royals are to keep their playoffs hopes alive, they may need to sweep the Twins. Anything less than winning three of the four could prove fatal to their postseason aspirations.The offense looks to me like its definitely coming back around, Royals manager Ned Yost said. Thats what we were waiting on. We felt good all the way around with our starting pitching for the most part and the bullpen guys have done a phenomenal job without (Luke) Hoch(evar) and Wade (Davis). Theyve really picked up the slack down there. We feel good where were at right now.The offense did nothing in the first seven innings Wednesday. Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez did not allow a hit until Eric Hosmers two-out double in the seventh. Sanchez did not come out for the eighth and the Royals promptly went to work on the Detroit bullpen. Alex Gordon homered on the first pitch of the eighth, extending his hitting streak to a season-high eight games, while Eric Hosmer hit a two-run homer in a three-run ninth. That allowed the Royals to sweep a three-game series in Detroit for the first time since September 2008.While the Twins possess the worst record in the majors, the pitching matchup for the first game favors Minnesota, which will start Tyler Duffey. He beat the Royals 5-3 on Saturday, allowing two runs on six hits with one walk and six strikeouts. Duffey also beat the Royals on May 25 at Target Field.Duffey is 8-8 with a 5.71 ERA with 25 walks and 90 strikes in 108 2/3 innings.I know Kansas City has been hard on us and they have a real good home record, Twins manager Paul Molitor said. Hopefully we can turn it around, starting with Duff on the mound (Thursday).Right-hander Dillon Gee, who was the losing pitcher Saturday at Minnesota, will be making his 10th start and 25th appearance. After holding the Twins to two runs in the first five innings, he gave up a single and back-to-back home runs in the sixth, pulled with the Royals trailing by four runs.Gee is 2-6 with a 6.35 ERA in nine starts. He has not won as a starter since May 31.The Twins swept a two-game series at Atlanta and improved to 9-7 in August. Brian Dozier went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI, hiking his RBI total to 72, while Trevor Plouffe went 3-for-5 with three RBI in the Twins 10-3 victory Wednesday over the Braves. Kyle Gibson pitched a complete game to pick up the victory.The Twins played without first baseman Joe Mauer and third baseman Miguel Sano in routing the Braves.Mauer sat out with sore quads, while Sano has a sore elbow.We want to give him a chance to rest and be ready for the Royals, Twins manager Paul Molitor said of Mauer. He doesnt want to sit, but sometimes that extra day helps him.Mauer is hitting .435 with a .516 on-base percentage and a .709 slugging percentage in August with two home runs, seven doubles and 11 RBI in 14 games.Sano made some throws from third base during infield practice and could be close to returning. The Twins could use Sano as the designated hitter in Kansas City, which was not an option at Atlanta under National League rules.He is doing better, but I dont get the feeling he is feeling 100 percent yet, Molitor said. Swell Bottle Uk Sale . -- Arizona knocked off some quality opponents, rolled over a few overmatched ones and grinded out victories even when things didnt go so well. Swell Bottles Uk Sale . Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is. http://www.swellbottleuk.com/ . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. Swell Wood Bottle . The lawyers filed a 33-page amended complaint Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan, expanding on the suit originally filed Oct. 3 in New York Supreme Court. Arbitrator Fredric Horowitz last week refused to compel Selig to testify in the grievance, and Rodriguez then walked out of the hearing without testifying. Swell Uk Bottle . Badenhop was 2-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 63 relief appearances for Milwaukee this season. He is 18-20 in his career with three saves and a 3. BALTIMORE - The Baltimore Orioles have averaged 19,422 fans in the first two games of a key showdown with the Boston Red Sox. On Wednesday, Baltimore Orioles center fielder Adam Jones addressed the teams lackluster attendance.Id say that its just, its a little, whats the right word to say its a little, you know, not sad, just like, eerie, a little bit, said Jones, the teams longest-tenured player.Jones added: We grind and grind and grind. We understand, theres a lot that that factors into it. Ticket prices being higher, although you can bring in food and beverages. Marketing and promotions, Im sure theyre not the best. I get all that. Im just saying, the city wanted a winner -- the last five years we got em a winner. I dont if know if theyve gotten complacent already on us winning. I wish they havent. I hope they havent. Because winning is fun every single year, and being in this race is exciting every single year. So to the ones that come every night, thank you with open arms.On Tuesday, Camden Yards drew a crowd of 20,387 for the second game of a four-game set with first-place Boston, putting the Orioles -- who made the playoffs in 2012 and 2014 -- over the 2 million mark in attendance for the fifth straight season. On the year, Baltimore ranks 20th in attendance.Among teams currently in line for postseason berths, only the Cleveland Indians rank lower (28th).Ive heard many different sides of it, Jones said. Its due to school starting; weather, which is understandable; danger, which I dont see. I understand, but I dont necessarily see that. But at the end of the day, as a player, were going out there, busting our tails. The fans impact at Camden Yards is unbelievable. I thinkk they know that.ddddddddddddI think they understand that, and the players understand that. Obviously, this week and this last homestand, the last 11 games are arguably the most important games of the season.Weve fought our tails off for 145 games to put ourselves into a unique situation as of September, and thats what you say. You want to play important September baseball. And part of September baseball, especially if youre in the heat [of a pennant race], is fans. That just is what it is. Every place you go, the fans are going to be there. When we were in Detroit, they were there for them. We go to Boston, usually Bostons one of the most desirable places to be at anyway, so theyre there. I know when we go on the road to Toronto, we all know theyre gonna be there. Theyve been there since basically the trade deadline last year.The Orioles -- who enter play on Wednesday with a record of 82-69 and are in possession of the second American League wild-card spot -- are averaging 26,513 fans per game, which is nearly 4,000 fewer than in 2014. Its also 2,602 fewer than last year, which represents the fifth-largest drop-off in the majors. Of the four teams with bigger decreases (Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Minnesota and Cincinnati), none currently has a winning record.Baltimore has two games left against Boston, then finishes its home schedule this weekend against the Arizona Diamondbacks.A previous version of this story had Jones saying the home attendance was sad, but upon further review he ultimately said the dearth of Orioles fans at Camden Yards felt eerie. ' ' '