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(SportsNetwork. John Guidetti .com) - The Baltimore Orioles are apparently set to bring back one of the dominant pitchers of the new Millennium. According to MASN.com, the Os have an agreement in place for a minor-league deal with left-hander Johan Santana, who did not pitch in the majors last season, and last took the mound for the New York Mets during an injury- plagued 2012. Santana missed the entire 2011 season after originally tearing his pitching shoulder in September of the 2010 campaign. The four-time All Star, returned from his year-long absence to start the 2012 opener for New York, and on June 1 tossed the first no-hitter in Mets history, on a career-high 134 pitches. Accomplishing the feat seemed to have devastating after effects, as Santana went just 3-7 over his next 10 starts with an 8.27 earned run average. Battling ankle, back and shoulder issues, the Mets eventually shut him down for good in mid-August. Shortly after his arrival at last years spring training, Santana was diagnosed with left shoulder weakness. He had season-ending surgery to repair a torn anterior capsule in his pitching shoulder in late March. The Mets decided not to pick up the 2014 option on his contract. Since arriving in the majors during the 2000 season with Minnesota, the 34- year-old native of Venezuela has compiled a 139-78 record and 3.20 ERA in 360 appearances (284 starts). He won the AL Cy Young Award in both 2004 and 06, while finishing third in NL voting two years later in his first season for New York. Stevan Jovetic Jersey . Police leaflets seen by an Associated Press reporter at a central Sochi hotel on Tuesday contain warnings about three potential suicide bombers. A police letter said that one of them, Ruzanna Ibragimova, a 22-year-old widow of an Islamic militant, was at large in Sochi. Scott Sinclair Manchester City Jersey . An excellent start from Drew Hutchison and the return of Jose Bautista helped provide a little breathing room in the divisional race while ending a three-game losing skid at the same time.COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Columbus Crew and FC Dallas paused before their scoreless draw Sunday to support the recovery of a firefighter who was struck by lightning in the southwest parking lot of Crew Stadium. The Major League Soccer teams were scheduled to play on Saturday night, but their game was rescheduled after Stu Tudor was hit during a pregame storm. The 54-year-old lieutenant in the Columbus Fire Department is in critical condition in the intensive care unit of the Ohio State Medical Center. The Crew and FC Dallas held a moment of silence before their game, and fans held up signs in support of Tudor, who was off duty at the time of the strike. "Here, you have a man like that who saves lives on a regular basis, who comes out on his off day to see us play," Crew forward Justin Meram said. "For something like that to happen to him, were hoping for the best for him and his family." Dallas defender Zach Lloyd said he and his teammates were affected by the situation. "I know a lot of guys were thinking about his family and their well-being," he said. "That was tough for our group. I think we did a good job of refocusing for the game." Columbus Fire Department Battalion Chief Tracy Smith said its not known if Tudor was struck directly but he had to be resuscitated. Smith said it takes between two and three days to determine the effects of a possible lightning strike. "Were all in (Tudors) corner. Hes one of us," said Columbus coach Gregg Berhalter, who sported a small red ribbon on his shirt during the game as a sign of support. "He was certainly on our minds the last 24 hours." A brief, heavy downpour began 18 minutes into Sundays game, but it was quickly replaced by sunshine for the remainder of the match. There was a chance for more thunderstorms later in the afternoon as the temperature reached the mid-80s with high humidity. The weather was not a deterrent for Tim Hoehnke of the Columbus suburb of Bexley, who brought his family back to Crew Stadium for a seecond straight day.Karim Rekik Manchester City Jersey. . "Im not worried," he said before the game. "It was kind of a freak storm (Saturday) that popped up real quick." Stadium officials directed Hoehnkes family to go underneath the stands for cover when rain and lighting moved into the area Saturday, but he was still outside the entrance. "I saw the flash of the guy who got struck by lightning," he said. "They took care of him quickly when he got struck." A Crew spokesman said the team followed MLS policy when it learned lightning strikes were within range of the stadium and immediately ordered fans to exit the double-deck venue in which the majority of the seating is aluminum bleachers. "They handled everything quite well," Hoehnke said. "They got everybody out of the stadium all right. No one panicked." The match was not officially rescheduled until 12:45 a.m. Sunday and the crowd of 4,680 for the 2 p.m. start was far less than the sellout of 20,672 the Crew said it would have had for Saturdays match. MLS Executive Vice-President Dan Courtemanche said in a statement it is league protocol to try and play rescheduled games the next day. Crew defender Eric Gehrig had no problem with the decision to postpone the game once he heard of the circumstances. "Our minds were off soccer at that point," he said. There was a subdued atmosphere before Sundays game, and it was evident Tudor was on the minds of many. Some people paused to stare at the spot where Tudor was struck before continuing to the gates and two Columbus Division of Police officers working the stadium plaza said they visited Tudor earlier that morning. In one corner of the parking lot members of the teams support groups -- collectively known as the Nordecke -- painted black words on two gold banners an hour before the kickoff. They later moved to the northeast corner of the stadium and before the Star Spangled Banner unfurled their work, "Nordeckes with Stu" and "Get well Stu." ' ' ' |
