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GOODYEAR, Ariz. DQwell Jackson Jersey . - Bryan Price sat down in the cushy chair. In front of him was a desk. Behind him, two lockers of his very own. The first-time Cincinnati Reds manager felt a little out of place in his own office. Time to start getting used to it. The Reds open spring training on Friday when pitchers and catchers report and have their first workout. Price will be front-and-centre, a new role for the former pitching coach who took over when Dusty Baker was fired after another playoff disappointment. "I told the guys in our (staff) meeting, You better make sure you come in here and keep me company," Price said on Thursday afternoon. "Im not used to being in a room by myself, unless Im in the doghouse. Been there a few times." And he will be again once the games begin and one of his moves backfires. Ask Baker about that one. Baker got fired after leading the Reds to the playoffs for the third time in four years. They lost to Pittsburgh in the wild card game, the third time they were knocked out in the opening round. The post-season fizzle cost Baker his job and gave Price the chance to manage a team with plenty of talent to contend. He knows the team will be judged not on whether it reaches the playoffs, but whether it wins when it gets there. Just like the Bengals, who have lost their opening playoff game each of the last three seasons, the Reds arent going to get a final grade until well after the regular season has ended. Price isnt going to dwell on it with his players. "For me, the references — if any — will be very short in discussing the past," he said. "Theres nothing we can do about it. Ive inherited a phenomenal group of guys that really want to play this game beyond where weve been." The Reds are in good shape as they get started. The pitching staff is mostly healthy. Reliever Jonathan Broxton had surgery to repair a tear in his forearm last August and has been making good progress in his throwing program during the off-season. Hes the only one who may not be fully ready for opening day. "Hes stayed constant in his throwing progress, which is terrific," Price said. "And we definitely anticipate him being on the mound this month. If thats enough time to get him ready for the season, well see. Well probably have a lot better answer when we get into those last 10 days of March." Right-hander Johnny Cueto has fully recovered from strained muscles in his right side that bothered him most of last season. Cueto wound up on the disabled list three times, limiting him to 11 starts. "That being said, youre talking about a guy who ended the season healthy and there shouldnt be any impediments to his spring training based on last year," Price said. "We can hit the ground running without any inhibitions." Left-hander Tony Cingrani has recovered from back spasms that limited him during his rookie season. Cingrani moves into the spot that opened when Bronson Arroyo left as a free agent, signing with Arizona. The Reds keep in touch with players in the off-season to monitor their health. So far, the reports on all of them are encouraging, although the club will know for sure when they take physicals on Friday before the first workout. "So its probably an easier question to answer once we get through physicals tomorrow, but Im optimistic well be in good health," Price said. NOTES: Price is curious whether the bad weather on the East Coast will interfere with players travel. He said four club officials who were expected for a staff meeting on Thursday couldnt make it because their flights were cancelled. ... The position players report next Wednesday for physicals and the first full-squad workout. The Reds open their spring training schedule against the Indians on Feb. 26. Ricky Jean-Francois Jersey . Amid lusty boos from a modest crowd on a rainy, 46-degree night, Cano began his first game in the Bronx since joining Seattle this winter for $240 million with a wink -- at Yankees starter CC Sabathia (3-3).DQwell Jackson Elite Jersey . pic.twitter.com/jPRNJqXglc — #rexualassault (@rexchurko) May 28, 2014 @BarDown Iceotopes wearing chicken suits complete with sewn on numbers and our goalie is the egg! pic.EUGENE, Ore. -- Heading into halftime locked at 14-all with UCLA, No. 2 Oregon didnt panic. The Ducks knew theyd eventually wear down the No. 14 Bruins. Because thats what they do. "We understand that our tempo is one of our greatest allies," sophomore quarterback Marcus Mariota said. Oregon went on to score 28 unanswered points in the second half and beat UCLA 42-14 on Saturday night. Byron Marshall ran for 133 yards and three touchdowns, Mariota threw for 230 yards and another score, and the Ducks (8-0, 5-0 Pac-12) racked up 555 yards in total offence compared to 283 for UCLA (5-2, 2-2). "We just had to keep chipping away," Mariota said. "We knew that if we kept getting 5- or 6-yard chunks, we were going to get into a rhythm." Brett Hundley completed 13 of 19 passes for 64 yards and a touchdown but also threw two interceptions, including one early in the fourth quarter that led to an Oregon touchdown. He also ran for 64 yards and a score. "That was a very disappointing loss," Bruins coach Jim Mora said. "We didnt come up here to play them close, we didnt come up here to give it the old college try. We came up here to win the game and we didnt get it done and its very disappointing." UCLA, which has now lost two straight after falling to Stanford last week, has not won at Autzen Stadium since 2004, and hasnt defeated the Ducks since a 16-0 blanking in 2007. The two teams last met in 2011, when Oregon downed UCLA 49-31 in the inaugural Pac-12 championship game. The Ducks are the highest ranked opponent the Bruins have faced since they played the No. 1-ranked Ducks in the 2010 season. Last weekend UCLA fell 24-10 to No, 13 Stanford. Oregon, ranked No. 3 in the initial BCS rankings released last weekend, was coming off a 62-38 victory at home over Washington State. The Ducks have played one other game against a ranked opponent this season --a 45-24 victory over then-No. 16 Washington at Husky Stadium. "In the first half we had a couple of runs wed like to have back, and a we had a couple of throws wed like to have back," Ducks coach Mark Helfrich said. "But we finished right where we wanted to finish." Oregon got off to a poor start, stymied by its own mistakes and UCLAs stout defence. On the Ducks second play from scrimmage, Keanon Lowe fumbled a pass from Mariota. The turnover led to Hundleeys 4-yard touchdown run to give the Bruins the early lead. Bjoern Werner Jersey. But Rodney Hardrick ran 66 yards on a fake punt and DeAnthony Thomas finished it off with a 1-yard dive for an Oregon touchdown to even the score. Thomas had missed the last three games after injuring his right ankle on the opening kickoff in Oregons 55-16 victory over California on Sept. 28, slipping on turf slick from a driving rain. Thomas was the Ducks leading rusher with 338 yards and six touchdowns in three games before he was injured. He finished with 31 yards rushing against the Bruins. Oregon went ahead 14-7 early in the second quarter with a 40-yard scoring run from Marshall, a sophomore who took over as starter in Thomas absence. Alejandro Maldonados punt for the Ducks was blocked late in the half, putting UCLA in Oregon territory. The Bruins capitalized on Hundleys 11-yard scoring pass to Thomas Duarte to even the game at 14. Midway through the third quarter, Mariota fumbled on first-and-goal at the UCLA 5, but the Bruins were forced to punt and the Ducks quickly responded with Marshalls 11-yard touchdown run. Avery Patterson intercepted Hundley early in the fourth quarter and the Ducks went on to score on Mariotas 8-yard pass to Bralon Addison. Marshall added a 3-yard touchdown dash with 8:47 left and freshman Thomas Tyner ran for a 2-yard TD with 2:25 to go for the final margin. It was Marshalls fifth straight game with at least 100 yards rushing this season. The Bruins were without junior tailback Jordon James, who missed his third straight game with an ankle injury. He had run for more than 100 yards in each of the Bruins first three games. The Bruins were also dealing with injuries on their offensive line, and as a result the team started three true freshman: Alex Redmond at right guard, Caleb Benenoch at right tackle and Scott Quessenberry at left guard. The Bruins have played 17 true freshmen this season. "I told the guys we played hard, but playing hard is not enough. Weve got to get to the point of the football where we play efficiently, where we dont make mistakes at critical times, where we run the right route, we block the right guy, we keep the right leverage, we make the tackle," Mora said. "We have to be able to get to the point as a football where we do the things on a consistent basis that champions do. Were not there yet." cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
