BALTIMORE -- Johan Santanas comeback bid with the Baltimore Orioles ended Friday when the two-time Cy Young Award winner tore his Achilles tendon. The injury occurred in Florida while Santana was pitching in extended spring training. He was struck by a line drive before stumbling in pursuit of the ball. An MRI revealed a torn tendon. "The tendon is severed, and it will in effect end his season," Orioles vice-president of baseball operations Dan Duquette said. "I know the rehab is significant for these tendon injuries. Well have to get with him and speak to him. But he wont be able to pitch for the Orioles this season." The 35-year-old Santana has not pitched in the majors since 2012 with the New York Mets. The left-hander missed last season after undergoing his second major shoulder surgery, then signed a minor league contract with Baltimore in March. Santanas return appeared on course when the Orioles purchased his contract from Triple-A Norfolk on Monday and placed him on the major league disabled list. "He was pitching well," Duquette said. "The last time out he had his velocity and he was able to back-door his slider. I think he had eight strikeouts and no walks, so he was right on schedule. After (Friday), he was going to come up and join the major league team, and we were going to continue the rehab in (Double-A) Bowie." Now, however, Santanas future is up in the air. "The skills are there," Duquette said. "Hes been able to rehab his arm, but now hes got another challenge." Santana broke into the majors with Minnesota in 2000. He won both his Cy Young Awards with the Twins, going 20-6 in 2004 and 19-6 in 2006. He was traded to New York before the 2008 season and signed a $137.5 million, six-year contract. But injuries limited him to less than four full seasons on the mound with the Mets, and his record got progressively worse -- 16-7, 13-9, 11-9, 6-9. It was uncertain if Santana could return after his second shoulder surgery, but Duquette thought it was worth taking a chance. Now he and the Orioles are left looking for a Plan B. "Its unfortunate," Duquette said. "We were looking for Johans leadership and also his pedigree from being a winning pitcher. Now well have to look for that capability somewhere else. "I was looking at it like a midseason acquisition or trade. We invested in the rehab and we invested in the salary, and of course we wouldnt have had to trade a player. Unfortunately it didnt work. Sometimes you can plan and do things right, and they just dont work out."
Iman Marshall Jersey . Messier, who had been a special assistant to Rangers general manager Glen Sather, announced Thursday in a statement that he is resigning in order to "expand the game of hockey in the New York area by developing the Kingsbridge National Ice Center.
Todd Heap Jersey . With the Pirates in the thick of the race in the NL Central, the timing couldnt be better. Liriano struck out a season-high 11 in seven innings to win consecutive starts for the first time this season and Pittsburgh beat the San Francisco Giants 3-1 on Tuesday night. http://www.customravensjersey.com/custom-chris-board-jersey-large-1693d.html. Phoenix originally signed Barbosa to a 10-day contract on Jan. 8 after Eric Bledsoe injured his knee and then signed him to another 10-day deal.
Tony Banks Jersey .C. Lions signed cornerback Dante Marsh to a contract extension on Friay and released receiver Paris Jackson.
Sam Koch Jersey . PAUL, Minn.Baseball season is just under two weeks old… Are you tired yet? For a sport which can cite the speed of the game as one of its major detractors, the 2014 season has already seen developments come to light to call into question whether the game needs to be sped up. The advent of instant replay on select plays, allowing managers to challenge contentious calls, has added yet another stall tactic to the great summer spectacle. Naturally, two weeks in, a pattern has emerged. Many organizations have employed or utilized a “video coach” whose job it is to keep an eye on a monitor when close plays come about and to double-check whether the right call was made. In order to give managers better odds of winning challenges, a trend has now emerged where skippers saunter out to the umpire to discuss the call while awaiting a signal from the bench to decide whether or not the play is “challenge-worthy”. Sometimes it is not and the game proceeds. Sometimes it is and more time is spent actually reviewing the play in question. So, whats the solution? Well, according to a report from ESPNs Buster Olney earlier this week, one MLB executive believes seven-inning games would help get the games done in roughly two-and-a-half hours. But is that really the bbest way to speed up the game? Solutions have been pitched before, however.dddddddddddd In 2007, the MLBs official rules were altered to reduce the maximum amount of time a pitcher was allowed between pitches without runners on base. Under these rules, a pitcher was allowed no more than 12 seconds between pitches (down from 20) with the bases empty. The penalty for exceeding that time limit is an extra ball added to the batters count. Still, games clock in regularly at north of three hours. So, is the seven-inning game a viable solution for Major League Baseball? Changes have been made in the past to alter the quality of the game both on- and off the field including the advent of the live-ball era, the lowering and raising of the pitchers mound and – most notably – the restructuring of the Leagues substance abuse policy in the wake of the “Steroid era”. Speaking of which: Wouldnt a switch to seven innings be a clever way to asterisk the records that Major League Baseball is hesitant to recognize? “Sure, Barry Bonds is the all-time home run king… but that was during the nine-inning era.” What do you say? Would you be in favour of just heading home at the seventh-inning stretch? As always, its Your! Call. ' ' '
