Preise » ide them on the practice squad

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Yasiel Puig lived up to the hype in his major league debut, and then some. Puig had two singles and made a strong throw from right field to first to complete a game-ending double play, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 2-1 on Monday night. "Storybook," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. Adrian Gonzalez and Scott Van Slyke homered for last-place Los Angeles, which had lost two in a row. Stephen Fife allowed one run and five hits in 5 1-3 innings to earn his first major league win. Puig batted leadoff and singled in his first at-bat, drawing high-fives from his new teammates. The 22-year-old Cuban defector was brought up the same day left fielder Carl Crawford went on the disabled list with a strained hamstring. After the game, the ball from Puigs first single was in a plastic bag with the date and description labeled in black marker. It was stashed in a half-opened drawer in his locker. "Impressive," marveled infielder Luis Cruz. San Diego got the potential tying run on first in the ninth when Brandon League walked Chris Denorfia with one out. But Kyle Blanks flied out to right and Puig fired to first to get Denorfia. "Im going to do little things on the field to help the team even when Im not hitting," Puig said through a translator. He took a curtain call after the game, obliging the cheering fans. "I thank the fans for coming out and being here," he said. "I know theres a lot of people in Cuba cheering for me. Im very happy." The Dodgers had lost six of their previous 10 games, and as the ball flew Blanks bat and went high in the air, Mattingly couldnt help but anticipate the worst. "Im thinking that ball is going out of the ballpark the way things have been going," he said. But Puig caught it and made an on-target throw to first standing about a step from the wall. "With all the hype, its really just amazing the game ends like that," Mattingly said. "Yeah, it surprised me, but thats Hollywood." Padres manager Bud Black was impressed, too. "You dont see that play very often," he said. "Deno reacted well, hustled back, but I think the play was made by the strength of the arm and the accuracy of the throw." Puig signed a $42 million, seven-year contract with the Dodgers last June. He showed promise in spring training, hitting .517 with three homers and 11 RBIs in 27 games before he was sent to the minors. "Hes an energetic guy, eager to get on the field, loves the game and always has a smile on his face," Gonzalez said. "We all know hes got a great arm." Fife (1-0) struck out five and walked two. The right-hander was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque earlier in the day to replace left-hander Chris Capuano, who was scratched because of a strained left triceps. "Seven tries and finally got one," he said, with a ball noting his first big league win in his locker. "It was jitters to start the game with a leadoff walk. The first double play in the first inning kind of settled me in." Fife made the second consecutive spot start for the injury-riddled Dodgers after Matt Magill filled in for Hyun-Jin Ryu in Sundays 7-2 loss at Colorado. The 26-year-old right-hander made one previous start for Los Angeles on April 21 against Baltimore, resulting in a no-decision. He then went on the DL with right shoulder bursitis before making one rehab start. League pitched the ninth for his 12th save in 15 chances. Left-hander Eric Stults (4-5) pitched seven solid innings, but was saddled with the hard-luck loss. Gonzalez hit his team-leading eighth homer into the Padres bullpen with two outs in the first inning. Van Slyke made it 2-0 in the second with a leadoff homer. The Padres cut it to 2-1 in the sixth on Chase Headleys RBI single that scored Alexi Amarista, who doubled. They had won five straight games at Dodger Stadium dating to last season, including a three-game sweep from April 15-17. The Padres also threatened in the eighth when Everth Cabrera singled and stole second with one out. But Kenley Jansen retired the next two batters to end the inning. NOTES: Dodgers INF Hanley Ramirez made his third rehab start for Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, playing six innings at shortstop and going 1 for 3 with a double. He could return to club on Tuesday. ... The Dodgers improved to 6-9 in one-run games. ... The Dodgers turned four double plays, while the Padres had two. ... Padres OF Carlos Quentin was nursing a sore right shoulder after running into the wall on Sunday. Manager Bud Black said he likely would return to the lineup on Tuesday or Wednesday. Quentin has yet to face the Dodgers since he charged the mound and confronted Dodgers RHP Zack Greinke on April 11. Greinke broke his collarbone and Quentin was suspended eight games. ... Padres INF Yonder Alonso is regaining strength in his right hand and could be back in action later this week. He was hit on the hand by a pitch on Friday. ... Former Dodgers OF Milton Bradley was convicted Monday of nine misdemeanour counts of abusing his estranged wife, including assault with a deadly weapon. He faces up to 7 1/2 years in jail at his July 2 sentencing in Los Angeles. Earl Campbell Youth Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Kevin Byard Womens Jersey . General manager Jarmo Kekalainen told Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch on Friday that he wants to see Gaboriks contributions go beyond the scoresheet before considering a long-term deal for the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent. http://www.titansstoreonline.com/Black-17-Ryan-Tannehill-Womens-Jersey/ . -- Hunter Smith scored the winner with just 12 seconds remaining in the third period as the Oshawa Generals edged the host Sarnia Sting 5-4 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Jurrell Casey Womens Jersey . Ryan Garbutt had a goal and two assists as Dallas snapped a six-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. Steve McNair Titans Jersey ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver coach Gary Kubiak says that in his 32 years in the NFL hes never seen this much depth or deftness at wide receiver.Ive said from day one: that really has the chance to be the strength of our team, Kubiak said Sunday. Its going to be really hard to make our team at that position.Last year, there were Pro Bowlers Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders and not much else, as those two pass catchers accounted for 80 percent of the teams production at wide receiver.This year, coaches are excited about the leaps being made by holdovers Bennie Fowler, Jordan Norwood and Cody Latimer, all of whom stepped it up in the playoffs and are now vying for the No. 3 receiver job this summer.Theyre joined by two free agent acquisitions familiar with Kubiaks system in DeVier Posey and Marlon Brown.Rounding out the dozen receivers vying for half as many roster spots are four speedy rookies and Peyton Mannings 6-foot-5, personal practice partner Jordan Taylor, whose sessions with Manning helped the five-time MVP work his way back from a foot injury last year to lead Denvers Super Bowl run.Taylor made a catch Friday that was reminiscent of Odell Beckham Jr.s famous one-handed grab, only Taylor added a somersault to boot.Still, the most impressive catches of camp so far belong to undrafted rookie Kalif Raymond of Holy Cross, a 5-foot-9 blaze on special teams and blur from scrimmage.Making it difficult for the Broncos to try to hide them on the practice squad, Raymond and Taylor have spiced up the Super Bowl champs training camp, where there is an extraordinary three-way competition unfolding at quarterback.Even with Sanders and Thomas getting a day off, there was no shortage of crowd-pleasing catches against Denvers star-studded secondary. The bulk of them belonged to Taylor or Raymond, who helped rookie QB Paxton Lynch have his best day yet as he tries to catch Mark Sanchez and Trevor Siemian.This is my dream, so anything I can do to get on that field -- receiver, returner, sniper, gunner, anything they need me to do, Raymond said. Ill go out there and snap the ball if they want me to.dddddddddddd.Taylor ran himself ragged last year, playing both receiver and safety on the scout squads after his daily workouts with the meticulous Manning.He was probably the most in-shape guy on the team by far, Tolbert said, adding that Taylor showed growth long before his daily sessions with Manning.Most people who are that tall, your footwork is not as crisp, especially coming out of college. So, the one thing Ive tried to do is work on his footwork and his technique and hes gotten tons better from the day he got here until now, Tolbert said. All the hard work hes put in is really gratifying.Also working in Taylors favor is that hes sneaky fast, Tolbert said. He doesnt look like hes moving that much, but hes gaining ground on you. And his catching radius is 6-8, Id guess. He has such a huge radius hes able to adjust his body in the air and make plays on the ball.Raymonds size is a matter of some debate.Short but stocky, Raymond swears he weighed in Sunday at 181 pounds although hes still listed at 160.Not that size matters to Tolbert.They can be tall like Jordan or short like Kalif, Tolbert said. Now, everybody wants bigger, stronger, faster. But there are some big, strong, fast people sitting at home on the couch because they cant make plays. So, I just want playmakers.Of which, he has no shortage.Game notes A day after Kubiak said NT Phil Taylors knee injury was minor, the Broncos placed him on IR Sunday and signed DE Billy Winn, who played four years in Cleveland and last season in Indianapolis. ... C/G Sam Brenner suffered a concussion Sunday, and RB Ronnie Hillman hurt his back. ... 10-year-old Grant Thornham attended Sundays practice with a bright orange cast on his right arm. He broke it Friday trying to catch one of Brandon McManus field goal attempts.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton ' ' '