Were probably a few weeks away still before teams really get serious about moving pitchers, possibly the likes of Jeff Samardzija, David Price, James Shields and Jason Hamel. Wholesale Avalanche Jerseys . In fact the way the Royals are playing and Shields is pitching, you can probably scratch him off the list completely. The Royals have won seven in a row and have climbed to within a game and a half of the Central-leading Tigers heading into a key four-game set at Comerica Park in Detroit on Monday night. Shields is their staff ace at 8-3 and is on a personal 5-0 run. One more quality arm might be all it takes to make the Blue Jays the team to beat in the American League. Thinking about that brought back memories of the greatest pitcher the Blue Jays almost acquired at the July 31st non-waiver deadline, but didnt. Pat Gillick was looking for that something extra in 1993 to put the Blue Jays over the top for a second straight World Series title. He was talking to Oakland about Rickey Henderson, and also Seattle about towering lefty Randy Johnson who was just beginning to come into his own at age 29. Gillick preferred the Johnson deal that would have sent right-handers Steve Karsay and Mike Timlin to the Mariners. Trouble was Seattle GM Woody Woodward was out golfing and in the era before cell phones, Gillick couldnt get a hold of him. In the meantime, As GM Sandy Alderson called back and accepted the Henderson deal for Karsay and a player to be named later (outfielder Jose Herrera). But even then, there was a minor hitch. Rickey wanted to be compensated for giving up his right of refusal on a trade. While that was being negotiated, Woodward called Gillick back and wanted to do the Johnson deal. Gillick had already given his word to Alderson and turned down the Johnson deal. As the clock ticked down, the Jays finally got the Rickey Henderson deal completed. In the short term, all of this paid off for the Blue Jays as they won their second straight championship. Rickey wasnt a huge contributor, but he was always a threat for the other team to worry about at the plate and on the bases. Henderson, though, was in a contract year and left as a free agent in the off-season. Would the Jays have been better off with Randy Johnson? Hard to say. There is no question Johnsons career really took off from that point. Through the 93 season, Johnsons record was 75-69 and he had been an All-Star twice and a runner-up for the Cy Young Award. After that he went 228-97 was an All-Star eight more times and won the Cy Young five times. Yet for all of that, he only won the World Series once, with Arizona in 2001. The Blue Jays in 1997 went out and signed Roger Clemens as a free agent after he opted to leave Boston. Clemens won back-to-back Cy Youngs with the Blue Jays yet they didnt make it to the post-season and attendance didnt get the boost most expected, even on the days Clemens was pitching. You wonder as well if the Jays had already landed Johnson, would they even have bothered to pursue Clemens in 97? If they did, the Jays could have had the same double barreled threat Arizona did when they had Johnson and Curt Schilling and defeated the Yankees in 2001. It makes for a great talking point, but at the end of the day, the Blue Jays still have that second straight World Series crown from 1993. Everything else is supposition. Tiger of the Future? When Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias went down for the season with stress fractures in his legs, Detroit was left with a huge hole to fill at short. Danny Worth, Alex Gonzalez and Andrew Romine were all found wanting. But the Tigers may finally have their answer in rookie Eugenio Suarez, a 23-year-old out of Venezuela. Granted hes only had 24 at-bats, but Suarez is hitting .375 with three homers. This past Saturday against the Twins, he had a homer, a double and a triple. The last Tigers rookie to pull that off was catcher Bill Freehan back on May 7, 1963 versus the Yankees. A couple of Hall of Famers, Frank Robinson and Ted Williams managed to pull off that feat in their rookie seasons as well. If the Tigers still choose to go the veteran route at short, the Phillies Jimmy Rollins could be available after all. After breaking Hall of Famer Mike Schmidts franchise hit record on Saturday, Rollins added another one Sunday bringing his career total to 2,236. He said afterwards he would consider waving his no trade rights if the Phillies brass decided it was time to "blow it up" and rebuild. Swing and a Miss White Sox slugger Adam Dunn is in "hot" pursuit of a rather dubious record. He has moved into fourth place on the all-time strikeouts list with 2,295. He is only 11 back of Sammy Sosa for third and 302 back of strikeout king Reggie Jackson. Interesting that three of the top 10 are in Cooperstown, including Jackson, Willie Stargell and Mike Schmidt. Rough Ride Whether the Jays are fast-tracking Aaron Sanchez for a trip to the Majors or are showcasing him for a trade to get a veteran arm, his first start for Triple-A Buffalo was a little bit rocky Saturday at Toledo. The first-round draft pick from 2010 was knocked out in the 5th inning after giving up four earned runs, six hits and four walks. The Mudhens also stole four bases. Though a tad wild, Sanchez did hit a peak of 97 miles per hour on the radar gun. Colorado Avalanche Gear .Y. -- That hangover from the Big East tournament is gone for Villanova. Colorado Avalanche Pro Shop .com) - Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer were among the third-round winners Friday at the French Open. https://www.cheapavalanche.com/ . Kerber will next play Estonias Kaia Kanepi, who beat American qualifier Victoria Duval 6-1, 6-3. In other first-round matches, Lucie Safarova beat 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 6-4 and American Bethanie Mattek-Sands had a 6-4, 6-3 win over Canadas Eugenie Bouchard.NEW YORK -- Boston Bruins forward Shawn Thornton said Sunday he wont contest a fine of more than $2,800 for squirting water from the bench at Montreal Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban in the final minute of Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. "I obviously got caught up in the moment," Thornton said on an offday at the TD Garden. "Im sorry that this silly incident kind of overshadowed how my teammates played and the great win and how good this series has been. "Theres definitely more important things that we can focus on." The Bruins were leading the Canadiens 4-2 in the final minutes Saturday night when Subban skated past the Boston bench with the puck. Thornton squirted water at the Montreal defenceman, hitting him in the face shield. Angered, Subban approached the bench and exchanged words with Thornton. He then went to complain to the referee. "Somebody sprayed water on my visor at the end of the game. I couldnt see out of half of it," Subban said after the game, acknowledging the incident, while annoying, did not affect the outcome. "I dont wwant it to be bulletin board material. Avalanche Jerseys 2020. " Boston held on to win the game 4-2 and take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. The Bruins need a victory Monday night in Montreal to eliminate the Canadiens and avoid a decisive seventh game in Boston on Wednesday. The fine of $2,820.52 is the maximum allowed under the leagues collective bargaining agreement with the union. The money goes to the players emergency assistance fund. Bruins coach Claude Julien said he didnt approve of Thorntons behaviour and let him know. "As a coach, you always want to support your players but theres certain things you cant support," Julien said Sunday. "I dont think I can support Shawn on those actions. "To me, I dont think we like seeing our players do that. Now whether he got caught up in the game or whatever, to me hes got to own up to it." At the Canadiens training centre in Brossard, Que., coach Michel Therrien seemed satisfied with the fine. "What are you going to do?" he said with a shrug. "Thats not something we appreciate, thats for sure." ' ' '