DAVIE Jahlani Tavai Jersey , Fla. (AP) — with followers asking about his fresh-water fishing preference (open face reel), whether he could play receiver in the NFL (no way), and what kept him going when he missed all of last season (faith, family, friends and teammates).The social media audience was too polite to ask the question on the mind of every Miami Dolphins fan: When will Tannehill win a postseason game, or at least play in one?He doesn’t know the answer anyway. But with his first game in 21 months looming Sunday, the 30-year-old quarterback begins a season more optimistic than ever.“I feel more ready for this year than I’ve ever felt before,” Tannehill said Wednesday. “I feel more confident, I would say, in the guys that we have and the path that we’re on. Are we there yet? No. But the standards that we have established in training camp and throughout the offseason, how guys come to work each day pushing to get better, that’s what excites me more than I’ve ever been.”Tannehill said he has never been so confident in his offensive line. He likes his team’s depth at the skill positions, including veteran newcomers Frank Gore, Danny Amendola and Albert Wilson Will Harris Jersey , and rookie tight end Mike Gesicki. And he’s increasingly comfortable with the offensive system under third-year coach Adam Gase.“I feel more confident in fully playing the position than I ever have, and everything it entails,” Tannehill said. “It might not be every play you see it, but I know when certain situations come up, I’m going to be quicker to react and make the right decision and not have to think about it.”Teammates praise Tannehill’s mastery of the offense.“Seeing how prepared and comfortable he is, it’s contagious for the other guys,” Gesicki said.But can Tannehill win? His career record is 37-40. He became the Dolphins’ starter as a rookie in 2012, and their only playoff berth since then was in 2016, when he suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 14.Tannehill re-injured his left knee in training camp last year, wiping out his 2017 season. He says he’s now 100 percent, and looked it during the exhibition season.“He has taken hold of this offense, and he has made it his own,” Gase said.The Dolphins went 6-10 without Tannehill last year, and prognosticators say they’ll have a losing season with him. But doubters may forget how well Tannehill was playing when he first hurt his knee.In his final eight games of 2016 — his most recent games — he had a passer rating of 100.1, and the Dolphins went 7-1. While he says he’s a better quarterback now Austin Bryant Jersey , Gase agrees.“I love working with him,” Gase said. “I love how he does everything from the time he gets in the building until the time he leaves. He really has shown me a lot, especially on the practice field, with how intense he is and how he treats every day like a game.”As the biggest star on a team under the radar, Tannehill has embraced a leadership role more than ever, and raised his profile off the field, such as with the Twitter Q&A.“I’m just trying to engage a little bit more with fans and give them a little window into my life,” he said.That includes his wife, Lauren, and their 2-year-old son, Steel. One Twitter video Tannehill posted this week features Steel showing off his throwing arm by lobbing a rock a few feet in the backyard.“Obviously we have a little work to do,” dad says on the video.“It was actually a good throw,” he confessed with a laugh Wednesday. “Lauren is like, ‘He actually made a good throw. Why did you have to trash him like that?’ I’m like, ‘I guess for the price of comedy Rashan Gary Jersey , right?'”Tannehill laughed again. When it comes to grading the throwing arms in his family, things don’t get serious until Sunday. Clayton Kershaw pitched his way to freedom while earning his first win in 2 1/2 months.
The three-time NL Cy Young Award winner won’t be facing any further restrictions in his next start after a solid outing in the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ 8-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.
Five Dodgers homered including Max Muncy with a pair, and the team’s six homers were the most they’ve hit at home since also launching six on Sept. 9, 2013, against Arizona.
”You want to get guys back in the dugout as fast as possible the way they’re swinging the bats,” said Kershaw, who was limited by a pitch count in his last three outings.
Ivan Nova (4-6) became the first pitcher in Pirates history to give up five homers in a game. Pittsburgh has been outscored 25-4 in the first two games of the series.
”They’re horses over there. It’s a stacked team,” Pirates third baseman David Freese said. ”They’ve just got really good approaches right now and they’re on time, all of them are on time.”
The Dodgers have 11 homers three days into July and 122 so far this season after slugging a major league-leading and franchise-record 55 in June.
”It’s pretty remarkable what we’re doing,” manager Dave Roberts said. ”When I look at what we’ve accomplished offensively, we’re in some uncharted territory.”
Kershaw (2-4) allowed two runs and four hits in six innings of his third start since coming off the disabled list. The left-handed ace’s two strikeouts were against Nova and Kershaw didn’t walk anyone to earn his first victory since April 15 at Arizona. He had two losses and four straight no-decisions since.
”His velo is down a little bit but he’s still got that cutter and he works it. He’s just a guy that locates,” Freese said. ”You can sense when he’s out there that he trusts every pitch he’s about to throw. That’s that makes him really good.”
Kershaw had not gone as late as July 3 with just one win since his rookie year in 2008 when he didn’t earn his second victory until Aug. 7.
”It’s kind of what we wanted,” Roberts said of Kershaw. ”The fifth and sixth innings were probably the best for me. The ball came out well. We can feel confident going forward the reins are off.”
Joc Pederson and Muncy homered back-to-back for the second straight game.
Pederson sent Nova’s first pitch of the game over the right-field wall and Muncy followed with a shot to center field for a 2-0 lead.
”They have a really good lineup but we’ve got to be able to do a better job than that,” Nova said.
Muncy led off the third with his team-high 20th homer for a 3-1 lead.
”I never thought I could hit this many home runs in such a short amount of time,” said Muncy Darnell Savage Jr. Jersey , who has played in just 63 games this season.
Freese provided the lone bright spot for the Pirates, going 3 for 3 with a pair of RBI singles that twice cut the Dodgers’ lead to one run, and a solo homer off reliever Yimi Garcia.
Chris Taylor kept the slugfest going in the fourth with a two-run shot that made it 5-2. He went 3 for 4 with a strikeout and finished a single shy of hitting for the cycle.
”It seems to be contagious up and down the lineup, which makes it fun in the dugout,” Taylor said.
Yasmani Grandal led off the sixth with a homer and Taylor doubled to deep center field to chase Nova.
Nova gave up a season-high seven earned runs and nine hits, struck out three and walked two in five innings.
”It’s not fun to give up that many homers,” Nova said. ”Sometimes you give up that many runs and you don’t feel that bad, but giving up five homers is too much.”
Nova’s replacement didn’t fare any better. Enrique Hernandez blasted a two-run homer on the first pitch from Dovydas Neverauskas, extending the Dodgers’ lead to 8-2.
Dodgers slugger Matt Kemp’s run of eight hits in eight consecutive at-bats ended when he struck out to end the first. One night after tying a career high with five hits, including a three-run homer, Kemp was hitless in four at-bats with two other strikeouts.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Pirates: RHP Joe Musgrove (right index finger infection) went on the DL retroactive to June 30. He was scheduled to start Wednesday’s series finale.
Dodgers: RHP Walker Buehler was moved to the DL retroactive to June 29. He began a rehab assignment for Single-A Rancho Cucamonga.
UP NEXT
RHP Clay Holmes (0-0, 2.25 ERA) will replace Musgrove in the series finale on Wednesday. Dodgers LHP Rich Hill (1-3, 4.68) took a no-hitter into extra innings in Pittsburgh last August before allowing a walk-off solo homer in the 10th.
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