Bissonnette said. "Weve got guys in and out of
Đã gửi: Thứ 4 07/03/18 14:03TORONTO -- If the eye-catching smile doesnt get you, the electric play on the basepaths will. Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Jose Reyes gets peoples attention with his unique brand of baseball. Hes a dynamo with great range in the field and track star speed. And over the last week or two, he finally looks like the Reyes of old. The three-time all-star, one of the key pieces in a November 2012 blockbuster trade with Miami, was hampered by injury problems in his first season in Toronto. It was more of the same earlier this year as a tight hamstring kept him out of the lineup for a few weeks. Once he returned, it took some time for Reyes to find his rhythm. The leadoff hitter has found it now and his play is a big reason why the Blue Jays have moved to the top of the American League East division standings. "He makes us that much better," said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons. "Hes really the catalyst because hes up at the top of the lineup." A revitalized starting rotation and homer-happy lineup are two big reasons why the Blue Jays are flying high. But Reyes has provided the powerful Toronto offence with a real edge since his return. With impressive bat skills and a constant threat to run, Reyes offers a nice contrast to the big swingers like Melky Cabrera, Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista who usually follow him in the order. Pitchers have a hard time concentrating on the plate with a speedster like Reyes on base. "Hes so capable of stirring things up," said Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon. "Hes one of those catalysts. Theres a few real catalytic players in the game and hes one of them." Reyes, who had three hits in Wednesdays 3-2 win over the Rays, had an 11-game hitting streak end a night later. He had his first three-steal game as a Blue Jay last weekend and wowed the Rogers Centre crowd by scoring from second base on a groundout. "Hes one of those guys thats hard to take your eye off of when youre watching a baseball game," said Toronto second baseman Steve Tolleson. "Hes able to do so many things offensively and defensively. Defensively hes able to play a little bit deeper than most shortstops because he has a tremendous arm and he has the speed to close in on balls that he needs to. "Hes in an elite group when it comes to that. Hes been a lot of fun to watch." However, Reyes isnt immune to the occasional hiccup in the field. He made a throwing error on a potential game-ending ground ball Thursday night and the Royals came back to win 8-6 in 10 innings. He took full ownership for the miscue after the game. "This is baseball, sometimes mistakes are going to happen," Reyes said. "I just have to learn from it." Despite the occasional negative, the native of Santiago, Dominican Republic brings plenty of positives to the diamond. In a game earlier this week, Reyes dropped a soft bunt down in his first at-bat. He accelerated like a shot and seemed to be halfway down the first-base line by the time the pitcher left the mound to retrieve the ball before conceding the single. When the next batter belted one off the wall, Reyes was quickly in full flight and scored with a head-first slide. Its the kind of get-your-jersey-dirty, fast-paced style that fans and teammates love. "The last few weeks my leg feels good," Reyes said. "Its good to play pain-free. I dont have to worry about anything. Before, four or five weeks ago, I still had a little concern with my hamstring being 100 per cent. "But right now its 110 per cent." Reyes, 30, who won a batting title with the New York Mets in 2011, has seen his average rise as his comfort level returned. Entering the game against the Royals, he has reached base safely in 24 of his last 25 games. The three-time National League stolen base leader (2005-07) has also swiped 11 bags over the last 25 games entering Thursdays matchup. His well-rounded game is a big reason why Torontos offence is so feared. "When they made the trade and brought him in last year, I think thats what everybody kind of envisioned," Gibbons said. "Hes been banged up a little bit since hes been here but now hes healthy. "What hes doing now is really what hes done his whole career and so I think people are just really getting a look at it." Reyes also brings an infectious personality to the ballpark and is usually the first one out of the dugout to congratulate his teammates. More than anything, he has the ability to put the Blue Jays in a position to manufacture runs. Whether through stolen bases, sacrifices or just aggressive base-running, Reyes can often secure that extra base and create more scoring opportunities. "Im capable of doing a lot of stuff," Reyes said. "People (have) seen (over) the last few weeks what Im able to do on the field." 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Brandon Graham Jersey . -- Thirty years ago, the Detroit Pistons beat the Denver Nuggets 186-184 in triple overtime, a game that remains the highest scoring in NBA history. GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Carolina Hurricanes have spent a good portion of the past two weeks on the road and had mixed results. Theyre headed home for a long break with a nice road win, thanks to their top line. Eric Staal had a goal and two assists, Jeff Skinner scored for the third straight game and the Hurricanes ended a four-game road trip with a 3-1 win over the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday night. "Its a big win for us. You look at the standings, you have to pick up points wherever you can," Hurricanes coach Kirk Muller said. "But its the way we won. At the end of a long road trip, we fought and played hard to beat a good hockey team." Playing on the road for the sixth time in seven games since Dec. 3, the Hurricanes withstood an initial flurry and goal by Phoenix to pull out an impressive road victory before getting five days off. Justin Peters was solid and made some big saves down the stretch, stopping 37 shots. Nathan Gerbe tied the game in the second period and Skinner put the Hurricanes ahead early in the third with his eighth goal in six games. Staal put the finishing touches on it with an empty-net goal, giving his line -- he skates with Skinner and Tuomo Ruutu -- 16 goals and 17 assists since Skinners return from injured reserve on Nov. 21 "We are getting chances," Skinner said. "Sometimes thats the way it goes, it goes in, sometimes it doesnt. We got some chances and I was lucky to capitalize on them." Phoenix played a solid game, going up 1-0 in the first period on Paul Bissonnettes first goal in two years. The Coyotes had plenty of chances over the next two periods, but couldnt get anything else past Peters, and lost a key faceoff in the third that led to Skinners goal. "We werent bad tonight, but we could have been way better," Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said. "We could have used a spark from somebody tonight and it didnt come." Coming off a difficult stretch, the Coyotes had earned points in three straight games, including a 6-3 win over the Islanders on Thursday, despite missing several key players. Phoenix was short-handed again against Carolina. Captain Shane DDoan missed his fourth straight game with an illness, defenceman Derek Morris was out for the fourth straight game and left wing Lauri Korpikoski sat out his 11th straight.dddddddddddd The Coyotes have been getting by with production throughout their lines and the start of Saturdays game was no different. Generating some good early chances, Phoenix scored midway through the first period, when Jeff Halpern kept the puck in Carolinas zone and found Connor Murphy at the right point. He fed a pass to Bissonnette in the crease and the fourth-liner redirected it in for his first goal since Nov. 19, 2011, against Buffalo and first at home since 2010. "Its just good for confidence, just getting chemistry with our line," Bissonnette said. "Weve got guys in and out of the lineup and our line keeps changing, so its nice to play with the same guys and get comfortable." The Hurricanes took over after that. Gerbe tied it at 8:50 of the second period, keeping it on a 2-on-1 and beating Smith to the glove side with a wrister for his seventh of the season. Peters made a huge save late in the second period, stopping Antoine Vermette on a breakaway, and Skinner put the Hurricanes up by scooping up a loose puck off a faceoff and whipping a shot past Smith 3 minutes into the third to score in his third straight game. Peters turned the Coyotes away when they turned up the pressure late, including a spectacular save against Mike Ribeiro. "We talk about timely goals; he made some really timely saves at the right time of the game," Muller said. "He looks real confident." So do the Hurricanes after a big road win. NOTES: Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt dropped the ceremonial puck before the game. ... Hurricanes rookie C Elias Lindholm did not play after taking a hard hit against Calgary on Thursday. ... Doan spoke during the second intermission and said he still doesnt know what caused him to be sick the past 10 days, but has responded to medicine and is feeling better. No timetable has been given for his return. ... 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