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The Kansas City Royals acquired outfielder Norichika Aoki from Milwaukee to be their leadoff hitter Thursday, which also means the Brewers are likely to shift Ryan Braun to right field. Milwaukee received left-hander Will Smith, who spent most of the past couple seasons shuffling between Kansas City and Triple-A Omaha, and between the bullpen and the starting rotation. Royals general manager Dayton Moore on a conference call that he envisions Aoki batting at the top of the order, just as he did with the Brewers, which would allow Alex Gordon to slide down into an RBI-producing role. Aoki hit .286 with eight homers, 37 RBIs and 20 steals last season. Aoki, who turns 32 next month, also ranked second in the majors with 40 infield hits, and .339 against left-handed pitching, the best average by a left-handed hitter in the big leagues. He struck out just 40 times in 674 plate appearances. "We like his energy, we like his work ethic. Hes a pro," Moore said. "We had a chance to see him a lot in Japan coming up. ... Well see how it plays out." Aoki, who is in the last year of his contract, is due $1.25 million this season. He can also make up to $1,087,500 in performance bonuses based on starts and games played. The Royals already bolstered their rotation this off-season by agreeing to a four-year, $32 million deal with Jason Vargas. Now theyve acquired the leadoff hitter they have long coveted. Moore said hes still working on adding an impact bat, especially in the outfield. Veteran outfielder Carlos Beltran, who began his career with the Royals, spent time in Kansas City earlier this week. Hes reportedly seeking a three-year, $48 million deal. "Theyre far and few," Moore said. "That being said, thats an area were trying to pursue, but let me say this, we definitely feel all our offensive players are still improving. They have not reached their peak performance. Theyre going to continue to get better." By moving Aoki, the Brewers could head into next season with rookie Khris Davis in left field, Gold Glove-winner Carlos Gomez in centre and Braun in right. Braun is expected back after his season-ending, 65-game suspension for violating Major League Baseballs anti-drug agreement. Davis emerged down the stretch last season, filling in for Braun in left by hitting .279 with 11 homers. Brewers general manager Doug Melvin had said in late September there were discussions within the organization about whether to move Braun across the outfield. "The thinking is its a little easier to find left fielders than it is right fielders," Melvin said. "If youre trying to field right field with a platoon situation, then both guys have to be able to throw well. Both guys have to be good defenders." Melvin said hes been watching Smith for a couple years. He called Smith a "24-year-old, big, physical left-hander who we feel can be part of our staff." The Brewers finished last season with five right-handed starters, headlined by Yovani Gallardo and Kyle Lohse, and Smith gives them an option for a left-hander to slot into the rotation. He went 6-9 with a 5.32 ERA in 16 starts two years ago. Smith went 8-10 with a 4.76 ERA in 35 games, including 17 starts, during his time in Kansas City. He was 2-1 with a 3.24 ERA last year, with 43 strikeouts in 33 innings, pitching primarily in relief. Smith said Thursday that while he developed a slider to complement his fastball during relief work, "I am excited to get a shot back in the rotation." And yes, hes preparing to hear a fresh round of jokes from his new team about sharing the same name as the famous Hollywood actor. "I get them all the time," the easygoing Smith said in a conference call. "I think Im just learning to live with it ... Its all good." The Royals deep bullpen ultimately made Smith expendable. "I feel like our team is improved with the signing of Jason Vargas and the trade for Nori," Moore said, "knowing full well were going to have to continue to look for ways to improve if were going to win a world championship. I dont view this move as us being complete." http://www.belgievoetbalshop.be/luis-pedro-cavanda...shirt.h tml . And when it opened, every player was at his stall. Thats a sure sign that a team is in a slump and is searching for answers. "Its embarrassing to be at home and play the way we did," said defenceman Josh Gorges. Voetbalshirt Ontwerpen Belgie . -- Nate Robinson has played for seven teams, so beating one of them is no longer a rare occurrence. http://www.belgievoetbalshop.be/laurent-depoitre-b...shirt.h tml . -- Ryan Blaney provided more evidence that Penske Racings No. http://www.belgievoetbalshop.be/simon-mignolet-bel...shirt.h tml . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Belgie Shirt 2016 Kopen . Their 38th instalment is arguably their biggest fight card to date, including three-title fights and a main event which was selected by the fans. The promotion boasts 14-straight years of business and is operated by MFC president Mark Pavelich, who is often overlooked in this country for the foundation hes established for MMA in Canada. SAN ANTONIO -- Unable to comfortably separate from the young Toronto Raptors, the San Antonio Spurs turned to a proven finishing formula - Tony Parker driving for layups when he wasnt kicking the ball to open teammates on the perimeter. Parker had 26 points and eight assists and San Antonio beat Toronto 112-99 Monday night. "We won that game because of Tony Parkers aggressiveness," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "His juice; his aggression all night long. And we made some 3s in the fourth quarter. Those are the two reasons we won the game." Parker had eight points and three assists in the final quarter, committing just one turnover in 9 minutes. "A win is a win," Parker said. "Theyve been playing well, the Raptors. They had a big win in (Oklahoma City) and they made it hard on us." Coming off a 104-98 victory over the Thunder on Sunday, the Raptors got within three or less on numerous occasions in the second half, but couldnt complete the rallies against the Spurs. "It was a superior team, I think, first of all," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. "You talk about one of the top teams in the West. Talking to the Oklahoma City coach, they feel the same way about how tough San Antonio is." Toronto trailed 57-56 after DeMar DeRozans 3 with 9:22 left in the third quarter, but Parker and Tim Duncan combined for eight points to rebuilding San Antonios lead to 67-59. In his second game off the bench after starting the Spurs first 26 games, Danny Green hit a pair of 3s to put San Antonio up 90-80 with just under 8 minutes remaining. Green was 4 for 6 on 3-pointers in scoring 14 points for the Spurs (21-7). "I didnt bench him because he wasnt making shots," Popovich said. "You dont bench people because theyre not making shots. We changed the look and changed the rotation a little bit. It could change again." The change helped San Antonio overcome a Toronto team that had gone 4-2 since trading leading scorer Rudy Gay to Sacramento on Dec. 9. Kyle Lowry and Terrence&nnbsp;Ross had 23 points each and DeRozan added 13 points for the Raptors (11-15).dddddddddddd Ross was 3 for 6 on 3s and 10 for 16 overall. Toronto kept pace despite giving up 16 offensive rebounds, being outscored 52-36 in the paint and allowing San Antonio to score a season-high 24 second-chance points. The Raptors also had 13 turnovers. "That was the kicker," Casey said. "That was difference in the game, our turnovers and the defensive glass. We didnt do a good job of turning and finding the body and thats mental fatigue. We had been doing a good job of keeping people off the glass and attacking the basket, but youre not talking about chopped liver in San Antonio. They are going to be in the money at the end of the season." The bench again provided San Antonio a lift, with Ginobili and Patty Mills each hitting a 3 as the reserves outscored their peers 18-2 in the second quarter. Ginobilis 3 gave the Spurs their largest lead at 52-43 with 2:20 remaining in the half. Still, Toronto closed a three-game road trip with victories over Oklahoma City and the Dallas Mavericks. "Were happy with it, we wanted to be greedy and get 3-0, but 2-1 against these three teams is pretty good, well take it," Lowry said. NOTES: DeRozan was assessed a technical foul with 4:33 remaining in the first quarter for continuing to argue a continuation call against him after official Lauren Holtkamp warned him, "Thats enough." . The Spurs recalled G Nando De Colo and F Malcolm Thomas from their developmental team in Austin. De Colo had 31 points, nine assists, six rebounds and four steals in a 131-94 victory over the Delaware 87ers on Saturday. . Former Spurs C David Robinson received a loud ovation, including applause from officials Holtkamp, Danny Crawford and Tony Brown, when he appeared on the big screen at midcourt to acknowledge his military service. . Steve Novaks streak of turnover-free play ended at 202 minutes after entering with 3 minutes left in the game. It was the longest active streak in the league. Cheap China Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China China NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China ' ' '
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