Basisphilosophie » second half doomed Fulham

ANAHEIM – Colby Rasmus was saying the right things when asked about his new lot in life. Hes a platoon player now. Once the starting centerfielder, hell share duties with Darin Mastroianni for the time being. "I guess its different than Ive been in before as far as being platooned," said Rasmus. "Im just going to look at it as theyre trying to help me in some weird kind of way." Rasmus is struggling, of that there is no question. With his first taste of free agency only months away, hes suffered through a .214/.267/.458, his .725 OPS propped up by his slugging percentage, which is strong because of Rasmus 41 hits, 12 have been home runs and 11 have been doubles. His splits would, on the surface, suggest a platoon makes sense. Rasmus has a .754 OPS with 10 home runs against right-handed pitchers; a .619 OPS with two home runs against left-handers. Manager John Gibbons has decided that involving one of the clubs latest of many waiver claims, Darin Mastroianni, in the centerfield mix is right for the team. "We want him to start hitting right-handers too," said Gibbons. "Were scrambling for offence right now and we think thats the best chance. Hes not hitting any lefties so give Mastro a shot at it." This comes at an interesting time. Edwin Encarnacion is on the disabled list with a right quadriceps strain. Brett Lawrie is on the disabled list with a fractured right index finger. Jose Bautista is playing despite hamstring tightness. Adam Lind is playing as he recovers from a bone bruise in his right foot. It seems anyone who is anyone is fighting an ailment to some degree. Rasmus should be part of the solution but hes going to have to break out of his funk in order to get the chance. "Its not going like I want it to, obviously," said Rasmus. "Everyday in this game is a fight no matter if youre doing good or doing bad. Right now its not going that great for me. At the plate, theyre pitching me well and theyre not playing into my strengths, which is their job." In the fifth inning of Mondays 5-2 loss to the Angels, the score was 2-2 at the time, Los Angeles Josh Hamilton hit a lazy fly ball to Rasmus in centerfield. The bases were loaded and Kole Calhoun tagged from third. Rasmus caught the ball flatfooted rather than circling it and setting up for the throw home. His throw was offline, Calhoun scored easily and the Jays trailed the rest of the way. Two innings later, with the score 5-2 Angels in the seventh, Mastroianni pinch hit for Rasmus with left-handed Angels reliever Joe Thatcher on the mound. Gibbons made the move knowing right-hander Jason Grilli was ready. Grilli struck out Mastroianni looking. While Gibbons said he wasnt punishing Rasmus for the defensive miscue, he didnt offer Rasmus a ringing endorsement. "Well, you knew they had us either way," said Gibbons of the matchups. "So they forced our hand. They got us any way we want to go there." Its a little late to call this the beginning of the end of Rasmus time in Toronto, but the club appears poised to go in a different direction next season. Rasmus will seek out a contract big on term and dollar and knows he needs a strong finish to improve his chances of securing one. "Thats not really my main concern," said Rasmus. "My main concern is to get back to playing, not necessarily trying to prove anything or prove to anybody that Ive got to do anything; just to come in, do what Ive got to do, play baseball, have fun, enjoy my family and that will be it. "Im not going to let whatevers going on put more stress on me," he said. "Im just going to go out there and play. Whenever they want me to play, Ill play." Doug McDermott Jersey . Picard had a goal and two assists to help Canada improve to 2-0 at the tournament. Seven different players scored for the two-time defending champions. "Today all four lines played excellent," said head coach Laura Schuler. Paul George Jersey . However, Jim Popp isnt sure how long hell be able to admire wide receiver Duron Carter. http://www.authenticbasketballshoppacers.info/joe-young-pacers-jersey/ . -- The Chiefs have signed seven players to reserve/future contracts, including running back Joe McKnight, a former fourth-round pick of the New York Jets. Victor Oladipo Jersey . The 26-year-old Sobotka injured his left leg playing for the St. Louis Blues in a 3-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. The Blues said he would not recover from the injury in time for the Olympic tournament. Domantas Sabonis Jersey . Pearce had a career-high four hits and drove in two runs, and Wei-Yin Chen shut down Texas again as the Orioles completed a four-game sweep of the Rangers with a 5-2 victory on Thursday night.TSN.ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season. Rankings were weighted evenly between separate lists made by TSN Radio host and soccer analyst Gareth Wheeler as well as TSN.cas soccer editors. 1. Chelsea (Last Week-2) Chelsea became the first Premier League team to win at Etihad Stadium when they knocked off Manchester City 1-0. Branislav Ivanovic provided the winner maker as Chelsea completed the double over their title contending rivals. 2. Manchester City (LW-1) For the first time this season, Manchester City were beaten at home, 1-0 by Chelsea. Alvaro Negredo and Edin Dzeko started up front, but they were locked down and frustrated by a tight Chelsea backline all game. 3. Arsenal (LW-3) A pair of goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain helped Arsenal climb back to the summit of the Barclays Premier League after a 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace. Wojciech Szczesny was only forced to make two saves on his way to the clean sheet. 4. Liverpool (LW-4) A horrible error by Kolo Toure doomed Liverpool to a 1-1 draw with West Brom. Daniel Sturridge gave his side a first half lead but Toure gifted the home side a second half equalizer, that proved to be the last goal scored in the game. 5. Everton (LW-7) After falling behind at Goodison Park, Steven Naismith and Kevin Mirallas fired Everton to a 2-1 home victory over Aston Villa. The victory keeps Everton in one of the Barclays Premier Leagues European places. 6. Tottenham (LW-6) Paulinhos 61st minute marker salvaged a point for Spurs as they drew 1-1 with Hull City. This was the first time Tottenham did not earn a win on the road under new manager Tim Sherwood. 7. Manchester United (LW-5) Robin van Persie scored Uniteds only goal as they slumped to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Stoke City. The setback leaves the champions seven points out of the top-four and a place in next years Champions League. 8. Southampton (LW-9) Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert and Jay Rodriguez were all on target in the second half as Southampton cruised to a 3-0 victory over Fulham. Artur Boruc was solid when called upon to earn the clean sheet. 9. Newcastle United (LW-8) It was a tough contest for Newcastle as they were well beaten 3-0 at the hands of Sunderland. Newcastle has just one win in their last six league contests. 10. Sunderland (LW-166) Fabio Borini, Adam Johnson and Jack Colback were all on target, the first from the penalty spot, as Sunderland dropped Newcastle 3-0.dddddddddddd 11. Aston Villa (LW-11) Leandro Bacunas first half marker was all Aston Villa could muster as they fell 2-1 to Everton. 12. West Bromwich Albion (LW-14) Victor Anichebe benefited from a Kolo Toure error to earn West Brom a 1-1 draw against Liverpool. Toure played the ball across his defence right into the path of Anichebe, who easily put home the equalizing marker. 13. Stoke City (LW-17) Charlie Adam scored on either side of halftime to lead Stoke to a 2-1 victory over Manchester United. His second marker came just five minutes after the champions had leveled the score. This was Stokes first Premier League victory over United. 14. Hull City (LW-15) After being held goalless and pointless through the month of January, Shane Long broke them out of their funk helping them earn a 1-1 draw against Tottenham. 15. Swansea City (LW-11) In what turned out to be Michael Laudrups final match at the helm of Swansea, they were defeated 2-0 by West Ham. On Tuesday, Laudrup was fired by the Welsh team almost a year after leading them to the 2013 League Cup, their first major trophy. 16. Norwich City (LW-12) Robert Snodgrass gave Norwich the lead after just five minutes but they were not able to hang on as they fell 2-1 to Cardiff City. 17. West Ham United (LW-18) An eventful contest saw West Ham earn a 2-0 victory over Swansea at Upton Park. A first half brace from Kevin Nolan provided the difference in the contest. In the second half Andy Carroll, who set up both goals, was sent off for an altercation with Chico Flores in the 59th minute. 18. Cardiff City (LW-19) After conceding the opening goal five minutes into the match, Kenwyne Jones and Craig Bellamy turned the game within a minute to earn Cardiff a 2-1 victory over Norwich City. The victory was Ole Gunnar Solskjaers first in charge of the Welsh side. 19. Crystal Palace (LW-13) Crystal Palace surrendered two goals in the second half as they fell 2-0 to Arsenal. Palace had trouble finding their rhythm in this contest. 20. Fulham (LW-20) A disastrous second half doomed Fulham to a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Southampton. Darren Bent was turned away twice with chances to get his side on the board. ' ' '