Hard und Software » unding their way to the next round?

New Zealand scrum-half Aaron Smith has made an emotional apology after he was suspended for Saturdays Test against South Africa.Smith was stood down for the match against the Boks after he was seen entering a Christchurch Airport toilet with a woman last month. Smith has now returned home from South Africa to be with his partner,?Teagan.Ive made a huge mistake, a huge error in judgement, Smith said at the team hotel. I would firstly like to say a huge sorry to my partner Teagan, her family, my family.Im also sorry to my teammates, NZRU and the New Zealand fans. My behaviour was unacceptable.Smith came close to breaking down as he added: If you could respect me and my partner in this situation - Im just trying to get home to deal with this. Wholesale Shoes Black Friday Free Shipping . Note: The Calgary Flames announced Tuesday that Sean Monahan would not be made available to Canadas World Junior team. Cheap Shoes Black Friday . It was the kind of score that might make everyone else wonder which course he was playing. Except that Graeme McDowell saw the whole thing. Crouched behind the 10th green at Sheshan International, McDowell looked over at the powerful American and said, "Ive probably seen 18 of the best drives Ive seen all year in the last two days. https://www.cheapshoesblackfriday.com/ . That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. Discount Shoes Black Friday . Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The match was similar to Isners quarterfinal victory over fifth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber which went to three sets, all tiebreaks and contained no breaks of serve. China Shoes Black Friday . The Celtics closed out their first preseason under Stevens on Wednesday night with a 101-97 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, who rested a lot of their lineup including former Celtics Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. Its always fun and entertaining when two teams that have played 19 times during the regular season and have had a combustible relationship for years meet in a winner-take-all game to start the postseason.The Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays arrived at this American League wild-card game in distinctly different ways. In spring training, most thought Toronto would win the American League East, and even more thought the Orioles had little or no chance to make the playoffs. The end result: Both teams clinched a wild card on the final day of the season.Here are five questions.Who gets the edge in starting pitching?The Blue Jays have options; over the past 20 games, they have a 2.04 starters ERA and a .197 batting average against (both tops in the major leagues in that time span). Their best pitcher, Aaron Sanchez (the AL ERA champion at 3.00), started Sunday; their 20-game winner, J.A. Happ, started Saturday; and Marco Estrada, who has had success against the Orioles this year, would have had to go on three days rest. They could have chosen Francisco Liriano, who threw 6? scoreless innings with one walk and 10 strikeouts against the Orioles in his last start. But they chose to go with Marcus Stroman, who pitched in the postseason last year, is fully rested and brings tremendous energy to the mound. But he had a 7.04 ERA in 23 innings against the Orioles this season.For the Orioles, their hottest pitcher has been Ubaldo Jimenez, who was in danger of being released midseason but has a 2.45 ERA in his past seven starts. And in his most recent start, he threw 6? scoreless innings in Toronto. But the Orioles will start Chris Tillman on full rest. He is the closest thing they have to an ace, certainly not when it comes to stuff, but with experience and track record. He went 16-6 this year but had a 4.45 ERA the second half of the season, in part because he had a shoulder issue. That doesnt appear to be an issue now.Who has the advantage in the bullpen?The Orioles Zach Britton has more than an outside chance to win the AL Cy Young Award. He finished the season with an 0.54 ERA, saved 47 games in 47 tries and is, according to the Red Soxs David Ortiz, impossible to hit. That power sinker, or whatever we call it, has emerged as the pitch most difficult to center, and he gives the Orioles something the Jays -- and most teams -- dont have: certainty in the ninth inning. Plus, Britton is surrounded by quality arms, including?Mychal Givens, Brad Brach, Donnie Hart and?Darren ODay.Torontos pen is very good, but the uncertainty of setup man Joaquin Benoits status (injured running to a brawl against the Yankees) might mean even more work for 21-year-old closer Roberto Osuna. His 56 career saves are the most ever by a pitcher before age 22, and his stuff is sensational, but he stumbled a few times down the stretch.dddddddddddd Yet when the Blue Jays needed him most, he pitched two scoreless innings on Saturday in Boston, and then saved the wild-card clincher Sunday by protecting a one-run lead.What do we make of Torontos offense?The Jays, who are supposed to be a really good offensive team, finished last in the major leagues in runs per game (3.7) in September and October. That is not explainable, except for the fact that this team usually goes as third baseman Josh Donaldson goes; he went 20-for-90 with 25 strikeouts and seven RBIs after August. The Jays became only the third team ever to make it to the postseason after being last in the majors in runs per game in September and October (the 2012 Reds and 1974 As were the others). Despite the Jays struggles, they seem capable of scoring 10 on any given night. And to add to that, this could be the final game in a Blue Jays uniform for Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion, who tied with Ortiz for the AL lead in RBIs this season. Gone without a sound, or pounding their way to the next round?Can the Orioles offense be contained?The Orioles hit 253 home runs this season, easily the most in the major leagues, and the fifth-highest total in history. In the wild-card era (1995-on), the 2009 Yankees are the only team to lead the majors in home runs and go to the World Series. In the division era (1969-on), add the 1976 Reds, the 1983 Orioles and the 1984 Tigers to that list. The Orioles dont manufacture runs; they dont run; they strike out a lot; and they are a classic all-or-nothing team offensively. But they are extremely dangerous 1-9 in the order. The Orioles have, however, sacrificed some offense by using Michael Bourn in right field recently and using Mark Trumbo as the DH. It has greatly improved their defense, and Bourn has gotten some big hits.How much does home field help the Blue Jays?Home-field advantage in baseball is important, but not like it is in other sports. Still, the Blue Jays are 46-35 at home this season, and the Orioles were 50-31 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. The Rogers Centre has become a very difficult place to play for visiting teams; it has become one of the wildest venues in the game. But the Orioles have been so resilient, bouncing back from all sorts of adversity. Baltimore has lost six of 10 in Toronto this year, but the series has been tight -- the Jays won 10 of 19 and there were seven one-run games. Look for the same here.Blue Jays win. ' ' '