Dein erstes Forum » urdays win over Michigan, and Baylor was ranked sixth

TORONTO -- J.A. Happ changed his mindset Thursday night after giving up seven earned runs in his previous appearance. The Toronto left-hander decided to pitch "a little angry" against Chicago and it led to his best start of the season. Happ, who had a season-high eight strikeouts over 7 2/3 innings, combined with two relievers on a four-hit shutout as the Blue Jays blanked the White Sox 7-0 to kick off a four-game series. "He had that good life on his fastball and you could see them swinging through some pitches," said Toronto manager John Gibbons. "Thats when you know hes on." It was a strong bounceback performance by Happ after he lasted just four innings in an 8-0 loss to Cincinnati last week. He originally planned to forget about that start, but it was on his mind as he took the mound on a glorious summer evening at Rogers Centre. "I did pitch a little upset, a little angry tonight at myself," Happ said. "So that helped just trying to be in the zone, trying not to let those kind of games happen (again)." Happ walked a pair and threw 79 of his 124 pitches for strikes. Dustin McGowan and Chad Jenkins completed the shutout as Toronto (45-36) moved two games ahead of the idle Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. It capped an impressive first half of the season for the Blue Jays, who lead the American League with 35 victories from their starters. "Weve played some good baseball and really we deserve to be where were at, to tell you the truth," Gibbons said. Jose Reyes had four hits and Adam Lind drove in three runs as Toronto outhit Chicago 12-4. The stumbling White Sox (36-44) have lost seven of their last eight games and dropped 10 of 11 on the road. "That game just smelled right from the start," said Chicago manager Robin Ventura. "We didnt play very well, didnt hit very well, didnt play defence very well and it showed." The Blue Jays gave Happ an early lead after Reyes and Cabrera reached on back-to-back infield singles in the first inning off Scott Carroll (2-4). Lind drove a ball into the right-field corner that easily scored Reyes from second base. The throw from former Blue Jays outfielder Moises Sierra was between home plate and third base, allowing Cabrera to score on the error. Reyes tripled in the second inning to bring home Juan Francisco, who reached on a walk. Reyes drove the ball off the top of the wall in right-centre field and it bounced high in the air and back onto the field. The play was reviewed to see if it should have been a home run but the call was upheld. Toronto started to pull away in the fourth inning as Lind drove in Reyes and Anthony Gose with a single. Lind finished with three hits to bump his average up to .342. "Against right-handed pitchers, I mean whos been better in baseball, really?" Gibbons said. "I dont think anybody has. Lind really fits that three-hole mode. Hes got great discipline, hes kind of a pure hitter." Dioner Navarro put a charge into the crowd of 23,248 in the fifth when he hit a drive to the warning track in left-centre field. Left-fielder Dayan Viciedo flubbed the catch attempt and centre-fielder Leury Garcias throw to second base was wide. Navarro ran to third when the ball rolled into foul territory and actually got the wave home -- a stunning decision by third-base coach Luis Rivera given that the Toronto catcher is probably the slowest player on the team. Abreu threw the ball home in plenty of time for Adrian Nieto to apply the tag. Gibbons joked that Navarro might not be able to play for two weeks now after that long run around the bases. "Ill kill Luis if he sends me again, but Im ready to play tomorrow," Navarro said with a laugh. Carroll gave up nine hits, five earned runs and two walks over five innings. He had four strikeouts. Notes: White Sox centre-fielder Adam Eaton left the game in the first inning due to cramping in his left leg. He was replaced by Garcia. ... Steve Tolleson replaced Francisco at third base in the seventh inning. Tolleson had been bothered by blurry vision of late but the problem was corrected after a visit to the eye doctor earlier in the day. ... Tolleson was called out on a close play at first base in the eighth inning. After a long review of nearly 3 1/2 minutes, the call stood. ... Jose Abreu singled in the sixth inning to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. ... The game took exactly three hours to play. ... Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista continues to make progress in his recovery from a mild hamstring strain. Theres a chance he could return to the lineup on the weekend. ... Toronto has held sole possession of first place for 35 straight days. ... Before the game, the White Sox designated former Blue Jays left-hander Scott Downs for assignment and recalled southpaw Eric Surkamp from triple-A Charlotte. ... Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey (6-6, 4.04 ERA) is scheduled to start Friday night against Chicagos John Danks (6-6, 4.34). ... The Blue Jays get an off-day Monday before closing out their nine-game homestand with a two-game mini-series against the Milwaukee Brewers. Clearance Nike Vapormax Online Cheapest Nike Vapormax . -- Former Penn State coach Joe Paterno was admitted to the hospital Friday for observation due to minor complications from cancer treatments, his family said. http://www.cheapvapormax.us/.com) - Ben Lovejoy tallied a goal and an assist as the Anaheim Ducks cruised into the All-Star break with a 6-3 victory against the Calgary Flames. Wholesale Nike Vapormax . - While he appreciates suggestions from Packers fans of remedies for his sore left calf, Aaron Rodgers is not necessarily going to listen to the advice. Wholesale Nike Vapormax Free Shipping . Marcus Olsson, 23, joins Blackburn on a free transfer from Swedens Halmstads. He made 139 appearances and scored 17 goals in his four years with the club. He earned his first caps for Sweden this month, featuring against Bahrain and Qatar.Grapevine, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - TCU returned to the top four in the College Football Playoff rankings on Tuesday, moving up two spots to No. 3 ahead of reigning national champion Florida State. Alabama was No. 1 for the third week in a row after beating Auburn in the highest-scoring Iron Bowl in history and Oregon was No. 2 for the fourth week running. The Crimson Tide (11-1) will face Missouri in Saturdays SEC championship game while the Ducks (11-1) are getting ready for Fridays Pac-12 title game against Arizona, which is No. 7 in this weeks poll. TCU, after routing Texas by 38 points for its sixth consecutive win, returned to the top four for the first time in three weeks with its highest ranking in the poll to date. The Horned Frogs (10-1) face Iowa State on Saturday in their final regular season game. After being ranked No. 3 for three weeks in a row, Florida State fell one spot in the poll despite being the only remaining unbeaten FBS team. The Seminoles (12-0) play Georgia Tech on Saturday for the ACC championship. Ohio State moved up one spot to No. 5 despite losinng Heisman Trophy hopeful J.ddddddddddddT. Barrett to a broken ankle during Saturdays win over Michigan, and Baylor was ranked sixth this week. Ohio State (11-1) faces Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday and Baylor (10-1), which beat TCU in October, plays Kansas State. The selection committee will meet one more time this weekend before announcing the final standings on Sunday. The top four teams in the final rankings will play in the national semifinals on Jan. 1. The winners of the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl on New Years Day will move on to the national championship game on Jan. 12 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The playoff system replaced the oft-criticized BCS, which was in place from 1998 until last season. Michigan State, Kansas State and former CFP No. 1 Mississippi rounded out the top 10 on Tuesday. Mississippi State tumbled six places from No. 4 last week after losing to Ole Miss. Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Wisconsin, Georgia, UCLA, Missouri, Arizona State, Clemson, Auburn, Oklahoma, Louisville, Boise State, Utah, LSU and USC rounded out the top 25. ' ' '