Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/31273
2B – Daily News – Tuesday, May 10, 2011 Champion Giants, runner- up Rangers hover near .500 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Ron Washington has raved about how his Texas Rangers never let a loss carry into the next day. Fresh slate, new chance. That approach worked so well for the reigning AL champions last season. More than a month into 2011, both the World Series champion San Francisco Giants and the run- ner-up Rangers have faced their share of challenges while hovering near the .500 mark. The Giants hope they’ve stead- ied themselves after a weekend sweep over first-place Colorado. The banged-up Rangers lost two of three at home to the New York Yankees. Neither manager expected his team to have it easy after remark- able runs last fall. Washington guided Texas to the franchise’s first World Series, Bruce Bochy and the Giants captured San Fran- cisco’s first championship since they moved West from New York in 1958. ‘‘The Texas Rangers don’t make excuses,’’ Washington said. ‘‘We get our butt whipped but we whip butt, too.’’ Both teams have dealt with injuries to key faces, most notably AL MVP Josh Hamilton and slug- ger Nelson Cruz of Texas and NL championship series MVP Cody Ross and majors’ saves leader Brian Wilson of the Giants. While Ross and Wilson returned, the Giants are still with- out center fielder Andres Torres but are expected to get him back when they open a three-game series against Arizona on Tuesday. San Francisco also had a heavy road schedule to start the season — including a stretch of 16 of 19 away from home — and a cluster of championship ceremonies and other season-opening festivities throughout April that Bochy admits took an emotional toll. Bochy never pretended it would be easy with the target on San Francisco’s back every day. ‘‘It’s early but it’s good to get a sweep,’’ Bochy said Sunday. ‘‘There’s so much baseball left. This is going to be a battle but we certainly helped our cause by coming in here and winning some ‘There’s so much baseball left. This is going to be a battle but we certainly helped our cause by coming in here and winning some games.’’ San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy games.’’ Hamilton broke his right shoul- der April 12 at Detroit when he tagged up and tried to score from third on a foul popup. Hamilton slid headfirst into the plate, and is expected to miss two months after the mad dash home. The All-Star outfielder was in good spirits a couple of weeks after getting hurt, wearing a T- shirt that showed the words ‘‘Don’t Get Bitter, Get Better’’ around a lemon. ‘‘That says it all,’’ Hamilton said, he said, pointing at his shirt. ‘‘Don’t feel sorry for yourself. ... It is what it is. Just do what you can to get better, as fast as you can. That’s it, (there’s) a lot of sea- son left.’’ Texas won only two of its first eight games following Hamilton’s injury. ‘‘What I’ve noticed is they’re not talking about who’s not here. It’s about who is here,’’ Washing- ton said. ‘‘When you start talking about what’s not here, that falls into the excuse category. Texas’ 16 April wins still tied the 1996 team for the third-most in club history — behind 1998 (18) and 1989 (17). Aside from Hamilton, the Rangers also were without closer Neftali Feliz because of right shoulder inflammation. Cruz went on the disabled list Saturday. ‘‘We’re a confident team,’’ third baseman Michael Young said. ‘‘We’ve done a really good job battling through some injuries and making sure we’re playing the game the way we want to play it. So in that sense I’m really happy with what we’ve done. Effort level is something I always judge our team on, and with this club it’s always off the charts.’’ The Giants brought back almost their entire odd band to try to make another run. But Wilson and Ross began the season on the DL, Torres went down early with a strained left Achilles’ tendon and the starting staff and bullpen that was so tough last fall has been inconsistent. The Giants’ top offensive pro- ducer last season, Aubrey Huff, has been slow to get going. His home run leading off the 10th last Tuesday night at New York snapped an 0-for-20 stretch that was part of a bigger 3-for-37 rut in which he drove in only one run. ‘‘You get in some of these slumps like this and you just try and stay positive as much as you can, especially in games like that,’’ Huff said. ‘‘Hopefully that gets me going.’’ Huff hit .290 with a team-lead- ing 26 home runs and 86 RBIs while playing in 157 games, then batted .268 with one homer and eight RBIs in the postseason as the Giants won their first title since 1954. He was rewarded with a $22 million, two-year contract only a couple of weeks after the World Series ended in five games at Texas. The Rangers began the year at 9-1 with a six-game winning streak out of the gates that includ- ed a season-opening three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox. Young and newcomer Adrian Beltre are already past the 20-RBI mark, though many of their team- mates are still finding their timing at the plate. The sample size — or number of at-bats — is still rela- tively small at this stage, though. ‘‘Those things even out as the season goes on,’’ Young said. ‘‘We’ve got a bunch of guys we know are going to have big years for us and they’re still waiting to get hot. When they do, and the offense starts running on all cylin- ders, we’re going to be in great shape.’’ Washington isn’t overly con- cerned, though he would like to see some more consistency in all facets. ‘‘They’re focused,’’ the skipper said. ‘‘That’s the way they play. I’m a lucky manager. I hope they keep doing that and keep me around.’’ Canucks beat Predators to advance to West finals NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Daniel Sedin and Mason Ray- mond scored first-period goals, and Roberto Luongo made 23 saves as the Vancouver Canucks beat the Nashville Predators 2-1 to advance to the Western Con- ference finals on Monday night. The Canucks, who had the NHL’s best record this season, reached the conference finals for the first time since 1994 and will face the winner of the series between the San Jose Sharks and Detroit Red Wings. Raymond gave Vancouver the HEAT (Continued from page 1B) totaled just seven. Miami won the first two games at home, but the Celtics responded when the series returned to Boston and clamped down on the Heat’s Big Three to win Game 3 97- 81. Garnett had his best game of the series, scoring 28 with 18 rebounds, but the star for Boston was Rondo. The Celtics point guard returned from a dislocated left elbow and provided his team with the spark it had been missing. There was some doubt about whether he would be ready for Game 4 — but not in Rondo’s mind. An MRI and CT scan on the day off were both nega- tive, and Rondo was back in the lineup. NHL PLAYOFFS Conference Semifinals Monday’s results Vancouver 2, Nashville 1 Vancouver wins series 4-2 Today’s game San Jose at Detroit, 5 p.m.,VS San Jose leads series 3-2 Other series Boston beat Philadelphia 4-0 Tampa Bay beat Washington 4-0 lead 7:45 into the game and Sedin made it 2-0 just 1:43 later. Luongo did the rest for the Canucks, who were outshot 24- 19. Vancouver recorded only nine total shots in the first two periods. David Legwand’s goal 3:31 into the second period cut Van- couver’s lead to 2-1, but the Predators couldn’t avoid elimi- nation again and force a Game 7. After grabbing the early lead, the Canucks put the game away with defense. Nashville had 11 shots in the first period, but only Instead, it was Spoelstra shuffling his lineup, activat- ing Udonis Haslem for the first time since November foot surgery and rewarding Joel Anthony for his play in the early games with his first start of the playoffs. Haslem made just one appearance in the first three quarters, playing 3 minutes and picking up an offensive foul, a loose-ball foul and a technical foul. But the Big Three was back. The Heat went on a 10-2 run in the third quarter to take a 63-59 lead. It was a three-point game when Allen hit a 3-pointer and Boston scored 11 straight points to take a 73-65 lead before Miami scored the last two baskets — on layups by Anthony and James — to end the third quarter trailing by four. NBA PLAYOFFS Conference Semifinals Friday’s results Miami 98, Boston 90, OT Miami leads series 3-1 Oklahoma City at Memphis, late Memphis leads series 2-1 Today’s game Atlanta at Chicago, 5 p.m., TNT Series tied 2-2 Other series Dallas beat L.A. Lakers 4-0 13 over the final 40 minutes. The Canucks got some help to get their offense rolling as Predators defenseman Ryan Suter turned over the puck to Ryan Kesler right next to the net. Kesler passed to Raymond, who backhanded a shot past goalie Pekka Rinne. Sedin doubled the lead while Nashville forward Jordin Tootoo served an unsportsmanlike con- duct penalty for diving, after he was hit by Alex Edler. Sedin connected just 36 seconds into the power play. Notes: Miami had zero assists in the second quarter, and just eight through three. ... Boston activated point guard Carlos Arroyo in case Rondo’s elbow and West’s shoulder became a problem. He did not get into the game. ... Jermaine O’Neal was called for a flagrant foul on James in the first five min- utes, perhaps an attempt by the officials to make sure MLS WESTERN CONFERENCE WL T Pts GF GA Galaxy 4 2 4 16 12 10 Salt Lake 5 1 0 15 9 2 Portland 4 3 1 13 11 13 Colorado 4 3 2 14 11 9 Seattle 3 3 4 13 12 10 FC Dallas 3 3 2 11 10 10 Chivas USA 2 3 3 9 8 7 Vancouver 1 4 4 7 11 14 QUAKES 14 2 5 6 10 EASTERN CONFERENCE WL T Pts GF GA New York 4 1 3 15 11 3 Columbus 3 1 4 13 8 6 Philadelphia 4 2 1 13 5 3 Houston 3 3 3 12 13 10 D.C. 3 4 2 11 12 17 N. England 2 3 4 10 8 12 Toronto FC 2 3 4 10 9 14 Chicago 1 3 4 7 10 13 Kansas City 1 4 1 4 10 13 NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie. ————————————————— Friday’s result Portland 1, Philadelphia 0 Saturday’s results Real Salt Lake 1, Chivas USA 0 Toronto FC 2, Houston 1 Chicago 0, Vancouver 0, tie Columbus 1, Seattle FC 1, tie D.C. United 0, FC Dallas 0, tie Los Angeles 1, New York 1, tie New England 0, Colorado 0, tie things didn’t get nasty after Saturday night’s takedown in which Rondo was injured. MLB West Division Texas American League WL Pct GB Angels 20 15 .571 — A’s Seattle 16 19 .457 4 East Division WL Pct GB New York 19 13 .594 — Tampa Bay 20 14 .588 — Boston 17 18 .486 3.5 Toronto 15 20 .429 5.5 Baltimore 14 19 .424 5.5 Central Division WL Pct GB Cleveland 22 11 .667 — Kansas City18 16 .529 4.5 Detroit 18 18 .500 5.5 Chicago 13 22 .371 10 Minnesota 12 21 .364 10 ————————————————— Monday’s results Oakland 7,Texas 2 Detroit 10, Toronto 5 Boston 2, Minnesota 1, 11 innings Chicago at Los Angeles, late Today’s games Oakland (Anderson 2-2) at Texas (C.Lewis 2-4), 5:05 p.m.,CSNC Kansas City (Davies 1-4) at New York (F.Garcia 1-2), 4:05 p.m. Seattle (Pineda 4-2) at Baltimore (Arrieta 4-1), 4:05 p.m. Tampa Bay (Sonnanstine 0-0) at Cleveland (Tomlin 4-1), 4:05 p.m. Boston (Lester 4-1) at Toronto (Drabek 2-2), 4:07 p.m. Detroit (Porcello 2-2) at Minnesota (Liriano 2-4), 5:10 p.m. Chicago (Danks 0-5) at Los Angeles (Pineiro 1-0), 7:05 p.m. Wednesday’s games Oakland at Texas, 11:05 a.m. Detroit at Minnesota, 10:10 a.m. Kansas City at New York, 4:05 p.m. Seattle at Baltimore, 4:05 p.m. Tampa Bay at Cleveland, 4:05 p.m. Boston at Toronto, 4:07 p.m. Chicago at Los Angeles, 7:05 p.m. 19 17 .528 1.5 18 18 .500 2.5 Red Wings’ Babcock eyes a Game 7 against Sharks ROMULUS, Mich. (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings are confident they will beat the San Jose Sharks for a third straight time and force a Game 7. The Red Wings arrived home Monday after avoiding elimination in San Jose, and Detroit coach Mike Babcock was asked if he hoped to get back on the team plane one more time. ‘‘We’re getting on it,’’ Babcock said. The Red Wings must beat the Sharks on Tuesday night in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinal series to make a trip back to San Jose necessary on Thursday. Detroit general manager Ken Holland seemed to like Babcock’s boast. ‘‘That’s what’s got us to this point,’’ Holland said. ‘‘When we were down 3-0, nobody wanted to go home. ‘‘We plan to be flying back for Game 7.’’ The Sharks, of course, want to force the Red Wings to make other plans. ‘‘You try to eliminate teams when you have a chance to,’’ San Jose forward Joe Thornton said. ‘‘So we’re going to go in there and try to eliminate them. That’s the game plan.’’ San Jose’s chances to end Detroit’s comeback will prob- ably improve if Patrick Marleau and Thornton, its top two scorers during the regular season, lead the way. Marleau is pointless through five games and Thornton has been held to a one assist since the Sharks surged to a 3- 0 series lead in the second-round rematch. Former Sharks player and current analyst Jeremy Roenick called Marleau ‘‘gutless’’ on national television after Game 5, but Marleau refused to fire back. ‘‘I can’t control what people say or anything like that,’’ Marleau said. Marleau, who had two goals and five points in the first round against Los Angeles, defended his play against Detroit. ‘‘I think I’ve done some really good things,’’ he said ‘‘They haven’t showed up on the score sheet, but there’s another game to play.’’ The Red Wings hope there are two more games, giving them an opportunity to do something for the first time in their storied history. Detroit has never won a series after losing the first three games, but only three NHL teams have: Philadelphia last year, the New York Islanders in 1975, and Toronto in 1942. The defending champion Chicago Blackhawks won three straight to force a Game 7 in Vancouver in the first round this year, but then lost to the top-seeded Canucks. The second-seeded Sharks and third-seeded Red Wings have combined for an entertaining, highly competitive series in which the difference in each game has been one goal. San Jose has lost the past two games 4-3, blowing a 3-1 lead at home in the third period on Sunday night after rally- ing to win Game 3 in overtime in Detroit. ‘‘It was tough to go to bed (Sunday) night knowing we gave one away, but it’s a new day,’’ Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle said Monday morning, when the team flew from San Jose into gloomy skies. ‘‘I guess you have to try to be posi- tive and look ahead, and that’s what we’re going to do.’’ The Red Wings might have to do something they hadn’t planned on, putting veteran forward Mike Modano in the lineup because Johan Franzen reinjured his left ankle in Game 5. Babcock said Modano will be on the ice if Franzen can’t play. ‘‘Modano is chomping at the bit,’’ Holland said. Pavel Datsyuk wouldn’t acknowledge if he aggravated his right wrist that was broken in December. The Russian only said that he is looking forward to getting back on the Red Wings’ plane for Game 7. ‘‘Have good seats,’’ Datsyuk said. A’s (Continued from page 1B) scored Crisp and Barton, and the right-hander left with the bases loaded. Mark Ellis then hit a deep sacrifice fly to left off Brett Tomko. Since starting the season 9-1, the defending AL cham- pion Rangers (18-18) have lost 17 of 26 games. They have slipped to third place in the AL West. The A’s (19-17), who won three of four at home MLB West Division National League WL Pct GB Colorado 19 14 .576 — GIANTS 18 16 .529 1.5 Arizona 15 18 .455 4 Dodgers 16 20 .444 4.5 Padres 14 21 .400 6 East Division WL Pct GB Philadelphia 23 11 .676 — Florida 20 14 .588 3 Atlanta 20 16 .556 4 Washington 16 18 .471 7 New York 15 20 .429 8.5 Central Division WL Pct GB St. Louis 20 15 .571 — Cincinnati 19 16 .543 1 Pittsburgh 18 17 .514 2 Chicago 15 18 .455 4 Milwaukee 15 20 .429 5 Houston 13 22 .371 7 ————————————————— Monday’s results Cincinnati 6, Houston 1 Colorado 2, New York 1 Milwaukee 4, San Diego 3 Philadelphia 6, Florida 4 Pittsburgh 4, Los Angeles 1 Today’s games Arizona (I.Kennedy 3-1) at S.F.(Lincecum 3-3),7:15 p.m.,CSNB Los Angeles (Lilly 2-3) at Pittsburgh (Correia 5-2), 4:05 p.m. Philadelphia (Halladay 5-1) at Florida (Jo.Johnson 3-1), 4:10 p.m. Washington (Marquis 3-1) at Atlanta (T.Hudson 4-2), 4:10 p.m. Cincinnati (Bailey 1-0) at Houston (Myers 1-2), 5:05 p.m., MLBN St. Louis (Carpenter 0-2) at Chicago (Zambrano 4-1), 5:05 p.m., WGN San Diego (Richard 1-3) at Milwaukee (Marcum 3-1), 5:10 p.m. New York (Pelfrey 2-3) at Colorado (Hammel 3-1), 5:40 p.m. Wednesday’s games Arizona at San Francisco, 7:15 p.m. San Diego at Milwaukee, 10:10 a.m. Cincinnati at Houston, 11:05 a.m. New York at Colorado, 12:10 p.m. Los Angeles at Pittsburgh, 4:05 p.m. Philadelphia at Florida, 4:10 p.m. Washington at Atlanta, 4:10 p.m. St. Louis at Chicago, 5:05 p.m. against Texas last week, are alone in second place behind the Angels. The Rangers added an unearned run in the eighth on a throwing error by right fielder Conor Jackson, who missed the cutoff man after Michael Young’s single. Oakland third baseman Andy LaRoche made a nice barehanded snag of Elvis Andrus’ slow chopper in the third, but his throw was nowhere near first base — and instead went into the Rangers dugout on the fly. NASCAR Spring Cup Points Leaders 1. Carl Edwards 2. Jimmie Johnson 3. Kyle Busch 4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 5. Kevin Harvick 6. Ryan Newman 7. Tony Stewart 8. Kurt Busch 9. Clint Bowyer 10. Matt Kenseth 11. A J Allmendinger 12. Greg Biffle 378 355 339 331 328 317 313 306 297 295 287 286 13. Juan Pablo Montoya 283 14. Mark Martin 15. Kasey Kahne 16. Denny Hamlin 17. Jeff Gordon 18. Paul Menard 19. David Ragan 20. Martin Truex Jr. 21. Jamie McMurray 22. Marcos Ambrose 23. Bobby Labonte 24. Jeff Burton 25. Joey Logano 26. Brad Keselowski 27. Regan Smith 28. David Reutimann 29. Brian Vickers 30. David Gilliland 31. Dave Blaney 32. Casey Mears 33. Robby Gordon 34. Andy Lally 35. Bill Elliott 36. Tony Raines 37. Ken Schrader 38. Terry Labonte 39. J.J.Yeley 40. Michael McDowell 41. Michael Waltrip 42. David Stremme 43. Brian Keselowski 44. Steve Park 281 278 276 272 271 254 245 243 240 225 225 221 220 216 215 199 180 156 147 144 116 100 100 73 40 32 30 20 13 3 2 Upcoming Schedule May 15 — FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks, Dover, Del. May 21 — x-Sprint Showdown, Con- cord, N.C. May 21 — x-NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Concord, N.C. May 29 — Coca-Cola 600, Concord, N.C. June 5 — STP 400, Kansas City, Kan. x = non-points race San Jose Sharks San Francisco Giants