Its tough enough for the Blue Jays to be playing in the American League East to get even a sniff of the postseason. Adidas Superstar Supercolor Blauw . Then youve got to worry about the other up and coming teams in the two weaker divisions in the "Junior Circuit". If you had to peg one team whom the Blue Jays will have to reckon with in 2014, it would be Kansas City. The Royals finished with an 86-76 record a year ago and missed the playoffs. However that record was 12 games better than the Jays 74-88. One bad month really cost KC a spot in the playoffs a year ago. They went 8-20 in May. Every other month, they were over .500 including 17-10 in September. Kansas City scuffled a bit to score runs in 2013 averaging four per game, but the Blue Jays werent all that much better at 4.40 runs per game. The big difference was in runs allowed by the starting rotation and the bullpen. The Royals starters had an ERA of 3.87 to the Blue Jays 4.81 which was well above the American League average of 4.17. As highly touted as the Blue Jays bullpen was, its ERA of 3.37 was no match for the Royals 2.55. This is in part because of the Royals spacier ballpark, but KC only gave up 155 home runs over the course of the season to the Jays ugly total of 195. If you want to talk team speed, the Blue Jays stole 112 bases, which was better than the league average of 95, but the Royals were even better swiping 153. You could argue the Royals will be even better in 2014. Although they lost Ervin Santana as a free agent, they added durable lefty and former Angel Jason Vargas to plug into the rotation. They also have an elite closer in Greg Holland who saved 47 out of 50 a year ago and a workhorse starter to lead the rotation in James Shields, who through 228.2 innings last season. The Royals also upgraded at second base and right field. They filled a major hole at the keystone by signing former Tiger Omar Infante to a four-year deal worth $30.25 million and traded for speedy right fielder Norichika Aoki, who will take over as their leadoff hitter. KCs secret weapon might just be 22-year-old right-hander Yordano Ventura. Though only 511", he throws consistantly in high 90s and has been known to hit between 100 and 102mph on occasion. Hes already earned a spot in skipper Ned Yosts rotation and is being touted as one of the top candidates for rookie of the year. Since Pittsburgh made the playoffs last season, Kansas City and the Blue Jays are the two teams that have gone the longest between post-season appearances. The Royals havent made it since they won the World Series over St. Louis in 1985. The Blue Jays of course, havent made it since winning their second straight World Series in 1993. The Blue Jays play the Royals seven times this season, from April 29 through May 1 in Missouri and then back in Toronto from May 29 through June 1. Those are seven games of their first 58 that could well prove whether the Jays are good enough to contend for a Wild Card spot, or which team of these two will wind up with the longest postseason drought when the 2014 season is all said and done. Around Spring Training Injuries turned right-hander Josh Johnson into arguably the biggest disappointment of the Blue Jays season a year ago. Unfortunately his luck hasnt changed much in San Diego. The 30-year-old right-hander is going to be out 4-to-5 weeks with a strained right forearm. Tough blow for the Texas Rangers. Their young second baseman Jurickson Profar is out 10 to 12 weeks with a slight muscle tear in his right shoulder. Profar was expected to shoulder the load at second since Ian Kinsler was dealt to Detroit as part of the Prince Fielder deal. Profar hasnt proven himself as a big league hitter yet, but his glove and arm are world class. Yes, its only spring training, but the Yankees have got to be a bit concerned that Derek Jeter is only hitting .114 and Mark Teixiera only .120. Great to see David Ortiz is probably going to end his career in Boston. After all hes been pretty much the face of the franchise for the last 10 years. Ortiz agreed over the weekend to a one-year, $15 million extension for 2015. He also has a vesting option for 2016 and there is a club option for 2017 by which time Ortiz will be 42 years old. Erik Bedard is looking for new gig. The 35-year-old southpaw and native of Navan, Ontario opted out of his deal with Tampa Bay after the fifth starters job went to 24-year-old Jake Odorizzi. Bedard just didnt want to go back to Triple-A at this stage of his career. Experienced Help We mentioned a couple of articles ago that a former Blue Jays third baseman, Roy Howell, was managing in Triple-A this season at Tacoma. Now another Ex-Jay, Tom Lawless, has taken over as interim manager at Oklahoma City in the Pacific Coast League. Lawless will be filling in for Ton DeFrancesco who was diagnosed with cancer while working in the parent Astros camp this spring. DeFrancescos cancer was caught early enough that he is expected to make a full recovery. Adidas Stan Smith Blauw . However, one Opening Day position remains unclaimed. The battle for Left Field remains heated through the third week of camp with Eric Thames and Travis Snider battling it out for the teams one available outfield job. Thames appeared to enter the spring with the edge, often taking the field and running drills with projected starters Jose Bautista and Colby Rasmus in the early going as well as suiting up with the pair to start the teams spring opener on Mar. Adidas Superstar Supercolor Roze . The Canadiens fell short in Game 4 with Matt Fraser scoring the 1-0 overtime goal to tie this series, but arent hanging their heads from yesterdays loss. "Im pleased with our team effort. FRANKFURT, Germany -- Bayern Munich warmed up for its Champions League semifinal against Real Madrid with a 5-2 win over Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Bayern trailed twice but scored three goals in a seven-minute span in the second half to put the match away. Franck Ribery scored and played a role in two other goals as his form finally improved ahead of Tuesdays match against Madrid, which holds a 1-0 lead from the home leg. Claudio Pizarro scored twice for Bayern against his former club. "We conceded two counter goals and we cant let it happen on Tuesday," Pizarro said. "Perhaps its better not to score so many if we give away fewer." Bayer Leverkusen drew 2-2 at home with Borussia Dortmund and failed to consolidate a place in Champions League qualifying. Leverkusen was only one point ahead of Wolfsburg. Dortmund remained second and was sure to play in the Champions League next season. Wolfsburgs mood was dampened by a 2-2 draw against Freiburg at home. Bottom clubs Nuremberg and Eintracht Braunschweig both lost, which means they can avoid relegation only by reaching the playoff spot at the expense of Hamburger SV, which plays on Sunday in Augsburg. There are two rounds left. Hamburg has a match in hand and could escape from the playoff spot. Nuremberg lost 2-0 in Mainz, Braunschweig went down 2-0 at Hertha Berlin, and Hoffenheim and Eintracht Frankfurt drew 0-0. Bayerns players wore black armbands and a minute of silence was observed before kickoff in honour of former Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova, who died on Friday. Bayern also expressed condolences, in German and Catalan, on its website. Before becoming head coach, Vilanova was the assistant of Pep Guardiola, who is now the Bayern coach. "We experienced a lot together. We lost together and won together. This is a very difficult situation," Guardiola said. "The sadness will accompany me forever." Guardiola said he was disappointed with his players for the first time this season after their performance in the first half. "The fans dont deserve to see such a first half. In the second, it was better," he ssaid. Adidas Zx 700 Blauw. "But the win is good for our mood." Guardiola, wearing a dark blue sweater instead of his customary suit, left several regulars on the bench and saw his team get off to a slow start and fall behind after 10 minutes. Cedrick Makiadi led a counterattack and sent a perfect pass to Theodor Gebre Selassie, who slotted past Manuel Neuer. Ribery got the equalizer 10 minutes later. Pizarro got a loose ball and sent a through pass to Ribery, who shot through the legs of Bremen goalkeeper Raphael Wolf. Aaron Hunt made it 2-1 with Bremens second chance. Franco Di Santo crossed long to the opposite side, Hunt easily faked Jerome Boateng, and slotted inside the far post. Bayerns comeback began in the 54th with a corner from Ribery. Thomas Mueller headed down to the far post, where Pizarro sidefooted the ball in. Three minutes later, Ribery gave a no-look pass to David Alaba, whose short feed found Pizarro unchallenged and the striker slid to knock the ball home. In the 61st, Philipp Lahm crossed from the right and Bastian Schweinsteiger rose to send a powerful header into the roof of the net. Arjen Robben scored in the 74th in his first possession after coming off the bench. Robben cut inside from the right in his trademark move and drove home with his left foot, finding the low corner as Bremen fell to its seventh straight Bundesliga defeat to Bayern. Bayern has already clinched the Bundesliga title and is seeking to become the only club to win the Champions League twice in a row. While its attacking game fell into place after the break, Bayerns defence struggled against the fast break. Bayern has conceded eight goals in its last three Bundesliga matches at home. Lars Bender put Leverkusen ahead with a seventh-minute header after Stefan Kiesslings header bounced off the crossbar. Oliver Kirch headed in the equalizer after Marco Reus cross in the 29th, but Dortmund fell behind again in the 35th with Gonzalo Castros header. Only four minutes later, Reus converted a penalty for the final score. Kiessling, Leverkusens top scorer, limped off the field late with a suspected hamstring injury. wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap soccer jerseys wholesale jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap nfl jerseys china ' ' '