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MINNEAPOLIS -- Danny Duffy will try and get back on track after two straight rough outings when the Kansas City Royals and Minnesota Twins play the final game of a three-game series on Wednesday night at Target Field.In the midst of a career season, Duffy has struggled each of his past two turns on the mound, allowing a total of 11 runs in 10 2/3 innings of work against the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers. Prior to that, the left-hander had allowed just nine runs in his previous seven starts.Included in that run was 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball against the Twins at Kauffman Stadium on Aug. 21, when he scattered eight hits and walked two but earned his 11th win.The game has major postseason implications for the defending world champions, who have won the first two games of the series and are playing the third game of a 14-game stretch against teams under .500. If Kansas City is to get back into playoff positioning, this could be their final opportunity to go on a sustained run.In that vein, the Royals were able to avoid using the back end of their bullpen once again, thanks to a seven-run ninth inning on Tuesday in a 10-3 win.We were trying to keep (closer) Wade (Davis) out of the game, said Royals manager Ned Yost. Weve really pounded our back-end relievers the last two weeks. Every opportunity to give them an extra day is always huge.Minnesota got another home run from second baseman Brian Dozier on Tuesday, whose incredible August has carried right into September.It was the fifth straight game with at least one home run for Dozier, tying the franchise record shared by Harmon Killebrew and Marty Cordova. It was his 25th blast since the All-Star break and seventh this month.Its kind of like a video game, said Twins manager Paul Molitor. Just impressive to watch.The Twins will send right-hander Kyle Gibson to the bump looking to build on Ervin Santanas solid outing on Tuesday. Santana allowed three runs over six-plus innings of work, giving the Twins a rare quality start over the last month. Minnesota pitchers have allowed at least eight runs in 12 of its last 19 games and 15 times in the last 26.Gibson has been a big part of that, allowing at least five runs in four of his last seven starts since the beginning of August and giving up fewer than three just once during that stretch; that start lasted just five innings, however.The right-hander allowed six runs, five of them earned, on 10 hits and two walks in a loss to the Royals at Target Field on Aug. 12 but has historically fared well against Kansas City, posting a 5-4 record with a 3.10 ERA in nine career starts against them.Authentic Chukwuma Okorafor Jersey . Still, Brewers manager Ron Roenicke thought taking him out before the fifth inning was an unusual move. "Im looking up at the board and hes got two hits given up and one run, and Im taking him out after the fourth inning," Roenicke said. Authentic Terrell Edmunds Jersey . Two pressure cooker bombs exploded near the finish line of the April 15 race in an area packed with fans cheering the passing runners. Three people were killed and more than 260 injured, including at least 16 who lost limbs. http://www.cheapsteelersjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-jaylen-samuels-jersey .Gather a group of friends, or find a league to join online, draft your team, set your lineup and compete in a number of different formats. Authentic James Washington Jersey .Y. -- Marcell Dareus and the Buffalo Bills defence made life miserable for Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. Cheap Hines Ward Jersey . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration.SAN ANTONIO -- The San Antonio Spurs responded to their most successful regular season in franchise history with the greatest turnover in Gregg Popovichs two decades with the team.Tim Duncans retirement played a large role in the reconstruction, but so did losing in six games to Oklahoma City in the Western Conference semifinals.Duncan is gone along with veterans Boris Diaw, Matt Bonner and late-season additions Andre Miller and Kevin Martin. While San Antonio added another veteran in Pau Gasol, they also brought in a lot of youth and athleticism as they prepared for life without Duncan, the power forward who led the franchise to five NBA titles in 19 seasons.Right now we dont know what were going to miss on the floor because we havent been through the season yet, Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard said. (But) just knowing hes not here, his personality isnt here. Jokes that he makes during practice, thats the things Im missing right now.Duncan will be with the team occasionally as an unofficial assistant coach, but San Antonio is placing the team squarely in Leonards hands. The 6-foot-7 forward finished second in MVP balloting after averaging a career-high 21.2 points and 6.8 rebounds last season. He also was named Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season.After spending his first five seasons adding a pull-up jumper and honing his 3-point shooting, Leonard spent this offseason working on something else: Just becoming a leader. Just making sure I know whats going on on the floor at every position. Just getting ready to get my mentality of just leading the group this year.Leonards evolution as a leader should be aided by Gasol. The 17-year veteran won two NBA championships while with the Los Angeles Lakers.One thing that makes me feel a little better with (Duncans) loss is Pau Gasol, Popovich said. He is a very intelligent man and he understands how to play and hes played for a lot of good people. Thats going to help us in that loss, but having said that, it will take time to get all the new guys to understanding exactly how we play and who goes with whom.Gasol averaged 16.5 points and 11.0 rebounds for Chicago last season while earning his sixth All-Star appearance. Duncan averaged 8.6 points and 7.3 rebounds in the final season of a Hall of Fame career.Gasols numbers will likely drop this season, though, as San Antonio will continue to develop around Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge.It starts with me and L.A. first, Leonard said. If we win a championship, its going to be up to us to lead the group.The duo earned All-Star berths last season while leading San Antonio to a franchise-record 67 victories.dddddddddddd But the Spurs dropped four of five games to the Thunder in the West semifinals and San Antonio knew changes were needed. The Spurs drafted 6-foot-5 point guard Dejounte Murray and brought in 2011 second-round pick Davis Bertans at forward along with signing 7-foot center Dewayne Dedmon along with David Lee.Some other things to know about the Spurs, who open the season Tuesday night at Golden State:BACKGROUND NOISEAldridge struggled to fit into the teams offense in the first half of last season, but closed strongly to lead the team in rebounding and finish second in scoring. He said he was not bothered by reports San Antonio was willing to trade him.(Popovich is) a pretty direct person and this organization is first-class, so if that was the issue, I would have known way before the media knew, Aldridge said. So, I wasnt worried about it at all.BIG TWO?Point guard Tony Parker suffered a drop in scoring for his third straight season, which is a product of the teams evolution rather than any decline in his game. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged 11.9 points last season, but he had a career-low 1.8 turnovers per game and shot 49 percent from the field. It was the third time in four seasons that Parker has shot 49 percent or better from the field. He also shot 42 percent on 3-pointers, marking the second straight season he has shot over 40 percent on 3s. Fellow veteran Manu Ginobili said he will not decide if this his last season until after its done.BOUNCING BERTANSAfter averaging 7.9 points and shooting 47 percent on 3-pointers in 15 games for Baskonia in the Euroleague last season, Bertans is averaging 5.4 points and shooting 31 percent on 3-pointers in five preseason games for the Spurs. He has astounded his teammates with his leaping ability especially after right ACL surgery twice in the past three years.I think in the second ACL they put something special in there, Bertans said.FOUL TROUBLEDedmon is expected to be one of the teams primary frontcourt reserves if he can stay on the court. The 7-footer has struggled with foul trouble in his career, averaging 2.1 fouls in just 13.1 minutes per game. He is averaging 3.2 fouls in five preseason games, including fouling out in 22 minutes in San Antonios preseason opener against Phoenix.STEPPING INGasol has stepping into Duncans spot in numerous ways, not just in the starting lineup. Gasol has taken Duncans spot standing next to Parker and Ginobili during the national anthem and is also handling tip-off duties. ' ' '