Strategiebereich » back-to-back winning seasons. O

BALTIMORE -- Mookie Betts is at his best when facing the Baltimore Orioles -- especially in cozy Camden Yards.Feasting again on Baltimore pitching, Betts homered twice and drove in five runs to carry the resurgent Boston Red Sox to a 5-3 victory Tuesday night.Betts hit a three-run drive in the fifth inning and added a tiebreaking two-run shot in the seventh. Hes batting .426 with 12 homers and 18 RBI in 11 games against the Orioles this season.Exactly one-quarter of his 28 home runs this season have come in Baltimore, where the left-field foul line is a mere 333 feet from the plate. Yet the right-handed hitting Betts insists theres no plausible explanation for his success in this ballpark.Im going to continue to say I dont know why, he said. Im just trying to put good swings on it and enjoy it.Red Sox manager John Farrell certainly gets a kick out of watching it.He feels comfortable in this ballpark and obviously sees the ball well, Farrell said.Betts had three homers and eight RBI in a 16-2 win over Arizona on Sunday, so its not as if hes only picking on the Orioles.Im sure there are some numbers to dictate that its more us, manager Buck Showalter said, but hes been having that type of year against most everybody.The victory lifted Boston into a tie with Baltimore in the AL East, one game behind division-leading Toronto.We all are well aware of what is at stake, where we are in the standings and who is around us, Farrell said.The Red Sox were in first place on July 21, then lost 13 of 20 before their current streak of five wins in row.Boston starter Eduardo Rodriguez had a no-hitter before leaving in the fifth inning with left hamstring tightness. The Red Sox hope they caught it early enough to keep the lefty in the rotation without missing a turn.Matt Barnes kept the Orioles hitless until Steve Pearce reached on a dribbler that got past the mound with one out in the seventh.Baltimore ended up batting around and tying the game at 3. After Matt Wieters hit a two-run single, Brad Ziegler (1-3) walked Adam Jones with the bases loaded before striking out Jonathan Schoop.The deadlock didnt last long. David Ortiz led off the eighth with a single against Brad Brach (7-2) and Betts lined an 0-1 pitch into the front row of seats beyond the left-field wall.Craig Kimbrel, the sixth Boston pitcher, worked a perfect ninth for his 21st save.Rodriguez and Yovani Gallardo were locked in a scoreless duel until the fifth. After Andrew Benintendi hit a leadoff double and Xander Bogaerts drew a one-out walk, Gallardo struck out Ortiz with a 2-2 fastball. Betts hit the next pitch over the left-field wall.PAPELBON RUMORFarrell confirmed that the team has had discussions with reliever Jonathan Papelbon, who was recently released by Washington. Papelbon pitched for Boston from 2005-11, primarily as a closer, but would not hold that same role if he returned, Farrell said.TRAINERS ROOMRed Sox: 3B Aaron Hill was scratched shortly before game time with right forearm tightness. ... RHP Steven Wright (right shoulder strain) will come off the DL next Tuesday. ... There is no timetable for RHP Koji Uehara (right pectoral strain) to throw off a mound, but he is doing better than anticipated, Farrell said. ... OF/C Blake Swihart underwent successful surgery on his left ankle Monday and is expected to be ready for spring training in 2017.Orioles: Showalter expects reliever Darren ODay (rotator cuff strain) to spend the minimum time on the DL and return on Aug. 27. ... LHP T.J. McFarland (inflamed left knee) gave up four hits and three runs in 1/3 inning for Class A Frederick in his first rehab game.UP NEXTRed Sox: LHP David Price (10-8. 4.29 ERA) starts in the finale of the series Wednesday night. Price has gone at least eight innings in eight of his 25 starts.Orioles: After the game, Showalter announced that RHP Dylan Bundy (6-3, 2.93) would start Wednesday in place of RHP Chris Tillman, whos experiencing shoulder discomfort and was moved back to Saturday vs. Houston. Greedy Williams Browns Jersey . But by the time the game started, the Toronto Raptors forward felt even worse. And, for three quarters, it showed as Gay shot a woeful three-for-13 from the field. Sheldrick Redwine Browns Jersey . The Browns coaching search remains incomplete. http://www.brownsrookiestore.com/Browns-Denzel-Ward-Jersey/ . -- Ken Appleby made 32 saves for his first shutout of the season to lead the Oshawa Generals to a 2-0 win over the Belleville Bulls on Wednesday in Ontario Hockey League action. Myles Garrett Browns Jersey . The 18th player to shoot 60 on the tour, Jamieson settled for par on the final hole when his 15-foot birdie chip grazed the edge of the hole and stayed out. After opening with rounds of 66 and 73 to make the cut by a stroke, he had 11 birdies in the bogey-free round. Sione Takitaki Womens Jersey .5 million, one-year contract on Friday. Hawkins, who turns 41 in December, will compete with Rex Brothers for the closers role at spring training. Andre Johnson?might?not have played for a consistent winner during his career, but he won most of his individual battles on the field.For that reason, he should eventually get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. First ballot? Unlikely. Few wide receivers make it their first time around. Terrell Owens is a recent example of this, and Owens has better numbers than Johnson. The selection board usually needs a couple of years to digest the ever-increasing numbers of wide receivers.But Johnson, who on Monday informed the Tennessee Titans?of his intention to retire, has the statistics to qualify. Johnson is ninth all time with 1,062 receptions in 14 seasons. Hes 10th in yards, with 14,185. And he?has 70 touchdowns.What Johnson?didnt have was a lot of winning seasons, and that isnt his fault. The Texans went 75-101 in his 12 years there. He was a first-round pick in the second year of the Houston Texans after they entered the league in 2002. His quarterback was David Carr, who spent five years getting pounded by opposing defenses. Carr was sacked 249 times in five?seasons.Johnson and the Texans won only 20 games in his first four years. He caught 311 passes and had two 1,000-yard seasons. He was the epitome of a No. 1 receiver.The Texans traded for Matt Schaub in 2007, and all of a sudden?the?offense came alive. The combination of Schaub at quarterback, Gary Kubiak at coach and Andre Johnson at receiver made the Texans a factor foor the first time in team?history.dddddddddddd The Texans jumped to the No. 14 offense in Schaubs first season.No matter the coverage, the Texans had a four-year stretch from 2007-10 in which he averaged 93.5 to 98.4 receiving yards per game. The Texans improved in 2007 and 2008 with back-to-back winning seasons. Once Arian Foster established himself as a Pro Bowl-caliber running back in 2010, the Texans became a playoff contender. Johnson, however, only played in two playoff games.The Hall of Fame selection board doesnt necessary judge candidates by their win-loss percentage. Andre Tippett and Cortez Kennedy made the Hall of Fame even though the franchises they played for werent winning during their best seasons.Johnson almost always got his six or seven catches a game for 90 or more yards. He did it quietly and professionally. At some point, he can trade his Texans jersey for a Hall of Fame gold jacket.What will be an interesting debate is how Andre Johnson matches up against former Lions wideout Calvin Johnson, who made a surprising decision to retire?this offseason. Calvin Johnson was a matchup nightmare for cornerbacks. But he?played only nine seasons to Andres 14. He had one 100-plus-catch season to Andre Johnsons five. Calvin Johnson did have 28 more touchdowns than Andre Johnson, though. ' ' '