believe?Ohio State?could jump a level and beat an NFL team.Ac

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The past three years, the Kansas City Royals had the best and most feared bullpen in the majors.If the Royals held the lead after six innings, the shutdown bullpen could be counted on to hold it the final three innings. It included Greg Holland, Wade Davis, Kelvin Herrera and Luke Hochevar.But that bullpen is no longer. Holland had Tommy John surgery last September and hasnt thrown a pitch this year. Hochevar had surgery for Thoracic outlet syndrome. Davis has been on the disabled list twice this year with a forearm strain. Only Herrera has been healthy the entire season.Youre dealt a hand of cards. You play those cards, Royals manager Ned Yost said. In the past, we had a really, really good idea what we were going to get coming out of the bullpen. Last year, we knew what we were going to get with Holly, with Wade, with Hoch, with Herrera.Were in a situation now through injuries, were not the same bullpen we were last year. Jacks (Joakim Soria) had great outings and hes had bad outings. You get into a situation and you pretty much understand what youre going to get from Kelvin. Wades been through some issues. Youre hoping when he goes out, hes going to be good, but with everybody else youre not sure what youre going to get.The Oakland Athletics bullpen has outperformed the Royals bullpen in winning the first three games of this series. As relievers John Axford, Liam Hendriks and Chris Smith held the Royals to one single over the final four innings in an 8-0 shutout Wednesday.Our bullpen is really a strength for us, As manager Bob Melvin said.The As bullpen is 2-0 with a save while allowing Kansas City one run on a balk and five hits over 12 1/3 innings in the first three games of this series.The As started five rookies, including left-hander and winning pitcher Sean Manaea, for the second straight game against the defending World Series champion Royals.We seem to be getting an infusion of intensity with these younger guys, Melvin said. These guys are hungry to make a name for themselves.The As will start rookie right-hander Daniel Mengden for the series finale Thursday, but he has had limited success in the majors this year. He is 0-4 with a 9.39 ERA and opponents hitting .328 off him in his past seven starts after going 1/3 with a 2.81 ERA in June and holding opposing batters to a .221 average. This will be his first time to face the Royals.The Royals will counter with veteran right-hander Edinson Volquez, who has won his past three decisions over the As, including an April 15 victory at Oakland.Volquez is unbeaten in his past seven starts, but that is a deceiving statistic. He is 2-0 with a 5.45 ERA and five no-decisions in that stretch. In his previous start Saturday at Chicago, Volquez surrendered four runs on nine hits and two walks over five innings, but the Royals rallied to top the White Sox 6-5. Shoes Sale . The defence is doing its part, too. Drew Brees threw a pair of touchdown passes in the first half and the guys on the other side made sure that was enough, sending the Saints to a 17-13 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night. Shoes Outlet . 10 VCU 85-67 on Thursday night at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. The Seminoles (4-0) have scored at least 80 points in each of their games. https://www.fakeshoeswholesale.com/ . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. Fake Shoes For Sale . Coach Mike Munchak says Fokou stretched ligaments in his left knee Oct. 13 against Seattle, which could keep out up to five weeks even though the linebacker didnt need surgery. Clearance Shoes . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Forget the College Football Playoff. A majority of respondents to a recent poll in the Buckeye State believe?Ohio State?could jump a level and beat an NFL team.According to the results released this week by Public Policy Polling, 62 percent of those polled said the No. 2 Buckeyes would beat the struggling?Cleveland Browns, while only?23 percent picked the professionals in a hypothetical meeting.Ohio State coach Urban Meyers team has certainly looked like an NFL-caliber outfit over the past few seasons. It produced five first-round selections in this years draft and 13 rookies who are playing in the NFL this season.Ohio State appears to have annother bumper crop of future pros on hand this season.dddddddddddd The Buckeyes have steamrolled to a 4-0 start, and they are heavily favored against Indiana on Saturday.Meanwhile, the Browns are mired at the bottom of the NFL and again struggling to generate any sort of positive momentum.Either way, the people made it clear which team they would back. Only 7 percent of those polled have a negative opinion of Meyer, unofficially making him the second-most popular person in the state behind only Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James. ' ' '