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2008
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2008
SPORTS
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Last year's worst team enters AL series
Tampa Bay Rays B.J. Upton, right, is congratulated by teammate Willy Aybar (10) after scoring on an eight inning RBI single by teammate Carl Crawford during Game 2 of the American League division series baseball game against the Chicago White Sox on Friday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
CHICAGO - BJ. Upton and these Tampa Bay Rays are headed home — to get ready for the American League championship series.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ray-markable!
Worst in the majors last year, the Rays will play for a spot in the World Series after finishing off the Chicago White Sox 6-2 Monday in Game 4 of the AL playoffs.
Upton homered twice, Andy Santonnist pitched a solid 5 2-3 innings and manager Joe Maddon's surprising Rays won 3-1 in the best-of-five series — their first trip to the postseason. Next up, the Boston Red Sox or the Los Angeles Angels starting Friday.
"We feel like we belong and it's showing right now," Upton said.
After staving off elimination several times and winning a tiebreaker for the AL Central title, the White Sox were finally knocked out.
The loss dashed Chicago's hope for a championship — days ago, local fans were thinking the Cubs and White Sox might meet in a Windy City Classic. But the Cubs got swept by the Dodgers and now both teams are done.
"They played better than us. There's no doubt. They pitched better. They execute better. They got big hits," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "They really did a tremendous job."
Upton, the game's second batter, homered to left-center to put the Rays ahead. He went deep again in the third, driving a full-count pitch from Gavin Floyd to center, and the confident Rays had a two-rnn cushion.
Tampa Bay, which never won more than 70 games during its 10 previous seasons, went from 96 losses last year to 97 wins and passed the big-spending Red Sox and New York Yankees in the AL East.
"It's a gratifying moment for all of us," Maddon said.
No longer bebedevil, the Rays won all year with young talent and improved pitching. Sonnantine, who pitched a three-hit shutout against the White Sox at Tropicana Field in April, reversed a late-season slide that saw him go winless in his final seven starts.
He allowed two runs and three hits before J.P. Howell relieved Grant Balfour completed the four-hitter, striking out midseason addition Ken Griffey Jr. to end it.
Upton, who hit only nine homers in 531 at-bats during the regular season, also homered in Sunday's 5-3 loss. Benched by Maddon during the season for not hustling, the talented 24-year-old's power display came against a team that relied on homers all year and led the majors in long balls.
Tampa Bay increased the lead to 4-0 in the fourth when Carl Crawford walked and scored as veteran Cliff Floyd, a Chicago native, doubled to left. Dioner Navarro followed with an RBI single to finish Floyd.
Paul Konerko hit a solo homer for the White Sox in the bottom half and the white towel-waving crowd dressed in black had a reason to get excited. But Tampa Bay struck right back in the fifth against Clayton Richard as Akinori Iwamura singled and scored on Carlos Pena's single that made it 5-1.
Jermaine Dye hit a solo home run in the sixth to finish Sonnantine.
"Hats off to him," Upton said. "He threw a great game when we needed it."
Tampa Bay kept adding on and Pena hit his second RBI single in the seventh — after the White Sox intentionally walked Upton. Guillen, apparently upset when a close pitch from Matt Thornton to Pena was called at ball, had a conversation with plate umpire Jeff Kellogg as he headed back to the dugout after a trip to the mound.
The White, Sox defeated Cleveland on the final Sunday of the season to get to a m.ikeup game with Detroit the following day. They beat the Tigers and then Minnesota, 1-0.
After losing the first two games of this series at Tropicana Field despite leading in both, the White Sox came back home to win Sunday. And they were hoping for another three-game winning streak — but the Rays were too good.
And now Maddon, who likes fashionable eye wear, fine wines, good books and inspirational slogans, has pushed a decade-long loser onto the doorstep of a pennant.
"We all came together and said we're going to play team ball," Upton said. "That's what we do, day in and day out."
Earlier in the week, Maddon
spotted some fans on his way to U.S. Cellular Field wearing "retro Devil Rays stuff." He'll be looking for even more signs of the team's new popularity when he honeymoons in Europe next month.
"My goal is to see someone walking around either Rome or, you know, Barcelona or somewhere with Rays gear on," he added, promising to photograph it.
Maddon pointed to the Rays' ability to bounce back after losing their final seven games before the All-Star break as a big test. And he hasn't spent a lot of time reflecting on how he has taken a team that had 10 straight losing season — with at least 91 losses in each of those years — to the playoffs.
"I really have not permitted myself to totally sit back and absorb
all of that yet," Maddon said earlier. "But there's some smaller amounts that I may have had a little bit of a thought like that."
Notes:@ Rays RF Gabe Gross made a nice leaping catcher at the fence in the first to rob A.J. Pierzynski of an extra base hit, maybe even a homer. ... Griffey struck out three times.
FOOTBALL
Mizzou demolishes Nebraska
COLUMBIA, Mo. - Unbeaten Missouri's offense is so potent, players rib well-rested punter Jake Harry that he's a waste of a scholarship. The third-ranked Tigers did not need Harry at all Saturday against Nebraska, and most of their 10 punts on the season have come during garbage time.
"We're always joking with him," quarterback Chase Daniel said Monday. "He's cool about it. He's like, 'Just miss this pass on third down, just let me get on the field once or twice a game.'
"Would we like to punt once or twice a game?" Daniel said. "No, not at all."
Missouri (5-0, 1-0 Big 12) is averaging 53 points, second most in the nation, and has yet to go three-and-out in 48 series heading into Saturday's game against No. 17 Oklahoma State. The first-string offense had eight possessions in Saturday's 52-17 blowout at Nebraska and scored on seven of them — six touchdowns and a field goal.
The lone missed opportunity in that game deserves an asterisk. Jeff Wolfert had the distance but was wide left on a 59-yard field goal attempt at the end of the first half, his first missed kick in three Big 12 seasons.
In a three-game span earlier
in the season, Missouri scored on 15 consecutive possessions all but two of them touchdowns. Sophomore running back Derrick Washington, in his first year as starter, leads the nation in scoring with 12 touchdowns.
"Every time we touch the ball, we want to score — no matter who we go against," Daniel said. "When we kick goals, we're like, 'OK, it's a B maybe.' We want A-plusses every time we step on the field."
The Tigers have scored on their opening possession in all five games. They score touchdowns fast, too, making a mockery of the time of possession statistic. They're a lowly 118th in the nation at 26:07 minutes per game.
The defense barely gets to rest, given 17 touchdown drives that have lasted less than two minutes, one behind Tulsa for most in the nation in a survey of Division I sports information directors. Missouri had six sub-two-minute drives against Nevada and had three against Nebraska.
Daniel has completed 76 percent of his passes for 15 touchdowns and only one interception. Washington averages 100 rushing yards and Jeremy Maclin is fifth in the NCAA with 186.8 all-purpose yards. Maclin and tight end Chase Coffman each are averaging six catches per game, and Tommy Saunders and Jared Perry are effective secondary targets.
"We try to score as quickly as possible," Washington said. "We want to score on the first play."
list of options is a major factor
"With our offense the way it is, you can't be concerned about time of possession," coach Gary Pinkel said. "The bottom line is when you get opportunities, you want to score."
The tests figure to start getting stiffer in the coming weeks. Oklahoma State (5-0, 1-0) brings its own spread offense, one designed more to generate the running game, to Columbia on Saturday night, and Missouri is at No. 5 Texas in two weeks.
The quick-strike offense is partly a product of Missouri's no-huddle, spread offense, with the play clock usually in double digits when the ball is snapped. Daniel's bottomless
Oklahoma State is averaging 32:47 in time of possession, 10th best in the country. The Cowboys average 315 yards rushing, second best in the country, but also have a quick strike component with 13 touchdown drives clocking in under two minutes.
Associated Press
Flags galore prompt Neb. coach to tell team to chill
The Cornhuskers have committed eight personal fouls in five games — not counting the flag Pelini got for unsporsmanlike conduct against Virgina Tech.
FOOTBALL
LINCOLN, Neb. - Coach Bo Pelini is telling his players to keep their cool.
"When there is an either-or situation in the heat of the moment, if the situation calls for it, you have to learn to pull off of it and not
Defensive end Zach Potter initiated helmet-to-helmet contact with quarterback Chase Daniel in the first quarter. Offensive lineman Matt Slauson was called for a personal foul in the middle of the fourth quarter.
The Huskers were called for two personal fouls in Saturday's 52-17 loss to Missouri.
take the shot. We're not always doing that," Pelini said during the Big 12 coaches' teleconference with reporters.
"We need to play smarter." Pelini said. "Not only the personal fouls, but putting ourselves in first-
Pinkel said Monday that he had "communicated with Nebraska" on Sunday "and I'm not going to mention anything else about it."
Daniel also didn't want to pursue the topic.
and 15 and some of the things that happen there. We need to be more disciplined and take care of that aspect. Too many penalties."
Athletic director Tom Osborne declined to comment on Peliini's sideline behavior, saying last week that the issue was between him and Peliini.
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