OAKLAND – The following is a question this writer did not expect to type this season: where would the Blue Jays be without the contribution of J. cheap world cup jerseys .A. Happ? Happs seven wins are second on the staff to Mark Buehrles 10. Win-loss record is an antiquated stat, sure, but win total is generally an indication of a pitchers ability to work deep into games, enough to be personally affected by the result. Efficiency has been an issue for Happ during his time in Toronto. Hes acquired a reputation as a five-inning pitcher, driven prematurely from outings because hes plodded along to 100 pitches far too soon. Its gotten late, often, far too early. Something has changed. Suddenly, in more starts than not, Happ is working deep, positively affecting the result. When he returned to the rotation on May 5 in Philadelphia, Happs future was being determined on a start-to-start basis. The leash is now longer. Since being acquired from the Astros in July 2012, Happ has been a starter and a reliever; hes been injured, first with a fractured foot two seasons ago and then with head and knee injuries last year, the result of a horrifying line drive off his skull on May 7, 2013 in Tampa Bay. His back flared up in spring training, resulting in a horrible March that cost him his spot in the rotation and landed him on the disabled list for opening day. There have been periods of self doubt, he admitted to TSN.ca. "I certainly would be lying if I said no to that," said Happ. "Last year there was a point where I tried to talk to (pitching coach) Pete (Walker) one on one and was just like, What have you got? I know Im capable of more and Im willing to do whatever it takes to get over the hump. I never thought I was far away but I just couldnt quite get over the hump for whatever reason. It comes and goes and it still does." Happ is a quiet guy. He doesnt say much, at least not when media have access to the players. Nobody would accuse Happ of seeking the limelight. He laughed in spring training, after he was away from the team for two days to deal with the back problem, when it was pointed out to him that a guy so quiet couldnt seem to avoid controversy. Hes heard the talk and hes read the articles. He knows he has his critics and his doubters; hes been one himself. Happ isnt bitter. "I think you write what you see and if thats what you see then thats your interpretation and understanding," said Happ. "Thats how this thing works. I cant be mad at anybody for what they feel like or whatever. I just know what I knew, or know, Im capable of so thats why I try to defend myself in situations where Im maybe not in a position where Id like to be." Happ has allies in two of important places: the managers and coaches offices, where John Gibbons and pitching coach Pete Walker reside. Gibbons has consistently defended his left-hander, quick to point out Happs ordeal last season and confident that a slight arm slot adjustment ultimately would pay off. "Ive always been a fan of the guy," said Gibbons. "Ive always known what hes capable of, but the bottom line is hes got to go out and do that. Hes had his ups and downs along the way but everybody in the game at this level, I mean, very few guys take this game by storm year after year." "I think hes comfortable in that slot right now," said Walker. "Its not as high as it used to be and its not as low as he first started when we dropped him down. Its kind of that in-between slot and I think hes really comfortable throwing there. I think hes in a good place physically and mentally he looks forward to that ball every five days." Happ has been told to attack the strike zone. Hes been told to pitch to contact. Hes been told to more aggressively use his fastball. Hes doing both. Consider this: in his start against the White Sox on June 26, a 7-0 win in which he went 7 2/3 innings of shutout ball, Happ threw 124 pitches, 111 of which were fastballs. The relationship with Walker is an important one to Happ, forged when he joined the Blue Jays two years ago. Walker was the bullpen coach at the time. Happ was a reliever who believed he should be a starter. The two meshed. "Hes a guy that I always felt like he felt that I was capable of more and expected more and kind of knew that it was in there," said Happ. "I know thats kind of part of his job and he probably does it to everybody but hes very good at individualizing things and I always felt like he kind of had my back and I felt the same way about Gibby too. Maybe thats the reason why Im still here." There will be future outings when Happ struggles. The aim, of course, is to turn those into the exception rather than the rule. That June 21 start in Cincinnati, for example. Happ got rapped for seven earned runs in four innings. He bounced back with that gem against the White Sox and a strong start against the Brewers. The doubters who believed Happ, version Cincinnati, was the real guy were forced to reconsider. So if this is the real Happ, what happened? Why did a left-handed pitcher with a mid-90s fastball lack mound presence? Why did it appear that he didnt trust his repertoire? "Any answer to this is going to sound like an excuse and thats the last thing I want it to be," said Happ. "I let myself get caught up in a situation, playing on a team that wasnt very successful and I allowed that to affect me mentally as much I tried to not (let it). I think I probably got into some bad habits." Those bad habits were both mental and mechanical. Success, however, breeds confidence. Happ has had some success. His body language on the mound projects confidence. Maybe Yogi Berra was right when he suggested that 90 per cent of baseball is half mental. "Youve got to believe and youve got to really believe that you guys have got a chance out there in order for it to happen," said Happ. "You cant just wish things to happen in this game. They just dont. Youve got to go make it happen. I had a tough couple of years trying to kind of find myself and who I think I should be and I feel good about getting in a place where my body feels good, my mechanics feel good and Im just a little more free in everything. I felt like I had to be perfect for a lot of the time for things to go right and thats just not the case." cheap soccer jerseys .C. -- Bobcats centre Al Jefferson says hell play in Game 3 Saturday night against the Miami Heat. cheap soccer jerseys for sale .B. -- Canadas Rachel Homan had ideal preparation for the playoffs at the Ford World Curling Championships with a pair of hard-fought wins over tenacious opponents Thursday. BOSTON -- Chicagos D.J. Augustin put an end to a series of pesky rallies by the Boston Celtics. Augustin hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2:01 remaining, then continued a perfect night from the foul line while scoring a career-high 33 points for the Bulls in a 107-102 win over Boston. Augustin scored 15 in the fourth, including six points from the foul line as the Bulls held off the slumping Celtics. "Even though we didnt play great defence tonight, we pulled it out and we know what we have to fix," said Augustin, whose previous career high was 31 points scored against Philadelphia in January 2011. "I really dont follow that. Some of my teammates told me. Its a great accomplishment, but Im glad we got the win." Joakim Noah finished with 13 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds for Chicago two nights after it was routed at home by Portland. "That is how we have to win. Our margin of error is not great," Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau said. "Weve got to play with great intensity each and every night." The Bulls, who avoided losing consecutive games for the first time in nearly two months, will go for a three-game season sweep against the Celtics on Monday night in Chicago. Carlos Boozer scored 14, Kirk Hinrich and Mike Dunleavy added 11 points apiece and all five Chicago starters scored in double figures. Chicago made up for its rebounding struggles by making 25 of 31 foul shots, including 11 of 14 in the fourth quarter. "They were big, especially at the end," Augustin said. "If we had missed a couple of those foul shots, we dont know what the outcome of the game would have been because they made some big 3s at the end," Augustin said. Rajon Rondo had 17 points and 11 assists for Boston, which has lost four straight and nine of 10. Jeff Green and Jared Sullinger scored 16 points each for Boston and Sullinger puulled down 10 rebounds. cheap soccer jerseys from china. . Kris Humphries added 14 points and eight rebounds as Boston outrebounded Chicago 39-31, but could not stop Augustin in the fourth. "You can look at it a couple of different ways, but we hate losing," Rondo said. "Weve got to find a way eventually to win some of these games. Theyre very winnable. Were just not closing the games the right way." The Celtics kept the Bulls from making a run early in the fourth quarter, matching nearly every basket and continuing to outrebound Chicago. Boston grabbed two offensive rebounds on one possession and Brandon Bass putback gave the Celtics an 87-86 lead. Noah drew a foul on the other end and hit both free throws, Hinrich added a 3-pointer and Augustin made a reverse layup to put the Bulls up 93-87 with 4:36 left. Rondo answered with a 3-pointer for Boston, then Sullinger blocked a layup attempt by Augustin to set up a fast-break 3-pointer by Green to pull Boston back within a basket. Green hit again from beyond-the-arc after a foul shot by Noah and the score was tied at 96 with 2:13 remaining. Augustin broke the tie with his third 3-pointer of the game, then made a steal on an inbounds play that all but ended Bostons chances. Augustin drew a foul and made both free throws, then added four more from the line as the Celtics were forced to foul. Augustins two free throws with 22 seconds left put Chicago up 105-99 and the margin was too much for Boston to overcome. Notes: Carlos Boozer received a technical and clear-path foul when he grabbed Humphries from behind on his way to an uncontested trip to the basket. ... Humphries tumbled to the court after Boozer let go and was quickly issued the technical. ... Humphries was called for a technical in the third period for a shove on Noah in the lane while both were setting up for a rebound. ... Chicago last lost consecutive games Feb. 1 and 3. wholesale jerseyscheap jerseys ' ' '
