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Monday, July 31, 2017

{allcanada} Blue Jays blow six-run lead in loss to White Sox

 

CHICAGO — The crowd groaned as the replay was shown on the videoboard in centre field. Yoan Moncada had to be helped into a cart. Willy Garcia was knocked out.

So yes, the Chicago White Sox enjoyed their dramatic victory very much. But the encouraging prognosis for their injured teammates was even sweeter.

Matt Davidson singled in Leury Garcia for his second game-ending hit in as many days, and the White Sox rallied to beat Toronto Blue Jays 7-6 on Monday night after losing Moncada to a right knee injury.

"It's huge for us," Davidson said. "To win in the ninth inning is always fun."

Adam Engel sparked the winning rally with a one-out single against Roberto Osuna (3-2). Leury Garcia was hit by a pitch, putting runners on first and second.

After Tyler Saladino struck out swinging, Jose Abreu tied it at 6 with a single to right. Davidson followed with another base hit into centre , and then was mobbed by his teammates as he ran around the infield.

"Nothing that I can do about it. I broke three bats," Osuna said. "Like I say, I missed the location a couple times, but it still was a good pitch."

The White Sox trailed 6-1 before they scored four times in the eighth, capped by consecutive homers for Davidson and Yolmer Sanchez. Davidson also hit a game-ending, two-run homer in Sunday's 3-1 victory over Cleveland.

"I think that this victory gives us confidence, gives us the energy and the motivation to come every day trying to do our best and try to work harder," Abreu said through a translator.

Chris Beck (2-1) pitched a scoreless inning for the win, helped by right fielder Alen Hanson bringing in a foul popup tipped into the air by first baseman Abreu.

Josh Donaldson, Russell Martin and Justin Smoak homered for Toronto, which lost for the third time in four games. Darwin Barney got a three-run double on a frightening play in the sixth, and Marco Estrada pitched seven sparkling innings.

With two outs and the bases loaded, Barney hit a fly ball into shallow right field. A sprinting Moncada tried to pull up as Garcia went for the sliding catch, but he kneed the right fielder in the head and the ball trickled out of Garcia's glove.

"I got knocked out right away," Garcia said through a translator while standing in front of his locker in the clubhouse. "I didn't remember what happened until the doctor started asking me questions here, and then I saw the video."

Moncada, who is widely regarded as one of baseball's top prospects, put no pressure on his right leg while he was helped to a cart by Abreu. The Cuban slugger patted his countryman on the back of his head before he was zipped away.

The team said X-rays on Moncada were negative, and the second baseman is day to day with a bruised knee. Garcia, who walked off under his own power, has a head contusion and will be evaluated again Tuesday morning.

"They're both doing well," manager Rick Renteria said. "As we get the evaluations, we'll know exactly where we might sit."

The Blue Jays (49-57) were coming off a dramatic 11-10 victory against the Angels on Steve Pearce's second game-ending grand slam in four days. But they remain in last place in the AL East, on the fringe of the wild-card race, and left-hander Francisco Liriano and reliever Joe Smith were shipped out in a pair of trades ahead of the non-waiver deadline.

"It's like having a couple friends changing schools, so hopefully they pitch well where they are at and they're happy," Martin said. "But we're definitely going to miss those guys, that's for sure."

Toronto sent Liriano and cash to AL-leading Houston for outfielders Nori Aoki and Teoscar Hernandez. Smith was traded to Cleveland for two minor leaguers.

The White Sox (41-62) had lost 17 of 20. After trading several veterans for more prospects in July, they were quiet on the final day of the month.

MAKING MOVES

The Blue Jays also reinstated left-hander J.P. Howell from the 15-day disabled list and brought up left-hander Brett Oberholtzer from Triple-A Buffalo. Howell was sidelined by a left shoulder injury.

Aoki is expected to join Toronto before Tuesday's game.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: RHP Aaron Sanchez, who is on the disabled list because of a recurrence of a blister on the middle finger of his right hand, is nearing a return. "He's feeling a lot better," manager John Gibbons said. Sanchez could take Liriano's spot in the rotation.

White Sox: RHP Dylan Covey (strained left oblique) was placed on an injury rehab assignment with the Arizona Rookie League White Sox.

UP NEXT

Blue Jays right-hander Marcus Stroman (9-5, 3.08 ERA) faces White Sox right-hander Mike Pelfrey (3-8, 4.73 ERA) in the second game of the series on Tuesday night. Stroman is winless in his last three starts despite a 1.89 ERA over that stretch. Pelfrey is 0-3 with a 7.07 ERA in his last seven games, six starts.

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{allcanada} Canadian Bianca Andreescu advances to second round at Citi Open

 

WASHINGTON – Canadian teenager Bianca Andreescu advanced to the second round at the Citi Open on Monday, defeating Italy's Camila Giorgi 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.

The 17-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., ranked 163 in the world, needed 2 hours 2 minutes to beat the 73rd-ranked Giorgi.

Also Monday, Francoise Abanda of Montreal fell in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, to fourth-seed Julia Gorges of Germany.

On the men's side, Vancouver's Vasek Pospisil lost his first-round match against Switzerland's Henri Laaksonen, 7-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Westmount, Que., native Eugenie Bouchard plays her first match of the tournament on Tuesday. Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont., starts Wednesday.

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{allcanada} Report: Wild sign former Leafs prospect Jack Walker to AHL deal

 

The Minnesota Wild have reportedly signed former Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Jack Walker to a deal that would see him suit up for its AHL affiliate in Iowa, according to the Star-Tribune's Michael Russo.

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Walker, a native of Edina, Minnesota, was drafted in the sixth round (152nd-overall) by Toronto in 2016, but was not extended a contract offer by the Maple Leafs, making him a free-agent.

He followed up his draft day by posting 31 goals and 72 points in 70 games for the WHL's Victoria Royals last season.

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{allcanada} WGN America Acquires Canadian Drama Series ‘Bellevue’ Starring Anna Paquin

Providing a glimpse into its new programming strategy, WGN America has made its first move in the original scripted space since cancelling its high-end drama series Outsiders and Underground. The network, whose parent Tribune Media is being acquired by Sinclair Broadcast Group, has bought the U.S. linear rights to the Canadian drama series Bellevue, starring and executive produced by Anna Paquin.

The eight-episode detective drama, set in a blue-collar Canadian town, aired on Canadian broadcaster CBC this year. It was created by actress-turned-writer Jane Maggs and director Adrienne Mitchell, who executive produce for Muse Entertainment and Back Alley Film Productions. Shawn Doyle (Fargo) and Allen Leech (Downton Abbey) co-star.

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Bellevue will premiere on WGNA in early 2018. Its pickup is consistent with the comments Sinclair Broadcast CEO Chris Ripley made when his company's $3.9 billion deal to buy Tribune Media was announced in May.

WGNA "is already going to be shifting its strategy away from high-cost originals into more cost-effective originals and reruns," now that Peter Kern is interim CEO of Tribune — replacing Peter Liguori, who left the company in March — Ripley said at the time.

Acquisitions and international co-productions are a low-cost alternative to high-end U.S. drama series, which are expensive. (For instance, Underground cost $5 million per episode to produce.) The U.S rights of a Canadian drama cost a fraction of that.

Here's the logline: Bellevue is a small town with big secrets. Twenty years ago, the murder of a young woman traumatized the community. Now the killer is back. Or is he? When a high school hockey star wrestling with his gender identity goes missing and all signs point to foul play, Detective Annie Ryder (Canada-born Paquin) must unravel all the pieces to this mystery before her own life falls apart. Along the way, Annie must navigate a complicated relationship with her on-again/off again ex, Eddie (Irish actor Leech) and her boss on the force, Police Chief Peter Welland (Canadian actor Doyle).

WME handled the U.S. sale to WGN and represents Anna Paquin.

Here is a trailer:

https://youtu.be/IDv_Iomc1BQ

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{allcanada} Matthews can be even better for Maple Leafs, says Babcock

 

PLYMOUTH, Mich. -- Center Auston Matthews scored 40 goals last season and won the Calder Trophy, but Toronto Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock believes there's room for him to be even better.

"He's a competitive guy and he expects to take a step this year and we do as well," Babcock said between games at the World Junior Summer Showcase on Sunday. "I don't measure guys by points, I measure guys by how they play and how they compete every day and how much better they get in their determination. We're excited to see what he can do. He feels he's a real good player and wants to be one of the best players in the game."

Babcock said he was impressed at how Matthews, 19, improved as 2016-17 went on, but believes it's just a starting point.

"He really improved his 200-foot game last year, more and more pace," he said. "He's gotten way better without the puck so he has the puck more He can play against everybody. He's got a lot of growth options."

The Maple Leafs' rookies were a major reason they qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season. Matthews (40), William Nylander (22) and Connor Brown (20) scored at least 20 goals, and Matthews (69), Nylander (61) and Mitchell Marner (61) had at least 60 points.

That group also pushed the Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington Capitals to six games in the Eastern Conference First Round. But Babcock said those players can't be satisfied with what they accomplished.

"Obviously we have good young players," Babcock said. "We have a lot of them. It's kind of a group that's growing up together. But it's one year and one year doesn't make a career. You have to do it again and again and again. We're excited about our opportunities."

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{allcanada} Giordano first NHL player to win prestigious ESPY

 
 

When Mark Giordano and his wife Lauren imagined and established Team Giordano three years ago they didn't set out to win awards for their charity work.

They simply wanted to develop an initiative to support high-need schools in Calgary and provide students with a focus and encouragement in academics and physical fitness as well as promote healthy lifestyles, leadership and community involvement.

But the Team Giordano program has raised eyebrows not only in Calgary but across North America. That was evident when the 33-year-old Calgary Flames defenceman was honoured with the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award at the annual ESPY Awards in Los Angeles this July.

"It was so cool," Giordano said. "This is a unique event that honours all kinds of athletes for various achievements. It's a different evening. It was something for me to be there, a tremendous honour."

For his charity work, Giordano was named winner of the league's 2016 foundation award and was a nominee with Nick Foligno and Ryan Getzlaf for the 2016-17 Mark Messier leadership award - won by Foligno in June.

Giordano found out after the season that he had been nominated for the ESPY award that pays homage to athletes "whose continuous, demonstrated leadership has created a positive impact on their community through sports." The award was renamed for the renowned championship boxer after his death in June 2016.

The other nominees were four-time major golf champion Ernie Els, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and New York Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson.

Giordano remarked that he not only was enthusiastic to be invited to the ESPY Awards, but that he met his football hero Aaron Rodgers, the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, as well as Ali's daughter Laila.

"I'm a big fan of NFL football and the Green Bay Packers," Giordano said. "So it was neat to meet Aaron Rodgers and other athletes."

Giordano has been an inspiration to kids long before he and his wife began the Team Giordano project in October 2014. When he was 14 his older sister Mia was killed in a car accident (he still honours his sister with two stick taps to his helmet after the national anthem).

The Toronto native also went undrafted after two decent seasons with the Owen Sound Attack. He scored 32 goals and 97 points in 133 regular season games in junior, but scouts didn't seem to be interested in his services.

Giordano did attend a summer camp for the Arizona Coyotes, but he had enrolled at York University after his final season in Owen Sound, only to find out that the Flames presented him with a late invitation to their summer camp in 2004.

Giordano made the most of that opportunity. He wound up accepting an AHL contract from Calgary. But after three seasons bouncing back and forth between the minors and the Flames as well as a contract dispute he took a chance to go to Russia and play with Moscow Dynamo for a season. He proved his worth. He was part of the Canadian Spengler Cup-winning team and was named to the Canadian roster for the 2008 World Championship. A decade later, he has developed into one of the premier defencemen in the game and was named the Flames captain prior to the 2013-14 season after the departure of Jarome Iginla.

As Giordano's game developed — he's now played in 681 NHL regular season and playoff games — so did his thirst for off-ice endeavours. In three years, Team Giordano has raised more than $300,000 and impacted the lives of 1,900 youngsters. As part of his ESPY honour, his charity received a $100,000 grant.

"As a young guy you learn and you grow," Giordano said. "You realize that there are opportunities to get involved in off-ice charity work. A lot of credit has to go to my wife. She's a very giving person and I've learned so much from her.

"Financially, we're in a position to do more, to give back. I've learned so much being involved with these kids. It's a pretty special situation."

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{allcanada} Shia LaBeouf’s ‘Borg/McEnroe’ To Open 2017 Toronto Festival

The world premiere of Borg/McEnroe will be the Opening Night Gala film at the 42nd Toronto International Film Festival. The screening will be held at the Roy Thomson Hall on September 7.

Directed by Janus Metz and written by Ronnie Sandahl, the film stars Shia LaBeouf, Sverrir Gudnason and Stellan Skarsgård.

Borg/McEnroe tells the story of the epic rivalry between Swedish tennis legend Björn Borg (Gudnason) and his greatest adversary, the brash American John McEnroe (LaBeouf), which came to a head during the 1980 Wimbledon Championships.

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"Borg/McEnroe has a powerful tension about it that is on par with the electric energy of Toronto on Opening Night," said Piers Handling, Director and CEO of TIFF. "The story of this nail-biter matchup changed the sport of tennis forever, and the outstanding performances from LaBeouf and Gudnason will be a spectacular way for Festival-goers to kick things off."

Borg/McEnroe is produced by Jon Nohrstedt and Fredrik Wikström Nicastro, at SF Studios. The film is co-produced with Film I Väst, SVT, Nordisk Film, Sirena Film, SF Studios Production APS and Yellow Film & TV with support from the Swedish Film Institute, Nordisk Film & TV Fund, the Danish Film Institute, the Finnish Film Foundation, DR and YLE and co-founded by the European Union Creative Europe Media. NEON will be releasing the film in North America in 2018.

The Toronto fest runs from September 7-17.

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{allcanada} Former Habs D Markov signs with KHL team

 

MOSCOW — Longtime Montreal Canadiens defenceman Andrei Markov has signed with Russian club Ak Bars Kazan.

Ak Bars says the 38-year-old Markov has signed a two-year contract to play in the Kontinental Hockey League, a week after Montreal said it would not keep the defenceman for a 17th NHL season. No salary details were given.

The move means Markov could end playing at the Olympics in February.

Russia is expected to be the favourite for an Olympic tournament without NHL players. It should have Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk in its team, while Canada and the United States plan to have rosters made up of professionals playing in Europe and on college and major junior teams.

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Sunday, July 30, 2017

{allcanada} Labbe Lassos The Field In Edmonton

 

Wetaskiwin, Alberta - If Alex Labbe wins the 2017 NASCAR Pinty's Series championship, the trip to western Canada may prove to be the pivotal point in his season.

Labbe started from the pole position after winning the E3 Spark Plugs Pole Award earlier in the day and led three times for 216 laps en route to the win in the Luxxur 300 at Edmonton International Raceway. It was Labbe's second win in three races on the series' traditional western swing, and gave the St. Albert, Quebec, the points lead in Canada's national stock car championship series.

Labbe's No. 32 Can-Am/Kappa/Cyclops Gear/Lou's BBQ Ford paced the field for 192 of the first 193 laps before Donald Theetge got by. Theetge and Lacroix swapped the lead four time before Labbe regained the top spot on Lap 278 just before the seventh and final caution flag of the race was flown on Lap 289.

Labbe, who had dropped back as far as fifth at one point, was able to get a good restart and hold on for his fourth win of his career and second in three days.

Cayden Lapcevich scored his third podium finish in as many races in third, with Alex Tagliani and L. P. Dumoulin rounding out the top five.

D.J. Kennington was sixth with Mark Dilley, Anthony Simone, Kevin Lacroix and Adam Martin completing the top 10.

Lacroix was running in the top five when he got together with Lapcevich, and was given a stop-and-go penalty on Lap 268 ending his chances for a win.

After the victory, Labbe now leads by 10 points (346-336) over Lacroix with five races remaining on the schedule. Lapcevich, the defending series champion, trails Labbe by 31 and is seven points ahead of both LP Dumoulin and DK Kennington.

The Luxxur 300 will be televised on TSN on Saturday, Aug. 12 at 1 p.m. ET.

The series will return to action on Sunday, Aug. 13 in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, for the running of the Le 50 Tours Can-Am.

 

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{allcanada} Pearce hits walk-off grand slam to give Jays win over Angels

 

TORONTO — Steve Pearce hit a walk-off grand slam in the ninth inning to give the Toronto Blue Jays a miraculous 11-10 comeback win over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday to avoid a three-game sweep.

Toronto's rally comes a day after the Angels stunned the Jays with a dramatic ninth-inning comeback of their own.

It's Pearce's second walk-off grand slam this week after Toronto beat the Oakland Athletics in extra innings on Thursday.

The Jays trailed 10-4 entering the final frame until Kevin Pillar hit a two-run homer and infielder Rob Refsnyder doubled to chase Angels reliever Brooks Pounders. With Bud Norris taking over on the mound, Ezequiel Carrera and Russell Martin singled to cut the lead to 10-7 and, after Justin Smoak grounded out, Kendrys Morales walked to set the table for Pearce's heroics.

Matt Dermody got the win for Toronto (49-56) after pitching three innings of relief without giving up an earned run.

Albert Pujols homered twice for the Angels (51-55), who seemed to be in cruise control until Toronto's wild ninth inning.

Cesar Valdez started for the Blue Jays, and after the journeyman right-hander picked up his first win in over seven years with a solid start against Oakland Tuesday, it was immediately clear he wasn't going to be as sharp Sunday.

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After a Mike Trout single in the first inning, Pujols sent the eighth pitch of the game into the left-field bleachers to give the Angels a 2-0 lead.

Though Carrera would respond with a lead-off homer in the bottom half of the inning, the Blue Jays and Valdez unravelled in a messy third. Infielder Kaleb Cowart led off with a triple past Carrera's outstretched hand in right field, former Blue Jay Yunel Escobar followed with a double off the left-field wall, Trout walked and Pujols singled to give the Angels a 4-1 lead.

With runners on the corners and no outs, Kole Calhoun grounded softly to Refsnyder, but the 26-year-old — making his first start for Toronto — threw wide to load the bases. Andrelton Simmons then doubled to left to score two runs and end Valdez's afternoon, and Ben Revere added an RBI single off reliever Aaron Loup to give the Angels a 7-1 lead.

Toronto again answered quickly. In the bottom of the third, singles from Carrera, Martin and Smoak and a sacrifice fly from Morales cut the lead to 7-3. Pearce clubbed a double to centre — missing a home run by a few feet — before a Miguel Montero groundout made it 7-4.

Still, the Angels kept coming, adding runs in the fifth — when Revere reached on a fielder's choice, stole second, took third on a Montero throwing error, and finally sprinted home on a shallow Martin Maldonado sacrifice fly — and the sixth, when Pujols hit his 16th homer of the season, to make it 9-4. Luis Valbuena would add a sacrifice fly in the ninth to give Los Angeles a 10-4 lead.

The win gave Toronto some welcome good news. Before the game, the Blue Jays announced that veteran shortstop Troy Tulowitzki has ligament damage in his right ankle and will need further evaluation.

NOTES: Attendance at Rogers Centre was a sell out of 46, 852. ... The Blue Jays open a three-game series against the White Sox in Chicago on Monday. … Jose Bautista and Josh Donaldson both had the day off.

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{allcanada} TFC's offence piles it on in win over NYCFC

 

TORONTO — Sebastian Giovinco scored two spectacular goals as Toronto FC blanked New York City FC 4-0 on Sunday afternoon, increasing its lead atop Major League Soccer to five points.

Jozy Altidore and Raheem Edwards also scored late for Toronto (12-3-7), which remains unbeaten at home this season (8-0-3). Maxi Moralez fired a NYCFC penalty kick high over the bar in second-half stoppage time.

With second-place Chicago losing to Sporting Kansas City on Saturday, first place in the East was on the line Sunday. And it felt like a top-of-the table clash — a fast, entertaining game that saw both teams stringing passes together as they built up attacks on a hot 29 C afternoon before a loud sellout crowd of 29,203.

It was 1-0 at the half. But as the game wore, Toronto showed its ruthless side in front of goal in a performance that will send shivers down the spine of rival teams.

While Toronto humiliated NYCFC 7-0 on aggregate in last season's Eastern Conference semifinal, Sunday marked TFC's first ever regular-season win over the New Yorkers (1-2-4).

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Giovinco flashed the first of his magic in the 32nd minute, after raising his hands in the air to call for the ball some 10 yards outside the penalty box. Marky Delgado obliged and Giovinco got the ball in space, sidestepping the approaching Andrea Pirlo as if he was rooted to the ground before curling a left-footed shot high into the goal past a diving Sean Johnson.

It was clear the Italian felt on his game Sunday, trying a variety of shots from around goal.

Giovinco made it 2-0 in the 67th minute with one of his trademark-deadly free kicks that again left Johnson lunging — and missing — in mid-air. It marked the Atomic Ant's 10th goal directly from a free kick, the most of any player in MLS since 2003.

It was Giovinco's 11th goal of the season — his sixth in seven career regular-season games against NYCFC, and his 50th in MLS regular-season play.

Altidore converted a 75th-minute penalty kick for his ninth goal of the season after going down in the box trying to corral a pass from the Italian. Giovinco was the provider in the 82nd minute, chipping a ball over the defence for Edwards to knock in.

Toronto, which has not lost at BMO Field in regular-season play since Oct. 1, 2016, notched its fourth shutout in its last five home games.

NYCFC (11-7-4) came into the weekend tied for fifth in the league on the road with a 4-5-1 mark. But ultimately it could not keep up with TFC.

Altidore, captain Michael Bradley and Justin Morrow, back from the Gold Cup, returned to the Toronto lineup. Veteran centre back Drew Moor made his 350th regular-season appearance, becoming just the 10th outfield player in MLS history to reach the milestone.

A suspension to Venezuelan midfielder Yangel Herrera opened the door for a 10th start of the season for 38-year-old Italian icon Andrea Pirlo.

Bradley and Pirlo were both influential on attack, spraying the ball around. And Argentine attacker Moralez, at five foot three — one inch shorter than Giovinco — was always around the ball when NYCFC had it.

Villa, with 14 goals and seven assists, came into the game on a four-match scoring streak. But he was clearly frustrated at times Sunday, not getting the ball when he wanted.

The Spanish star was busier in the second half, forcing a 60th-minute save off Alex Bono. Seconds later, Toronto defender Chris Mavinga made a fine tackle in the penalty box to deny Moralez.

The teams tied 2-2 on July 19 at Yankee Stadium thanks to Victor Vazquez's stoppage-time penalty in a game that saw Toronto coach Greg Vanney ejected.

NYCFC was coming off a 2-1 win over Chicago than snapped the Fire's 11-game unbeaten streak. Toronto had to settle for a 1-1 tie with lowly Colorado last time out.

Toronto wingback Oyvind Alseth, a replacement for the injured Steven Beitashour, limped off in the 12th minute with what looked like a foot injury. Morrow had to leave in the 64th minute.

NYCFC was without the injured Khiry Shelton, Ronald Matarrita, Maxime Chanot, Miguel Camargo, Rodney Wallace and James Sands.

Toronto was also without the injured Benoit Cheyrou.

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{allcanada} Rosenqvist takes pole ahead of second Hydro-Quebec Montreal ePrix

MONTREAL – Felix Rosenqvist won pole position for the Hydro-Quebec Montreal ePrix electric car race, while Lucas Di Grassi came fifth but remained in position to clinch the Formula E championship.

Rosenqvist, driving for Mahindra, posted the top lap on the 2.75-kilometre street circuit of one minute 22.344 seconds, edging Sam Bird of Virgin Racing's 1:22.559. The Swede picked up three points for winning the pole, leaving him one point behind Bird for third place in drivers standings.

Di Grassi got his Abt Audi into the showdown between the top five at the end of qualifying, but an early mishap left him last.

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However, the Brazilian maintained his 18-point lead over Sebastien Buemi going into the final race of the season later Sunday.

Buemi's chances for a second straight Formula E championship were set back when he made what appeared to be a braking error in qualifying. He will start 13th on the grid. His teammate Nico Prost was ordered to start at the back after his car caught fire and needed parts replaced on Saturday.

Buemi had already taken a major hit when he was disqualified for using an underweight car during the first race of the weekend "double-header" on Saturday. Buemi's Renault, which needed major work after a crash during pre-race practice, was found to be four kilograms under the 880-kg minimum weight.

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{allcanada} Stampeders put up 60 points in blowout victory of lowly Tiger-Cats

 

CALGARY — After the first three-touchdown game of his career, Jerome Messam had a lot of people to thank.

Right at the top of that list was receiver Marken Michel, who hauled in a pair of long passes from quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell to set up a pair of short TD runs by Messam.

"Marken put me down there twice within five yards," said Messam, who finished with 91 yards on 11 carries to lead the Calgary Stampeders to a convincing 60-1 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday.

"A shout out to him, he played out of his mind tonight. He got the game ball. I'm not going to complain. He got us down there and I just punched it in."

Michel definitely deserved the praise as he finished with 190 yards on six catches, including a 35-yard touchdown pass from Mitchell late in the second quarter to give the Stampeders (4-1-1) a 39-1 lead.

"It felt great, but when you've got a running back like Messam in the backfield, getting down to the one-yard line is not a bad thing, because you know you're going to get a touchdown," Michel said. "You always want that touchdown, but to catch that ball in the end zone felt great."

Calgary coach Dave Dickenson praised all of his players for their efforts to lead the Stamps to the largest margin of victory in franchise history, surpassing the previous record of 50 points that was set in 1963 and equalled in 1995.

"I don't really care who scores and who doesn't as long as the team scores," Dickenson said. "I thought we actually blocked pretty well tonight too. I saw some pretty big holes in there. Usually when your run game's going like that obviously the big guys are doing a good job. That's big for us. If we can be balanced, we're a good team."

The Stamps also came close to setting a new mark for most points scored in a game (62), a record that was set in 1994 and matched two years later.

Roy Finch returned a punt 97 yards into the end zone for the Stamps, who extended their winning streak at McMahon Stadium to 13 straight games.

Rookie running back Ante Milanovic-Litre ran for his first-career CFL touchdown, while Shaquille Richardson had an interception return for a TD.

Anthony Parker caught a touchdown pass from backup quarterback Andrew Buckley in the fourth quarter, while Rene Paredes kicked a field goal and Rob Maver booted a single.

Buckley is the first Canadian quarterback to throw a touchdown pass since Brandon Bridge on Nov. 8, 2015.

All the Tiger-Cats (0-5) could muster was a single by Sergio Castillo in the first half.

"It snowballed on us," said Hamilton coach Kent Austin. "It just got out of control. They had five big plays on us in the first half. We talked all week long about not giving up the big play.

"It's a humiliating loss. They played great. They're a good football team and we've got to find answers."

It was Hamilton's second largest margin of defeat in club history. The worst loss (68 points) was back in 1956 when Hamilton dropped an 82-14 decision to Montreal.

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Afterwards Austin said he told his players to put the loss behind them heading into their next tough road test against the Edmonton Eskimos (5-0) next Friday night.

"It was about how to handle situations like this and the type of men that we're going to be and what we're going to demonstrate," Austin said. "And what life does to you does not matter. It's how you respond to diversity. It's going to be an indication of the quality of men that we have."

Paredes booting a 43-yard field goal to cap off Calgary's second drive of the game at 12:05 of the first quarter. Calgary receiver Kamar Jorden went down with a leg injury on the drive and didn't return.

After the Ticats went two-and-out, Finch picked up Castillo's punt at his own 13-yard line and ran it back into the Hamilton end zone.

Early in the second quarter, Michel hauled in a 40-yard pass from Mitchell to get the Stamps to Hamilton's one-yard line. On the next play, Messam scored his first TD of the game before Mitchell tossed a short pass to offensive lineman Spencer Wilson for a two-point convert.

Richardson then picked off an errant pass by Hamilton quarterback Zach Collaros and ran it back for a 47-yard score before Maver kicked a 54-yard single to put the Stamps up 25-0.

Michel continued his strong game as he hauled in a 60-yard pass to get the Stamps to the three-yard line to set up another TD by Messam.

After Castillo kicked a 53-yard single to get the Ticats on the board, Michel finally hauled in a touchdown pass of his own when he out-battled Hamilton defensive back Justin Rogers to come down with the ball in the end zone.

"It was just a great ball," Michel said. "It was just one of those things where you've got to go up and squeeze and I squeezed and the ball was in my arms and I came down with the touchdown."

The Stamps started off the second half with an eight-play, 69-yard drive that was capped off by another one-yard touchdown run by Messam.

Milanovic-Litre then got in on the action as he ran for an eight-yard score at 9:17 of the third quarter before Parker caught a 10-yard TD pass from Buckley early in the final quarter.

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Saturday, July 29, 2017

{allcanada} QUALIFYING: Labbe Edges Lacroix For Pole

 

Wetaskiwin, Alberta - Alex Labbe likes racing on ovals and it has shown this week during the annual western swing by the NASCAR Pinty's Series.

Labbe, who collected a win and third-place finish on Wednesday in Saksatoon, picked up where he left off by winning the E3 Spark Plugs Pole Award during qualifying for the Luxxur 300 at Edmonton International Raceway Saturday night.

The Victoriaville, Quebec native edged Kevin Lacroix by just .003 seconds to capture his first pole of the season and sixth of his career.

Labbe finished with a fast time of 12.742 seconds (70.633 mph) to top Lacroix who qualified at 12.745 seconds and won the pole for this event last year.

Lacroix leads Labbe by just two points (300-298) heading in to tonight's race around the tight .25-mile asphalt track located just south of Edmonton, Alberta.

Alex Tagliani, the defending race winner of this event, qualified third at 12.820 seconds with Donald Theetge and D.J. Kennington completing the top five.

Mark Dilley was sixth followed by Anthony Simone, Cayden Lapcevich, L.P. Dumoulin and Jamie Krzysik rouning out the top-10 starters.

Larry Jackson qualified the car normally driven by Andrew Ranger - who missed the qualifying session due to illness. It will be determined later if Ranger will attempt to compete in the race.

The Luxxur 300 is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. MT.

 

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{allcanada} PRACTICE: Lacroix Leads Field At Edmonton

 

Wetaskiwin, Alberta - One thing is for certain halfway through the 2017 season for the NASCAR Pinty's Series and that's Kevin Lacroix has been fast at every stop so far this season.

Lacroix, who enters this race with a slight two-point lead over Alex Labbe in the championship points standings, once again set fast time in practice for the Luxxur 300 at Edmonton International Raceway Saturday.

The St. Eustache, Quebec, native led the way with a fast lap of 12.824 seconds (70.181 mph) during the one hour session.

Donald Theetge finished second with Alex Labbe and D.J. Kennington third and fourth, respective.

Grad Prairie, Alberta native Jamie Krzysik was atop the leaderboard for most of the practice and eventually finished fith overall during the practice session. EIR is his home track where he races modifieds as well and he's hoping to improve on his top Pinty's Series finish to date of fourth at the track.

Veteran Mark Dilley finished sixth with Anthony Simone seventh. L.P. Dumoulin stalled early in the session and had to be pushed back to the pits to work in his car and it helped as finished eighth overall.

Noel Dowler, who has former NASCAR Camaping World Truck Series competitor Rick Crawford helping him out for the race, was ninth and defending series champion Cayden Lapcevich completed the top 10.

Qualifying for the Luxxur 300 will be at 4:05 p.m. MT.

 

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{allcanada} Impact fall to Red Bulls behind big night from Royner

 

HARRISON, N.J. — Daniel Royer had two goals, Michael Murillo had his first MLS goal and the New York Red Bulls beat the Montreal Impact 4-0 on Saturday night.

Royer has six goals in his last four games.

Bradley Wright-Phillips scored his seventh goal in the last nine matches, and Luis Robles had two saves in his seventh shutout of the season. The Red Bulls (11-8-2) have won four in a row and five of its last six. New York is 8-0-0 at Red Bull Arena against Montreal.

"It's a disappointing game. We did not play well offensively or defensively", said Impact head coach Mauro Biello.

"In the first half, we gave a penalty on a quick throw-in. In the end, on the road, you have to be able to take your chances, as you will not get many. We could not capitalize in the first half and they were able to hurt us."

Royer gave the Red Bulls the lead on a penalty kick in the 23rd minute. Alex Muyl's inbound pass led Royer into the area where he drew a penalty on charging goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau — in his MLS debut. Murillo put away, from point-blank range, the rebound of a shot by Royer in the 58th to make it 2-0. Wright-Phillips and Royer added goals in the waning minutes.

Montreal (6-8-6) had just five shots and was more than doubled by the Red Bulls in time of possession.

"It was not our best game. We cannot find excuses and we have to raise the level of our game," said Crepeau. "We do not have a choice anymore. We have to find ourselves on the field and finish our opportunities."

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{allcanada} Montero scores twice, Whitecaps top FC Dallas

 

FRISCO, Texas — Fredy Montero had two goals and an assist and the Vancouver Whitecaps beat FC Dallas 4-0 on Saturday night for their third victory in four matches.

It's Vancouver's first win in nine tries at Toyota Stadium.

"We're happy. We got the opportunity to make history with the team," said Montero.

"First game for Vancouver Whitecaps to win in Dallas and we're super happy. We did a good job. Our wingers were playing very good, attacked, and came back to defend which was the key to the game."

Bernie Ibini-Isei and Nicolas Mezquida added goals and David Ousted had three saves for Vancouver (9-8-3). Ousted has five shutouts this season, two in the last three games.

FC Dallas (9-4-7) lost for the first time since a 2-0 loss at Portland on June 10.

Ibini-Isei blasted a left-footer into the net from just outside the top of the box to open the scoring in the 18th minute.

"It's a great result for us," said Ibini-Isei. "Coach told us before the game that we hadn't won here and that was on our minds. A great result for us, and well done to the boys."

Montero doubled the advantage early in the second half, converting from the spot after a penalty in the area by Kellyn Acosta. Montero added a goal in the 67th and Mezquida in the 83rd. It was Mezquida's second goal of the season and first since March 11.

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{allcanada} Blue Jays blow lead in ninth; lose to Angels

 

TORONTO — Troy Scribner's major league debut was already done by the time the nerves set in. When they did, it was because his first shot at a victory was on the line.

Scribner (1-0) pitched three innings, Cliff Pennington drove in the tiebreaking run with a sacrifice fly in the ninth and the Los Angeles Angels rallied to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-5 on Saturday.

Trailing 5-3 against Blue Jays closer Roberto Osuna (3-1), the Angels took the lead with a three-run ninth. Kole Calhoun hit a one-out single, Martin Maldonado was hit by a pitch, Ben Revere hit an RBI double, and pinch-runner Kaleb Cowart scored on a wild pitch, sending Revere to third. Revere scored the go-ahead run on Pennington's sacrifice fly to shallow centre.

Los Angeles won for the 13th time in its past 17 games at Rogers Centre.

The blown save was Osuna's fifth of the season, three of which came before April 28.

"One of those days," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "You don't see too often. Got to move on."

Scribner had been in line for the loss after giving up Miguel Montero's tiebreaking two-run homer in the sixth. Darwin Barney followed with a single but Scribner retired the next seven in a row.

"He gave us three innings that we really needed," manager Mike Scioscia said. "Everybody you talk to say he's got great make-up, he's aggressive, all the things you're looking for in a young pitcher. He bounced back after the home run."

Mostly calm on the mound, Scribner said the stress kicked as he watched Bud Norris finish for his 16th save in 18 chances, putting runners at first and second before getting Jose Bautista to ground into a double play.

"When we went ahead I was like 'Wow, this might be my win right here,'" Scribner said. "I got nervous then because I was like 'Oh man.' We got into a little trouble in the last inning but we pulled it out. It was awesome."

With several scouts in attendance to watch his performance ahead of Monday's trade deadline, Blue Jays left-hander Francisco Liriano allowed three runs and five hits in six innings.

"I felt good today, I felt like my fastball was working well," Liriano said. "My location was great. I made a couple of mistake here and there but I felt like I pitched pretty well."

All the scoring off Liriano came in the sixth, when the Angels rallied from a 3-0 deficit. Mike Trout drove in the first run and Andrelton Simmons hit a two-out, two-run single.

Toronto answered in the bottom half when Miguel Montero hit a two-run homer off Scribner, his first since joining the Blue Jays earlier this month.

Toronto took a 1-0 lead in the fourth when Josh Donaldson scored on Simmons' throwing error after advancing to third on a fly ball. The Blue Jays added two more against Keynan Middleton in the fifth on back-to-back doubles by Darwin Barney and Ryan Goins.

Making his first start of the season after 36 relief appearances, Angels right-hander Yusmeiro Petit allowed one run and three hits in four innings. Petit walked none and struck out five.

Angels slugger Albert Pujols went 0 for 3 with a walk and is hitless in 24 at bats. Scioscia said he wasn't convinced Pujols needed a day off to rest and clear his head.

"It seems like he's just missing some pitches but he feels strong, he feels like he's starting to put better swings on the ball," Scioscia said. "Don't think he's tired."

BIRTHDAY GIRL

Scribner's parents drove to Toronto from Connecticut on Friday, stopping in Buffalo, NY, to acquire passports. The family planned to go out and hold a double celebration Saturday night - it was also his mother's birthday.

TROUT TAKES TORONTO

Trout has reached base safely in 14 straight games against the Blue Jays. He's batting .439 (25 for 57) in that span.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Angels: INF Nick Franklin, acquired from Milwaukee last month, was designated for assignment. RHP Scribner was selected from Triple-A Salt Lake.

Blue Jays: SS Troy Tulowitzki (sprained right ankle) was placed on the 10-day DL and INF Rob Refsnyder was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo. ... Toronto optioned RHP Chris Smith to Buffalo and activated RHP Mike Bolsinger (left knee) off the DL.

UP NEXT

Angels: RHP Jesse Chavez (5-10, 5.35) has a 5.82 ERA in 26 career games at Rogers Centre. Chavez has had two separate stints with the Blue Jays.

Blue Jays: RHP Cesar Valdez (1-0, 4.97) pitched six innings to beat Oakland Tuesday, winning for the first time since his major league debut in May 2010.

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