Dein erstes Forum » performance.Game notes Mewhort and defensive ta

CLEVELAND -- The last two teams standing in the American League overcame plenty of obstacles to reach the AL Championship Series, but the Toronto Blue Jays and Cleveland Indians are both playing as well now as they have all season.Two good teams. Two hot teams. It should be a good matchup, said Toronto manager John Gibbons.The two teams who will meet in Game 1 of the ALCS on Friday night at Progressive Field have not yet tasted defeat in the postseason. In the two division series, Cleveland swept Boston in three games and Toronto swept Texas in three games.It was a battle to get in, but weve been swinging it well in the last week, said Gibbons, whose team had a losing record (11-16) in September, and needed a walk-off home run in the 11th inning to beat Baltimore in the wildcard game.Clevelands 16-11 September record was the reverse of Torontos, but the Indians hardships came during the regular season. Their best hitter, Michael Brantley, missed virtually the entire season with a shoulder injury. Starting catcher Yan Gomes missed 2 1/2 months with a separated shoulder, and the Nos. 2 and 3 starters in their rotation, Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, suffered season-ending injuries in September.They took a couple of big blows, a couple of big injuries, and they just kept on trucking, Gibbons said.Losing two starters like that late is tough, but I think we have enough good players to win. Weve just got to play good baseball, Indians manager Terry Francona said.The Indians, however, still have their No.1 starter, Corey Kluber, rested and ready to start Game 1. Kluber, a Cy Young Award candidate, was 18-9 with a 3.14 ERA in the regular season. He pitched seven scoreless innings on three hits in a 6-0 win over the Red Sox in Game 2 of the Division Series.We expect him to be good and stingy, said Gibbons. You never enjoy facing him, thats for sure.Kluber has struggled in his career vs. Toronto. In one start against the Blue Jays this year he gave up five runs in 3 1/3 innings in what became a 17-1 loss. In five career starts against the Blue Jays Kluber is 1/3 with a 5.34 ERA.Gibbons has no explanation for his teams success against Kluber. Theres a lot of things that happen in this game that you dont know why, he said.Marco Estrada, Torontos Game 1 starter, was 9-9 with a 3.48 ERA in the regular season, but he came up big in Game 1 of the Division Series vs. Texas. Estrada allowed one run on four hits in 8 1/3 innings in a 10-1 Blue Jays victory. In one start against Cleveland this year Estrada got the win in a 9-6 Toronto victory, pitching five innings and allowing three runs on four hits.Estrada said hes hopeful the Blue Jays can use the momentum they gained during the sweep of Texas in the Division Series to good advantage in the ALCS.Its all about timing. Thats usually the way it works, he said. The best team doesnt always win, but I think the hottest team is usually the one that takes it all.Francona knows his pitching staff faces a big challenge in trying to control Torontos power-packed lineup.You dont run down the hall to face their hitters, Francona said.They have a solid lineup, one through nine, said Kluber. They are all good hitters, with a lot of power, but theyre also patient. So youve got to execute your pitches. There is no magic formula. Cheap Seahawks Jerseys China . And follow TSN.ca right through Deadline Day for all the updates. From Pierre LeBrun While Anaheim GM Bob Murray said earlier this season he was not going to trade Jonas Hiller despite the fact hes an unrestricted free agent on July 1, some sources have told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun that Murray might be willing to move another goalie. 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INDIANAPOLIS -- The stats still look bad for the Indianapolis Colts offensive line.The game tape is finally starting to become more palatable.After allowing a league-high 25 sacks and seeing franchise quarterback Andrew Luck get knocked around dozens more times in the first seven games, this young group is fighting back.Were not where we started at, but I think all five guys are starting to put it together, rookie center Ryan Kelly said earlier this week after another solid performance.Nobody will mistake this starting unit with the leagues best -- or even with those underrated offensive lines who kept Peyton Manning almost spotless for most of his career.But they are clearly making progress.Two weeks ago, at Houston, the Colts linemen paved the way for Frank Gore to become the first Colts 100-yard runner in 56 games.Last week, against a Tennessee defense that has been among the leagues best in sacks, the offensive line held up reasonably well again.While Luck went down twice, as he has in every game this season, the franchise quarterback took only seven hits. Theyve even be cutting down those pesky penalties .The Colts (3-4) did all that despite using five starting lineups in five weeks while using at least two rookies in each game.I think those guys played a great game and I think it showed with our playmakers and the way they performed, left guard Jack Mewhort said after sitting out the Titans game with an injured triceps. It was a great game, but we still have a lot of areas we need to improve on.Mewhort hopes to return Sunday against an opportunistic Kansas City defense .If the recent progression indicates anything, its this: Perhaps Indys offseason investment is starting to pay dividends.With Anthony Castonzo holding down the tackle job for the sixth consecutive season and Mewhort back at guard, general manager Ryan Grigson figured he had a left side foundation on which he could build upon.Grigson drafted Kelly in the first round, hoping to solidify the most unstable position throughout Lucks first four pro seasons. Kelly has not disappointed.His game isnt perfect, hed be the first one to tell you that, coach Chuck Pagano said.Hes making somme mistakes like everyone else but the sirens arent going off at that position, which is a good thing.ddddddddddddIndy is still trying to sort out its right side.While veteran Joe Reitz has started five games at tackle, the Colts (3-4) appear to have found a gem in fifth-round draft pick Joe Haeg, who has played well with two starts at right tackle, one at right guard and one at left guard.Joe Haeg is a perfect example of a guy who comes in, keeps his head down and works and studies, Mewhort said. I think that says a lot about him and his character.The early returns could give Haeg the inside track to becoming the fourth piece in Indys long-term puzzle.Theres no heir apparent yet for the fifth and final piece.Denzelle Good, a second-year player, has had mixed results in his five starts at right guard. Seventh-round draft pick Austin Blythe has one start in place of Good, and its not yet clear how third-round pick LeRaven Clark fits into the plan. Clark has played in three games, but has not started yet.But now that the Colts are putting things together on tape, they need to see something else -- results on paper, too.We watched the film as a group with the running backs as well and we saw some really good things and we saw some things we need to improve on, Castonzo said. As a whole, we felt pretty good about our performance.Game notes Mewhort and defensive tackle Henry Anderson (knee) did not practice Thursday after doing limited work Wednesday. Receiver T.Y. Hilton (hip) and inside linebacker DQwell Jackson (rest) also sat out Thursday. ... Tight end Dwayne Allen (ankle), defensive end Kendall Langford (knee), outside linebacker Curt Maggitt (ankle) and receiver Chester Rogers (foot and hamstring) all missed practice for the second straight day. ... Luck (right shoulder and ankle) did limited work Thursday, as has become the weekly norm. Receiver Done Moncrief (shoulder blade) and safety Mike Adams (shin) also were limited participants.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '