re next weeks U.S. Open. Recari also posted a bogey-free roun

HOUSTON -- When 7-year-old Will Erickson penned a letter to Jeff Luhnow imploring the Houston Astros general manager not to trade George Springer, he never dreamed hed get a response.The reason was simple.Because hes busy, Will told The Associated Press on Wednesday.Will decided to write the letter when he heard the Astros could be looking for pitching this offseason and might need to trade somebody like Springer to get it. His letter was straightforward. It said: Please dont trade George Springer these are the reasons. 1. He is my favorite player. 2. I get my hair cut like his. 3. He is a team player.It turns out that Luhnow wasnt too busy to take some time out to get back to the second-grader. He tweeted a picture of the letter with the words: Sound logic dont you think?Will said it took him about 15 minutes to write the letter and decided it would be cool to write one instead of simply sending an email after a letter-writing project his class did recently. He wasnt nervous about reaching out to a baseball executive despite being in elementary school.No, because it was just a letter not like talking, he said.Hes been to quite a few Astros games and loves the work of Springer, who is an outfielder.I like how he robs homers and hits home runs, Will said.During the week Wills bedtime is 8 p.m. so he isnt able to watch much of Astros games live since they begin at 7:10 p.m. But he DVRs every game and gets to watch his beloved Springers work from the night before after school each day.As for the haircut, Will decided to change his hairstyle after seeing Springers cool do, which has shaved sides and is longer on top. It was only supposed to be for a little while according to his parents, but now they cant get him to change it and say its part of his personality.Theres no curls (on mine) but its the same, Will said.After Luhnow tweeted Wills letter it got a lot of attention on the internet, with scores of people retweeting it and dozens of news stories being written about it. There was even a segment on the local news in Houston where his father discussed the letter that Wills teacher played on Wednesday for his class.They called me famous, Will said about his classmates.Will hasnt met Springer, but is a little worried about how hell respond if he ever gets the chance.If I saw him I would faint, Will said.When he isnt talking trades with baseball executives Will is a typical elementary school boy. He plays little league baseball and fit his first interview in between school and a trip to see Santa Claus at a nearby Christmas village.Its not much of a surprise what he planned to ask Jolly Old Saint Nick for on Wednesday night. He wants real snow or a baseball lesson from Springer at Minute Maid Park.Both are a tall order, but since Will lives in a place where temperatures in December can soar into the 70s, his parents arent sure which wish is more unlikely. Shoes Wholesale China Free Shipping . "Jeff is a hard worker who was an important special-teams contributor for us last season," said Stamps GM John Hufnagel. Cheap Shoes Wholesale Free Shipping . Reassurance came from Paul Tesori, his caddie and close friend whose newborn son is in intensive care in a Florida hospital. "Paul sent me a text this morning, just told me he loved me and wanted to go out and fight as hard as I would any other day," Simpson said Sunday after doing just that. http://www.shoeswholesale.us/ . Reigning world champion Eve Muirhead of Scotland opened with a 12-2 rout of Winnipegs Jennifer Jones in a battle of teams bound for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Wholesale Cheap Shoes China . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Shoes Wholesale Online Store .Y. -- Sabres forward Drew Stafford has witnessed plenty of turmoil during his eight seasons in Buffalo.ROGERS, Ark. -- Stacy Lewis has made no secret about her desire to earn a championship in front of her adopted hometown fans. The worlds No. 2 golfer has also been open about how that internal pressure has caused her to struggle in recent years at the LPGA NW Arkansas Championship. Lewis put all distractions aside on Saturday, shooting a 6-under 65 to join a group of four players atop the leaderboard at 10 under overall after the second round of the tournament at Pinnacle Country Club. The round was a welcomed bit of excitement for a surging and vocal gallery that followed Lewis every shot. It was especially gratifying for the former world No. 1, who played collegiately at nearby Arkansas -- and who has struggled to contend in recent years at the tournament. Lewis earned an unofficial win at the rain-shortened event as an amateur in 2007. Since then, however, the former Rookie of the Year and last years Player of the Year entered this week having finished in an average of 23rd place in front of her many fans -- including a 49th-place finish last year. Back-to-back wins earlier this year briefly vaulted Lewis into the top spot in the world rankings, a position she said prepared her for the hectic schedule she faces this week. "Its everything I deal with this year with the week that I became No. 1 in the world. It was just chaos," Lewis said. "Dealing with that pressure of being No. 1 in the world, I learned a lot from that. "I honestly think thats why Ive come here this week and it doesnt seem so busy anymore, doesnt seem too hard to play with all the fans." Chie Arimura and Beatriz Recari both equaled Lewis 65 on Saturday and are tied entering the final round with So Yeon Ryu. I.K. Kim and defending champion Ai Miyazato tied for the lowest round of the day, each shooting a 7-under 64. First-round leader Mika Miyazato shot a 70 and is three shots back, while top-ranked Inbee Park leads a group of three players two shots back at 8 under. They will all be chasing Lewis on Sunday, at least in terms of the attention from the galleries to begin with. She will be paired with Recari in the final grouping of the day, and she is well aware of the excitement she will feel. "I think the harder part is Im going to want it so bad, and I know the fans are going to want me to get it really bad," Lewis said. "So, its going to be hard. The hardest part is going to be staying patient and not trying to force putts and running them four feet by (the hole)." Sara-Maude Juneau of Fossambault, Que., shot a 67, and moved to 4-under 138 for the tournament. Maude-Aimee LeBlanc oof Sherbrooke, Que.dddddddddddd, had a 72, and is at 141. Stephanie Sherlock of Barrie, Ont., missed the cut, with a 72 leaving her at 143. Rebecca Lee-Bentham of Toronto shot a 71, to finish at 144. Charlottetowns Lorie Kane was nowhere near matching her opening round 69, ballooning to a 76, for a 145 total. Lewis was as low as 11 under after 17 holes on Saturday, thanks in large part to needing only 27 putts for her round -- a number that included several near misses and a three-putt on her final hole. The 28-year-old Lewis, who played during the morning, thrilled her pro-Arkansas gallery with four straight birdies on her first nine holes. After starting on the back nine, she birdied holes 14-17 to reach 8 under before the par-5 18th took its toll. Lewis approach on her third shot came up just short and rolled to the bottom of the hill in front of the green. Her following chip did the same. Fortunately for Lewis, she managed to save bogey with an up-and-down -- thanks to her fifth straight one-putt. She then reached 11 under after four more birdies later in her round before bogeying her final hole of the day. Lewis will have plenty of challengers Sunday on a leaderboard that features seven players within two shots of the lead, including Park -- with two major wins this year. Arimura, the rookie from China, also needed only 27 putts on Saturday in shooting a bogey-free 65. She tied for the lead with birdies on her final two holes. Ryu birdied the par-5 7th hole -- her 16th hole of the round -- to reach 10 under in the final tournament before next weeks U.S. Open. Recari also posted a bogey-free round, birdieing four of her first seven holes before making the last of her six birdies on the par-5 14th. The Spanish golfer already has one win this year, the Kia Classic in March. "I think overall Im pretty happy and proud of how I handled myself the last two days," Recari said. "I have a very clear idea of what I have to do mentally, so I feel very confident and very good for my last round." Kim, Pornanong Phatlum and Ji Young Oh are each at 8 under along with Park, while amateur Lydia Ko and Miyazato are at 7 under. Juli Inkster followed an opening 71 with a 6-under 65 on Saturday. Lewis, meanwhile, said she planned to play a round of golf with her nephew on Saturday afternoon before relaxing for the rest of the day in anticipation of what she hopes is a hometown celebration on Sunday. "Im definitely going to use the crowd some, but then I need to also just kind of scale it back and just stay in what I am doing right now because its working," Lewis said. ' ' '