en the gates opened at 4 p.m. Monday, an hour early in order to gi

The Toronto Blue Jays got out of the gate with a dismal 10-17 record last season and dug themselves a hole they could never really get out of. Its a scenario they really cant afford to repeat in 2014. Prior to last season, 39 of the last 60 teams that were in first place in their division on June 1 went on to make the post-season. If you look at last years races division by division, there were only two teams that werent in first or second in June who went on to make the playoffs. In the American League West, Texas was in first through April and May with a 34-21 - two games ahead of Oakland. The As went on a 63-32 tear the rest of the way and won the division by five games over the Rangers, who played and lost a sudden death tie-breaker. In the Central, Detroit and Cleveland hit June 1firsy and second in the division with the Tigers leading by a half-game. Detroit wound up taking the division by one game over the Indians. In the East, Boston was on top at 34-23. This is one division where there was a slight exception. Tampa Bay was actually in 4th place heading into the games of June 1 at 30-25. But the Rays were only a half-game back of Baltimore and one game behind the second place Yankees. The Rays finished 61-46 to take second place. The Blue Jays were 23-33 through the first two months and never really came close to getting back in the race, even with that 11 game win streak. In the National League East, Atlanta was 33-22 through April and May and won the division easily with a 96-66 mark. Washington, a pre-season favourite, was 28-28 and missed the playoffs altogether. In the Central, St. Louis got off to a 37-18 start and led the division wire-to-wire on the way to a Major League best 97-65 record. Pittsburgh was third two months in, but overhauled Cincinnati for second place, though both teams won 90 or more and both made the post season. The National League West was the one division where all bets were off after two months. Arizona was on top at 31-24 with a two-and-a-half game lead on the Giants and Rockies. The Dodgers were seven-and-a-half games out through April and May at 23-31. The division practically turned upside down the rest of the way. The D-Backs faded and finished at 81-81 for the second year in a row. San Francisco and Colorado collapsed and both finished 10 or more games below .500. The Dodgers, though, inspired in large part by the arrival of Yasiel Puig went a scorching 69-39 down the stretch and won the division with a 92-70 mark. So it pretty much goes without saying, the Blue Jays need to be at least slightly above .500 through April and May to have any hope of competing in the tough American League East. Their schedule is, by no means, easy with 22 of their 57 games through the first two months against the A.L East, including six against Boston and seven versus Tampa Bay - the two playoff favourites in the division. The Jays only have 10 games over April and May against "lesser" opponents, with three against Houston, three versus Minnesota and a four-game interleague series against Philadelphia. 25 of the 57 are against teams that either made the playoffs last season or were involved in tie-breakers. The Jays also have just one day off in the month of May; a real test of the pitching staff. No team will ever admit theyre out of it after just two months. The Blue Jays didnt a year ago. But in five of the six divisions last season, the two-month mark painted a pretty vivid picture of where teams are really at. The other day I was reading about the new head of the Players Association, Tony Clark, when another name in the article caught my name. It was Steve Rogers, who also works for the Association as a liaison to the players among his many duties. I actually had to double check that it was the same Steve Rogers who once pitched for the Expos. It was. If you get into a conversation with anyone as to who the greatest pitcher in Expos history was, some might suggest Pedro Martinez, who went 55-33 in his four seasons in Montreal. Others might say Dennis Martinez for his perfect game, maybe Bill Stoneman for his two no-hitters or Ross Grimsley for being the Expos first 20-game winner. In my mind, though, it was Steve Rogers. I was surprised to see his career record was only 158-152, but its his other numbers that blow you away. Over 13 seasons, all with Montreal, he pitched over 200 innings in nine of them. Six times he was over 250 innings, four times over 270 and in 1977 when he won 17 games he pitched an incredible 300.2 innings. He actually pitched more innings per season than Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax and had a better career ERA at 3.17 than another Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan. Rogers was a five-time all-star and finished second in the rookie of the year voting and one year was second in the Cy Young balloting. It was a different era, but compare Rogers numbers to one of the Blue Jays all-time greats Roy Halladay in a couple of categories. Rogers had 129 complete games and 37 shutouts and Halladay had 67 complete games and 20 shutouts. Rogers, 64 now, had to retire at 35 when his shoulder essentially gave out on him. He is a member of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame at St, Marys and tries to get back for the Induction Ceremonies every year. He concedes he might even have had a shot at Cooperstown if he had been able to pitch another 5-7 years and could have won another 70 games. The Expos only made the playoffs once in their history - 1981. Steve Rogers beat Phillies legend Steve Carlton twice in the division series and then defeated the Dodgers in Game 3 of the NLCS. But say his name today and many will only remember his relief appearance on "Blue Monday" at the Big "0," when he gave up the series deciding homer to the Dodgers Rick Monday. If you look at the numbers and the character of the man, Steve Rogers should be remembered for much more than that. Adam Lallana Jersey . The striker headed Spurs into a 35th-minute lead and tapped in their third in the 71st after Chico Flores own goal. Wilfried Bony hit the bar and had a good penalty appeal for a push by Tottenham captain Michael Dawson turned down in the first half, before getting Swanseas consolation late on. Custom Liverpool Jerseys . There, I saw a teenaged boy with tears in his eyes, being consoled by strength and conditioning coach Randy Lee. http://www.liverpoolgear.us/Authentic-Fa...verpool-Jersey/. 22. Wade averaged 26.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.0 steals while leading the Heat to a 3-0 record. The 31-year-old shot 60 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point range en route to his 17th weekly honor. Rafael Camacho Liverpool Jersey . Fans holding laudatory signs started showing up at Yankee Stadium when the gates opened at 4 p.m. Monday, an hour early in order to give them a chance to watch the New York captain take batting practice. Roberto Firmino Jersey . Toronto FC hosts the three-time Italian league champions in a friendly Aug. 7 at BMO Field, a game that Roma CEO Italo Zanzi said falls within a key part of their pre-season.ANAHEIM, Calif. -- A day after Anaheim captain Ryan Getzlaf took a slap shot to the head, the Ducks had already found the lighter side of a potentially disastrous playoff injury. "Luckily, hes married, has a couple of kids," Anaheim defenceman Ben Lovejoy said. "Hes not trying to impress anybody with his face." Coach Bruce Boudreau was more succinct: "I didnt want to look at him," he said. Nobody in either dressing room was surprised Thursday to learn Getzlaf plans to play against the Dallas Stars in Game 2 on Friday night despite that huge cut on his face. Getzlaf was hit by Tyler Seguins shot in the final minute of the Ducks 4-3 victory over Dallas on Wednesday night in the series opener, but the puck apparently broke no bones -- which means itll be almost impossible to keep Getzlaf off the ice. "Thats why he is who he is," Boudreau said. "Thats why hes won two gold medals and a Stanley Cup and hes not 30. He learned from the Scotty Niedermayers and the Chris Prongers that were here before him, too. Hes a battler and a gamer. It wont look too pretty, but hes going to be playing." Getzlaf was the NHLs second-leading scorer this season with 87 points, having a spectacular offensive season while doing more of the Ducks defensive dirty work than ever before. His two-way game was on display in the opener, and Anaheim followed his lead to hold off the Stars despite blowing most of a four-goal lead. The Ducks know theyve got to maintain their focus on that dirty work to take control of the series before heading to Dallas. Anaheim had a spectacular first half of Game 1 before slipping late in the second period. "Youd like to put your foot on their throat, but they showed they can score some goals when they have to," Anaheim defenceman Cam Fowler said. "Theyve got momentum going into Game 2." Five more things to examine when the Ducks return against Dallas: FILM WORK: Dallas coach Lindy Ruff held the longest film session of the season on Thursday, but mostly focused on what the Stars did well in the series opener. With capptain Jamie Benn leading a long list of Stars making their post-season debuts, Ruff wants to keep his teams morale high after an early setback.dddddddddddd "Its my job to get them in the right place, and they werent in quite the right place yesterday," Ruff said. BELESKEYS WOES: Getzlaf isnt the only top-line Ducks forward nursing an injury. Matt Beleskey might not play in Game 2 after leaving the opener in the third period. Beleskey said he has been struggling for weeks with an undisclosed lower-body injury thats been "all over the place" in its severity. He plans to evaluate himself Friday morning before deciding whether to try. Beleskey is easier to replace in the Ducks lineup than Getzlaf, but the energetic forward would be missed. HEAVY LOAD: The Ducks used their speed and passing abilities to carve up the Stars depleted defence for numerous scoring chances, particularly early. With Brenden Dillon still sidelined by an undisclosed injury, the Stars leaned heavily on defencemen Trevor Daley (who played 26:14) and Alex Goligoski (a whopping 28:39) to keep the Ducks at bay. Goligoski, who didnt skate Thursday, was encouraged by the way Dallas finished. "I dont think (Anaheim) had too many shifts where they were buzzing down there (in the Dallas end)," he said. DUCKY DEBUT: Rookie goalie Frederik Andersen stopped 32 shots to win his NHL playoff debut, and Boudreau indicated the 6-foot-4 Dane is likely to start again in Game 2 over veteran Jonas Hiller. Andersen has impressed his teammates with his preternatural calm all season long. "Its almost like hes got no heartbeat," Corey Perry said. "He just goes out, finds the puck and stops it." MOMENTUM SHIFT?: Even though Anaheim has the chance to take its first two-game lead in a playoff series since 2009, both teams believe Dallas is starting Game 2 with no disadvantage. "I think were back on an even playing field, even though were up 1-0," Ducks forward Andrew Cogliano said. "The way they finished the game, it feels like were even." ' ' '