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Blaine Gabbert's Talk Of Security As Jaguars Starter Only Good For Spring

2012-05-16T12:30:16Z

Nothing is more dangerous for a draft pick who is not working out than a new regime with no ties to him. That's the fate before Blaine Gabbert of the Jacksonville Jaguars, whose new head coach Mike Mularkey (and staff) comes in with no input into the decision to draft Gabbert last season as the first round quarterback of the future from Missouri. While Gene Smith, the team's GM, remains on board, Gabbert certainly doesn't enjoy carte blanche while he learns at the NFL level.

Mularkey is saying all the right things now about his young quarterback, but there's no official games to play for several months. Talk at this point in the year is cheap, and training camp is another matter entirely. If the Jags are going to falter again with Gabbert at the helm, they have other options in house. Don Banks of Sports Illustrated sees through the spring talk:

New head coach Mike Mularkey says there's no quarterback competition between Gabbert and Henne, but that's what he has to say right now. Gabbert is in fragile condition after a brutal rookie season, and there's no reason to further shake his confidence. But all you really need to know is that Jaguars coaches have been working with Gabbert to re-teach him some fundamentals and hone his drops and balance in the pocket. That's not really what you want to hear about your starting quarterback as he enters year two of his career, after going 10th overall in the draft.

Certainly Gabbert will get a chance to be the starter, but he'll only be given that. A player with his skill set should be able to hold off mediocre competition around him. It's not as if the team maneuvered to grab another young quarterback. The road is still paved for him to be the face of the franchise for some time -- but that's only if he wants it. Mularkey will say the right things now, but it will come down to performance and only performance in just a few months. And that goes for any quarterback on the roster.

For more updates on the Jaguars, head to Big Cat Country.

Royals Vs. Rangers Final Score: Mike Moustakas Homers As Royals Win Fourth Straight

2012-05-16T03:15:22Z

The Royals used some early offense and a solid start from Vin Mazzaro to earn a 7-4 win in Texas for Kansas City's first series sweep of the season, albeit a two-game series.

Mazzaro went five innings in the start, allowing three earned runs on seven hits, as the powerful Texas offense was held in check for the second straight night.

The Royals scored four runs in the opening frame, including a two-RBI single from Brayan Pena. Kansas City added another run in the second and Mike Moustakas hit a solo homer in the third. Texas scored three runs over the next two innings, but the Royals bullpen held strong, allowing one hit — a solo home run in the ninth — over the last four innings.

The Royals went 4-1 on the five-game homestand and have won six of their last seven games. They now come home for a five-game homestand.

Read more about the Texas Rangers at Lone Star Ball. For more on the Royals, check outRoyals Review. Also be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news around the league.

Royals Vs. Rangers: KC Takes Early 5-0 Lead In Texas

2012-05-16T00:57:49Z

Looking to sweep a two-game series against the Rangers, the Royals have jumped all over Texas early, owning a 5-0 lead after two innings.

Kansas City took a 4-0 lead after the first. Billy Butler drove home a run on a 6-5 fielder's choice to give the Royals the first run of the game. Later in the inning, Brayan Pena hit a two-RBI single and Chris Getz followed that with an RBI single. In the second inning, Butler drove in another run with a double to extend the lead to 5-0.

Through two innings, Vin Mazzaro has given up two hits, but no runs.

The Royals have won three straight games and have not swept a series this season, even if this series is just two games.

Read more about the Texas Rangers at Lone Star Ball. For more on the Royals, check outRoyals Review. Also be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news around the league.

Martin Rucker Saying He Is A Kansas City Chief

2012-05-16T00:03:19Z

Former Missouri Tiger tight end Martin Rucker has announced to the world that he is now a member of the Kansas City Chiefs:

Thanking God 4 another opportunity 2 pursue my dream. Thank u all 4 ur prayers and support. I'm a Kansas City Chief!! Good 2 b home!!
— Martin Rucker (@RuckerSouthSide) May 15, 2012

However, there has been no official word from the Chiefs saying that Rucker has signed a deal with the team. Just last week Rucker was one of 10 players who atended a tryout with the Chiefs, but he left among the others this past Sunday so that the coaches could evaluate those in attendance further.

If there there is a contract in place it is likely to be a one-year deal and probably as the third tight end. One connection that went Rucker's way was that he played with the Cleveland Browns when Romeo Crennel was the head coach there.

For more on the Kansas City Chiefs, be sure to check out SB Nation's NFL page, SB Nation Kansas City and Arrowhead Pride.

Rangers Vs. Royals Game 2 Lineup: Vin Mazzaro Is Making First Start Of The Season

2012-05-15T23:26:56Z

The Kansas City Royals currently are riding a three-game winning streak and if they can win their second game against the Texas Rangers then they would have their longest winning streak of the season.

The pitching has led the way for the Royals during their winning streak and on Tuesday night they are bring out Vin Mazzaro who is making his first start of the year, and so far this year Mazzaro has only pitched one inning which was back on May 11. Kansas City is having to rearrange their lineup due to an injury to left-hander Danny Duffy who is out for the season.

Here is Tuesday night's lineup:

Royals lineup:

1. Jarrod Dyson (L) CF
2. Eric Hosmer (L) 1B
3. Billy Butler (R) DH
4. Alex Gordon (L) LF
5. Jeff Francoeur (R) RF
6. Mike Moustakas (L) 3B
7. Brayan Pena (S) C
8. Chris Getz (L) 2B
9. Alcides Escobar (R) SS
Vin Mazzaro, P

Rangers lineup:

1. Ian Kinsler (R) 2B
2. Michael Young (R) 3B
3. Josh Hamilton (L) LF
4. Adrian Beltre (R) DH
5. David Murphy (L) RF
6. Mike Napoli (R) C
7. Mitch Moreland (L) 1B
8. Alberto Gonzalez (R) SS
9. Craig Gentry (R) CF
Colby Lewis P

Read more about the Texas Rangers at Lone Star Ball. For more on the Royals, check outRoyals Review. Also be sure to visit Baseball Nation for more news around the league.

2012 NBA Playoffs, Thunder Vs. Lakers: Game 1 Breakdown [VIDEO]

2012-05-15T20:23:54Z

Game 1 between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers was all Thunder as they easily won 119-90 to take a 1-0 series lead. SB Nation's Ben Golliver goes deep in breaking down the first game of this series.

Golliver quickly points out the point guard situation, noting that the Lakers do not have the defensiver personell to slow down both Russell Westbrook and James Harden. If the Lakers can not slow down Westbrook and Harden then this could be a quick series win for the Thunder.

Some other red flags for the Lakers is their lack of bench play which the Thunder outscored 50-24 and multiple players lost their exposure late in the game when the lead was hovering around 30 points.

For more info on the Oklahoma City Thunder, go check out Welcome To Loud City and for more on the Lakers, go out and visit Silver Screen and Roll.

Kendrick Perkins Injury: Thunder Center Re-Aggravates Hip, Will Be Game-Time Decision For Game 2

2012-05-15T19:12:14Z

The Oklahoma City Thunder had little trouble blowing out the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals on Monday night, but Thunder center Kendrick Perkins was limited in the game.

Perkins, who was listed as a game-time decision after suffering a hip strain in the Game 4 win over the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round of the 2012 NBA Playoffs, played 17 minutes on Monday against the Lakers, picking up four points and two blocks before leaving the game.

According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, Thunder coach Scott Brooks announced that Perkins re-aggravated his hip in the Game 1 victory on Monday and will be a game-time decision once again for Game 2 in OKC on Wednesday.

The Thunder have been able to pick up two wins with a limited Perkins, but they would certainly like to see him back at full strength should they make it to the Western Conference final.

For more info on the Oklahoma City Thunder, check out Welcome To Loud City. For more on the Lakers, check out Silver Screen and Roll.

Danny Duffy Injury Update: Royals 'Followed Acceptable Protocol' Dealing With Knowledge Of Tear

2012-05-15T19:01:51Z

The Kansas City Royals suffered yet another big loss when they learned starting pitcher Danny Duffy would need to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery. The injury-plagued Royals just can't seem to catch any sort of a break in 2012.

Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star reports that even though the team was aware of a minor problem with Duffy's elbow since 2010, they acted accordingly.

The vast majority of professional pitchers have some damage in their arms, an occupational hazard of throwing 95-mph fastballs for a living, and the Royals have known about a small tear in Duffy's elbow since 2010.

The Royals contend an MRI would have shown only the old tear, because Duffy wasn't feeling anything different, and an unaffiliated expert with these types of injuries says the team followed accepted protocol.

The Royals are hoping that Duffy will be able to rejoin the rotation in June of 2013.

Read more about the the Kansas City Royals at Royals Review.