Private Usergalerie » crowd was informed LaFontaine had the flu

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- It took a masterful performance for Jake Odorizzi to get a rare win. Odorizzi allowed one hit and struck out 10 while pitching into the eighth inning as the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Houston Astros 8-0 on Saturday. "A lot of things went right today," Odorizzi said. Odorizzi (3-7) retired his first 10 batters before Jose Altuves one-out infield single in the fourth that went off the pitchers foot. The right-hander, who went 7 1/3 innings, won for just the second time in his last 14 starts. "Tough luck," Odorizzi said of Altuves hit. "It was coming too fast." Only one runner reached second base against Odorizzi, who walked two. Brad Boxberger and Kirby Yates completed the one-hitter. "Thats the kind of game were capable of, absolutely," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. "We finally got the hits when we needed them and the pitching was outstanding. Jake was really good." The Rays are 7-18 in their last 25 games. They have nine shutouts this year. Jake Buchanan (0-1) gave up five runs, eight hits and three walks over 4 1/3 innings in his major league debut. He had his contract purchased from Triple-A Oklahoma City to fill in for Brad Peacock, who was scratched from his scheduled start after having food poisoning earlier in the week. "It was pretty exciting to get out there and pitch in a big league game," Buchanan said. "I tried to settle in and battle and did the best I could." Kevin Kiermaier had an RBI double and James Loney hit a run-scoring single as the Rays took a 2-0 lead in the first. Buchanan avoided further damage by getting an inning-ending grounder from Yunel Escobar with the bases loaded. Tampa Bay had a three-run fifth to take a 5-0 lead. Brandon Guyer drove in a run with single before Matt Joyce had an RBI double that ended Buchanans day. Ryan Hanigan added a run-scoring double against Jerome Williams. Loney had a two-run single in a three-run eighth that extended the Rays lead to 8-0. Altuve went 1 for 3 with a walk, and has 12 hits in his last 21 at-bats. It was the ninth time this season, and second in three days, that Houston was shut out. "Thats the nature of baseball," Astros manager Bo Porter said. "You cant let a bad today ruin a great tomorrow. We come back (Sunday) and have an opportunity to get a split in a four-game series on the road, which is always good." NOTES: The teams wore retro 1970s uniforms on "Turn Back the Clock Day." Maddon remains a fan of the Astros rainbow uniforms that they wore Saturday. "They nailed it," Maddon said. "I do dig the uniforms." ... Houston C Jason Castro was the DH one day after taking a foul ball off his knee. He is expected to get Sunday off, ... To make room on the roster for Buchanan, RHP Paul Clemens was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City and RHP Jose Cisnero (sore right elbow) was transferred from the 15- to the 60-day DL. ... Houston RHP Anthony Bass (right intercostal strain) will start a minor league rehab assignment Sunday with Single-A Quad Cities. ... Astros LHP Dallas Keuchel (8-4) and Rays LHP Erik Bedard (3-5) are Sundays scheduled starters. Clearance Shoes Australia . "I just think what it does for everybody in life is real simple," said Babcock early on Friday afternoon. "You dont give in. You just keep on keeping on. Is it going to go your way every time? No. But you choose your attitude and how you perform and how hard you dig in." Nearly four years to the day of the 2010 gold medal match in Vancouver, his team dug in with its best effort of these Olympics, snuffing out the high-powered Americans for another opportunity at gold. Shoes Australia Outlet . Kelli Stack and Alex Carpenter also scored for the Americans, who avoided a repeat of Finlands upset at the Four Nations Cup in Lake Placid, N.Y., in November. Finnish goalie Noora Raty made 58 saves in that one, but the three-time Olympian could stop just 40 of 43 U. https://www.shoesaustraliaonline.com/ . - Doug Kalitta led Top Fuel qualifying Friday in the NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway with a 3. Wholesale Shoes Australia . Starting from pole, the 26-year-old Vettel turned in a trademark clinical performance to win the Indian Grand Prix on Sunday and join F1 greats Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher as just the third driver to win four consecutive championships. Buy Shoes Australia . Dane Dobbie had four goals and two assists, Karsen Leung had two goals and two assists, and Matthew Dinsdale scored two and helped on another for Calgary (6-3). Shawn Evans and Jeff Shattler had eight-point games with a goal and seven assists apiece, and Jon Harnett and Geoff Snider also scored. BUFFALO, N.Y. -- First, Ryan Miller. Now, Pat LaFontaine. A day after trading their star goalie to St. Louis, the Buffalo Sabres lost another face of their franchise after LaFontaine abruptly resigned as president of hockey operations on Saturday a little more than three months after being brought in to provide a new direction to the NHLs last-place team. The Sabres announced the decision in a news release issued after speculation had been raised of a potential front-office shake-up involving LaFontaine. "I would like to thank Pat for all he has done for the organization," Sabres owner Terry Pegula said in the release. "Pat joined us at a very difficult time, and helped transition the organization down a new path." The Sabres said LaFontaine would be returning to his previous role working with the National Hockey League. LaFontaine had been working with the league on player safety issues before being hired by the Sabres in mid-November. The former Sabres captains arrival was hailed as a major turning point for a struggling team. LaFontaine took over following a change in the front office during which general manager Darcy Regier and coach Ron Rolston were dismissed following the Sabres 4-15-1 start. LaFontaines first move was hiring former Sabres coach Ted Nolan to take over as coach on an interim basis for the remainder of the season. LaFontaines next step came in January, when he hired Tim Murray as general manager. "Terry Pegula hired me in November, and my primary objective was to lead the Sabres organization through a time of transition," LaFontaine said in the Sabres release. "Im proud of what weve been able to accomplish in a short period of time, and want to thank Terry and Kim Pegula for the opportunity and their support during my time with the Sabres." LaFontaines resignation still comes as a major surprise. In January, LaFontaine talked openly about how he would use his connections to USA Hockey in a bid to lure national and international events to Buffalo. He leaves a day after Murray made his first big splash by trading star goalie Ryan Miller and captain Steve Ott to the St. Louis Blues. In exchange, the Sabres acquired goalie Jaroslav Halak, forward Chris Stewart, prospect William Carrier, a 2015 first-round pick and a connditional 2016 third-round pick in a deal reached in advance of the NHL trade deadline on Wednesday.dddddddddddd The Sabres (18-34-8) had the day off on Saturday, and return to practice on Sunday before travelling to play at Dallas on Monday. They remain in last place, but are enjoying their first three-game winning streak following a 4-2 win over the San Jose Sharks on Friday. This is not the first time LaFontaine has abruptly stepped down as an NHL team executive. In July 2006, LaFontaine quit the New York Islanders a little over a month after being brought in to serve as senior adviser to owner Charles Wang. In Buffalo, LaFontaines absence was notable this week once the team returned to the ice following the leagues Olympic break. He was not spotted in the press box during the Sabres three-game homestand that began with a 3-2 win over Carolina on Tuesday. That was unusual because LaFontaine had previously spent time watching games from the press-box level in Pegulas box, alongside Murray and several of the owners associates. LaFontaine also missed the teams "Power Play Luncheon" for fans on Friday, when he was scheduled to speak along with fellow former Sabres greats Gilbert Perreault, Rene Robert and Danny Gare. The crowd was informed LaFontaine had the flu. The Sabres have become a top-heavy organization since Regiers dismissal. Pegula created the position of president of hockey operations to hire LaFontaine. And Pegula did so only after LaFontaine declined a chance to become the GM by saying he didnt think he had enough experience for that job. Along with hiring Murray, the Sabres also brought in Hockey Hall of Fame member and long-time executive Craig Patrick to serve as a special adviser. LaFontaine backed the hiring of Murray and Patrick, by referring to both as his "wingers." He also discussed how important it was for him to be building a front-office team that could work together in rebuilding a team that has missed the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, and not won a playoff round since reaching the 2007 Eastern Conference finals. Its not clear what effect LaFontaines departure will have on the teams short-term future, including Nolans status. Murray said this week hes already had discussions with Nolan about extending his contract beyond this season. ' ' '