Clan-Members » nto that title match that the No. 1 ranking wa

DENVER -- The Colorado Rockies have placed closer Rafael Betancourt on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right groin. To fill his spot in the bullpen, the team selected the contract of righty Manny Corpas from Triple-A Colorado Springs. Corpas was 2-3 with a 5.19 ERA with the Sky Sox this season. Corpas was a valuable member of the Rockies bullpen when the team went to the World Series in 2007. He pitched for Colorado for five seasons before undergoing Tommy John surgery Sept. 8, 2010, which kept him out the following season. Corpas appeared in 48 games with the Chicago Cubs last season. Betancourt has 11 saves this year.Cam Newton Jersey . In Europe, top teams seem to be largely happy with their squads after spending nearly $1 billion in the off-season. And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers. Cam Newton Panthers Jersey . "Hes going to have hip surgery on Jan. 7, and hell be expected to rehabilitate for four to six months beyond that," Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said Friday in an interview. http://www.thepanthersofficialstore.com/authentic-luke-kuechly-panthers-jersey/ . But when it comes to determining if Raymond will find a place on the Leafs roster when training camp concludes in a week, well, that decision will ultimately fall to the head coach. Christian McCaffrey Youth Jersey . Belfort (24-10) needed just 77 seconds to down Henderson in the headlining bout of Saturdays "UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson" event at Goiania Arena in Goiania, Brazil. The fight served as a rematch of the pairs 2006 meeting, which Henderson won by decision. Curtis Samuel Jersey . Pedro scored from a pass by Lionel Messi in the 33rd minute and added two more goals in the 47th and 72nd after Valdes saved his second penalty in four days following his stop in Wednesdays 4-0 over Ajax in the Champions League.NEW YORK -- For the second time in one of the more intriguing careers in pro tennis, US Open finalist and No. 2 seed Angelique Kerber has people asking, Whered she come from?Kerber, who will play Karolina Pliskova for the singles title at the US Open on Saturday (4 p.m. ET, ESPN2 and WatchESPN), will wake up Monday morning as the oldest player to debut at No. 1 since the computer rankings were created. The 28-year old German is just the fifth woman in tennis history to make her first three Grand Slam final appearances in the same year. This is a woman who, at the outset of 2016, was ranked a solid but unthreatening No. 10.The element of surprise just might be Kerbers best weapon.The first time Kerber had people scrambling to search her name was in 2012, when she made a probing foray into the upper echelon of the game. Kerber was almost 24 and languishing outside the top 30 on Jan. 1. Then she reached the quarters at the French Open, the semis at Wimbledon and the fourth round at the US Open. She finished the year ranked No. 5.Kerbers game is based on creative, aggressive counterpunching, with plenty of classic lefty chicanery. Those who watched her closely suggest that her rise to the elite level was slowed by two factors: lack of confidence and a longstanding reluctance to assert her game. Kerber rarely took advantage of chances to win points, lapsing to passive tennis instead of pressing the attack when her opponent was on the ropes. She hoped her opponent would make mistakes rather than taking the initiative and going for winners or forcing mistakes.On Thursday, after easily eliminating a resurgent Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets in the semifinals, Kerber acknowledged the basic accuracy of that analysis. I lost a lot of matches with this [negativity] stuff, because I was frustrated, she said. When I missed one shot I was like thinking about the shot the next few minutes and few shots. But in this moment [when I lose a point] Im really trying to be mentally strong and not showing my opponent that Im inside actually a little bit more negative and nervous. Im trying to stay positive.This was a big step for Kerber. The new attitude ensured that from 2013 onward she would always be in the mix in the top 10, a perennial contender if nobodys pick to win at major events. Had someone run a survey a year ago asking fans to pick the player most likely to succeed Serena Williams as No. 1 in the WTA, its highly unlikely that many would have chosen Kerber.Thats where the other major criticism of Kerbers pre-2012 makeup came into play. It was a more difficult fix, but Kerber finally cleared the hurdle thhis year with help from Germanys last No.dddddddddddd 1, the iconic 22-time Grand Slam champion Steffi Graf.Kerber visited and practiced with Graf and her husband, Andre Agassi, in Las Vegas before the Australian Open this year. She left them inspired and finally cemented all the pieces of her bewitching, seditious game together. The glue: the aggression she previously lacked. I changed my game, she said Thursday. In that I believe more, and [am] going for it when I have the chance and not waiting for the mistakes from my opponent.Its unlikely Kerber will have the option to await mistakes in the final from Pliskova. The 6-foot-1 Czech is a slugger; waiting her out will not be an option. Pliskova will probably leave Kerber no choice but to adopt an aggressive posture. Kerber surely knows this and will be thinking less of wearing down her opponent than getting one more ball back in short rallies of four or five shots.This could be a terrific final if big-stage nerves dont get in the way. The crowd will probably be divided, which usually means it will come to the aid of whomever is trailing at any given time.Kerber leads the head-to-head series 4-3, but she helped let the Pliskova genie out of the bottle just three weeks ago in Cincinnati. At that important US Open tune-up, Pliskova defeated No. 3 Garbine Muguruza and No. 2 Kerber in succession for the title.Kerber knew going into that title match that the No. 1 ranking was hers with a win. Instead of asserting herself, she absorbed a painful 6-3, 6-1 beating. The loss ensured that Williams would tie Grafs record for most consecutive weeks at No. 1 (186). It also empowered Pliskova, who defeated both Williams sisters at this US Open. Pliskova attributed her success here partly to the confidence she derived from winning at Cincinnati.The caveat: Pliskova made a strategic decision to skip the Olympic Games in order to train for the big summer tour events. Kerber played in Rio and took the silver medal in singles. Kerber said her lopsided loss to Pliskova in Cincy was due more to fatigue than the pressure she felt playing for the No. 1 ranking. I had a lot of tough matches in Rio, she said.Although Kerber is a southpaw, the one vulnerable part of her game has been her serve, particularly the second delivery. Pliskova returned Williams formidable serve with verve for most of their semifinal match, which will undoubtedly worry Kerber. Not much else will, or ought to, in what has been a year of wonderful, satisfying surprises. ' ' '