Janeiro remain as filthy as ever just days before the Games begin

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The Toronto Blue Jays are getting a big part of their offence back at the cost of a fan favourite. With shortstop and leadoff hitter Jose Reyes set to come off the disabled list on Wednesday, the club optioned Munenori Kawasaki to triple-A Buffalo after Tuesdays 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. The eccentric Kawasaki has endeared himself to both fans and players in Toronto since being called up from the minors after Reyes suffered a left ankle sprain in mid-April. The 32-year-old Kawasaki brought energy to a struggling team and helped the Blue Jays to a club-record tying 11-game winning streak that got them back into playoff contention after a disastrous start to the season. "Its tough," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "You feel for the kid -- he did a tremendous job for us. But hell be back." Kawasaki had a modest .225 batting average with 17 RBIs in 60 games with Toronto, but he also had a flair for the dramatic. The Japanese shortstop had a walk-off double against Baltimore last month and blasted his first major league home run on Friday in Torontos 7-6 victory over those same Orioles. Fans at Rogers Centre chanted Kawasakis name after his homer in the seventh tied the game 6-6, and he obliged them with a curtain call that included three bows. "I love the guy. Hes a great guy the way he handles his business," Blue Jays starter Mark Buehrle said. "On the other side were getting Reyes back. We know what he brings to the table and hopefully he can kind of spark this team." Kawasaki accepted his demotion to triple-A gracefully. "Im just one lucky guy to be able to play the game and play the game in this environment," Kawasaki said through an interpreter. "So I dont feel like I came up here to show anybody anything other than how much I love the game of baseball and Ill continue to do that. I feel like Im just one lucky guy." In Reyes, the Blue Jays are getting a dynamic player who joined the club in a blockbuster trade with the Miami Marlins during a busy off-season. Before getting hurt while sliding into second base at Kansas City on April 13, Reyes was one of the lone bright spots for the Blue Jays early in 2013. In 10 games, he batted .395 with five RBIs, five runs scored, five stole bases and one home run. "Im very excited about (returning from injury)," Reyes said. "I missed two months of doing what I love to do and now I know Im going to be on the field one more time around my team. The way theyre playing, I want to be part of the success theyre having right now." Gibbons says Reyes has no limitations. "Hes one of those centrepieces of our team," Gibbons said. "Before he got hurt he was great. He was playing really well. Hes been gone a while and now maybe he can put us over the top. Well see." -- With files from The Associated Press Joe Carter Blue Jays Jersey .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Devon Travis Blue Jays Jersey . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. http://www.bluejaysonline.com/blue-jays-roy-halladay-jersey/ . But Bourque, who has missed three games with a lower-body injury, wont be in the lineup when the Habs travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Wednesday. Teoscar Hernandez Jersey .com) - Yankee Stadium is the home of the Bronx Bombers, but on Sunday afternoon it will open its gates to host the latest addition of the Hudson River Rivalry. Ken Giles Blue Jays Jersey . Rinne played two periods in his first game since left hip surgery in early May. Gabriel Bourque scored 3:07 into the second period and Austin Watson tallied 5:15 later for Nashville. RIO DE JANEIRO -- The head of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics says the worlds top four male golfers have withdrawn from the Games because there is no money to be won -- not because of the Zika virus.They tried to blame Zika, but the media have shown that they are not coming because theres no prize money, Rio organizing committee President Carlos Nuzman said Saturday, speaking with the Games set to open in just under three weeks.Jordan Spieth was the last of the top four to withdraw from the Olympics, citing health concerns and other matter he said were personal. Jason Day, Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy said Zika was the main reason for skipping the first Olympic golf tournament in 112 years.Their absence could be a setback for golfs future in the Olympics. IOC President Thomas Bach has said that golfs future may rest on its ability to get top players to show up.Golf is guaranteed a spot in the Tokyo Olympics in four years, but could be vulnerable after that.Zika is much worse in Florida than in Brazil, and golfers are playing in Florida, Nuzman said.Male golfers have also cited security worries, and some have complained that Olympic golf has been wedged into an already crowded tour schedule.Rio has myriad Olympic problems: Zika, securrity concerns, severe water pollution and sluggish ticket sales.ddddddddddddRio Mayor Eduardo Paes warned in the wake of the attack Thursday in Nice, France, that fans in Rio could face more checks, more roadblocks and more delays.Probably the security forces are going to demand more blockades, more inconvenient things, Paes said.Nuzman, speaking at a debate sponsored by a local magazine, seemed to be bracing for small crowds at some Olympic venues. Organizers say about 70 percent of tickets have been sold.I dont think we need too much public, he said, adding that smaller venues could save money.Television does an extraordinary job, with cameras everywhere, he added. Nobody can walk a step without a camera filming it.Nuzman also said he expected Rios suspended drug-testing lab to be ready when the games open Aug. 5. He expected the World Anti-Doping Agency to give its approval in a few days.The suspension has been an embarrassment for local organizers and a headache for the International Olympic Committee, which could be forced to send blood and urine samples abroad for testing if the lab remains closed. ' ' '