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There are just 17 days left in the Major League season, yet nine of the 15 teams in the American League are still alive for possible postseason berths. Of those nine, Boston and Detroit are the only ones that appear to be locks, with the division leads they have in the East and the Central. At this moment, the two coldest teams in the A.L. are holding the two Wild Card slots. Texas holds the first sitting two games up on Tampa Bay. Then you have four teams bunched within two and a half games of the Rays and that second Wild Card position. Texas has dropped four series in a row though, and opens a criticial three-game set at home on Friday night against an Oakland As team that they trail by three and a half games in the West. The Yanks for all their injuries, are just one game back of the Rays heading into a gigantic series at Fenway Park in Boston against the East-leading Red Sox. Its the final series between these two teams this season. Cleveland is just one-and-a-half back of the Rays as they continue their four-game set against the lowly White Sox at Chicago. Kansas City and Baltimore are in a more precarious position, tied two-and-a-half games back of Tampa Bay. The Royals are at Detroit for three this week, while the Orioles are visiting the Blue Jays. The Rays have dropped 13 of their last 18, but after a dramatic 4-3 win at home against the Red Sox Thursday night, they have a chance to build some momentum and breathing room with a three-game set at Minnesota this weekend. Still, its not beyond the realm of possibility that both Texas and Tampa might let those Wild Card spots slip away, or have them taken away. The team to watch is Cleveland. Yes, their ace right hander Justin Masterson is still recovering from a strained left oblique muscle, and there is no definitive word on when he is going to return. Having said that, Cleveland is already 7-4 in September and has the most inviting schedule of any of the teams still in the race. 13 of their remaining 16 games are against teams with sub-.500 records including six against the White Sox. The "Tribe" has already gone 12-2 this season against Chicago. The only contender Cleveland plays is Kansas City in a three-game road set next week. The Royals schedule isnt nearly as kind. In addition to Cleveland, they have three with Detroit and three with Texas. They also close out the season with seven straight on the road, albeit against Seattle and the White Sox. Baltimore has the most difficult schedule down the stretch. All 16 of its games are against the East, including six against Boston and four with Tampa Bay. The Blue Jays could figure in here as well since they have six left against the Os. The Yankees schedule at least gives them a chance, if they dont get wiped out in Boston this weekend or stumble at home in the final week against the Rays. They have a three-game set at Rogers Centre against the Blue Jays next week and then follow that up with a three-game home set against the San Francisco Giants. The Yanks close out the campaign on the road with a soft touch four games at Houston. Bottom line, if Texas and Tammpa Bay continue to falter, my picks to get in are the Yankees and Cleveland. The Yanks have yet another major injury concern though. Brett Gardner, their table-setting, speedy leadoff hitter strained an oblique muscle on a checked swing Thursday night in Baltimore. If hes out any length of time, the Yanks offence could start to sputter. If Cleveland can somehow get in and get by the sudden-death Wild Card match-up, they would face Boston in the ALDS, which would pit Terry Francona, the former Red Sox manager who led them to two World Series victories, going up against his old pitching coach and the man who replaced him, former Jays skipper John Farrell. What a series that would be! Remember back in 1992, when Dave Winfield encouraged Jays fans to be more boisterous, and the "Winfield wants Noise" mantra was born? Well something similar happened in Cleveland this week. Michael Bourn was quoted in the Cleveland Plain Dealer as asking for more fan support, period. Said Bourn, "wed like to be supported a little bit more, if we could." Who could blame him for the impassioned plea? Cleveland is coming off a 5-4 homestand and had the two smallest September crowds ever at Progressive Field - 9,794 and 9,962. Their largest crowd of the homestand was just 21,453. On the season, Cleveland has only drawn 1,426,120 or 19,536 per game. Thats pretty sad for a team that could be going to the Playoffs. Only Houston and Tampa Bay have drawn less, and the Rays are further disgraced by having the lowest attendance of all in the Majors. On Thursday night at Tropicana Field with a top notch match-up with the Red Sox and so much at stake, the Rays only drew 20,360. Its no wonder there are rumblings of relocating the Rays, maybe even to Montreal. But thats a story for another day. Tony Gonzalez Jersey . I kept my eyes focused up on the camera during each approach. I just tried to stay focused on my form, as I didnt know what the ball reaction was. I was quite emotional at the end. I did not actually see any of the shots in the game until I got home and watched the video. Steve Bartkowski Jersey . Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. http://www.officialatlantafalconsfootball.com/authentic-calvin-ridley-jersey-womens . -- DeMarcus Cousins had 29 points, nine rebounds and six steals to lead the Sacramento Kings to their third straight preseason win, a 107-90 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Thursday night. Justin Bethel Jersey . Kevin Martin and Kevin Love paced the Timberwolves like they do so often. Martin had 27 points with some key baskets down the stretch, Love had his usual double-double, and the Timberwolves snapped a three-game losing streak with a 112-106 victory Saturday night over the suddenly slipping Dallas Mavericks. Brett Favre Jersey . No, the San Antonio star didnt announce retirement plans during an off day at the NBA Finals on Wednesday.MALMO, SWEDEN – Santa Claus paid a visit to Team Canadas Christmas Eve dinner on Tuesday evening at Örenäs Castle, about a 40-minute drive outside Malmo where this years World Junior Hockey Championship is being held. And the big guy in red came armed with gifts and scouting reports. He called up the players one at a time and offered a quick hockey-related message. "That was quite the shot you had last game," Santa bellowed when Connor McDavid was on his lap, "Shoot, shoot, shoot." WATCH: Behind the scenes at Team Canadas Christmas Eve dinner And the 16-year-old listened, putting the puck on net four times against Germany on Monday, matching Anthony Mantha and Bo Horvat for the team lead in the tournament opener, but came away empty-handed. McDavid did notch two assists in his world junior debut, but that first goal is proving elusive. "I missed a whole bunch of chances that Im pretty embarrassed about, but I thought I played an alright game," he said. WATCH: Bob McKenzie breaks down McDavids performance against Germany If theres one criticism McDavid has faced recently its that he sometimes passes up his own scoring chance to set up an even better one with a higher degree of difficulty for a teammate. Its something hes well aware of. "I know one of the big criticisms from other people is that I dont shoot the puck enough and Im always looking for the fancy play and the pass so I try and listen to that and I do try and shoot the puck as much as I can," McDavid said. "I just try and make the right play." McDavid, more often than not, makes the right play. For example, he found his way behind the Swiss defence on Monday and scored on a breakaway in Canadas final pre-tournament game. That was the goal Santa was talking about. "He sees the ice so well," said head coach Brent Sutter. "You look at that goal he got. After he scored, the guys were all looking at each other on the bench and asking, Where did he come from? He just knows how to play the game. Hes smart, intelligent and hes got great sense for the game, tremendous hockey sense and hes got the skill-set to go with it." "There was just a quick turnover," McDavid recalled, "and I saw Mantha had the puck there and everyone kind of jumped forward on their team so I just kind of took a step to the offensive side, which I shouldnt be doing too much, but it worked out, I guess." That hockey sense, that ability to know what moment to strike, thats a key reason why McDavid is seen as the slam-dunk choice to go first overall in the 2015 NHL draft. And thats why any critique of his game at this moment in time – when hes just become the sixth 16-year-old to ever make the Canadian world junior team – seems ridiculously nitpicky. "Its probably nitpicky for sure," agreed Sam Reinhart, when asked if his linemate needs to shoot more. "Hes a great player. How does he have so many goals if he doesnt shoot? Thats my question.dddddddddddd" When he left for Canadas selection camp, McDavid was eighth in Ontario Hockey League scoring and third on the Erie Otters with 12 goals and 50 points in 31 games. He helped Canada win gold at the 2013 World Under-18 Championship, leading all scorers with eight goals and 14 points in just seven games. Reinhart and McDavid also played together at the under-18 level and formed instant chemistry. That chemistry has carried over to the under-20 level, even though McDavid has been shifted to left wing. Horvat has played between the two "youngsters" and its the one trio Sutter refused to tinker with when he juggled every other line coming off a disappointing loss to the Swedes in pre-tournament play Sunday. "Theyve probably been our most consistent line since Day 1 so thats why I wanted to keep them together," the coach explained. "Its nice," said Reinhart. "We felt like we were playing well together. Its nice when he has that confidence to keep putting us out there together." It was also a sign of just how important that line and McDavid in particular will be to the teams success. Goals may be hard to come by later in the tournament and McDavid, who also gets time on the power play, will be expected to shoulder a big part of the load. Although he doesnt see it that way. "No, I dont feel that pressure," he argued. "We have 13 unbelievably gifted forwards here that can score at any time. If its my line or any other line, it really doesnt matter to me. I dont think offence is something that we need to worry about." Sometimes its easy to forget the phenom is just 16 years-old. He was taking his driving test on the day the Canadian selection camp roster was announced. And yet his maturity suggests his mental game is just as advanced as his physical gifts. The Newmarket, Ontario native is grateful for the opportunity, but not overcome by the moment. On Thursday, he officially joined Wayne Gretzky, Eric Lindros, Jason Spezza, Jay Boumeester and Sidney Crosby as 16-year-olds to wear the Maple Leaf at the world juniors. "Its pretty special. Just to be named in the same breath as those guys is something to be pretty proud of," he said. "It was a dream come true. Its pretty special to be here, but now that were here, we know what we want to do and well take it day by day." WATCH: McDavid talks to Nabil Karim about his first ever world junior game So what will McDavid remember about his first world junior game? "Probably just the Canadian fans who made the trip. I was not expecting that at all. It was unbelievable to see. "I noticed them right away, I got chills skating out for the first little bit." Any nerves considering the stage? "Yeah, I was a little nervous," McDavid admits. "Any time you wear the Canadian jersey, there are nerves that come along with that." 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