he university he was at. Its an honor and a privilege to have his namesake -- Coach M | Forum

CINCINNATI -- Dan Straily has proved to be a valuable commodity on the mound and in the clubhouse for the Cincinnati Reds. Salomon Shoes Clearance .Straily, 27, was claimed off waivers at the tail end of spring training, becoming the third team to own his rights in a one-week period.He initially was slotted as a long reliever, which at the time the Reds were desperate for quality arms in the bullpen. He produced a 3.24 ERA in three relief appearances, all of more than two innings.But injuries in the rotation created an opportunity for Straily and he has taken full advantage.The performance has been sensational when you consider how we got him, manager Bryan Price said. He was going to be a long man and became really our most consistent starter from the beginning of the season to date.Straily will start Fridays series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Great American Ball Park. He pitched seven shutout innings on Sunday in a 1-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers, allowing only three hits with a walk and four Ks in a no-decision.On Friday, Straily will make his 21st appearance and 18th start of the season. Hes 4-6 with a 4.07 ERA, numbers that arent indicative of how well he has pitched.Opponents are hitting only .212 against him, the 10th-best mark in the National League. Hell be looking for his fourth straight quality start against the Diamondbacks in his first encounter with them.But what has impressed Price most about Straily is how he has impacted those around him in the clubhouse, where he has been a positive influence on Cincinnatis young players who are part of an ongoing rebuilding process.Straily has been wonderful, not just as a performer, his paramount responsibility, hes also been a great guy on the team, an excellent teammate, Price said. Hes totally invested in the preparation stuff, the video, the advance reports, really a consummate pro. A fun guy to have on the team.On Friday, Straily will be opposed by right-hander Archie Bradley, who pitched six innings in each of his past four starts but went 0-2. He allowed only one earned run in his last outing, but it was a no-decision against the Dodgers.At some point this weekend, the Diamondbacks hope to set a rehab schedule for ace Zack Greinke, who is trying to come back from a left oblique strain. He threw 20 pitches off the mound on Wednesday inside Chase Field. He threw long toss on Tuesday.Its just a bad injury where you have to wait for it to heal before doing stuff, Greinke told the Arizona Republic. Just used to having stuff bothering you all the time and just going through it still. But with this one, you cant do that or else it gets worse.Cincinnati will be looking to reverse recent history against the Diamondbacks beginning Friday night. The Reds went 1-6 against Arizona last season, their lowest victory total against the Diamondbacks since 2002.Arizona has defeated Cincinnati five straight times overall and five straight times at Great American Ball Park. Salomon Sale Ireland . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. Wholesale Salomon Shoes Ireland . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. The 1.83-meter (6-foot) Leapai defeated the previously unbeaten Denis Boytsov in November to become the WBOs mandatory challenger. http://www.wholesalesalomonireland.com/ . The Croatian served 21 aces and hit 42 winners against Sijsling, who double-faulted to give Cilic a 4-3 lead in the deciding set. "All the players, they know me and they were really happy to see me and they were really happy that this is over for me," Cilic said. BOULDER, Colo. -- The current Coach Mac let Colorados original Coach Mac do the inspiring at practice.He sure did, too.Longtime Buffaloes coach Bill McCartney showed up Tuesday and delivered a motivational speech that had coach Mike MacIntyre almost wishing it were game day. Thats how fired up his 12th-ranked Buffaloes were after an appearance by the coach who led Colorado to its only national title following the 1990 season.Who better to stop by before the biggest game in years for Colorado (8-2, 6-1 Pac-12) -- a showdown with No. 20 Washington State (8-2, 7-0) on Saturday at Folsom Field.I just had him say something to the team, and of course he did an awesome job, MacIntyre said. Hes been in this situation before, so the players were all locked in on what he had to say.McCartney, who was recently diagnosed with late-onset dementia , tends to drop by practice about once a month. But this particular trip had even more meaning because his grandson, Colorado outside linebacker Derek McCartney, was honored Tuesday as a member of the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, which recognizes athletes for making a positive impact on the community. Derek McCartney is an advocate for the organ transplant community after losing someone close to him who was on the waiting list.Derek McCartney is out for the season after tearing his ACL on Sept. 17 at Michigan .Dereks a special kid, genuinely humble, extremely talented, Bill McCartney said. Hes everything youre looking for as a coach. Hell turn this (setback) into something good by getting stronger as hes waiting to come back.Over the summer, McCartneys family announced he had dementia and Alzheimers. They went public just to alert everyone in the area who runs into the outgoing coach that if he appeared disconnected or unknowing, not to take it peersonally. Buy Salomon Shoes Ireland. Asked Tuesday about his health, McCartney said hes feeling good and quickly pointed out that while hes 76, his mother lived to be 103.Youre supposed to play your best football in the fourth quarter, so I have to have my `A game, McCartney said, laughing.At 93-55-5 , McCartney is the winningest coach in Colorado history and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013.And theres no bigger fan of the black and gold than McCartney, who has box seats for every home game. He firmly believes in the current Coach Mac, too.A really quality leader, McCartney said. This is a time we live in where kids dont believe everybody that talks to them. But they believe him. They trust him. They dont think hes deceiving them for his own benefit. They think hes in it for them. When you get kids like that, that believes in the coach like that, all bets are off.In McCartneys opinion, thats why the Buffaloes are in the midst of their best season in ages. Theyre already heading to their first bowl game since 2007.But plenty more awaits. They can earn a place in the Pac-12 championship game as the South Division representative by beating Washington State this weekend and Utah on Nov. 26.This squad reminds McCartney of his talented teams because of their willingness to be coached.Coach Mac is a guy I look up, a man that I admire and get advice from, MacIntyre said. I listen to every word he says. Its an honor and privilege to coach at the university he was at. Its an honor and a privilege to have his namesake -- Coach Mac and Coach Mac. Thats a special thing for me.---Follow AP Sports Writer Pat Graham on Twitter: http://twitter.com/pgraham34 ' ' '