g problem. "Of course there is doping in football. I have absolut | Forum

                                      CLEVELAND -- This is why Ben Zobrist came back home. Wholesale China Jerseys . And this is why manager Joe Maddon wanted him so badly.The Cubs needed a veteran in the clubhouse to teach their seemingly endless supply of budding young stars, someone whod been there. Whod done that. Who cared little about curses or droughts. Who knew what Maddon wanted and how to translate it.Zobrist, fresh off a World Series title with the Kansas City Royals, was searching for a place to spend the final years of a consistently fine career. What better place to do it than a 2-hour drive from where he grew up in central Illinois?And there he was early Thursday morning, standing in the batters box in the top of the 10th inning in Game 7, facing a two-strike count with two runners on. Then the 35-year-old switch-hitter did something that may have encapsulated everything Maddon loves about him.Zobrist shortened his swing. He fouled off one pitch to stay alive. The next provided the biggest blow in Chicagos season-long bout with the weight of its own history, a double inside third base that scored pinch-runner Albert Almora Jr. with the go-ahead run in an 8-7 win that gave the Cubs their first championship since 1908 and earned Zobrist the World Series MVP award.Its a team game and I cant believe I get the opportunity to hold this trophy, he said.Cleveland reliever Bryan Shaw intentionally walked Chicago slugger Anthony Rizzo to get to Zobrist, who entered the game hitting .391 in the Series but had gone hitless in four at-bats. Shaw quickly got ahead 1-2 before Zobrist -- batting left-handed -- poked a foul ball down the third base line past a diving Jose Ramirez. The next pitch was more of the same. In a situation where some of his teammates would have swung for the outer reaches of Progressive Field, Zobrist settled for making contact.The normally understated Zobrist pointed toward the sky after his 10th and final hit of the series as the blue-clad fans who spent hundreds if not thousands of dollars to turn portions of the Indians home field into an eastern suburb of Wrigleyville roared once more.I know he threw a pretty hard cutter, Zobrist said. I just barely hung in there and fortunately he put one just close enough to the plate where I could slap it down the line.By the time Zobrist went to the dugout to fetch his glove and ran back out to his spot in left field, the lead was two. Barely 10 minutes later, Zobrist was sprinting to join the dogpile in the infield after Kris Bryant threw to good friend Anthony Rizzo at first for the final out, the second time in as many years Zobrist found himself awash in the joy.Last fall he helped the Kansas City Royals beat the New York Mets in five Series games. When he went looking for a job, there was really only one place to go: Chicago.Ben is a winning baseball player, Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein said the day Zobrist signed a four-year, $56 million deal last December. His offense, his defense, his baserunning. Hes been one of the more valuable players in the game for a long time.One who also came to Wrigley Field without an ego. Maddon moved the player he cultivated a close relationship with while the two were in Tampa Bay around like a kid with a new toy. Zobrist played primarily at second base but also spent time in left and right field. Always without complaint. Always with the greater goal in mind.A goal that was realized after Clevelands Rajai Davis tied the score with a stunning two-run homer off Chicago closer Aroldis Chapman in the eighth. After the ninth inning ended, there was a 17-minute rain delay. And then the Indians dared Zobrist to be the difference.Just as he has whenever the Cubs called on him this season, he was. Cheap NFL jerseys China . The injury bothered Bledsoe in the Suns victory over the Clippers on Monday and he sat out the teams home loss to Memphis on Thursday night. Cheap Throwback Jerseys . Badenhop was 2-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 63 relief appearances for Milwaukee this season. He is 18-20 in his career with three saves and a 3. http://www.cheapnfljustjerseys.com/ . Boucher previously coached the Tampa Bay Lightning and had a 97-78-20 record over two-plus seasons. He was dismissed by the team last March after the Lightning struggled in the lockout-shortened season with a 13-18-1 record.FRANKFURT - The Bundesliga plans to start using blood testing this season although it has no indication that doping is a factor in football. German Football Federation president Wolfgang Niersbach said Wednesday the decision to start blood testing was made before the publication of a study that revealed a government-backed doping program for West German athletes in the 1970s. One section of the report says three German players showed traces of a banned stimulant at the 1966 World Cup. German Football League managing director Andreas Rettig said the Bundesliga wants "stricter controls" although it has "no indication" of doping. The tests will not be ready in time for the start of the season this weekend. The federation (DFB) and the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) are still working on a contract for the tests, to be conducted by NADA. Blood testing for banned substances has been used in many major sports for years. "Its the right signal to start blood testing in the Bundesliga, a decision made before the latest events," Niersbach said on the fringes of a German Football League (DFL) meeting in Berlin. The DFL runs the professional game in Germany. "We want to open up and conduct stricter controls although we have no indication of doping," Rettig said. The study on doping, publisshed Monday, has sparked a nationwide debate on the problem. Cheap NFL Jerseys. Calls are growing for a federal anti-doping law and to publish the full report, with all the names. The government has denied allegations of a coverup. In the study, FIFAs medical officer at the time is quoted as telling a West German athletics official that three players showed "fine traces" of ephedrine, a banned stimulant, after West Germany lost the 1966 World Cup final to host England. Leading players of the time dismissed the report. "In 1966, we still had no idea what doping was," Franz Beckenbauer said. "There were no controls, as far as I know. No one asked me (to provide a urine sample)." West Germanys 1966 captain, Uwe Seeler, backed his teammate. "I think nothing of doping," Seeler said. "I didnt dope and I dont know anybody who did." The DFD also denied the report and said no players were ever banned. But former sprinter Manfred Ommer, who admitted doping already in 1977, said football had a doping problem. "Of course there is doping in football. I have absolutely no doubt. I said it already in 1977," Ommer said. Ommer served as president of the football club FC Homburg between 1986 and 1994. The club played in the Bundesliga for a while under his presidency. ' ' '