Breitmann Tuning » goals and 43 points.Jonathan Marchessault is fitting

BOSTON -- David Ortiz stole the show from himself.On the opening night of a three-day celebration of his career, Ortiz hit a game-deciding homer to lead the Red Sox to a 5-3 victory over Toronto on Friday night and overshadow the pregame ceremony to honor him.You expect it, second baseman Dustin Pedroia said. In this game its so tough to do, and he makes it look easy.Ortiz had an RBI single in the first inning, rewarding the rain-soaked crowd that rose to its feet chanting Papi! In his next at-bat, after another standing ovation, Ortiz lined the ball off Marco Estradas leg and the pitcher regrouped for an easy putout at first.In the fifth, with a runner on second, he hit a hard liner that right fielder Jose Bautista was able to chase down before it went over his head.The Red Sox had already scored two in the seventh to tie the game 3-all when Ortiz came up. He lined a 2-1 pitch from Brett Cecil into the right-field stands to make it 5-3.On a night that begins a weekend celebration, I dont know that you can write a script for what David did here tonight offensively, manager John Farrell said. Nights like tonight he almost leaves you speechless. ... (He) turned this place upside down.MOWED DOWNBig Papi was in the field.No, the longtime designated hitter didnt decide to play a few more games of defense before he retires. Instead, groundskeeper David Mellor mowed Ortizs likeness into the center field grass for the three-time World Series champions final regular-season series at Fenway Park.The image showed Ortiz pointing to the sky with both hands, the way he did when he crossed the plate following one of his 540 career homers.Ortiz said before the game that he hadnt seen the tribute but he hoped to visit the top deck at the ballpark to get a better view.STILL CHASINGIn a wide-ranging discussion in the media interview room before the series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays, Ortiz also spoke about trying to play well for the rest of the regular-season and into the playoffs. Entering Friday nights game, the Red Sox were in contention for the top seed in the AL but also in danger of being the third-best division champion, which would force them to open the postseason on the road.The Red Sox won 11 straight games before being swept in New York this week, including a loss on Wednesday night -- the night they clinched the AL East for just the third time since 1995.We play to win, he said.ON DECKThe rain-soaked pregame ceremony was brief, with bigger celebrations to come over the weekend.The Red Sox took the time to acknowledge his charitable work, showing pictures of many of those helped by the David Ortiz Childrens Fund, which provides medical care for kids in New England and the Dominican Republic. Ortiz was presented with a painting by artist Peter Max.The big celebration is planned for Sunday, which barring a rainout would be the final regular-season game for Ortiz. The team is expecting to bring onto the field many of Ortizs teammates from his three World Series championships.The traditional Play ball! was delivered by three teens in Ortiz jerseys, who also shouted it in Spanish.The start of the game was delayed 25 minutes.THERE IT GOES!Asked to pick his best moment in the ballpark, Ortiz smiled.I had a lot of good at-bats here at Fenway. Im not going to lie to you, he said as reporters chuckled. But Ive got to go back to 2004 and the walkoffs.No one needed any more explanation.Ortiz had game-winning, extra-inning hits in back-to-back playoff games against the New York Yankees in the ALCS in 04 as Boston become the first major league team to rally from a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series. The Red Sox went on to win the World Series -- their first in 86 years.They put us back on track, Ortiz said, turning specifically to a walkoff homer off Paul Quantrill in the 12th inning of Game 4. Thats the one at-bat I never forget about. I think about that at-bat like it was yesterday.So do Red Sox fans.NUMEROLOGYIn addition to the lawnmower art, the ballpark was decked out with banners featuring Ortizs silhouette on the left-field light stanchions.One said Thank You; the other had Ortizs No. 34.Its a likely preview of when Ortizs number is retired and hung from the facade in right field.The team also wore commemorative patches on their caps and on their sleeves.WAY BACKEven the notes about other players had an Ortiz theme.On the center field scoreboard, along with each batters photo and statistic, the team usually gives a note about his history -- anything from his favorite band to his latest hitting streak. On Friday, though, they were all along the lines of this one for Mookie Betts: David Ortiz was 16 years old when Betts was born on October 2, 1992.LINING UPIts not hard to see the seeds of the next great Red Sox teams on this years club.Although Ortiz is retiring at the age of 40, Mookie Betts is an MVP candidate and fellow twentysomethings Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts also figure to anchor the lineup for years to come.Ortiz also said he thinks the ballclub will find someone to take on the leadership role he has filled for most of his time in Boston.Comparing it to the military, he said it might not just be one person, but more like a clubhouse hierarchy that will keep things in order.Youve got the generals, and then youve got different levels that follow. Everything is kind of lined up, he said. What were seeing from all the kids, they walked into the organization and they saw what their elders are trying to do. When I watch batting practice, I see myself.PARTING GIFTSA day after making the final stop of his farewell tour at Yankee Stadium, Ortiz thanked his longtime rivals for their parting gifts. The team gave him a painting, along with a leather-bound book containing letters from members of the organization past and present.Very professional, Ortiz said. I really appreciate that all of the organizations took the time to honor me. .... I didnt expect anything, but everythings so beautiful.FAR, FAR AWAYOrtiz has climbed the leaderboards in several major categories this season, passing Mickey Mantle to move into 17th on the all-time list with 541 homers and moving into a tie for eighth with Ken Griffey Jr. and Rafael Palmeiro on the baseballs career list with 1,192 extra-base hits.But even with three more games to go, Ortiz conceded defeat on one of the franchises more celebrated records: Ted Williams 502-foot homer that is the longest ever hit at Fenway Park.The June 9, 1946, homer is commemorated by a single red seat in the right field bleachers.I have been trying for that for 15 years, and I havent gotten close to it. So I dont think its going to happen, he said with a laugh. I give up.Cheap Baseball Jerseys Online . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. Wholesale Baseball Jerseys Free Shipping . -- Matt Ryan needed one of the best games of his career to lead the Falcons and their depleted offence out of their three-game losing streak last week. http://www.chinajerseysmlb.com/ . "Theyve both been real good," said Babcock. "Havent changed our minds." A decision has seemingly been made - Sundays Group B-deciding tilt against Finland ahead - but it could not have been an easy one. Price opened the tournament with a sturdy 19-save performance against the Norwegians, yielding just one goal. Cheap Nike Baseball Jerseys . Durant finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds, Jackson matched his career high with 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting and Lamb scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, lifting the Thunder to a 94-88 win over San Antonio and snapping the Spurs 11-game winning streak. Discount Baseball Jerseys . -- Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis was charged Thursday with driving while intoxicated, a day after he was suspended for an NFL substance-abuse policy violation.Weve had an extremely small window into the mind of NHL coaches who are currently operating with some form of goaltender timeshare. But its enough to at least highlight the early returns for teams that dont have an established No. 1 starter.We can attempt to parse coach suggestions through quotes to the media, but actual starts are really the only way to truly know what a coach is thinking with his goaltenders. Outside of back-to-back starts or injuries, there is no real reason for a team to have started two different goaltenders at this point of the campaign unless there is some kind of timeshare in the crease.With that in mind, lets check out the teams in that situation, and try to address each goaltenders value going forward:Winnipeg Jets: First and foremost, kudos to the Jets for having the courage to demote Ondrej Pavelec. It couldnt have been an easy decision, but it opens the door for the team to move forward into the Connor Hellebuyck era. But moving forward into the Hellebuyck era doesnt mean we are there yet. Michael Hutchinson could still steal away enough starts this season to be useful to fantasy owners, especially if Hellebuyck has more outings like he did against the Carolina Hurricanes in the season opener. Three of the four goals allowed by Hellebuyck were arguably preventable, while that could be said of only two of the four Wild goals against Hutchinson (and Hutchinson almost impossibly saved another one of them with his paddle). It will be interesting to see if the two netminders continue to alternate starts this week, as we suspect they might. At this point, Hellebuyck is the only one to own, as Hutchinson has the higher mountain to climb to be a regular starter.Dallas Stars: Its strange that we still hope for one goaltender to emerge for the Stars, but its hard not to want it to happen when they are a team destined for 50 wins. Unfortunately, the early indications are that those wins will be split 25-25, just as they were last season between Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. Niemi was given the season opener and had a fantastic game, stopping 33 shots -- including 16 in the first period -- en route to a 4-2 win. Coach Lindy Ruff turned to Niemi again Saturday, and got the opposite result, with five goals allowed on 20 shots before he pulled him for Lehtonen. Two things need to happen for this to be a fantasy-friendly crease: The Stars have to show a better overall save percentage through team defense, and one goalie has to earn more than 60 percent of the starts. With neither of those criteria satisfied, neither goaltender is particularly attractive, even for your bench.Tampa Bay Lightning: As we said already, there is no reason for a team to have started two different goaltenders already, save for injuries or back-to-back contests. The Lightning have had neither, yet turned to Andrei Vasilevskiy in the second game of the season. This is a pretty clear signal from coach Jon Cooper that he views both Vasilevskiy and Ben Bishop in similar light. That is not good news for Bishop owners. With Bishop already rested and going into three non-back-to-back games this week, it will be disconcerting for Bishop owners to see Vasilevskiy between the pipes Wednesday. It wont be full panic mode yet, but if the two goalies continue to split starts 50-50, its going to really hurt Bishops elite status. On the other hand, this would be huge for Vasilevskiy, who is still available in 83 percent of ESPN leagues.Philadelphia Flyers: The Flyers opened the campaign with Michal Neuvirth in net against the Los Angeles Kings, then turned to Steve Mason the next night in Arizona against the Coyotes. This is an exception to our back-to-back games rule, as the games were on consecutive nights, but it was interesting to note that Neuvirth drew the season-opening start against what was -- on paper -- the more difficult team. Mason has had one of the better save percentages in the NHL the past three seasons, but has never managed to parlay that into the ever-important wins that stave off internal competition. Neuvirth had a terrific regular season as the backup last season and was a hero in the playoffs, almost turning the tide against the Washington Capitals after Mason was lit up in the first three games. Goaltending does tend to be a lot of What have you done for me lately? So coach Dave Hakstol appears to be leaning toward Neuvirth at the moment. Three evenly spaced out games this coming week will tell us a lot more about this situation going forward. While Mason appeared to be the player to stash on your bench before the season began, that could flip in the coming days.There are some other teams on the radar for timeshares, but we havent seen enough yet to put down a strong opinion on what could happen. Specifically, the New York Islanders, Carolina Hurricanes and maybe even the Anaheim Ducks are on the long-range radar.Forwards rising and fallingAuston Matthews, C, Toronto Maple Leafs (up 30 spots to No. 65): Of course Matthews takes one of the larger leaps in the rankings this week. How can he not? After a four-goal debut last Wednesday, Matthews played another 17 minutes Saturday, including a team-high 4:33 on the power play. Its pretty clear the Leafs are going to let him loose sooner and with more frequency than expected; hes certainly earned it. We want to see a couple of more big games before considering him among the most elite. That said, it wouldnt take much for him to vault up the rankings a couple of more times; his arrow is definitely pointing upwards.Jonathan Drouin, C, Tampa Bay Lightning (up 18 spots to No. 95): Another player who is locked into a bigger role than expected is Drouin. He was expected to get a chance on the first line, for sure, but to lead the Lightning in power-plaay time through two games was not a part of the prognostication.dddddddddddd Two of his three points have come on the man advantage, and Drouin looks like hes finally matured into the role of skating with Steven Stamkos on a regular basis. Hes tied with Stamkos for the team lead in shots on goal, too.David Pastrnak, LW, Boston Bruins (up 66 spots to No. 112): An incredible plus-6 in his season debut, Pastrnak shut down any thoughts of him not playing a top-line role for the remainder of the season. With David Backes doing his best Patrice Bergeron impression to open the season, the Bruins top line combined for 14 points through the first two games. As weve seen for several years now, the role next to Bergeron and Brad Marchand is an extremely fantasy-friendly one. The role is Pastrnaks for the foreseeable future.Mitch Marner, C, Toronto Maple Leafs (up 18 spots to No. 227): Wrist shots are the most conducive to goals, according to the NHLs advanced shooting statistics. Marner, despite a lot less ice time than the others atop the leaderboard, is first in the NHL in wrist shots per game, with 3.5. He already has a goal and several ridiculously close chances to his credit this season. Matthews wont be the only Leafs rookie locked into starting lineups this season -- but we already knew that.Defensemen rising and fallingDion Phaneuf, D, Ottawa Senators (down 14 spots to No. 175): A little more forethought into new coach Guy Boucher and we could have seen this coming, so our bad. Boucher is one of the strongest advocates for the use of the 1-3-1 power play, and that means no more Phaneuf on the first unit with Erik Karlsson. Which, in turn, means Phaneuf will almost never share the ice with the offensive catalyst for the Sens. While Phaneuf isnt a void for offensive production, quite a bit of bloom comes off the rose if he wont be getting power-play time on the first unit.Zach Werenski, D, Columbus Blue Jackets (enters at No. 229): This rookie blueliner finished his first NHL game with ice time second only to Seth Jones on the Blue Jackets blue line, leading the team in shots on goal and earning his first point. He didnt play on the power play in the first game, but his performance changed that. In his second NHL game, he led the team in shots again, led the team in power-play ice time and earned his first NHL goal on the power play. Werenski is for real. He is going to stick around this season, and is going to finish a close second to Jones for fantasy value on this blue line. Hes available in 90 percent of ESPN leagues and needs to be scooped up. This is a perfect storm of talent meeting opportunity.Goaltenders rising and fallingJeff Zatkoff, G, Los Angeles Kings (enters at No. 121): Its devastating news to have Jonathan Quick on the shelf for up to four months, not making it through a game for the Kings. Zatkoff has a real opportunity here to shine. The Kings, after all, are one of the league leaders in limiting shot attempts, and will give Zatkoff the best possible environment in the NHL for a goaltender to establish himself. We have slotted him in as a back-end No. 2 fantasy goaltender for now, ahead of names such as Jaroslav Halak and Semyon Varlamov, because the opportunity is that good. If you are a desperate Quick owner that missed out on nabbing Zatkoff, there is an argument to look at Peter Budaj. While the situation is perfect for Zatkoff, he doesnt have much of a track record. If he stumbles, the veteran Budaj will get a chance.Quick hitsAs expected, the Jason Chimera on the top line experiment lasted all of one game for the Islanders. Josh Bailey was there Sunday next to John Tavares and Andrew Ladd, showing off some sick mitts with an overtime winner. Bailey has upside in this role, and will be closely monitored for the rankings next week.The New York Rangers best line, and its not even really close through two games, has been Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and rookie Pavel Buchnevich. Zibanejad is available in 40 percent of ESPN leagues and Buchnevich in 91 percent. Both of those numbers are probably 30 percentage points higher than where they should be.All of the NHL players who have been on the ice for 45 or more shot attempts this season have played in three games, except for one. Ryan McDonagh of the Rangers is seventh in the league with a shot attempts total of 49, despite only playing in two games. If that kind of deployment continues, McDonagh should trend back toward his fantasy friendliness that was on display three seasons ago, when he scored 14 goals and 43 points.Jonathan Marchessault is fitting right in on the Florida Panthers top line with Aleksander Barkov and Jaromir Jagr. He should be owned in a lot more than 9 percent of ESPN leagues.A hat trick on the books already, Richard Panik is playing with Jonathan Toews and Artemi Panarin and appears, however the lines are deployed, to be a permanent fixture of the Chicago Blackhawks top six. Hes not going to get a hat trick every night, given his limited minutes and non-existent power-play role, but his linemates will continue to be super talented, so hell retain value.Top 250 rankingsHere are the updated rest-of-season, top 250 rankings of forwards, defensemen and goalies, including position ranks. Last week refers to the final preseason rankings, published last week.Note: Sean Allens top 250 players are ranked for their expected performance in ESPN standard leagues from this point on. ESPN standard stats include goals, assists, power-play points, shots on goal, plus/minus, penalty minutes and average time on ice for skaters, and wins, goals-against average and save percentage for goalies. ' ' '