Ex-major leaguer Chad Curtis jailed 7-15 years

Former major league outfielder Chad Curtis was sentenced Thursday to seven to 15 years in prison for inappropriately touching teenage girls.

Curtis was sentenced in Hastings, Mich., by Barry County Circuit Judge Amy McDowell, who called the two-time World Series champion a "predator."

But Curtis, who this summer was found guilty of six counts of criminal sexual conduct, told McDowell Thursday that the three victims lied. He described himself as a Christian servant and said he and one of the victims "could write a book together someday, and it could have a positive impact on a lot of people."

According to prosecutors, Curtis, 44, sexually assaulted the girls last year when he was a volunteer weight-room strength trainer at a high school in Barry County, located between Grand Rapids and Lansing. A 16-year-old girl said he touched and kissed her breasts. Two 15-year-old girls said Curtis inappropriately touched their buttocks.

"You certainly are a threat to any community you get into," McDowell told Curtis.

One of the girls spoke during the sentencing hearing, saying Curtis was a manipulator who knew what he had done.

Between 1992 and 2001, Curtis played for the then-California Angels, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees and Texas Rangers. He won the two World Series rings with the Yankees.

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Dusty Baker out as Reds manager

The Reds fired Dusty Baker on Friday, ousting the manager who led them to their best stretch of success since the Big Red Machine but couldn't get them past the first round of the post-season.

The move came after the Reds lost the wild-card playoff in Pittsburgh 6-2 on Tuesday night, ending the season with their sixth straight loss. He had a year left on his two-year deal.

The Reds are the fourth team with an opening at manager. Davey Johnson retired after the Nationals' season, Eric Wedge left the Mariners and the Cubs fired Dale Sveum after finishing last in the National League Central.

'Dusty played an important role in the recent success of this organization. ... We feel a change is necessary, however, if we are to continue to move the organization forward.'- Reds GM Walt Jocketty

Baker took over a rebuilding team in 2008 and led it to three 90-win seasons and playoff appearances in the last four years, their best run since Sparky Anderson managed the Big Red Machine to two World Series titles in the 1970s.

Cincinnati couldn't get past the opening round of the playoffs, however, building pressure for change.

"Dusty played an important role in the recent success of this organization, and we thank him for his contributions during his time here," general manager Walt Jocketty said in a statement. "We feel a change is necessary, however, if we are to continue to move the organization forward."

The 64-year-old manager didn't get to celebrate the Reds' last two playoff clinching wins. Last year, he was in a hospital in Chicago recovering from an irregular heartbeat and a mini-stroke when the Reds wrapped up the NL Central title in Cincinnati.

Collapse

They decided not to celebrate when they clinched a wild card this year with a 90-72 record, hoping for that deep run in the playoffs. Instead, they lost their last five games of the regular season to finish third and dropped the one-game playoff at PNC Park.

Baker went 509-463 in his six seasons with Cincinnati, finishing third on the Reds' list for wins by a manager behind Anderson (863) and Bill McKechnie (744). His 1,671 career wins ran 16th on the career list. He won three NL manager of the year awards.

The former Braves and Dodgers star outfielder is one of only six managers to win at least 300 games with three different teams. He took the Giants, Cubs and Reds to the playoffs seven times without winning a World Series.

His closest brush came in 2002 with the Giants, who beat the Braves and the Cardinals before losing to the Angels in a seven-game World Series. He's 19-26 all-time in the postseason.

His successor in Cincinnati will take the job with enormous expectations from the outset.

Baker led the Reds out of one of their worst stretches in franchise history. After Johnson led them to the NL Championship Series in 1995, the bottom fell out. They failed to reach the playoffs under managers Ray Knight, Jack McKeon, Bob Boone, Dave Miley and Jerry Narron, going 15 years without a post-season appearance.

They won the division in 2010 with a young lineup that developed faster than expected, and got swept by Philadelphia in the first round of the playoffs, a disappointment that was counted as a first step in building a championship team.

Stunning exit

They won 97 games last year, the second-most in the majors and their highest total since the 1975-76 World Series championships. They won their first two playoff games in San Francisco, but dropped three straight in Cincinnati for a stunning exit.

Baker led the Reds to 90 wins again this season — the eighth time one of his teams won 90 — but the offence went into a deep slump in the final week. The Pirates swept a three-game series in Cincinnati to end the season and clinch home-field advantage for the wild-card game, then finished them off at raucous PNC Park.

A rough ending to a tough season all-around.

The Reds reached the playoffs despite playing in the NL's toughest division and losing both of their setup relievers and their cleanup hitter to injuries for most of the season. They have two players who can leave as free agents, centre-fielder Shin-Soo Choo, who topped all leadoff hitters in on-base percentage, and starter Bronson Arroyo.

They have to decide what to do for a cleanup hitter. Ryan Ludwick tore cartilage in his right shoulder while sliding into third base on opening day and didn't return until mid-August. His shoulder continued to bother him, and he batted only .240 with two homers and 12 RBIs.

Jocketty inherited Baker as manager when he was hired in 2008. The two of them weren't always in accord on player decisions.

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Dodgers, Braves hurting heading into NLDS

ATLANTA (AP) It's been a while since either team played a truly meaningful game.

The Los Angeles Dodgers took control of the NL West with an amazing 2 1-2-month stretch and could let off the gas over the final weeks.

The Atlanta Braves won the East going away, their commanding lead not at all threatened by a losing record over the final month.

Now, it's time to get serious again.

They meet Thursday night in Game 1 of the NL division series.

``I don't think we necessarily let up,'' Dodgers infielder Michael Young said after a workout at Turner Field. ``In our situation, we had to get some guys healthy. A couple of guys needed a couple of days off, so we gave it to them. Now we're ready to roll.''

Despite having some room for error, the Dodgers are far from healthy going into the playoffs.

Slugger Matt Kemp is out for the postseason with an ankle injury, while outfielder Andre Ethier will likely be limited to pinch-hitting duties because of his own ankle issues. He hasn't played in the field since Sept. 13.

While Ethier took part in the workout, he ruled out any chance of playing in the field.

``The ankle is getting better every day,'' he said. ``It's not as fast as we want, but it's definitely on the timetable that we knew going in. Every day that it doesn't get more sore and set me back is a good day.''

The Dodgers certainly won't get any sympathy from the Braves, who lost seven players to season-ending injuries.

Atlanta was bolstered by unlikely contributors such as Evan Gattis, who made the team as a non-roster player in the spring, hit 21 homers and paced all NL rookies with 65 RBIs. He's expected to bat cleanup against Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw (16-9, 1.83 ERA) in the series opener.

Gattis is not alone. The Braves playoff roster is filled with guys who no one would've expected just a few months ago. Journeyman Elliot Johnson, acquired off waivers in August, will start at second base. Veteran pitcher Freddy Garcia, purchased from Baltimore late in the season, is set to start Game 4 if the best-of-five series goes that far. Rookie David Hale, who made two September starts after the rosters expanded, made the bullpen as a long reliever.

``We got a lot of contributions from a lot of guys who, coming into the season, a lot of people didn't expect,'' catcher Brian McCann said.

There also were some huge disappointments. Three-time All-Star second baseman Dan Uggla hit just .179 and didn't even make the 25-man squad, despite 22 homers. B.J. Upton was demoted to a backup role in the outfield after batting .184 with nine homers and 26 RBIs.

With Kemp out and Ethier hurting, the Dodgers are counting on veterans such as Young, Skip Schumaker and Jerry Hairston to step up. Plus, they have one of the most exciting - and sometimes exasperating - rookies in the game, 22-year-old Yasiel Puig, who batted .319 with 19 homers and 42 RBIs.

``Matt is a great player,'' first baseman Adrian Gonzalez said. ``But we have a bunch of great players behind him.''

Kris Medlen (15-12, 3.11) will start Game 1 for the Braves. He was the loser in last year's wild-card playoff against the St. Louis Cardinals and struggled a bit early this season, but the Braves are confident he can go pitch-for-pitch with Kershaw.

``Some guys thrive in these situations. Some guys don't,'' McCann said. ``He's definitely one of those guys that the bigger the moment, the more he thrives.''

The Braves also discount their shaky performance down the stretch, which cost them home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs. Atlanta won just 13 of 27 games in September and lost the top seed to St. Louis by a game, which certainly raised the question of whether the team is destined for its eight straight playoff series loss. The Braves haven't won a postseason series since 2001.

``We clinched the division with a week and a half to go, but we still had home-field advantage we were fighting for,'' first baseman Freddie Freeman insisted. ``We fought all the way to the end of the season. There was no edge taken away. We were competing every day, every game. That's going to help us going in.''

Atlanta shrugged off its history of playoff failures, which dates to an unprecedented run of 14 straight division titles from 1991-2005 that resulted in only one World Series championship.

McCann is the only active holdover from the Braves' last division crown. He said this team isn't dwelling on the ones that got away.

``No one here was even part of it for those 14 years. I just caught the tail end of it that last year,'' McCann said. ``I don't think anybody thinks about that. Once the game starts, it's just us vs. them.''

---

Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

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Pirates pit A.J. Burnett against Cardinals in Game 1

The Pittsburgh Pirates are riding high after their first post-season victory in 21 years. They're confident they can beat anybody, anywhere.

A few hours after defeating Cincinnati in the National League wild-card game Tuesday night, the Pirates touched down in St. Louis. They're about to face another familiar foe in an unfamiliar month when they take on the NL Central champion Cardinals in a best-of-five NL Division Series.

``We know them, they know us,'' Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. ``There won't be any ball tricks, I hope. No Statue of Liberty plays.''

A.J. Burnett, set to start the series opener Thursday, was a part of three New York Yankees teams that made it to October. He said Wednesday there's a sense of euphoria with this experience that was lacking before.

``I guess the main thing is, over in New York, it's expected every year, you know?'' Burnett said. ``You tend to get in there a couple of weeks before the season ends. And this one was more of a `Shock the world, we're going to do it, we made it!'''

The Pirates won the season series 10-9, but the Cardinals overtook them for the division lead with a four-game sweep at home in early September. St. Louis also has quite an advantage in post-season experience with several holdovers from the 2011 World Series championship team and from last year, too, when St. Louis fell one win shy of a second straight pennant.

The Cardinals earned some time off after winning six in a row to end the season. They won their first NL Central crown since 2009 and secured home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs.

Their .330 average with runners in scoring position was the majors' best dating to 1974, when the statistic was first used. So far, they've done fine without injured Allen Craig, who missed almost all of September and isn't expected back from a left mid-foot sprain until at least the NL championship series.

``We played really well most of the year minus a couple of dips here and there that every team has,'' said Matt Holliday, who batted .378 over the final month to finish at .300. ``I'd say, just try to roll that momentum into the post-season.''

Adam Wainwright has to like this matchup, too. St. Louis' ace will pitch the opener and would also be available on full rest for a possible deciding Game 5. He went 1-0 with a 3.00 earned-run average in three starts against Pittsburgh this season.

Wainwright (19-9, 2.94 ERA) got rocked for 15 runs over eight innings in consecutive starts against the Reds. One of them he labelled, ``the worst start of my career,'' before rebounding in the win that put the Cardinals in first place to stay. He was 4-0 in his final five starts, working seven or more innings in all of them except for a tuneup his last time out.

``Well, aside from Clayton Kershaw this year, I'd argue that you could look at any single pitcher in the history of the game and they're going to have a bad game or two in the course of 35 starts,'' Wainwright said.

``I didn't need to do anything different. I just had a bad day.''

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny described Wainwright, the third pitcher in franchise history to lead the league in wins twice, as a ``fierce competitor.''

``All in all, a Cy Young-calibre season,'' Matheny said. ``We're not afraid to put him on the mound against anybody.''

Burnett (10-11, 3.30 ERA) is 3-1 with a 3.67 ERA in his career against the Cardinals, but the last time he faced them he gave up five runs in three innings - his shortest outing of the year. In two appearances at Busch Stadium, he allowed 12 runs in 13 1-3 innings.

``It's just execution, that's all it is,'' Burnett said. ``It's a great lineup over there. You can't make too many mistakes because they'll capitalize on them.

``The good ones I have limited those and the ones that got me, I haven't been able to execute.''

The Cardinals haven't announced a starter after Lance Lynn, who will face rookie Gerrit Cole in Game 2 on Friday. Matheny has three strong candidates in Joe Kelly and rookies Shelby Miller and Michael Wacha. The manager said Miller and Wacha would be available in the bullpen for Game 1.

Miller led all rookies with 15 wins this year, Wacha was one out shy of a no-hitter in his final regular-season start and Kelly was 10-5 with a 2.69 ERA.

Hurdle said Francisco Liriano, the winner in the wild-card game, will start Game 3 on Sunday in Pittsburgh.

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Jays' J.P. Arencibia gets engaged to Kimberly Perry

The Band Perry singer Kimberly Perry is engaged to Toronto Blue Jays catcher J.P. Arencibia.

The engagement, which was first reported by The Tennessean, was confirmed by the band's publicist on Tuesday. Perry told the newspaper that she said "yes" to her boyfriend of more than a year on Monday night at her parent's house in Greeneville, Tenn.

Perry and her two younger brothers, Neil and Reid, are kicking off their world tour next month in Sweden. They signed with Universal Republic in 2009 and had a quadruple platinum hit with "If I Die Young." Their latest album is "Pioneer."

Arencibia went to school at the University of Tennessee and was a first-round pick in the 2007 draft by Toronto. He has spent parts of four seasons with the Blue Jays.

The 27-year-old Miami native struggled this past season. He batted just .194 and had 21 homers and 55 RBIs.

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Blue Jays' Josh Johnson has successful elbow surgery

Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Josh Johnson underwent successful arthroscopic surgery Tuesday to remove loose bodies and a bone spur in his right elbow.

The procedure was performed by Dr. James Andrews, the Blue Jays said in a release. Johnson is expected to be ready for spring training next year.

The 29-year-old native of Minneapolis, Minn., had a 2-8 record and 6.20 earned-run average over 16 appearances this year. He allowed 105 hits and 15 home runs over 81 1/3 innings pitched.

Johnson earned $13.75 million this past season with the Blue Jays, who acquired him last year in a blockbuster trade with the Miami Marlins.

The club has yet to confirm whether it intends to extend Johnson a qualifying offer.

Johnson made his big-league debut with the Marlins in 2005 and has a career record of 58-45 with a 3.40 ERA.

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A-Rod hearing to overturn 211-game ban starts

The grievance to overturn Alex Rodriguez's 211-game suspension began Monday before arbitrator Fredric Horowitz.

The New York Yankees third baseman was wearing a business suit and accompanied by lawyers when he arrived for the session at Major League Baseball's headquarters in midtown Manhattan.

A three-time AL MVP, Rodriguez was suspended Aug. 5 for alleged violations of baseball's drug agreement and labour contract. Because he's a first offender under the drug program and the players' association filed a grievance to force an appeal, a suspension can't start until it is upheld by an arbitrator.

The union argues the discipline is without just cause and is excessive. If the case doesn't settle, a decision by Horowitz is expected this winter.

Rodriguez was among 14 players penalized by MLB this year following the sport's investigation of Biogenesis of America, a closed anti-aging clinic in Coral Gables, Fla., accused of distributing banned performance-enhancing drugs. The others accepted their penalties, including former NL MVP Ryan Braun, who missed the season's final 65 games.

Biogenesis head Anthony Bosch was at the hearing to testify — a publicist released a photo of him in a hallway outside MLB's conference rooms.

In Florida, state authorities said they had started a criminal investigation of the clinic.

"A subpoena was issued for documents, and we are looking into several areas of state interest," said Ed Griffith, spokesman for Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle.

Existence of the state prosecutors' criminal subpoena was disclosed at a recent hearing in MLB's lawsuit in Miami against Biogenesis, also pending in Miami-Dade County court. It's not known whom the subpoena targeted or what specific documents are being sought.

A federal probe involves the sources of drugs the clinic is accused of selling to players.

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Twins extend manager Ron Gardenhire 2 years

Ron Gardenhire isn't going anywhere.

The Minnesota Twins announced a two-year contract extension with their veteran skipper Monday that runs through the 2015 season. Gardenhire was in the final year of his contract and his 12 years with the Twins make him the second-longest tenured manager in the big leagues.

Gardenhire has a career record of 998-947 (.513) as a major league manager, and trails only Tom Kelly on the Twins All-Time win list (1,140). But with three straight seasons of at least 93 losses, Gardenhire's job was thought to be in jeopardy.

Instead, the Twins brought back the 2010 AL manager of the year and his entire staff, too, keeping with their longstanding preference for stability at the top.

Gardenhire took over for the retired Kelly in 2002, just when the young Twins were poised to make their move after years of miserable rebuilding. He led the team to the division title in his first three seasons and took them to the ALCS in his first year. 

'I don't think there's anyone else we want leading the team. There's no better guy to run this team, and I've said it once and will say it a thousand times, it's not his fault.'- Twins closer Glen Perkins

Once one of the most popular figures in town thanks to a gregarious personality and impressive run of six ALCS titles in nine years, Gardenhire started to hear some grumbling from the Twins fan base in recent seasons. The Twins have been swept out of their last three appearances in the ALDS and have been nowhere close to competing over the last three years. But even after spending this season as a lame-duck manager, Gardenhire made it clear he wanted to return.

"I like where I'm at," Gardenhire said before the Twins' final game of the season Sunday. "I'd rather be here."

Gardenhire met with GM Terry Ryan on Sunday to discuss the direction of the team and the state of the organization in general as the two of them often do during a season. Gardenhire is 998-947 in his 12 seasons, but just 195-291 over the last three years. In bringing him back, Ryan is sending a message that the problem lies much more with the talent on the field, and particularly on the mound, than in the dugout.

"We have struggled. I'm the one who has given him the players, and I understand that," Ryan said last week. "We've got to have the talent for any manager or coach to succeed. But we know where we are and I think we've got a pretty good idea of where we are going, and I'm trying to take a lot of responsibility for what's going on with this record. I'm not pretending that he's got the most talented roster we have ever seen him have, so we've got a lot of work ahead of us."

Many of the key players in the clubhouse seem to agree.

"I don't think there's anyone else we want leading the team," closer Glen Perkins said Sunday. "There's no better guy to run this team, and I've said it once and will say it a thousand times, it's not his fault. He's doing the best he can with what he's given, and Terry's doing his best to give him more. I don't think that will stop. I think [Ryan] knows where we're deficient and will do what he can to rectify that."

All-Star catcher Joe Mauer, who missed the last 41 games of the season with a concussion, has never played for another manager in the big leagues, and he didn't want that to change.

"I don't think, really, whoever was managing would have made much of a difference," Mauer said. "Gardy's a great manager. He's managed some great teams here. He's a great leader and I hope to see him back here."

The Pohlad family prides itself on stability in the leadership positions, and the Twins have had only two managers since 1986. They rarely bow to public pressure, whether it's to fire an employee, make a trade or splurge on a free agent.

Now the hard work begins. Ryan has to address a starting rotation that was by far the worst in the big leagues while also trying to fill in several holes in the lineup. Justin Morneau was traded in August, rookies Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Arcia went through horrible slumps after being rushed to the big club and veterans Josh Willingham and Ryan Doumit took massive steps backward after impressive seasons in 2012.

The Twins do have two prized prospects in third baseman Miguel Sano and centre fielder Byron Buxton that are projected to be All-Star calibre players once they reach the majors. But the most likely scenarios don't have either player becoming everyday players for the Twins until 2015 at the earliest. And neither one of them can pitch, which only makes Ryan's job of upgrading the roster Gardenhire has to work with that much more of a challenge.

"He's going to try to figure things out and see how this team can get headed back in the right direction," Gardenhire said of Ryan. "We have a few nice players, some good, young prospects on their way, but there's a lot of things that have to happen."

One of the final disappointments in a season full of them came during the final week of the season when the Twins lost their last six games and missed a chance to get Gardenhire career victory No. 1,000.

"He's over the years been as much a part of this as the farm director and the general manager," Perkins said. "He's always had a voice. He's been a part of the winning and been a part of the losing and a lot of managers don't get that because you don't have that security. He's had that over the years and he's earned that. It's rare. For a manager to stick around as long as he has, you have to have good teams and you have to do a good job."

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Blue Jays close disappointing season with loss to Rays

In a year full of disappointment, the Toronto Blue Jays were left to focus on small victories as they closed out a regular season with games that became rather meaningless several weeks ago.

They were resigned to the role of spoiler and nearly put a significant dent in Tampa Bay's post-season hopes on Sunday, with a furious comeback attempt coming just short as the Rays held on for a 7-6 victory.

Tampa Bay locked up a tiebreaker game appearance with the win. The Blue Jays, meanwhile, were packing their lockers after a last-place finish in the American League East.

The Rays jumped out to an early six-run lead but the Blue Jays would not give in. Toronto manager John Gibbons was impressed that his team refused to quit.

"The guys hung in there and we made a run late, they had a shot," he said. "So I'm pretty proud of them for that."

At the start of the day, Tampa Bay (91-71) and the Texas Rangers were one game behind the Cleveland Indians in the race for the two wild-card spots. Cleveland defeated the Minnesota Twins 5-1 to win the first wild card and Texas beat the Los Angeles Angels 6-2.

Decisive game

The Rays will play the Rangers in a tiebreaker game Monday afternoon.

Toronto (74-88) finished last in the A.L. East division and fell to 40-41 on the year at Rogers Centre. It was the first season since 2004 that Toronto had a sub-.500 record at home.

Expectations were high for the Blue Jays in 2013 after an off-season makeover. Injuries and underperformance prevented them from making strides and they barely improved on last season's 73-89 record.

"It was difficult, the last two years actually," said Toronto reliever Darren Oliver, who plans to retire. "But that's why you play this game on the field, not on paper. Hopefully these guys can get it right one of these days because I think the fans are really hungry for a winning team. I mean I know if I was a fan, I would be."

The Blue Jays have not been to the playoffs since winning the World Series in 1993.

"I always look at it any time you're packing your stuff up and not playing in a post-season, it's a wasted year. For me personally, obviously not for the organization," said designated hitter Mark DeRosa. "A lot of good things happened for some young guys.

"But overall the ultimate goal was to win the A.L. East and find a way into the playoffs and we didn't accomplish it so I would say it's a disappointment."

Blue Jays starter Todd Redmond (4-3) struck out David DeJesus to open the game before running into trouble. The Rays put six runs on the board in the inning.

Redmond recorded just two outs in the shortest start of his career.

Tampa Bay starter Matt Moore (17-4) struggled with his command in the first inning. He walked three batters but escaped unscathed by striking out DeRosa with two runners on base.

The Blue Jays chipped away at the lead in the sixth inning. DeRosa energized the crowd of 44,551 with a two-run double and later scored on a sacrifice fly by J.P. Arencibia.

Moore was pulled with one out in the frame. He allowed three earned runs, six hits, three walks and had four strikeouts.

Oliver gets ovation

Oliver received a standing ovation when he came out in the seventh inning. The 42-year-old left-hander retired the Rays in order.

In the bottom half of the frame, Jose Reyes scored on a one-out double by Brett Lawrie of Langley, B.C. Gose was held at third base and Joel Peralta relieved Jake McGee.

Peralta walked Moises Sierra to load the bases, drawing a visit by Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon. Home-plate umpire Paul Schrieber came to the mound and Maddon started to argue with him and was ejected.

Pinch-hitter Adam Lind then grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Maddon wouldn't reveal whether he was upset about ball and strike calls, only saying "I had enough." He did say he gave a message to his infielders.

"I said, 'Listen. That's it. I'm out of this game, I know you guys are going to be fine. I'm going to catch the rest of this game with a glass of wine in my hand and we're going to win it."'

Tampa Bay very nearly lost it.

The Blue Jays made it a one-run game in the eighth inning. Reyes drove in Ryan Langerhans with a single off Fernando Rodney and Gose followed with an RBI single of his own that scored Kevin Pillar.

Lawrie drew a two-out walk to load the bases but Moises Sierra followed with a strikeout.

The Blue Jays put a runner on in the ninth but Rodney got Ryan Goins on a lineout to end the game. It was Rodney's 37th save of the year.

Gibbons gave several relievers some work on the final game of the season. Oliver, Wagner, Luis Perez, Chad Jenkins, Jeremy Jeffress, Steve Delabar and Sergio Santos all made appearances.

Now the focus will shift to general manager Alex Anthopoulos, who will likely have another busy off-season ahead. The players remained optimistic that they can bounce back in 2014.

"We had a lot of people that thought we were going to win the World Series," Lawrie said. "But it takes a little bit of time to build chemistry. We had a little bit of trouble keeping some guys healthy, myself included. Reyes went down, the pitching staff went down a little bit. So you know, you've got to have your guys to make that push."

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Rangers' Nelson Cruz back for AL wild-card tiebreaker

After 162 regular-season games, the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers need more to decide the second American League wild-card spot.

While the visiting Rays have the benefit of turning to reigning Cy Young Award winner David Price in their biggest game of the year, the Rangers are set to welcome back all-star Nelson Cruz on Monday (8:07 p.m. ET).

The Rays (91-71) held on for a 7-6 win over Toronto and the Rangers (91-71) beat the Los Angeles Angels 6-2 on Sunday, forcing a one-game showdown for the right to face Cleveland - which overtook both teams and clinched its playoff spot with a season-ending 10-game win streak - in the wild-card game Wednesday.

Texas figures to be more formidable with Cruz back in action. The two-time all-star and 2011 ALCS MVP completed his 50-game suspension for his role in Major League Baseball's Biogenesis investigation and will be activated for this game.

Cruz went 9-for-27 in eight games while playing in the instructional league in Arizona with a homer, five doubles and nine runs batted in. He batted .269 with 27 homers and 76 RBIs in 108 games prior to his ban.

"I'll have a chance [Monday] to be with me teammates and do the thing I love the most, play baseball," he said. "The guys are excited. I'm excited."

'This is a moment that I want to be in. I want to be able to relish this moment and go out there and have fun.'- Rays ace pitcher David Price

Cruz is 9-for-21 with three homers lifetime off Price, including playoffs, and outfielder Alex Rios is 10-for-23 with five extra-base hits.

Price (9-8, 3.39 earned-run average) is 1-7 with a 5.57 ERA in 11 starts against Texas, including the post-season. He will face a Rangers team that won seven straight by a 46-19 margin to keep its playoff hopes alive.

"Hands down my biggest game of this year, night and day bigger than opening day," said Price, who struck out eight over seven innings of two-run ball in Wednesday's 8-3 win at Yankee Stadium. "This is a moment that I want to be in. I want to be able to relish this moment and go out there and have fun."

Texas, which took four of seven from the Rays, beat them in the division series in 2010 and 2011.

"We have something to prove in Texas," said Rays third baseman Evan Longoria, hitting .360 with two homers and nine RBIs in his last six games. "We've left that place too many times with our heads down and disappointed. I feel like now is the time to be able to turn that page."

While Price has struggled against the Rangers, the Rays are confident in their ace. He is 6-2 with a 2.71 ERA in 10 road starts since July 2.

'I just need to relax and take it as another game.'- Rangers starting pitcher Martin Perez

"You can't not feel good about it," Longoria said of giving the ball to Price. "He's the guy that I think everybody in this room looks to when we need somebody to go out and give us a great performance."

Texas counters with rookie Martin Perez (10-5, 3.55), who is eager to prove himself with the season on the line.

"I'm excited, but I don't want to put any pressure on myself or get nervous," he told MLB's official website. "I just need to relax and take it as another game."

Perez surrendered three runs and struck out a career high-tying eight over seven innings to beat Houston 7-3 on Wednesday, improving to 1-2 with a 4.13 ERA in his last four starts.

The left-hander allowed two solo homers in five-plus innings of relief in a 6-0 loss at Tampa Bay on Sept. 9, 2012, his only appearance versus the Rays.

"You can't say enough. Just the fight, the character of this team," said outfielder Craig Gentry, who is 17-for-36 (.472) with eight runs and 10 stolen bases in his last 10 games. "From being about as low as we could possibly be and almost everybody probably counting us out, and to come home and play the way we have."

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