Talk » rotations, and there was speculation abo

BALTIMORE -- Not so long ago, the Padres were scuffling for victories no matter the opponent. Now a scrappy roster minus high-profile names is finding ways to win even against one of the American Leagues best. Alexi Amarista homered and doubled twice and the San Diego Padres matched their season-high with 17 hits, beating the Baltimore Orioles 8-4 Wednesday for a two-game sweep. Everth Cabrera had four hits and a walk, and Jedd Gyorko had three singles for the Padres, who are 13-6 after a 5-15 start. John Baker hit a go-ahead, two-run single in the second against Freddy Garcia (0-2), and Kyle Blanks hit a solo homer in a two-run fourth as San Diego took a 4-1 lead. "Weve been playing well the last three weeks," said Padres manager Bud Black, whose club rallied after losing three straight at Tampa Bay. "Things have turned in a good way. We had a tough series down in Tampa. I liked the way the guys responded today. It was outstanding. We got to their starter. We kept the pressure on, got a lot of base hits." Every starter had at least one hit for the Padres, including Amarista, who entered the game batting .233 in 73 at-bats. Slotted eighth in the lineup between Blanks and Baker, the lefty-swinging outfielder went the opposite way for a two-run homer off Tommy Hunter in the seventh. "Every time you have an opportunity to get in there and produce, you have to take advantage of that so you can have some more opportunities to help the team," Amarista said through a translator. J.J. Hardy and Matt Wieters homered for the Orioles off Jason Marquis (5-2), who won his fourth straight start. Manny Machado had four hits. In getting swept for the first time this season, the Orioles allowed a season-high 17 hits. Marquis allowed two runs, seven hits and four walks in five-plus innings. He has a 2.45 ERA in his last four starts. Garcia gave up four runs and seven hits in 3 2-3 innings, his shortest outing in three starts for the Orioles. "Not quite as crisp," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "We just didnt pitch well today. What did we give up, like 17 hits? It wasnt just Freddy. They had some good fortune, too, but they hit a lot of balls hard too. They came in here and swung the bats well." Baltimore loaded the bases in the first before Wieters hit an inning-ending groundout. The sinkerball-throwing Marquis also escaped damage in the second and fifth by inducing double-play grounders. "Some days youre not going to feel as good as others, but at the end of the day you have to make pitches in big situations," Marquis said. "I dont want to keep putting myself in those situations, but if you do, got to find a way." Dale Thayer relieved Marquis with two on in the sixth and retired three in a row. Bakers second-inning single was one of three straight two-out hits. The fourth inning included Blanks homer, Amaristas second double of the game and Will Venables RBI double off T.J. McFarland. "Baker, Amarista, Blanks get in the lineup, those guys want to be a part of the contribution," Black said. "Today they were." Machado has at least three hits in four of his last five games and is batting .560 (14 of 25) in that span. The Orioles finished the first quarter of the season with a 23-17 record, not that Showalter is interested in such road markers. "This is an impossible game to be perfect at," Showalter said. "Im not going to get too reflective at the . thats for the Preakness or whatever it is, where they go a quarter-mile and all that other stuff." NOTES: The Padres have four series sweeps. ... After throwing 35 pitches on Wednesday, Orioles RHP Miguel Gonzalez (blister) is expected to pitch Friday either in a simulated game or in the minors. Placed on the 15-day DL on May 4, Gonzalez is 2-2 in six starts. ... Padres INF Logan Forsythe (right foot plantar fasciitis) is eligible to come off the 60-day DL on May 22, but will not begin baseball activities this week, Black said. ...Following an off day, the Orioles start a three-game series against Tampa Bay. Jason Hammel (5-1) is slated to start Fridays opener against Jeremy Hellickson (1-2). ... The Padres return home for four games against Washington. Edinson Volquez (3-3) starts for San Diego on Thursday against fellow RHP Stephen Strasburg (1-5).Shoes NZ Online . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Cheap Shoes NZ .com) - Manchester City midfielder David Silva is expected to miss the next four weeks because of a calf problem. https://www.shoesnzonline.com/ . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Shoes NZ From China . President of baseball operations Larry Beinfest was fired Friday after 12 years with the Marlins. The move came as the team neared the end of its third consecutive last-place season in the NL East. Wholesale Shoes NZ . The Dutchmans tenure got off to a poor start when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty within two minutes for Niklas Starks clumsy challenge on Alexandru Maxim.LOS ANGELES -- Vinny Del Negro is out as coach of the Los Angeles Clippers after a season in which the team won its first division title but lost in the first round of the playoffs. The team said Tuesday he wont be offered a contract when his current one expires at the end of June. He is just the second coach to leave the team with a winning record, following Larry Brown in 1993. "This was a difficult decision, but we feel this is the best decision for our franchise moving forward," said Gary Sacks, vice-president of basketball operations. Del Negro had a 128-102 regular-season record in three years with the team. The Clippers made the playoffs the last two seasons, including last year when they advanced to the second round for only the second time since the franchise moved to Los Angeles in 1984. This season, the team won a franchise-record 56 games, including a 17-game winning streak. And with All-Stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, the Clippers were one of the NBAs most exciting attractions, with acrobatic dunks and dazzling playmaking. But the post-season was quick and disappointing -- an exit in six games to Memphis despite a 2-0 lead. "We would like to thank Vinny for everything he did during his three years with the organization," Sacks said. "Vinny helped this team win a Pacific Division title and we greatly appreciate all that he and his staff helped us accomplish." The search for a new coach will begin immediately. Del Negro had the highest winning percentage (.557) for a coach in the clubs beleaguered history. He is the only coach to have consecutive winning seasonss since the Buffalo Braves moved to California and became the Clippers in 1978.dddddddddddd. The Clippers had just six winning seasons in their first 41 years. Now theyve put together consecutive winning records and playoff appearances for the first time in 20 years. "Weve set every franchise record," Del Negro said two weeks ago. "So Im proud of a lot of things we did." Much of the credit for the dramatic turnaround went to Paul and Griffin. Del Negro was criticized at times this season for his rotations, and there was speculation about whether he would return. Paul and Griffin have been supportive of their coach, and two weeks ago Sacks acknowledged that the players opinions would be part of the decision on Del Negro. "I think Vinny did a great job of managing the egos and taking this team to a new level," veteran Matt Barnes said after his exit interview at the end of the season. Del Negro had said he enjoyed working with Paul and Griffin. "Theyre the nucleus of the team, obviously, that you want to keep intact and move forward with," he said. Sacks made it clear that the teams top priority is to re-sign Paul, who becomes an unrestricted free agent July 1. He could receive a five-year, $108 million deal. Del Negro came to the Clippers from the Chicago Bulls, where the 46-year-old coach went 82-82 in two seasons including back-to-back playoff appearances before being fired. Before that, Del Negro had front-office roles with Phoenix from 2006-08. He previously worked as a broadcaster for the Suns and San Antonio. He played in the NBA for 12 years. ' ' '