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PHOENIX -- Mike Hazen seemingly had the perfect job, working in his hometown as the general manager of the Boston Red Sox.One aspect was missing: Final say in baseball decisions. That belonged to president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.So even though Arizona is on the other side of the country and the franchise has been stuck in a rut, Hazen jumped at the chance to become vice president and general manager of the Diamondbacks.There are some great players here and my job is to help bring this franchise to the next level, Hazen said during his introductory news conference Monday. Its an enormous responsibility and were here to make a commitment to the fans. First and foremost were here to win a championship.With the addition of Hazen, Tony La Russa will shift from chief baseball officer into an advisory role. He had been in charge of the Diamondbacks baseball operations since May 2014.I have 50 years of teaching and developed credibility and trust, La Russa said. If I left after the season we had, I couldnt live with that the rest of my life.Arizona was searching for someone with a blend of traditional baseball evaluation skills and analytics after firing GM Dave Stewart a day after the 2016 season end.The 40-year-old Hazen fits those skill sets.He was a two-time All-Ivy League player at Princeton and played two seasons in the minors after graduating and being drafted by the San Diego Padres in 1998.Hazen spent five seasons with the Cleveland Indians, working in scouting and player development, before moving to Boston. He worked 11 seasons with the Red Sox, winning World Series titles in 2007 and 2013 while making the postseason five times.Hazen was involved in every aspect of baseball operations in Boston and spent four seasons as assistant GM before being promoted to vice president and general manager before the 2016 season.Hes been a part of championships, hes been a leader, hell be a leader here and will, without a doubt, outwork us all, Diamondbacks managing general partner Ken Kendrick said.Hazens first order of business will be to replace manager Chip Hale, who was fired the same day as Stewart.He could turn to Phil Nevin, the manager of Arizonas Triple-A affiliate, who interviewed for the job when Hale was hired.Another potential candidate could be Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo, who has a good relationship with Hazen.In my opinion, he is ready to be a major league manager, Dombrowski said from Boston. Whether he would be their top choice, I cant say. We would not stand in his way.After that, Hazen will begin reshaping an organization that has had only brief periods of success since winning the 2001 World Series.Arizona won the 2011 NL West title, but followed that with five straight non-winning seasons. The Diamondbacks went 79-83 in their first season under Stewart and Hale, but took a step back this season (69-93) despite adding pitchers Zack Greinke and Shelby Miller.I want to help in any way possible in my role to make this a great franchise -- it is a great franchise -- to take it to another level, Hazen said. It will be my goal every day I come to work, itll be the goal of all those who work beside me and Im excited to start doing that.---AP Sports Writer Jimmy Golen in Boston contributed to this report. Nike Vapormax 2019 Outlet . -- About a third of the way through the regular season, the Washington Wizards are at . Vapormax Flyknit Cheap . Two pressure cooker bombs exploded near the finish line of the April 15 race in an area packed with fans cheering the passing runners. Three people were killed and more than 260 injured, including at least 16 who lost limbs. http://www.vapormaxcheapoutlet.com/clearance-vapormax-flyknit/vapormax-flyknit-light-violet.html . Canada is now down to its 22-player limit, although but players wont be registered until Christmas Day. Changes could still be made as a result of a suspension or injury. Vapormax 97 Black Cheap ., for the next three years with the signings on Monday of Daryl Townsend and Michael Carter. Vapormax 2019 White . That left plenty of energy for pitching books and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. While junior middleweight titlist Liam Smith admits hes the decided underdog in his pay-per-view showdown against Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez on Saturday, hes not about to take on an underdog mindset entering the fight.As Smith, 28, a native of Liverpool, England, is quick to bring up on more than one occasion, he is the only fighter who will enter the ring inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, wearing a world title.Smith (23-0-1, 13 KOs), who is one of four brothers who box professionally, recently spoke with ESPN.com about whats at stake for him in this fight against Alvarez (47-1-1, 33 KOs).Alvarez, as the face of the sport, seemingly has the power to fight whomever he wants. Why do you believe he chose you?I think if you look closely at the fights now, he was always going to come back to 154. So if he doesnt fight for the title, its a blatant excuse to get away from [Gennady Golovkin], in my opinion. So if he fights for the title, he has got a valid excuse. I have one of the belts at 154 at the moment. If you look then at the 154-pound champions, he looked to me. I obviously dont quite know in the States what his situation is exactly but I know I proved a fight with me is very easy to make. Also style wise, I think he can make a great fight with me and it will be a joy to watch for however long it lasts. There is no way this fight can be a bad one to watch.Getting a chance to be around Alvarez on your recent press tour, what did you learn about him that may have surprised you?There were a couple of things. There was not that much size difference between us at all. Being around him, I think hes a nice and okay guy. I dont want to pick on him too much. But you know, it seems like since he is at the top of the sport, everything has got to be on his say. People have to ask him to do things and if he says no then its no -- simple as that -- as far as interviews and things. Like, we went outside for a picture on top of the AT&T Stadium. There was not one picture that was taken because he was hot and he wanted to get back in. Its just little things. When you are on the top of the sport, this comes with it. It is expected, if you get my drift. I just think he was a little bit of a primadonna, so to speak.Alvarez has long battled criticism that hes overrated as a fighter because of his star power. Do you think he is worthy of the hype that has followed him?Look, I think hes a very good fighter. At this weight class, hes a world-class fighter. I dont think hes overrated but I think Golden Boy and the people around him have done a very, very good job. I think he has been promoted very well. This little dinky kid with red hair who turned pro at 15 or 16, he has developed very well. You do have to admit in the fights that he has beaten some very, very good names but the timing of the names can affect things. He fought guys like Alfredo Angulo, Alfonso Gomez and Shane Mosley -- they were all never going to win the fight. Its hard to watch those fights. Hes going against fighters who were retired or past their prime. He did not struggle with them but then he also did have very, very close fights with Austin Trout and Erislandy Lara. Both of them gave him nightmares. I know they are southpaw fighters but they also had a plan and were hungry fighters who came to win.You enter this fight as the decided underdog despite holding the title. What are you looking to dispel about what people think of you with your performance?I think I am the underdog, definitely from the American side, because not many of them have seen a few of my fights. I think if you have clips of stoppages and clips of fights here and tthere, people would be more confident.dddddddddddd From my point of view, I am the underdog going into this fight. Im not saying Im not. But Im the underdog because I havent fought at that level yet against anyone of Canelos level. I also havent had the chance to. So when I beat Canelo, from my point of view, I will be able to say, I told you so. I told you I was at that level. And the people around me will be able to probably say the same. From the American point of view, it would be a massive upset from their side because they dont see where I came from and where Im at.When you think back to when you first turned pro, did the opportunity for a fight this large come at a time in your career when you expected it to?I think its right on time. Its what I have been asking for, for a long while now since I won the title. Im the champion and I look at it as the minute I became champion I was ready to face all comers. Im not going to say Im not ready for a fighter like Canelo Alvarez. Im world champion so if Im not ready for another fighter at 154, I dont deserve to be world champion. Thats the way I look at it and what I firmly believe.There is such a strong boxing tradition within your own family with your brothers Paul, Stephen and Callum. What do you believe is the reason for the success of four boxers from the same family?I dont know what it is. We are good people who come from a good family and have a good coach. We are a down to earth people who happen to be fighters also.When you stepped inside AT&T Stadium for the first time during the recent press tour, what were your emotions like?When I stepped foot in the arena, I just thought we are finally here. This is what you work so hard for. This is where you want to be. I saw my face in the middle of the playing field on a giant screen. From my point of view, it doesnt get much bigger than that. I think from my familys point of view also we are finally here. I have a chance to get a massive win for myself.It has been difficult for fighters to get a close decision against Alvarez in recent years, especially in the state of Texas. How much does that play a factor in your strategy?No, I dont think so. He has had a couple of close decisions that maybe could have gone against him but at the time I felt he had won the fights against Lara and [Trout] because I liked him better. He has more of a style like myself so obviously when I was done watching that fight I would like him the way he was doing it. I look at it as if I win the fight than the judges will have believed in me. Even though Im the B-side in the fight, I am also the champion in the fight. I just hope to get some respect [from the judges] that way. I am confident we will.Considering all you have been through in your career to get to this point, what do you imagine your emotions will be like walking to the ring Saturday inside a massive stadium against the sports most popular fighter?It will feel unbelievable walking in there and taking it all in. Obviously, Im going to be the away fighter. People think that might get to me. Once I will arrive in the ring, Im going to make the most of this fight because this fight I will remember for the rest of my life. From my point of view, this night is going to be remembered by the British people. Not from the American people as much, but from the British fans here who will watch me beat Canelo Alvarez. Its a massive night and opportunity and Im going to cherish every moment of it because this is where every boxer dreams to be. ' ' '