from Cuba, visited his 5-year-old son Dariel on the off-day Monday

In Ring of Honors effort to grow and stay relevant in a pro wrestling world dominated by WWE, it has been a battle every step of the way ever since the company opened its doors in 2002.In its early years, as ROH grew in recognition and stature, the company began to make stars who gained worldwide notoriety through DVDs and word of mouth alone. As much as the wrestling itself spoke to fans longing for something different from what WWE had to offer in a post-Extreme Championship Wrestling world, a similar contingent of fans from New York and Philadelphia helped shape the presentation in a way thats served as the bedrock of its foundation.Fourteen years after ROHs debut, The Manhattan Center continues to be one of ?the most important venues in the companys history.Just a few steps away from the mecca that is Madison Square Garden, in the heart of New York City, the two venues inside The Manhattan Center building have seen their fair share of history. On Jan. 11, 1993, the first episode of WWEs Monday Night Raw emanated from The Grand Ballroom, and it later hosted ECW pay-per-views, CM Punks WWE debut and both editions of WWEs ECW One Night Stand.ROH has held more than 20 events between The Grand Ballroom and Hammerstein Ballroom over the years, with the levels of production slowly evolving to a point where the company can take full advantage of the sight lines and production values of the venues. But even as the company grew, cost concerns eventually resulted in the use of other New York venues that ultimately didnt sit well with fans. After several years absence, ROH returned to the Hammerstein Ballroom for its annual Final Battle?show on Friday -- a fitting setting for a show that could ultimately define the next few years for the company.?The 2016 edition of ROHs year-end spectacular was a much-hyped pay-per-view card, and it more than lived up to its high expectations in terms of execution. Over the course of three hours, ROH showcased its two biggest strengths over and over again -- an ability to attract new, up-and-coming stars, and an ability to utilize them in a way that accentuates their strengths, rather than trying to shoehorn them into something theyre less-equipped for.The first half of the show was highlighted by the ROH debut of Cody (sans the Rhodes surname for copyright reasons) against former longtime world champion Jay Lethal. In an omen of things to follow, including an announcement that Cody is the newest member of the Bullet Club, Cody went the opposite way of the feel-good story that he has told for most of his post-WWE run and nailed Lethal with a pair of low blows on his way to victory. Considering his run as Dashing Cody Rhodes represented his peak in terms of creativity and success in the WWE, Codys turning to the dark side is a potentially brilliant development for all parties involved.There was also a nice cross-section of everything a wrestling fan would want from an independent wrestling supershow, including a great (and stunningly serious) match from two of the best comedy wrestlers in the world today, Dalton Castle and Colt Cabana, and an appearance from legendary Japanese star Jushin Thunder Liger.The latter stages of Final Battle were dedicated to four championship matches that spoke volumes of the direction ROH seems to be headed as the calendar turns to 2017. The Kingdom (Matt Taven, Vinny Marseglia and TK ORyan) -- which is succeeding despite the lofty expectations that accompany a group that used to include Taven, Adam Cole and Mike Bennett?-- became the first ROH six-man tag team champions against a trio of young high flyers in Lio Rush, Jay White and Kushida.One of the show-stealers, to be sure, was an 11-minute three-way match for the ROH world television championship. Englishmen Marty Scurll and Will Ospreay had an incredible showing against Dragon Lee, the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre star. Scurll retained his newly won TV title. Ospreay, just 23, lived up to?every bit of the hype surrounding him.In the penultimate contest of the night, The Young Bucks and The Briscoes had another in a long line of quality showdowns, with The Bucks -- freshly signed to new contracts -- taking it to the eight-time ROH tag team champions on the way to retaining. The match concluded with a fitting send-off to commentator Steve Corino, whos heading down to the WWEs Performance Center as a trainer, and his patented superkick call, as The Young Bucks hit a series of about 20 to win the match.The show wrapped with a much-anticipated main event, as Kyle OReilly finally broke through and beat Cole for the ROH world championship. In a no-disqualification match that included some ridiculous table spots, thumbtacks in the ring, and a submission with a metal chain (to say nothing of the various callbacks to their previous showdowns), OReilly got the star-making moment he has seemed close to in ROH for some time. We wont have to wait long for the rematch, either, as the longtime rivals will square off as part of New Japan Pro Wrestlings Wrestle Kingdom supershow at the Tokyo Dome in Japan on Jan. 4.In all, it was a tremendous send-off to a tremendous year for the company, but it left a number of lingering questions hanging in the air.With WWEs recent talent influx, including yet another wave of independent talent (which includes Corino as a trainer), there has been heavy speculation about whether some big-name ROH talent with expiring contracts will make a similar move to the WWE. Its not a new problem for ROH, with almost all of its world champions having eventually moved on, but with the expansion of WWEs cruiserweight division and NXT needing as many capable talents as possible, the next few months could drastically change the look of both companies.Unlike in previous years, however, this season of change for ROH feels different.Re-signing The Young Bucks was a huge step, and there are plenty of positive signs that ROH intends to retain as much of its talent as possible. An agreement with The Manhattan Center, which will see more events returning to Hammerstein Ballroom as soon as March, proves that the resources are there to prevent a complete mass exodus.One thing is clear from watching the company evolve into the Sinclair Broadcasting-helmed entity that it is today: Ring of Honor is not only producing great matches, its telling great stories and building upon its reputation at a sustainable pace. ROH will always face a certain amount of adversity and competition operating in the shadow of the behemoth that is WWE, but by picking its spots and believing completely in its approach, ROH continues to grow and stay relevant.All images courtesy of Ring of Honor Carter Kieboom Jersey . The All-Pro lineman got the leg bent under him while trying to make a tackle during the first half of a 22-20 overtime loss at Miami on Thursday night. The medical staff initially thought hed torn the ligament, and the test a day later in Cincinnati confirmed it. Anibal Sanchez Jersey . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. https://www.cheapnationals.com/ . The 17-year-old native of Marystown, N.L., pulled out of Skate Canada International last month in Saint John, N.B., with the same problem. Matt Adams Jersey .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. Juan Soto Jersey . -- Bryant McKinnie came out of his stance and lowered his shoulder into a practice squad player, causing a crisp thud to reverberate in the Miami Dolphins practice bubble. KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kelvin Herrera had little trouble with the Chicago White Sox this season until Tuesday night.Herrera surrendered a three-run homer to Todd Frazier in the 10th inning for his first hit in five at-bats, Justin Morneau had four hits and the White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals 7-5 on Tuesday night.Herrera had pitched five scoreless innings against Chicago, allowing one hit and striking out seven.It didnt do anything, down the middle, Herrera said of his fastball that Frazier drove out of the park.Despite hitting only .213, Frazier is tied for the major league lead with 31 homers and has 72 RBI. His latest homer came on the first pitch from Herrera (1-4) after a single by Jose Abreu and a double by Morneau.Manager Ned Yost could have opted to walk Frazier with first base open but said he didnt mind the matchup.Herrera served up a hit-me-out fastball to Frazier and he did.With Frazier, he just caught too much of the plate, Yost said.David Robertson (3-2) blew a save in the ninth when Alcides Escobars two-out single scored pinch-runner Jarrod Dyson.Dan Jennings struck out Eric Hosmer to end the game, logging his first career save.White Sox All-Star left-hander Chris Sale is 0-3 in five starts since a July 2 victory over Houston. He gave up three runs and seven hits in the first 2 1/3 innings but did not allow a hit after that. He threw 115 pitches in seven innings, striking out seven and walking one.After Edinson Volquez retired the first two hitters in the fifth, the White Sox used five straight singles to score three runs and lead 4-3. Melky Cabrera, Abreu and Morneau each drove in a run.His whole game hinged on one-third of an inning, Yost said. The fifth came and he got two quick outs and then a succession of hits and he just couldnt contain it.Paulo Orlando, batting leadoff for the first time this season, started the first with a double and scored on Cheslor Cuthberts single.Hosmers single inn the third scored Cuthbert and Lorenzo Cain, giving the Royals a 3-1 advantage.dddddddddddd Sale retired the next 13 batters before walking Raul Mondesi in the seventh.We did a nice job of scoring a run in the first and Hosmer with a great piece of hitting to score two more in the third, Yost said. And he just settled in from that point. We just couldnt do much more against him.Volquez allowed four runs, 10 hits and a walk over six innings.Bad pitches, Volquez said of his fifth inning. All those pitches were right in the middle. So its my fault.The Royals scored an unearned run in the 10th when Cuthbert doubled, took third on an error and scored on Cains groundout.ABREUS REUNIONAbreu, who is from Cuba, visited his 5-year-old son Dariel on the off-day Monday in Miami in his first time on United States soil. I couldnt say anything. I just started crying, Abreu said. Dariel, who is staying with grandparents in Florida, will see his father play in the majors for the first time this weekend when the White Sox play at the Marlins.TRAINERS ROOMWhite Sox: OF-DH Avisail Garcia was placed on the disabled list with a sprained right knee. OF Jason Coats was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte.Royals: LHP Mike Minor (recovering from 2015 labrum surgery) threw 4 1/3 innings Sunday on a rehab start for Triple-A Omaha, allowing three hits and one run against Colorado Springs. Royals general manager Dayton Moore attended Minors start. He was very impressed with his fastball command and had a very good changeup with a lot of life, Royals manager Ned Yost said of Moores scouting report.UP NEXTWhite Sox: LHP Jose Quintana is 1-8 with a 4.28 ERA in 20 career starts against the Royals.Royals: RHP Ian Kennedy has allowed one earned run and seven hits while striking out 15 in 13 innings in his past two starts. ' ' '