Clanregeln » ent as he hoped.It was fun getting out th

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Angels are likely to see a lot more of Jharel Cottons mix-and-match pitching style in coming years.They sure found themselves off balance against the young Oakland right-hander making a memorable major league debut Wednesday, and the Angels lost the series finale 4-1 to the Oakland Athletics.For all the nerves during a lousy pregame bullpen session, the 24-year-old right-hander (1-0) sure looked poised from the moment he stepped on the rubber in the first. Cotton impressed with four pitches, dazzling with his changeup, showing strong command of his fastball and mixing in some solid curveballs and sliders to keep the Angels guessing.We didnt get too many good looks at him, Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said.Alex Meyer (0-2) struck out five but walked four in 3 1/3 innings, allowing one run on one hit.Making his Angels debut and third major league appearance, Meyer became the 14th different Angels starting pitcher this season. He wasnt as consistent as he hoped.It was fun getting out there. Command, obviously, went in and out a little more than I like to, having two four-pitch walks, he said. You cant have stuff like that happen, but overall my arm felt good, it was fun being out there and competing.Cotton, on the other hand, had everything going.He allowed one run and two hits over 6 1/3 innings, striking out three and walking two in a 102-pitch performance. He got the ball as a keepsake, a pie in the face from every player, and had 30 text messages to greet him from thrilled family and friends.When his day was done, Cotton received an embrace from catcher Stephen Vogt as the infield gathered around him. The pitcher jogged off the mound in the seventh and stopped to tip his cap for the sparse crowd on an unseasonably warm September afternoon. Attendance was listed at 11,866.They always have our back and they always cheer loud for us. He deserved better today, Vogt said. But they gave him a great ovation and were so thankful for our fans that showed up today.Born on St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Cotton became the fourth pitcher in big league history born in the Virgin Islands. He came to the As from the Dodgers at the trade deadline in a deal that sent Josh Reddick to Los Angeles. He nearly tossed a one-hitter in his second start for Triple-A Nashville, giving the Oakland front office a preview of his potential at the next level.C.J. Cron homered on a 3-2 pitch leading off the seventh with a drive that tipped off the glove of center fielder Brett Eibner, who Eibner hit an RBI double. Yonder Alonso and Max Muncy added run-scoring singles to back Cotton.Ryan Madson, Oaklands third reliever, finished for his 29th save.Cotton was the second As starter to make his major league debut in three days, following Raul Alcantaras struggle on Monday.It also marked the second time in Oakland history the As had five starters make their major league debuts in one season, also in 1978. Using the 27th pitcher of the season, the As matched the second-most to appear in a year -- also 1977 and 2009 -- behind 30 in 2015.It didnt look like anything really fazed him, As manager Bob Melvin said of Cotton. Hes got the stuff.TRAINERS ROOMAngels: RHP Matt Shoemaker flew home to Southern California from Seattle, three days after taking a line drive to the head and undergoing surgery to stop bleeding on his brain. ... INF Yunel Escobar (left wrist) was scheduled to hit Wednesday. He feels better, Scioscia said. Well turn him loose in batting practice and see how he is Friday. ... C Geovany Soto (right knee) continues to progress slowly. Hell be re-evaluated when the Angels return home this weekend.Athletics: With the pitching struggles, the As are looking at going with a six-man rotation. LHP Sean Manaea, who left his Aug. 29 start at Houston with a sore back, has recovered well and is likely to make a start during the teams road trip next week to Kansas City and Texas.UP NEXTAngels: LHP Tyler Skaggs (3-3) starts Friday looking to win his third straight outing on the heels of a three-start skid. He will face Texas for the first time since July 13, 2014.Athletics: After an off day, RHP Daniel Mengden (1-6) starts Friday against the Seattle Mariners trying to snap his 0-5 record at home in the Oakland Coliseum.Air Max Plus Tn Cheap .R. Smith realized how easily basketball can be taken from him, and he wasnt going to take his place in the NBA for granted anymore. Nike Air Max Plus Tn Ultra Cheap .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner. http://www.airmaxplusstoresale.com/air-vapormax-plus-cheap/mens-discount.html Vapormax Plus Wholesale . Ibaka equaled a career high with 20 rebounds, adding four blocked shots and 15 points as the Thunder smothered the Milwaukee Bucks offence in a 92-79 victory Saturday night. Air Max Plus Tn Blue . I cant pinpoint a date, but I do remember a player from my youth. Brian Downing was with the Chicago White Sox at a time when I listened to every game I possibly could on the radio. That particular season the late great Harry Caray was calling the White Sox games.TUKWILA, Wash. -- Jordan Morris arrived in Seattle last winter with so much hype that meeting the lofty expectations was going to be difficult.Thats why its not simple to define Morris rookie season that included flashes of brilliance, stretches when he disappeared on the field and ultimately helping the floundering Sounders go from the bottom of the Western Conference to again finding themselves in the MLS playoffs.The Sounders rise to an eighth straight playoff appearance could come to an abrupt end Thursday night against Sporting Kansas City in the knockout round of the MLS playoffs. Seattle lost both of its matches against Kansas City this season, losing 1-0 in the season opener at home before a 3-0 loss on the road in July that proved to be the final match before Sigi Schmid was let go as head coach.I think this is a different group. Its definitely different than the game in July, Seattle interim coach Brian Schmetzer said.Whether Seattle can get past Kansas City may depend on how well Morris plays.Morris heads into his first postseason as the team leader with 12 goals and a role that has evolved throughout the season.When he signed in February, Morris was going to work in concert with the duo of Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins at the top of Seattles attack.Before the first match of the season, that plan changed after Martins left the Sounders for an offer in China . That put even more expectations on Morris to make up for Martins absence offensively and those hopes weighed heavily on Morris during a scoreless first month of the season.At the start of the year it was tough, he said. A lot of expectations and when I wasnt scoring those first few games people were giving mee a lot of stick.dddddddddddd I read too much into it at the beginning of the year and it definitely affected me. But after that I decided to not look into any of that stuff and just focus on what I could do to help the team. I think that helped. I didnt read Twitter anymore or all that stuff. I let that go.What helped turn Morris was an early-season conversation with Schmid. Schmid told Morris -- who turned 22 on Wednesday -- that it didnt look like he was having fun. And truthfully, he wasnt. He was hearing the criticism that he wasnt worthy of the hype.He was like `you need to have fun. It needs to be the right balance of working hard and having fun, Morris said. I think that conversation was good. It kind of changed how I thought about things and to go out there and have more fun after that.Its helped that Morris has been counted on to be more of a factor in the latter half of his rookie season than anyone anticipated. Dempseys season suddenly ended in late August due to an irregular heartbeat. Thats put more of the offensive responsibility on Morris to control the game at the top of Seattles formation.Morris has played at least 89 minutes in 10 of the past 11 games and while hes without a goal since Sept. 25, Morris back-heel assist last Sunday against Real Salt Lake gave Seattle the exact start it needed in a must-win game.(Were) a determined team, strong team defensively, good goalkeeping, very good midfield play. Jordan, hes a good player, Schmetzer said. We will cause teams problems because were a team, because the team believes they can win. ' ' '