” said Anthopoulos.

DUNEDIN, Florida – Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos spent a patient offseason waiting for the market value of free agent starting pitchers to drop. Youth Jacob McQuaide Jersey . In the end, Ervin Santanas desire to pitch in the National League and his willingness to play the waiting game won the day when he signed a one-year deal with the Braves worth a reported $14.1-million, exactly the value of the qualifying offer he rejected from his former team, the Kansas City Royals. Anthopoulos was light on specifics but insisted neither term nor dollars affected Santanas decision. The Jays could have increased their offer to Santana. They cant change the league or division in which they play. “Couldnt compete with it,” said Anthopoulos. “Wish him the best, obviously Im sure us and other clubs would have loved to have had him but were going to move on.” Santana couldnt find a multi-year contract offer which suited him, due largely in part to the draft pick compensation owed Kansas City by the team that signed him. The preference to pitch in the National League, in and of itself, is understandable. “I certainly understand it,” said R.A. Dickey, who pitched in the NL East for the Mets. “You get to face a pitcher every night, you dont have the DH and then the games are quicker and all that stuff, parks a little bit bigger. So, it makes sense logically for him on a one-year deal in particular.” Santana is pitching for his next contract; a deal he hopes will be a multi-year pact. He will be 32 at the time. The Braves play in a division that features the young, rebuilding Miami Marlins, the Bernie Madoff-infected New York Mets and the expensive, aging Phillies. On paper, only the Nationals pose a threat to Atlanta and both could end up in the playoffs, one as a wildcard. The Braves entered the fray on the weekend after two of their top pitchers, Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy, experienced elbow pain. Beachy has had Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery. It appears Medlen is destined for the operation, which would cost him the season, although he was seeking a second opinion. What isnt clear is how close the Blue Jays were to signing Santana before Atlanta emerged. It is clear they thought they close. “Talking about Santana (internally,) that kind of put some things on hold, it kind of changed our opinions on some things but now that hes gone were back to where we were,” said manager John Gibbons. Asked if he thought Santana would sign on the weekend, Anthopoulos kept his cards close. “Um, yeah, you know what, Id rather not say. Id probably rather not say.” Was Anthopoulos surprised the Jays didnt land Santana? “Thats another good (question.) Id probably rather not say on that one as well.” The Blue Jays exercised a full-court press to secure Santanas services. The pitcher has a number of friends on the club – hes a native of the Dominican Republic – and he shares an agent, Jay Alou, with Jose Bautista. None of it was enough. The Blue Jays are back to square one. R.A. Dickey, Brandon Morrow and Mark Buehrle are locks for the starting rotation. At the start of camp, Anthopoulos indicated J.A. Happ had a starters job, too, but has since backtracked. Happ was away from the team for two days late last week dealing with back pain both he and the club say isnt affecting his ability to pitch. Happ has been knocked around, to the tune of a 40.50 ERA in two appearances, and is now part of the larger group of pitchers competing for the final two rotation spots. Happ told TSN.ca on Saturday he hadnt been told of a possible change to his role. He was surprised and appeared vexed. “Well he hasnt told me anything,” said Anthopoulos. “As far as Im concerned, no one said anything to me, so I dont have any concerns.” Youth Rob Havenstein Jersey . "Im going to go out there and just keep trying to get better," he said Wednesday, a day after his $135 million, eight-year deal was finalized. Womens Jack Youngblood Jersey . The team was able to halt a four- game losing streak with an 84-79 victory versus Boston Friday night. DeMar DeRozan scored 22 points and Linas Kleiza added 17 for the Raptors, who were playing without Andrea Bargnani (calf) and Jose Calderon (lacerated eyebrow).FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - The Broncos braved the cold for their first full practice of Super Bowl week, working in pads for nearly two hours after a 30-minute walkthrough session Wednesday. Denver practiced on the synthetic turf outdoor field at the New York Jets training facility. By the end of practice, the temperature dipped to 21 degrees. "It was great," Broncos coach John Fox said after practice. "Were pretty much weather-proof. We practice in this stuff all the time. Being in Denver, weve played in a few different elements. We practiced numerous times in single digit, played in single digit, played in wind. Weve practiced in snow many times. Were pretty much ready for anything." Fox has chosen not to use the indoor field at the Jets plush headquarters for practices this week, opting for the type of natural elementss that will greet his team at Met Life Stadium on Super Sunday. St. Louis Rams Cory Harkey Jersey. . Fox was pleased with the flow after the travel and various commitments connected to playing in a Super Bowl. Wednesday is typically when the focus toward the game increases, given the full-scale practices. "I wanted to see how well they would re-boot, get re-charged and practice what weve put in," Fox said. "They recalled it and it went very well. We had a very good practice." The Broncos had a sense of normalcy on a few levels. Peyton Manning, as usual, was in command and precise with his throws. He seemed unaffected by the elements. "Very sharp," Fox said. "What Ive noticed, he had to get used to weather over the past two years. I think hes done an unbelievable job, which I think people forget." cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '