Vorstellung » Todd Frazier extended his hitting streak

The Toronto Raptors are having one of the best seasons in franchise history - in a year when nobody expected it. Many believed sneaking into the final playoff spot would be a success for the Raptors this season, but even that wasnt guaranteed. But with only 11 games remaining in the regular season, Toronto (40-31) sits in third place in the Eastern Conference, 2 1/2 games ahead of the Brooklyn Nets for tops in the Atlantic Division and a postseason spot all but official. This will be the first time since 2008 that the Raptors will play in the NBAs second season. With all of the good fortunes the Dinos have seen this year, who has been most integral to the teams success? DeMar DeRozan is the face of the franchise and is one of the longest tenured members of the Raptors. The 24-year-old made his first All-Star Game this season and is leading the team in points scoring 22.7 per game. This is DeRozans fifth year in the Association and he signed a four-year deal last season to stay north of the border for the foreseeable future. Will the team only go as far as DeMar will take them? Kyle Lowry has quickly become a fan favourite in only his second season in Raptors colours. The rugged point guard has shown bulldog-like toughness on a nightly basis, playing considerable minutes and being the man the team has looked to when they are in need of a spark. Analysts and fans alike thought the 28-year-old should have been in New Orleans for the All-Star Game. Averaging 17.6 PPG (scoring over 20 points in eight consecutive games) along with 7.7 assists per game makes a good case for that argument. His future is uncertain in Toronto with Lowry hitting the free agent market this summer, but the Raptors are glad to have him for the time being. Is he the one to thank? Then theres Amir Johnson. At only 26, he can be considered a veteran, already playing in his ninth NBA season and is an important part of the Raps front court. He averages 11.1 PPG, 6.9 rebounds per game and is a strong force on the defensive side of the ball. Maybe the key success is coming from the sidelines. Head coach Dwane Casey is in his second year in charge of the Raptors and seems to have finally gotten through to his players. Toronto has gotten much better defensively only allowing 97.6 PPG, good enough for fifth in the NBA. Is the coachs defence-first mindset the reason the Raptors are headed to the post-season? The success could be attributed to General Manager Masai Ujiri. The Nigerian hasnt brought in a lot of highly touted talent since he took the job last off-season. Instead hes used the method of addition by subtraction to improve on the court. First, he shipped the much-maligned Andrea Bargnani off to the New York Knicks followed by sending Rudy Gay to the Sacramento Kings during the season. Toronto is 34-19 since Gay was traded out west. With the offence no longer going through Gay, the Raptors have been able to score more efficiently. Not to mention the players coming back to Toronto - namely Patrick Patterson and Greivis Vasquez – have helped the Raptors to get where they are today. Do we have to look to the front office for the reason behind the sudden improvement? So, who do you think is the most integral to the Raptors success this season? As always, its Your! Call. Wholesale Air Max 90 Black . The 26-year-old Redditch, England, native played three of his past four seasons under Rennie with the Carolina RailHawks of the North American Soccer League. Fake Air Max 90 2019 . PETERSBURG, Fla. http://www.outletairmax90cheap.com/outle...-cheap-303.html. The Suns termed Fridays surgery by team doctor Thomas Carter a success. No timetable was given for Bledsoes return but the team said in a news release that he "will pursue a possible return to action during the second half" of the season. Air Max 90 2019 Outlet . Bozak and Clarkson suffered the injuries in pre-training camp workouts, according to Carlyle, who said they made "small amounts of improvement" from Friday to Saturday. After the players were deemed less than 100 per cent by doctors after Thursdays medical testing, the Leafs held them out of on-ice testing and are being cautious. Air Max 90 Ultra 2.0 Essential Triple Black . Today, well look at five frontcourt players today, here from the Bay Area. 1. AMIR JOHNSON (Raptors): I cant figure out what the issue or problem is, but based upon what Im seeing, hes not right. CINCINNATI, Ohio -- With the ball coming at nearly 100 mph, Chase Headley was merely trying to get the bat to meet it. Once that happened, the rest was automatic. Headley homered in the ninth inning off Aroldis Chapman, the first hit the hard-throwing lefty allowed since his return from being hit in the head by a line drive, and the San Diego Padres beat the Cincinnati Reds 2-1 on Tuesday night. The Padres got their season-high fourth straight win despite managing only three hits. Seth Smith had the only two hits that Mike Leake allowed in the first eight innings. Headley connected on a 99 mph fastball from Chapman (0-1), who was making his second appearance since undergoing surgery after being struck in the forehead during a spring training game. He had a plate inserted above his left eye and nose. "Hes a guy thats throwing with tremendous velocity," Headley said. "So you cant try to do too much. You just try to get the barrel to it. Hes one of those guys that if youre able to get the barrel to it, he really supplies some power for you." His fourth homer made the difference and provided another indication that hes fully recovered from a strained right calf that sidelined him for much of spring training and landed him on the disabled list on April 25. He returned last Saturday and hit a three-run homer. "I dont think he was quite hitting on all cylinders when the season started," manager Bud Black said. Joaquin Benoit (1-0) allowed a walk in the eighth. Huston Street got the last three outs for his 12th save in as many chances. Street hasnt allowed a run in his last 10 innings. Smith was the NLs most recent player of the week and extended his hitting streak to nine games, matching his career high. Hes 19 for 34 during the streak. The rest of San Diegos lowly offence didnt do much until Headley connected with two outs in the top of the ninth. The Padres came in last in the league in batting average and scoring. Brandon Phillips had three of Cincinnatis seven hits, including an RBI single in the first inning. Cincinnati has 12 one-run losses, most in the majors. "Those are what were most upset about," Reds catcher Brayan Pena said. "We know werre better than that.dddddddddddd Our starters are doing a tremendous job giving us a chance. Leake gave us more than we asked for. We couldnt hit for him today." The Padres activated Carlos Quentin off the disabled list for the start of the series, moving their lineup closer to full strength. The outfielder missed the first 39 games with a bruised left knee. He went 3 for 18 during a minor league rehab stint and was 0 for 3 with a walk in his return. Andrew Cashner got a no-decision despite allowing only one run over seven innings, a common theme to his season. The right-hander has pitched well, but gotten little support from his offence. The Padres have scored only one run in the last 25 innings while hes been on the mound. They managed only one Tuesday night. Cashner gave up seven hits and one walk while striking out six. Cashner pitched out of a bases-loaded, one-out threat in the sixth by getting Chris Heisey to hit into a forceout at home and Zack Cozart to pop out. "That changed the game," Cashner said. Smith doubled in the fourth and scored on Jedd Gyorkos sacrifice fly that tied it at 1. The right fielder also prevented the Reds from putting together a big inning in the first. Billy Hamilton led off with a triple and scored on Phillips single. Joey Votto followed with a single to right, but Smith threw him out as he tried for second on the play. Todd Frazier extended his hitting streak to a career-high 12 games, the longest by a Red this season. NOTES: The Padres recalled RHP Kevin Quackenbush from Triple-A El Paso. They optioned utility player Kyle Blanks to El Paso and put RHP Dale Thayer on paternity leave. ... Ian Kennedy (2-4) faces Johnny Cueto (3-2) in the second game of the series. Kennedy is 3-0 career against Cincinnati. Cueto leads the NL with a 1.43 ERA. ... C Devin Mesoraco (hamstring) and LHP Tony Cingranci (shoulder) could be activated during the Reds upcoming trip. RHP Mat Latos, sidelined all season by knee surgery and a sore forearm, isnt expected back until the first week of June. ... The Reds havent made an error in their last eight games, a season high. They have only 12 errors, fewest in the majors. ' ' '