Black- and Whitelist » Gardenhire said. Though Mauer stayed

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Betty Finnegan made the 5 1/2-hour drive from Fort Worth, Texas, with a friend Aug. 31 to watch the last two games of the season for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. Her 21-year-old son was finishing his first summer as a professional baseball player on the Double-A team after helping pitch TCU into the College World Series.They had checked into a Holiday Inn and left for the ballpark when her cellphone rang, and she saw Brandon Finnegans number flash.I said, Oh my God, somethings wrong. The first thing in my mind is did he get hurt? she recalled last week.Nothing of the sort.Instead, the Kansas City Royals minor leaguer said: You know the hotel you just paid for? Youre not going to need it.I just got promoted to the major leagues, he told her. And we have to be there by midnight tonight.Sitting in a car with her friend and Brandons girlfriend, Betty started screaming.We were laughing and crying, all at the same time, she said.They quickly packed up his stuff and made the 3 1/2-hour drive to Kansas City, Betty in her grey Chevy Equinox and Brandon in his black Cadillac Escalade, which had been delivered just the night before.And the ride has kept on going.Betty Finnegan had been prepared for the trip to Omaha, Nebraska, and the College World Series last June. She never expected her son could become the first player to appear in the CWS and the big league World Series in the same season.I was sitting in a classroom probably about four months ago, Brandon Finnegan said Monday as his Royals got ready to play San Francisco. Its insane to even think of. I lived the college dream and major league dream in one year.Talk about long seasons: After going 0-8 for the Horned Frogs as a sophomore in 2013, he started bullpen sessions for fall ball that August and never stopped. He began his 2014 season by striking out 13 over seven shutout innings against Jacksonville in TCUs Valentines Day opener — more than eight months ago.In the CWS, he gave up a double on his first pitch. He trailed after two pitches and wound up going eight innings in a 15-inning, 3-2 loss to Virginia.TCU teammate Preston Morrison, the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, said they pushed each other over their three seasons together. Pitching coach Kirk Saarloos, a former big leaguer, developed a system where his staff would compete for Frog Points, earned for first-pitch strikes, quick innings and fielding prowess.Hed be super upset if I got one more Frog than him and Id get super upset if he was one Frog above me. It was probably about 50-50 on who won, Morrison said.Kansas City took Finnegan with the 17th pick of the June draft — unusual, given that hes just 5-foot-11 and not the prototypical 6-foot-4 pitcher many teams seek.The left-hander signed for a bonus of $2,200,600 and made his pro debut in Delaware on July 10 for Class A Wilmington. He went 0-1 with an 0.60 ERA in five starts and on Aug. 1 moved up to Double-A, where he was shifted to the bullpen and went 0-3 with a 2.25 ERA in eight relief appearances.While the organization envisions him as a starter long-term, he quickly became its best short-term option for late lefty heat.Chad Lee, the Kansas City scout who tracked Finnegan the past two years, thought back to a conversation they had last October. Lee asked whether Finnegan saw himself someday as a starter or reliever in the majors.He goes, I think I can get hitters out right now in the big leagues, Lee recalled.Finnegan made his big league debut at Yankee Stadium in early September, a nationally televised game before a crowd of 45,262 on a steamy Saturday afternoon. He was the first player from this years draft to reach the majors.With the Royals trailing 6-1, Finnegan took the mound wearing the No. 29 pendant with a TCU marking, even though the Royals assigned him 27. He worked exclusively from the set position when he entered in the bottom of the sixth and John Ryan Murphy flied out.Jacoby Ellsbury got fooled on a changeup, a pitch Finnegan developed in the last year, and was left with just one hand on the bat as he flailed at strike three. And then Derek Jeter — Finnegan was 2 years old when the Yankees star made his big league debut — struck out when he swung over a 94 mph sinking fastball.It was such a whirlwind for him. I dont think he knew where he was at the time, TCU coach Jim Schlossnagle said. He said, Coach, I didnt even realize it was Jeter. As soon as I toed the rubber and looked up to get the sign, its like, Holy cow! Its Derek Jeter!Finnegan allowed one run in seven regular-appearances with the Royals and two more in four post-season outings, getting the win in Game 2 of the AL Division Series sweep of the Angels.Finnegan played first base and outfield at Southwest High School in Fort Worth and also pitched once a week. He still speaks frequently with Frankie Gasca, his freshman team coach in 2008 and varsity coach in 2011.Ill tell you what, he definitely likes his shoes — sneakers, Gasca said. It seems like hes got one that will match for whatever outfit hes got on.Finnegan was drafted by his hometown Texas Rangers with the 1,374th pick in the 45th round in 2011. But he decided to accept a scholarship from TCU — as a freshman, he once hit six batters in a game.Finnegans father, Gary, pitched at TCU in 1979. But he never had the chance Brandon has now.I hurt my arm, and that was the end of it, Gary said. Shoulder. Back then they didnt do the surgeries like they do now. Replica Football Jerseys .com) - They didnt meet in the regular season, so Sam Houston State might be saying it won the de facto title game between the two Southland Conference co-champions Saturday. Fake Football Jerseys From China . Born in Berkeley and raised in Oakland, where he later pitched for the As, Ross beat the Giants for the first time in six career appearances by throwing eight scoreless innings to lead the San Diego Padres to a 2-1 victory Friday night. https://www.fakefootballjerseys.com/. In the last race before the Sochi Olympics, Bjoergen followed up her win in the 10-kilometre classical race on Saturday by beating World Cup sprint leader Denise Herrmann of Germany by 0.43 seconds for her fifth victory of the season. Cheap Football Jerseys Authentic . The 7-foot-1 Hawes, who is in the final year of his contract, is averaging 13 points and 8.5 rebounds, both career highs, and shoots 40 per cent from 3-point range. The 25-year-old Hawes is in his seventh NBA season. Fake Football Jerseys Online .C. -- Cam Newton wasnt flawless on Sunday.MINNEAPOLIS - Just when Joe Mauer restored his smooth swing, it brought more trouble by triggering his latest injury. This frustrating season for Minnesotas catcher-turned-first baseman worsened Wednesday, when Mauer woke up with more discomfort than he had the night before from a strained muscle on his right side and was placed on the 15-day disabled list. "Its been a very trying year for me personally," Mauer said. "I get things going and something happens, but thats baseball. ... This is another thing that Ive got to work through, and hopefully it doesnt take too long and I get back out there soon." Mauer was hurt swinging on his two-run double in the fourth inning Tuesday that stretched his hitting streak to 12 straight games. He batted .320, his career average, with 13 RBIs over the last 19 games. But prior to his recent surge, the six-time All-Star and three-time American League batting title holder has been in his worst slump ever, his average dipping as low as .254 a couple of times last month. "Hes put in a lot of hard work here getting his swing where he wants it, and its been falling in for him, hes been driving in runs, and now we have this," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "You know what? It is part of the game when you play every day. Youre going to have some of these things, and now we jjust have to let him heal.dddddddddddd" Mauer missed the last 39 games last year with concussion-like symptoms, prompting his position switch. He sat out almost a week earlier this season with a bad back. Knee and lower-body injuries hounded him at times in his career. His substandard production at the corner infield spot already put his All-Star selection in doubt, but this strained-oblique setback sealed the deal: Mauer wont play in the midsummer classic in his hometown. "Hes been an All-Star for quite a bit, and Im sure its something that he wouldve loved to have been a part of, but you know what? You get hurt, you get hurt," Gardenhire said. Though Mauer stayed in the game to run the bases, he said he knew right away the injury was serious. "Ive never been shot before, but it felt like I got shot," Mauer said. The Twins called up Chris Colabello from Triple-A Rochester to take his place on the roster. Colabello was hitting .275 with six home runs and 27 RBI in 36 games with the Red Wings. In 40 games with the Twins earlier this year, Colabello batted .232, but with 10 doubles, four home runs and 30 RBIs. So while Colabello hasnt played in a game for the Twins since May 23, he still has driven in more runs than Mauer, who has 28 RBIs in 76 games with 20 extra-base hits. Hes batting .271. ' ' '