WASHINGTON - Forgive Washington Nationals owner Mark Lerner if he got swept up in the scene. [url=http://www.discountaustraliashoes.com/cheap-air-max-270-fake.html]C heap Air Max 270 Australia[/url] .Speaking after a news conference Wednesday to announce the addition — via a $210 million, seven-year

WASHINGTON - Forgive Washington Nationals owner Mark Lerner if he got swept up in the scene. Cheap Air Max 270 Australia .Speaking after a news conference Wednesday to announce the addition — via a $210 million, seven-year contract — of 2013 AL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, Lerner was thinking big thoughts. After all, the clubs starting rotation, at least for the moment, also includes Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, Doug Fister and Gio Gonzalez.If they all stay healthy, began Lerner, whose father, Ted, is the teams principal owner, I guess its a possibility we may give up the fewest runs in National League history during a 162-game schedule, which is amazing.Let the speculation begin, then.Who will start on opening day, an honour thats gone to Strasburg the past three years? How good could this staff be?As it is, in 2014, Washingtons starters led the majors with a 3.04 ERA.How far can those pitchers take the Nationals, who won the NL East in 2012 and again last season before bowing out in Washingtons opening playoff series each time?And, perhaps most intriguingly, will general manager Mike Rizzo keep that group intact? Or will he wind up trading someone, perhaps Zimmermann or Fister, who can both become free agents after next season?Until those last two questions are answered, Rizzo certainly shares Lerners enthusiasm for the current collection of arms.Well stack our rotation up with anybodys in our division, our league and maybe in baseball, Rizzo said, and compete against them.Of course, things dont always shape up on the field the way they do during the off-season.The terrific Atlanta Braves group that included three Hall of Famers in Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz wound up with only one World Series championship. Thats one more than the Philadelphia Phillies won after assembling Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt.Still, if thats the discussion connected to the Nationals now, it represents a sea change from where this franchise stood a half-dozen years ago.It was noteworthy to hear the word winning over and over Wednesday at Nationals Park, where the scoreboard displayed a Welcome to D.C. greeting for Scherzer and his wife, and the diamond was covered by the afternoons dusting of snow.This is a club that lost 100 games in both 2008 and 2009 and found it difficult to attract top talent in free agency, but the perception has changed.Theres no doubt about it, Rizzo said. Weve got a lot of good baseball people around here. Weve got a lot of good professionals. The selling portion of it from five years ago to today is night and day. We certainly have no problem with players wanting to be Washington Nationals.Asked what reasons led him to sign with Washington, Scherzer replied, One: winning. I think this team is capable of winning and winning a lot. When you look at the near term and long term, this is an organization you want to be a part of.The size of the contract probably didnt hurt, either.The 30-year-old Scherzer, who became a free agent after spending the past five seasons with the Detroit Tigers, received the most guaranteed dollars for a right-handed pitcher in big league history.I dont play this game for money, said Scherzer, who was 18-5 with a 3.15 ERA in 2014, a year after going 21-3 with a 2.90 ERA, but yet at the same time, when you have an offer like that, it just makes you go, Wow.The deal includes a record $50 million signing bonus, of which $5 million is due this year and $15 million each in 2019, 2020 and 2021.The total payments of the contract are spread over 14 years, reducing the present-day value and making it palatable for the Nationals.If that didnt happen, there wouldnt have been a deal, Mark Lerner said. We had to make it work for us financially. It was really my father and Mike coming up with a creative deal.Because of the deferred money, the deal had a present-day value of $191.4 million, by Major League Baseballs calculation. It counts as $28.69 million annually for purposes of the luxury tax, which uses a different methodology.Lerner joked about Scherzer: I want to ask him for a loan. Asics Shoes Australia .FIFA said its appeals panel ruled the case not admissible.The former U.S. Attorney had objected to ethics judge Joachim Eckerts summary of the World Cup bid investigation, claiming numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of his work. Asics Warehouse Sale . The 22-year-old slugger, who is no stranger to adversity, made up for it at the end. http://www.discountaustraliashoes.com/cheap-asics-fake.html . - David Tomasek had two goals in regulation time and was the lone scorer in the shootout as the Belleville Bulls upset the Oshawa Generals 6-5 on Wednesday in Ontario Hockey League action.BALTIMORE - The New England Patriots put on a performance worthy of a division winner. Making it even sweeter was that it came at the expense of the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens, who bounced New England from the post-season last season. Logan Ryan had two interceptions, LeGarrette Blount scored twice and the playoff-bound Patriots breezed to a 41-7 victory Sunday, ending the Ravens four-game winning streak and diminishing their post-season hopes. The previous time these two teams met, the AFC title hung in the balance and Baltimore used a strong second half to pull out a 28-13 victory. In this one, New England took a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter and never let up behind a defence that forced four turnovers and had four sacks. The Patriots (11-4) were assured their fifth straight AFC East title before the game started when Miami lost at Buffalo. Its the 11th division crown for New England coach Bill Belichick, tied with Don Shula for most since the 1970 merger. "Happy to win the AFC East," Belichick said. "Hopefully, we can build off this game." Tom Brady completed 14 of 26 passes for 172 yards and a touchdown. He has led his team to 11 division titles, two more than any other starting quarterback in NFL history. "Theyre all special. Its hard to come by, and this teams really fought hard all year," Brady said. "Weve earned it. Eleven wins in the NFLs not easy, and to win a division titles not easy." The loss eliminated the Ravens (8-7) from contention in the AFC North and dropped them into a tie with Miami and San Diego for the final AFC wild-card slot. Baltimore closes the regular season at Cincinnati, which displaced the Ravens as division champs. "We got to go in there and win. That was going to be the case no matter what," said Harbaugh, who is in danger of missing the post-season for the first time in his six seasons with Baltimore. It was the Ravens most lopsided loss since a 37-0 defeat at Pittsburgh in 1997. Things went so bad for Baltimore that Justin Tuckers run of 33 straight field goals ended when he went wide left on a 37-yarder with 14:19 remaining. Joe Flacco went 22 for 38 for 260 yards and two interceptions for the Ravens, who fell to 6-2 at home. Wearing a brace on his left knee after being injured last week in Detroit, Flacco had difficulty escaping the unyielding pressure applied by NNew Englands defensive front. Air Max 90 Australia. "I dont think he played well," Harbaugh said. Refusing to use the brace as an excuse, Flacco said, "I would have liked to play better. The brace had nothing to do with anything." Baltimore trailed 20-0 late in the third quarter when Ray Rice was stuffed for no gain on a fourth-and-1 at the New England 4. That effectively ended any chance of a comeback. The Ravens scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Flacco with 9:21 left, enabling Baltimore to avoid its first shutout loss since 2002, against Tampa Bay. It was of very little consolation to the defending champs. "Its a tough pill to swallow," safety James Ihedigbo said. "Definitely a frustrating loss." New England scored on a 7-yard run by Blount with 2:05 to go to make it 27-7, then added another touchdown when an errant snap eluded Ravens backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor and Chandler Jones recovered the ball in the end zone. Tavon Wilson capped the scoring with a 74-yard interception return with 40 seconds remaining. Baltimores previous three games were decided by three points or fewer, but it became evident early that this one would not be close. New England went up 7-0 on its second possession. A 34-yard pass interference penalty against Jimmy Smith put the ball at the Baltimore 1 before Blount bulled into the end zone. Three plays later, Flacco threw into double coverage and was intercepted by Ryan at the New England 47. After completing a 34-yard pass to Danny Amendola, Brady connected with Shane Vereen for a 4-yard score. The Patriots quickly got the ball back, and Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 45-yard field goal on the first play of the second quarter to make it 17-0. Shortly after halftime, the Ravens went for it on fourth-and-3 at the New England 39 and Flacco threw an incomplete pass. Baltimores next possession ended with Ryans second interception of the game and fifth of the season. Seven plays later, Gostkowski kicked a 42-yard field goal. Flacco tried to rally the Ravens, but after a 42-yard completion to Torrey Smith produced a first down at the New England 13, he couldnt get into the end zone. Notes: New England DB Devin McCourty left with a head injury, and Vereen left with a groin injury. ... Tuckers miss was his first since Week 2. ... Baltimore finished with more yardage, 358-300. ' ' '