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TAMPA – Mark Buehrle spun a gem on his 35th birthday, pitching as if he had evening plans to celebrate. "Go home, drop the family off at the airport so time to go home and clean up the house and get it ready for getting stuff shipped," said Buehrle of what will be a quiet night. Buehrle made his noise on the mound, tossing 6 1/3 innings of seven-hit, one-run ball against a Yankees lineup that featured every starter save for an injured Jacoby Ellsbury. He threw 94 pitches, 59 for strikes and was his usual efficient self, issuing no walks. He didnt strike out anyone, either. The Blue Jays won 3-1. "Hes looked a little different this spring," said manager John Gibbons. "Everythings just right. His locations on. I think hes popping the ball a little bit better. Of course I saw him last year, I hadnt seen him in any spring before that but I know hes feeling good and I think hes a little bit surprised about how good he feels and thats a good thing." Buehrle hadnt pitched in a Grapefruit League game since March 7. On that day, he threw 31 of 44 pitches for strikes and was insistent that his changeup was the best it had been in any game in three years. In between, Buehrle made two starts in minor league games. Cognizant of his opponent, Buehrle threw fewer offspeed pitches on Sunday, focusing on his fastball. "We face these guys a lot so I came out and just said, hey, lets work on a lot of fastballs, location," said Buehrle. "I dont want to say trick them because obviously Ive been in the league for 12, 13 years so they know what I throw but just didnt want to show them everything." The plan is for Buehrle to start on Friday night in Montreal, the first of two exhibition games the Jays will play against the New York Mets at Olympic Stadium. Pitching coach Pete Walker draws up the assignments and didnt give Buehrle the choice of traveling or staying back in Florida to throw in a minor league game. Thats just fine with Buehrle, whos looking to pitch in front of a large crowd, in a large stadium, this close to opening day. "It definitely helps out," said Buehrle. "You get in that atmosphere, the adrenaline pumps a little more, theres a bigger crowd even coming here, everything just kind of clicks and it just becomes real once the game starts." Fridays start wont be Buehrles first at the Big O. His only previous outing came on June 18, 2004, an 11-7 White Sox win over the Expos. Buehrle pitched six innings but, as he put it, he got his "ass kicked." He allowed seven runs on 10 hits and got a no-decision. Reyes Update Jose Reyes wasnt in the Blue Jays lineup on Sunday, one day after leaving Saturdays win over the Tigers in the fourth inning with stiffness in his left hamstring. "It feels a little better," said manager John Gibbons. "We still dont think its a big deal." Reyes is listed as day to day. The Second Catcher Erik Kratz and Josh Thole are in a battle for the second catchers job behind Dioner Navarro. Its going down to the wire. "The number one job is going be able to catch Dickey," said Gibbons. "You want some offence but the number one thing (is) theyve got to be able to catch Dickey." Navarro played in 89 games for the Cubs last season, far and away his most since appearing in 115 games for the Rays in 2009. With that in mind, the Jays anticipate the second catcher having to play more. Kratz offers more offence but Dickey is most comfortable pitching to Thole. Dickeys thrown 565 2/3 career innings with Thole as his battery mate. Henry Blanco, at 127 innings, ranks a distant second. "I think theyve both done a good job so its a tough call," said Gibbons. Dickey, as he did last spring when the decision was made to take Blanco over Thole, insists he doesnt have, and insists he doesnt want, input in the process. Timeline for Roster Finalization Gibbons hopes to have his final roster determined before the Blue Jays leave for Montreal, where theyll play two exhibition games versus the Mets on Friday and Saturday, before the club departs on Thursday evening. "Well have a good idea before that what the roster is going to look like," said Gibbons. "Of course, well bring some extra guys with us anyway but well know in the next couple of days; with the catching, anyway." 76ers Jerseys 2019 . According to the Red Wings Twitter feed, Zetterberg plans to practice with the team on Thursday and is aiming for a second round comeback. Philadelphia 76ers Store .C. -- The Carolina Panthers announced Thursday theyve signed free agent wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery to a two-year contract, helping rebuild a depleted wide receiving corps. https://www.cheap76ers.com/ . The match, billed as a "next-gen" encounter between two of the sports rising stars, lasted two and a half hours. The loss kept Raonic, from Thornhill, Ont., from reaching a third fourth-round spot in Melbourne over the past four years. Philadelphia 76ers Gear .Dawson also birdied two of the last four holes to reach 12-under 132 on TPC San Antonios AT&T Canyons Course. He won his only title in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event in 2002 in the Web.com Tours LaSalle Bank Open.Im not going to lose any sleep, believe me, Dawson said. I used to be a perfectionist, but my attitude now is to play like Im in the pro-am. Fake 76ers Jerseys . It certainly isnt a coincidence that Dwight Howard has scored at least 20 points in each game of the winning streak.With the Toronto Raptors celebrating their 20th anniversary season in 2014-15, Josh Lewenberg and TSN.ca take a look back at the franchises first two decades with weekly Top Five lists, counting down the standout and signature players and moments in team history. Raptors Top Five: Best wing players 5. Anthony Parker (2006-09) Raptor stats (3 seasons): 11.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals, 46% FG, 42% 3P, 235 games played/226 started Right off the top, a notable omission from this list is former NBA scoring champ Tracy McGrady, who very nearly snagged this spot. Make no mistake, McGrady had one of the best pro careers of any player to have ever put on a Raptors uniform, but thats not the benchmark here. If it were, Hakeem Olajuwon would top next weeks list of top Raptors bigs and, spoiler, he wont. McGrady played his last game as a Raptor before his 20th birthday and didnt make a significant impact until his third and final season with the club, helping lead them to their first-ever playoff berth while looking an awful lot like the superstar he would soon become in Orlando. Good, but not enough to top Parker, who was a consistent - and some would say undervalued - contributor for three full seasons early in his 30s. The versatile, guard-forward was one of Bryan Colangelos first and better finds, plucking him out of the Israeli league just in time to play an integral role for the 2006-07 division-winning club. Parker was an iron man during his tenure in Toronto, missing just 11 games in three years while logging over 32 minutes per contest in each season, shooting an efficient 42 per cent from three-point range and often defending the oppositions best perimeter player. Quietly dependable and always a consummate professional, Parker gets the nod here. Did you know?: Two of Parkers three years in Toronto (2006-07, 2007-08) rank among the franchises six best single-season effective field goal percentages, thanks in large part to his efficient three-point shooting. Jose Calderon and Amir Johnson account for the other four. 4. Doug Christie (1996-2000) Raptor stats (5 seasons): 14.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.1 steals, 41% FG, 36% 3P, 314 games played/299 started In the same mold as Parker, Christie was an underrated, do-it-all fixture for the first quarter of the franchises existence. Arriving in a trade midway through the Raptors inaugural season, Christie spent his prime in Toronto, where he helped bridge the gap between the Damon Stoudamire and Vince Carter eras. For a couple seasons, prior to Vinsanity, it looked like he may have been nothing more than a good player on a horrendously bad team, but his true value was felt when he shifted back to his natural role as a complimentary piece next to Carter on the Raptors first ever playoff team. Christie was a Swiss Army knife for them that season, playing and defending three positions and even starting playoff games at point guard. Not only was he the teams best perimeter defender, but he was also one the top stoppers in the league at his position. He started every game he played, logging at least 31 minutes a night in each of his four full seasons before he was sent to Sacramento for Corliss Williamson. Did you know?: Christie is the Raptors all-time leader in steals (664), steals per game (2.1) and steal percentage (3.2) 3. Morris Peterson (2000-07) Raptor stats (7 seasons): 12.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.0 steals, 42% FG, 37% 3P, 542 games played/364 started In 2000, the Raptors transitioned from the traded Christie to Peterson, their first-round draft pick that summer. Coming off a national championship at Michigan State, Peterson was entrusted right away and played an immediate role on one of the best teams in club history, a team that was one shot away from the conference finals. With Carter hurt the following season, Peterson - along with Alvin Williams and Antonio Davis - shouldered the load on a team that fought their way into the playoffs and nearly knocked off the favoured Pistons. It didnt take long foor him to find his niche in the NBA, as one of the leagues more reliable three-and-D players, he would spot up in the corner at one end and work his tail off on the other.dddddddddddd. His circus shots, work ethic and dependability made him an instant fan favourite, but his importance to the franchise is in his longevity. Peterson is the only Raptor to have played for the organizations two most iconic teams (prior to last seasons renaissance, that is) - a member of the playoff series-winning club in 2000-01 and the 2006-07 division champs. Did you know?: Peterson owns the franchises iron man streak, appearing in 371 consecutive games. He played all 82 games in four straight seasons. 2. DeMar DeRozan (2009-present) Raptor stats (5 seasons): 16.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.9 steals, 45% FG, 27% 3P, 383 games played/371 started Theres been a lot written about DeRozan in this space - what hes been able to accomplish, coming into the NBA with little more than raw athleticism and playing for a series of bad teams - all of it a credit to his exceptional work ethic. A true self-made all-star, who at the age of 25-years-old, is still adding to his game and getting better. So, Ill leave it at this...When the Raptors took their training camp to Vancouver this fall, a fair-weather reporter asked DeRozan if he feels hes following in Vince Carters footsteps. If he cared to put as little effort into the answer as the reporter did in the question he could have easily shrugged it off, said Yeah, sure and moved on. His response: I hope to leave a legacy of my own. Obviously, Vince started off here and put the city on the map. My goal is to continue and have my own legacy as DeMar DeRozan and not follow what Vince Carter did. Well said. Did you know?: DeRozan set a career-high with 313 assists last season, 99 more than the year prior, his previous career-best. He recorded five or more assists in 27 games after doing so 12 times in 2012-13 and five times total in his first three NBA seasons. 1. Vince Carter (1998-2004) Raptor stats (7 seasons): 23.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.3 steals, 1.0 blocks, 45% FG, 38% 3P, 403 games played/401 started Carter remains the most controversial figure in franchise history. Hes also its best player - bitterness aside, its hard to debate that. His legacy is somewhat tarnished by his ugly break-up with the team, his admissions of dogging it and the less-than a kings ransom they got back in return. Only recently, as his (possible) Hall-of-Fame career comes to a close, has the city started to forgive. That said, he meant everything to a young franchise that was still without an identity when he was drafted ahead of the lockout shortened 1998-99 campaign. You cant take that away from him. Its become something of a cliche (see DeRozans quote above), but yes, he put Toronto on the basketball map in a way that the team is only recently beginning to replicate. He was marketable, he was dynamic and captivating, he was must-see television. On a nightly basis, he would do something jaw dropping and, evident in the stat youll see below, that translated to immediate team success. Did you know?: Carters name is all over the Raptors record book, but perhaps most impressively, Carter is responsible for the teams two highest single-season win share totals (an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player); 2000-01 (12.9) and 1999-00 (11.8), the franchises first two playoff appearances. He finished sixth and seventh in the NBA, respectively, in that category during those seasons. The only players ahead of him both years: Shaquille ONeal, Karl Malone, Tim Duncan. Honourable mentions: Tracy McGrady (1997-2000), Jalen Rose (2003-06), Tracy Murray (1995-96, 2001-02), Walt Williams (1996-98), Dell Curry (1999-2002) Expert picks: Jack Armstrong 1. Vince Carter 2. DeMar DeRozan 3. Morris Peterson 4. Doug Christie 5. Anthony Parker Leo Rautins 1. Vince Carter 2. Doug Christie 3. DeMar DeRozan 4. Morris Peterson 5. Tracy McGrady ' ' '