ason.He showed at times last year that

ST. LOUIS - When Carlos Martinez tries for a spot in the St. Louis Cardinals rotation, the 23-year-old righty will be proudly wearing the number of a fallen teammate.Martinez was close friends with fellow Dominican Republic countryman Oscar Taveras, the promising rookie outfielder who died in a car crash last October after St. Louis was eliminated by the Giants in the NL Championship Series.Martinez switched to jersey No. 18 to honour Taveras, and says hell wear it the rest of his career.He was a friend, a brother, Martinez said through an interpreter Monday on the final day of the teams three-day Winter Warm-Up fan festival. Im taking it bit by bit. This tragedy, of course, affected me.Cardinals uniforms will feature patches with Taveras number and initials, and a decal will be placed inside the stadium, much like the ones memorializing the late Darryl Kile and Josh Hancock. Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said the team also is renovating a field in Taveras hometown of Sosua, aiming to make it first-rate.A brief stint pitching in the Dominican Winter League provided Martinez with an outlet that helped him process the accident that also killed Taveras girlfriend.Martinez wax 3-0 with a 2.25 ERA and 26 strikeouts and two walks in 24 innings for Aguilas Cibaenas.It definitely helped me mentally to be able to focus on something else, to be able to concentrate on something else, Martinez said. I know what I need to do be in the fifth spot and Im ready for the challenge.I feel like yes, this is my spot, he said.Martinez appeared in 57 games last season,including seven starts in midseason, going 2-4 with a 4.03 ERA. Hes the top pitching prospect in the organization.The Cardinals werent anxious to block that path by chasing free agent Max Scherzer, who got a seven-year, $210 million deal with Washington on Monday.The Cardinals have other pitching issues. Theyre monitoring the progress of 20-game winner Adam Wainwright from elbow surgery, Michael Wacha from an unusual shoulder injury and lefty Jaime Garcia from unproven thoracic outlet surgery.Were giving Carlos a great opportunity, but opportunity is just that, manager Mike Matheny said. Hes going to have to go out and compete.Marco Gonzales, coming off an impressive finish to his rookie year, and reliable lefty Tyler Lyons offer depth for a franchise leaning on its farm system.It makes the off-season for baseball fans enjoyable, to think of the what-ifs, Matheny said. Man, I could think of a bunch of guys that could come in here and compete for a job.I dont see the urgency in running out and making a hasty decision that goes outside of what the business model and plan is, he said.Lance Lynn, who has 48 wins in three years in the rotation, believes the biggest hurdle for Martinez will probably be adjusting to the work load. Counting a brief stint in the minors last year, he worked 99 2-3 innings.Thats going to be a different thing for him. You have to know when to go after it and when to be able to back off and get through things, Lynn said. I threw 140 innings, 160 innings before I even got called up to the big leagues.Lynn preferred to wait and see how Martinez handles the adjustment when facing a lineup for the third time. He topped out at 88 pitches and never made it past six innings last season.He showed at times last year that hes got electric stuff, Lynn said. Hes going to have to handle the pitching deep into games and staying under control and being able to get through those innings late in the game when theyve seen him once or twice.Lynn has the security of a long-term contract after getting a three-year, $22 million extension a few days earlier. Last year he entered spring training competing for a spot in the rotation.You know its going to take care of itself with the arbitration process, but just to get the whole three years situated so we dont ever have to go through it, Lynn said. Both of us feel like we got what we wanted and Im excited about it. Wholesale Patriots Jerseys Authentic . Right-hander Ricky Nolasco and the Twins agreed to terms on a free-agent contract Wednesday, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. Jake Bailey Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. http://www.cheappatriotsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-kevin-faulk-jersey .ca. Hi Kerry, Welcome back! Im sure you heard Peter Forsbergs comments last week regarding Canadian referees in the gold medal game. Seems to me that he was questioning the integrity and impartiality. Cheap Patriots Jerseys Authentic . Saltalamacchia drove in the go-ahead run in the ninth inning, Henderson Alvarez won for the first time in three starts and the Miami Marlins beat the Braves 3-2 on Thursday night. Tedy Bruschi Jersey .C. -- Cam Newton wasnt flawless on Sunday.ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Rams have postponed quarterback Sam Bradfords knee surgery, which had been scheduled for Tuesday, due to swelling. Coach Jeff Fisher said Wednesday no new date has been set for the procedure to repair a torn left ACL, but anticipated it would be soon. The team previously announced the surgery would be done by Dr. James Andrews, who also operated on the quarterbacks shoulder at Oklahoma. "It will be in the near future," Fisher said. "During some of the rehab, he swelled up a little bit, so we just decided to wait. Nothing to be alarmed about." Bradford has been exercising to strengthen thhe knee and quadriceps prior to surgery, perhaps easing the rehab path.dddddddddddd. Hes also been on his feet a lot at practice and on game days. The Rams anticipate Bradford, the first overall pick of the 2010 draft, will be back in time for next years opener. "Back in the old days, theyd cast you for half your life," Fisher said. "Now, you come out of the procedure and theyre already working on the range of motion, so its different. Thats why theyre coming back so fast." Backup Kellen Clemens makes his third straight start Sunday at Indianapolis for the Rams (3-6), who have lost three in a row. 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