innings over his last seven starts, after giving up one in each of his

CHICAGO - To Chicago Cubs fans, Ernie Banks was sunshine that cut through decades of darkness. Colton Schmidt Bills Jersey . To baseball players, he was the spirit of the game.His teammates
loved him, and his list of admirers included President Barack Obama to
Pearl Jam to athletes from all over the sports world.And they all got
the same person, all the time.Ernie was exactly what you saw, said Don
Kessinger, a shortstop who played with Banks in the 1960s. He was a
great ballplayer, a great teammate and a great friend.What everyone saw
included 512 home runs during a 19-year career that put him in the Hall
of Fame in his first year of eligibility. But perhaps more importantly,
what everyone appreciated was Mr. Cub, an always positive attitude that
sparked a steady stream of tributes after Banks death Friday night at
age 83.I know he was Mr. Cub, but he was really Mr. Baseball, White Sox
owner Jerry Reinsdorf said Saturday. He was really a great, great
ambassador for the game.A makeshift memorial outside Wrigley Field on
Saturday included flowers, an Ernie Banks bobblehead and pictures of the
slugger with fans. A No. 14 jersey was draped over one part of a small
fence with the inscription Lets play two — the iconic saying he was
known for — and then Not without you written under his trademark
line.Another small green sign read Say Holy Cow to Harry and Ron for us,
referring to broadcaster Harry Carays famous saying and Ron Santo,
another former Cubs player and broadcaster who passed away in 2010.He
was the franchise, said Jim Banach, 53, a lifelong Cubs fan who grew on
the South Side of Chicago.Linda OBrien, 54, a pharmacy tech from nearby
Oak Lawn, said she met Banks a couple of times.He was just so nice, she
said. The one time when I got his autograph at the Cubs convention, he
was making everybody do exercises in line. I thought that was pretty
funny.The Cubs will certainly spend the upcoming season honouring Banks,
right from the start. The 2015 major league opener is at Wrigley Field,
a Sunday night game on April 5 against St. Louis.In a statement, Obama
and first lady Michelle Obama expressed their condolences to the family
of Ernie Banks, and to every Chicagoan and baseball fan who loved him.
The president said Banks became known as much for his optimism and love
of the game as his home runs and back-to-back National League MVPs.He
was beloved by baseball fans everywhere, including Michelle, who, when
she was a girl, used to sit with her dad and watch him play on TV, Obama
said. And in 2013, it was my honour to present Ernie with the
Presidential Medal of Freedom.Somewhere, the sun is shining, the air is
fresh, his teams behind him, and Mr. Class — Mr. Cub — is ready to play
two.Hall of Fame umpire Doug Harvey said Banks was equally positive
around umps. Banks, in fact, never was ejected from a game.He wasnt a
griper. Never complained about a strike or an out or a call, Harvey told
The Associated Press. Some guys would turn their heads after a pitch
and look at you like you were nuts. Not Ernie. It was always, Isnt this a
great day to be alive and playing baseball?Banks was playing for the
Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues when the Cubs discovered him
in 1953, and purchased his contract for $10,000. He made his major
league debut at shortstop on Sept. 17 that year — he was the Cubs first
black player — and three days later hit his first home run.One of Banks
biggest influences was Buck ONeil, a former player and manager in the
Negro Leagues who had a hand in the slugger joining the Cubs. ONeil, who
died in 2006, helped prepare Banks for the racism that some of the
first black players encountered in the majors.They all seemed to have
that innate ability to not allow those experiences to harden their
hearts, and an uncanny ability to love universally, said Bob Kendrick,
the president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. And Ernie got that. I
think he got a lot of that from Buck ONeil.Banks was a perennial
All-Star, but never reached the post-season and retired in 1971. The
Cubs finished below .500 in all but six of his seasons and remain
without a pennant since 1945.Like Banks, Hall of Famer Al Kaline made
his big league debut in 1953 and played his first All-Star game in 1955.
Kaline reached his only World Series in 1968, leading the Tigers to the
title.Soon after, he got a telegram from Banks.He knew he was running
out of time to get to the World Series. He knew I had played a lot of
years, too, Kaline, now 80, told the AP on Saturday. I didnt know him
well then, but he understood what it meant to get there later in your
career. He congratulated me on becoming a world champion.He played on a
lot of good teams, not a lot of great ones. Those fans in Chicago, they
loved him. They never got to see a World Series, but they can always say
they got to see the great Ernie Banks.___AP Sports Writer Andy Seligman
in Chicago and Baseball Writer Ben Walker in New York contributed to
this report.___Jay Cohen can be reached at
http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap

Cardale Jones Bills Jersey .The fourth-year CFLer will miss Thursdays game against the Edmonton Eskimos, still bothered by his sore left knee. Chris Gragg Bills Jersey .
A quick first step to get to the hoop for a layup. A rousing dunk on the
break off a high outlet pass saved by teammate Ramon Sessions.LOS
ANGELES, Calif. - Clayton Kershaws first home win of the season was a
perfect example of how the two-time Cy Young Award winner has made a
living out of pitching through early adversity and getting stronger as
the game goes along.
Kershaw shrugged off a two-run homer by Jose Abreu in the rookies return
from the disabled list, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago
White Sox 5-2 Monday night.
"It was one pitch. Thats all it was tonight. One pitch. But he was great
all the way to his last one," Dodgers catcher Drew Butera said.
Kershaw (4-2) allowed four hits over eight innings, striking out nine
and walking none. Kenley Jansen got three outs for his 17th save.
"I think Kershaw just continues to fight no matter what. If they get him
once, hes going to keep it right there," Dodgers pitching coach Rick
Honeycutt said. "Hes not happy about the home run, but hes able to put
it behind him and keep going. Thats the sign of a guy with a short
memory. The great ones dont worry about the past. They just know what
theyve got to do going forward."
Justin Turners two-run single keyed a five-run sixth inning in which all
the Dodgers runs were unearned.
"Thats how you win games. You take advantage of one little mistake, and a
lot of times it ends up rolling into a big inning," outfielder
Scott Van Slyke said. "Good teams do that. When they get the
opportunity, they take advantage."
Jose Quintana (3-5) gave up six hits through six innings and was charged
with all five unearned runs.
The Dodgers parlayed two infield errors, four singles and a walk into
the five-run rally that put them ahead. All the runs came with two outs.
Kershaw led off with a single and Matt Kemp reached on one-out grounder
that went under second baseman Gordon Beckhams glove for an error with
the infield overshifted to the left side.
Yasiel Puig struck out on a high fastball and slammed his bat in
frustration, but the Dodgers got a break when third baseman
Conor Gillaspie fielded Hanley Ramirezs grounder behind the bag and
bounced his throw past first base as Kershaw scored.
"He had a chance to get the force at third, but thats an error and thats
part of it," Chicago manager Robin Ventura said. "Q pitched a great
game, going inning for inning with Kershaw, and he deserved a better
fate. Theres no two ways about it. But when you dont play defence, and
give a team like that opportunities, you leave that littlle crack in the
door. Preston Brown Bills Jersey. And they kicked it wide open."
Adrian Gonzalez drove in Kemp with an infield hit, and Quintana gave up a
two-run single to Turner and an RBI single to Butera after a walk to
Van Slyke.
"Its always fun to get hits, and its always fun when youre part of the
run-scoring," Kershaw said. "Sometimes with us, it takes a couple times
to get through the lineup. I knew if I just kind of kept us in the game,
gave us a chance, we were going to break out."
Kershaw needed only 12 pitches to get through the first two innings and
retired his first 10 batters before Beckham singled and Abreu followed
with his 16th homer. The Cuban slugger was leading the majors in homers
and ranked second in RBIs with 42 before missing 14 games with
tendinitis in his left ankle. The White Sox were 8-6 in his absence.
"It was nice, coming against a guy like Kershaw," Ventura said. "It
didnt seem like he missed too much of a beat. When we have that guy
swinging the bat good, were a better offence."
The only other baserunner the White Sox had against Kershaw through the
first six innings was Moises Sierra, who hit a dribbler to the right of
the mound and beat the left-handers throw to first base with two outs in
the fifth.
Kershaw, who led the majors in ERA each of the previous three seasons,
made only 66 pitches through six.
"I was throwing strikes. They were swinging and my pitch count was low
those first four, five innings," Kershaw said. "Theyve got some
aggressive guys over there. It doesnt really bother me as long as I make
my pitches early."
NOTES: The Dodgers announced after the game that RHP Chris Withrow will
undergo Tommy John surgery Tuesday. ... Abreu set major league rookie
records for homers (10), RBIs (32), extra-base hits (19) and total bases
(71) in April and was named AL rookie of the month. ... Beckham
committed another error in the seventh, booting a routine grounder by
Puig. ... Abreu and Puig, teammates with Cienfuegos before defecting
from Cuba to the United States, are among six Cuban-born players in
uniform for this series. The others are Alexei Ramirez, Dayan Viciedo,
Adrian Nieto, and the Dodgers Erisbel Arruebarrena. ... Ventura gave
1B-DH Adam Dunn the night off even though he is 8 for 13 against Kershaw
with four home runs. ... Quintana has not allowed a home run in 43 1-3
innings over his last seven starts, after giving up one in each of his
previous four outings.

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