sigh of relief with a 2-1 win on Saturday night

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Two days after the trade deadline, the Tampa Bay Rays are making major changes to their lineup with an eye on 2017, and Tuesdays new wrinkle was moving centerfielder Kevin Kiermaier from the bottom of the order to the No. 2 hole, where hell be counted on as a catalyst.They just said they want me to create a spark at the top of the order, to get me used to the 2-hole, Kiermaier said after getting two hits and a walk and factoring in both Rays runs in a 3-2 loss to the Royals. Hopefully, Ill hit there next year. I owuld think thats what it means.Kiermaier, a Platinum Glove centerfielder last season with good speed on the basepaths, had hit higher than sixth in the batting order just once before Tuesday, but the hope is that hell energize the top of the lineup, with shortstop Brad Miller sliding from second to fourth in the order, just as hell move to first base and outfield once newly-acquired Matt Duffy returns healthy from an Achilles tendon injury.Kiermaier is hitting just .215 this season, not what youd expect from a No. 2 hitter, but his on-base percentage is .317 and he leads the team with nine steals despite missing two months with a broken hand.Im not a stat rat or anything. I take a lot of pride in how I handle myself. I know Im going to have a good, productive two months from here on out. Im glad they trust me to put me in the 2-spot.On the other side, halfway through a four-game series, the Royals have back-to-back wins for the first time since June. Much of the excitement heading into Wednesdays game -- which pits the Royals Edinson Volquez (8-9, 4.70 ERA) against the Rays Jake Odorizzi (5-5, 3.88) is how well the Kansas City bullpen looked Tuesday.That includes Kelvin Herrera, who got the save for the second straight night while closer Wade Davis is on the disabled list. Chris Young also had two strikeouts in his 1 1/3 innings as well, picking up the win in relief.In particular, Ned Yost showed confidence in rookie Matt Strahm, who was called up from Double-A and made his debut Sunday, then was thrust into a high-leverage situation Tuesday with two runners on with one out and a one-run lead in the seventh. He struck out the Rays Evan Longoria and Brad Miller -- who have combined for 40 home runs this season -- and impressed his manager.Its about opportunity, man. Take advantage of it, Yost said. Weve got confidence you can come in with your stuff and get out of it, and its exactly what he did. With Wade being down, its kind of audition time a little bit. It was a great outing for him. His stuff was really good. Nike Zoom Fly Dam . Third-seeded Murray had the easiest path to victory on New Years Eve, barely breaking a sweat during his 6-0, 6-0 win over 2,129th-ranked Qatari wildcard recipient Mousa Shanan Zayed. Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 35 Herr .J. -- Seven games into a disappointing season, New York Giants defensive catalyst Jason Pierre-Paul is getting the feeling hes back. http://www.airvapormaxsverige.com/nike-zoom-sverige.html . Zvonareva, who won the tournament in 2009 and 10, couldnt handle her opponents big groundstrokes in only her third event back after 17 months out with a shoulder injury. Zvonareva made her comeback in January in Shenzhen and played in the Australian Open but lost her first matches at both tournaments. Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 35 Sverige . Defenceman Yannick Weber scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Canucks breathed a sigh of relief with a 2-1 win on Saturday night. Nike Vapormax Rea .5 seconds to play in the game, Kevin Love never stopped believing that they would come out of there with a win. EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- Jaylon Brown, who finished with a career-high 29 points, drove for a late layup and split a pair of free throws in the final seconds to secure Evansvilles 69-66 victory over Bowling Green on Tuesday night.Bowling Greens Antwon Lillard had a 3-point jumper roll around the rim and out at the buzzer.After trailing for most of the second half, Lillard nailed a 3-pointer and split a pair of free throws to tie 58-58 with 2:46 remaining. Brown answered with a 3-point play to retake thee lead, and the Purple Aces made five free throws down the stretch to hold off the Falcons.dddddddddddd.There were five lead changes in the game.Brown, who made 14 of 15 from the free-throw line, scored 10 points in the final 3:35. Willie Wiley added nine points with seven boards for Evansville (5-4).Demajeo Wiggins led Bowling Green (3-6) with 18 points and 12 rebounds. ' ' '