Shane Green tries to pitch the New York Yankees to their fourth straight win on Monday when they open a four-game series with the Texas Rangers at Yankee Stadium. Jose Martinez Cardinals Jersey . Green has been terrific for the Yankees since being inserted into the rotation two starts ago, winning both of his starts, while surrendering just two runs in 13 1/3 innings. He was marvelous in his last start on July 12 versus Baltimore, as he scattered four hits and struck out nine batters over 7 1/3 scoreless innings to get the win. Green, who will be making his Bronx debut tonight, is also the first Yankees pitcher to work at least six innings and allow four hits or fewer in each of his first two Major League starts "It was awesome, for sure," said Greene. "It means a lot. It means a lot that I got the opportunity, and it means a lot that I can come up here and help the team win." New York, meanwhile, came out of the break with an impressive three-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds to pull within three games of the first-place Orioles in the American League East. The Yanks had lost five in a row before the Reds series. "I think its everyone involved," manager Joe Girardi said. "Its a team effort, because theres gonna be days where pitchers struggle a little bit. They pick them up offensively, so I think its everyone. Its gonna take everyone in that clubhouse to play better at home." Texas, meanwhile, continues to sputter and is a miserable 4-24 since June 17 and has dropped 10 of 11 after a series loss in Toronto over the weekend. The Rangers are 20 games below .500 for the first time since finishing the 2003 season 71-91. "Im not upset with the way were playing," Texas manager Ron Washington said. "Those guys put us in a position to be able to win some ballgames. Weve just got to pitch better." Hoping to reverse their fortunes tonight the Rangers will turn to righty Miles Mikolas, who has not enjoyed the same type of success Green has since being recalled on July 1. Mikolas lost to the Los Angeles Angels on July 12, as he allowed five runs (4 earned) and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings to fall to 0-2 to go along with a 10.05 ERA. He had given up just a run in five innings before yielding four runs in the sixth inning. "He had 68 pitches going into the sixth inning; he was throwing well," Washington said. "I pull him out right there, what do I have to do? Get four more innings out of my bullpen? No, hes got to figure out a way to get through that." These clubs are meeting for the first time since the Rangers won four of seven encounters a season ago. Bobby Tolan Cardinals Jersey . I kept my eyes focused up on the camera during each approach. I just tried to stay focused on my form, as I didnt know what the ball reaction was. I was quite emotional at the end. I did not actually see any of the shots in the game until I got home and watched the video. Red Schoendienst Jersey . According to Dave Stubbs of The Montreal Gazette, preliminary talks have begun between Markov - an unrestricted free agent this summer - and general manager Marc Bergevin. https://www.cheapcardinalsonline.com/844t-dominic-leone-jersey-cardinals.html . - Frankie (The Answer) Edgar dominated B.VANCOUVER -- Milan Dragicevic is determined not to go down without a fight. Dragicevic, coach of the University of British Columbia varsity mens hockey team, is on a mission to keep his program going as its future remained in doubt Tuesday. The school announced 16 teams, from the current 29, that will play next season -- but mens hockey wasnt among those approved. "It was really disappointing, obviously -- disappointing for the players, disappointing for the program, disappointing for the alumni -- and all the hard work thats (been done) for this program for the last 100 years," said Dragicevic. "And for (university administrators) to even consider putting this program as a non-varsity (program), its a slap in the face, I think." UBC has played a key role in Canadas national hockey development. The late Father David Bauer and former UBC athletic director Bob Hindmarch established the first Canadian national team on campus in 1963. The universitys sport review advisory team is in the midst of examining the athletics department and determining which teams should stay at the varsity level. The fate of the 13 other teams will be decided at the end of February, giving Dragicevic and the programs supporters about six weeks to save the mens hockey program. Teams receiving a passing grade include: womens ice hockey and womens field hockey, mens and womens basketball, mens football, mens rugby and womens volleyball. "Mens hockey is gonna stay," said Dragicevic. "I have a feeling that its going to stay. Im very confident, and as I told all the players today, our alumni group is a very powerful group. They support our program. It doesnt matter about wins and losses. Its all about player development and development for life afterward." Administrators contend the varsity teams annual budget, which has been raised by $200,000 to $6.4 million, is insufficient for so many high-performance teams. "We simply could not have gone on with 29 varsity teams," said Louise Cowin, UBCs vice-president of students, during a news conference. "And, its not just a question of financial resources." Cowin added that UBCs athletics program was on "an unsustainable path" and other Canadian universities have been struggling with the same issues. She pointed to the University of Toronto, Queens, Carlton, University of New Brunswick, Trent and Brock as examples of post-secondary institutions where the number of varsity teams has been reduced. But Dragicevic called his teams omission from the approved list "shocking" given hockeys popularity and rich history in Canada. "Its Canadas national sport," said Dragicevic. "Weve been around for a long time. It kind of blows your mind that they would consider this, when you look at the tradition and the community involvement that we have. At the end of the day, I believe theyre gonna say hockey is a no-brainer to keep at the varsity level." The approvals came after teams submitted reasons why their programs should coontinue. Gussie Busch Cardinals Jersey. The mens field hockey team is also determined to retain its varsity status after missing out in the first stage. "I thought we fit the criteria very well," said Arif Virjee, a player who with the team who also sits on UBCs athletes council. He cited players strong academics, national team representatives and the teams long history as factors in its favour. "Weve had national team players stretching back to the 1950s," he said. Virjee, who is in his last year at UBC, feels mostly for young players who hope to continue with the program. "This is my last year at the university," he said. "I think its more disappointing for first and second-year players. They made choices in coming here. They have to make some decisions going forward." Other notable omissions from the approved list include womens soccer, even though UBC is a national soccer training centre that Canadian womens team coach John Herdman has pledged to use for training and player development, mens and womens golf and mens baseball. The baseball team has supplied a number of players, including pitcher Jeff Francis, to the major leagues and Canadas Olympic team. Varsity teams are being graded on a number of criteria set out by the university, including success in competition, coaching strength, history, alumni support and even attendance, which is traditionally low for most sports on campus. Cowin and Ashley Howard, UBCs managing director of athletics and recreation, were surprised that 16 teams passed the first stage of the review. They had expected fewer teams to qualify. Howard said the approved teams made the based on their current situations and decisions were not based on new alumni funding support. But, she said, new funding programs will be considered for teams seeking to be approved as part of the second stage. The review process has generated strong opposition from some alumni and current donors with many concerned some teams are being unfairly targeted for their high cost and lack of recent success. Derek Swain, head of an alumni group who has been battling to keep programs alive, was not impressed with what he heard at the news conference, contending that administrators have not been as transparent as they claim to be. He said the administrations plan has been "highly flawed" while the review has "an unnecessary and divisive process." "Im hopeful though that they got the message that varsity athletics are very important and theyre very important to the community at large," said Swain, a former UBC basketball player. Swain said alumni groups are planning to withhold donations to the university if teams lose their varsity status. He said its important to recognize that former varsity athletes contribute more to the universitys general coffers than other graduates. But Swain, who criticized administrators for not including more people with varsity sports experience in the review process, said hes hopeful that some programs can be saved. ' ' '