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of Kosovo-eligible players who had represented other countries at youth or senior level
of Kosovo-eligible players who had represented other countries at youth or senior level
in Allgemein 16.01.2020 13:57von MJL456 • 2.720 Beiträge
OXON HILL, Md. -- All-Star closers Aroldis Chapman, Mark Melancon and Wade Davis moved to different bullpens. Chris Sale boosted a big rotation in Boston. And the Washington Nationals got their fans talking -- a lot.As teams packed up along the Potomac River and headed home Thursday, a look at what did and didnt happen this week at the winter meetings:---WHOS LEFT?Major league home run leader Mark Trumbo, fellow sluggers Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista, and center fielder Dexter Fowler are available free agents. So is closer Kenley Jansen, whos attracting serious interest from the Marlins. But Miami has a policy of not giving no-trade clauses, and thats troubling to some players and agents.Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said theres no reason to worry.The belief when you enter into these deals is that youre going to be together for the length of the contract, he said.Try telling that to Jose Reyes -- he signed a six-year deal with Miami before 2012, then got traded onto the artificial turf in Toronto after just one season.HOLIDAY SHOPPINGPittsburgh outfielder Andrew McCutchen was all-but-gone at these meetings. Thats what most everyone thought, anyway.But the former MVP is going to PirateFest this weekend, still on the team. General manager Neal Huntington says he plans to talk things over with McCutchen before the festivities.We took calls, we listened, we engaged, Huntington said. We felt the right move was to hold the player.OPEN FOR BUSINESSThe White Sox got quite a haul of prospects by trading Sale and Adam Eaton, and theyre far from done. Closer David Robertson, starter Jose Quintana or third baseman Todd Frazier could be next.We embrace the challenge that lies ahead of us, GM Rick Hahn said. We have for the last several months ... but its nowhere near completed.A year removed from winning the World Series, the Royals are in a different spot. Several of their stars are eligible for free agency after this season -- first baseman Eric Hosmer, outfielder Lorenzo Cain and pitcher Danny Duffy, among them -- and KC doesnt want to lose them with nothing in return. They began revamping the roster by trading Davis to the champion Cubs for young, powerful Jorge Soler.FIELD DAYExtra emphasis is being put these days on guys who can handle more than one spot. With David Ortiz retiring, Boston wants someone who could DH and also play first base -- Mitch Moreland is set to be that person. The Royals like Soler as a right fielder and DH. The Nationals are looking at Trea Turner in the outfield and at shortstop.Houston might see whether Carlos Beltran can play first base. And Colorado might turn newly signed Ian Desmond into a first baseman -- he was a shortstop in Washington and an outfielder in Texas.WINNERS AND LOSERSWho did the best and who did the worst at these meetings? Fact is, the answer might not come for a few years.The AL East champion Red Sox looked good getting Sale from the White Sox for a hefty package. The White Sox looked smart getting a trio of young, talented pitchers for outfielder Adam Eaton.But until fans see how the prospects turn out, well, everyone will just have to wait. Calgary Flames Store . The deal is pending a physical, assistant general manager Bobby Evans said. Traded from Seattle to Baltimore on Aug. 30, Morse also can play first base and right field to give manager Bruce Bochy some flexibility in writing his lineup. Stitched Flames Jerseys . The Vikings announced Thursday that Priefer will be one of seven holdovers from the previous staff, along with offensive line coach Jeff Davidson, wide receivers coach George Stewart and others. Norv Turner will mark his 30th year of coaching in the NFL as the offensive co-ordinator, as widely reported for weeks, and George Edwards will be the defensive co-ordinator. https://www.cheapflames.com/ . -- Gus Malzahn finally had his day in Fayetteville. Flames Jerseys 2020 . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. Cheap Flames Jerseys . -- The Magic have their first victory of the new year. HELSINKI -- Amid last-minute confusion about which players are eligible to play for Kosovo, soccers newest national team started its first World Cup qualifier convincingly with a 1-1 draw against Finland, which has tried to reach the finals 18 times before.They pressed hard from the beginning on the Finns home turf with nifty footwork and quick passes in front of a capacity crowd in the southwestern city of Turku.Bernard Berisha had Kosovos first attempt on goal, six minutes into the game and Leart Paqarada hit the post three minutes later.But it was Finland which scored first, when forward Paulus Arajuuri was left unmarked to turn in a corner in the 17th minute.Kosovo kept up the pressure, eventually equalizing on the hour mark with Valon Berisha striking a penalty past Luka Hradecky, Eintracht Frankfurts goalkeeper.Mehmet Hetemaj, a naturalized Finn of Kosovar Albanian descent, who has played on Finlands national team, described the Kosovans as hungrier.They really wanted to win. They were there to win, he said.Kosovan President Hashim Thaci, who watched the game from the Turku grounds, said the team felt like winners.You are the best. You will win. You are the new heroes of Kosovo, he said.The buildup to the evenings game was wrought with confusion as FIFA kept the Kosovo team guessing about who would be allowed to represent the tiny country in its World Cup debut. Less than five hours before the 9:45 p.m. (1845 GMT) kickoff, FIFA finally approved six players who were already with the squad in Turku. Head coach Albert Bunjaki could sigh with relief -- he had a full team to choose from.Five of the siix players, including goalkeeper Samir Ujkani, had formerly represented Albania, which borders Kosovo.dddddddddddd The case of Berisha, who played for Norway before Kosovo gained FIFA and UEFA membership in May, was the last to be resolved.FIFAs players status committee had been evaluating requests to switch allegiance of Kosovo-eligible players who had represented other countries at youth or senior level while their home country was not recognized in international soccer.Kosovo team spokesman Fazli Berisha told The Associated Press the federation welcomed FIFAs decision. All our demands were taken into consideration.Kosovos assistant coach, Tord Grip, said the confusion was unsettling.Maybe its both the Kosovo federation and FIFA that have messed this up. I dont know all the details, Grip, a former longtime assistant to Sven-Goran Eriksson, told Swedish radio on Monday.Kosovos entry into FIFA membership has tested the rules on switching allegiance. Created to regulate typical cases in which players had nationality of two existing FIFA member federations, the rules have struggled to cope with a new national team like Kosovo.FIFA had in recent months approved requests from nine Kosovo players who had represented six different European countries, including Albania, Germany and Switzerland.Kosovos qualifying group also includes Croatia, Iceland, Turkey and Ukraine.--Llazar Semini in Tirana, Albania, Karl Ritter in Stockholm and Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed to this story. ' ' '
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