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Trouble in the Reds outfield, the Blue Jays rotation could have a new look, an interesting catcher option in Colorado and injuries to Davis, Kipnis, Cain and more. INJURIES - Reds RF Jay Bruce is facing knee surgery for a torn meniscus and it could cost him a month of playing time. Chris Heisey, who has shown some pop (43 home runs, .736 OPS in 1218 career plate appearances) takes over in right for the Reds. - The Reds are also missing LHP Tony Cingrani, who has shoulder tendinitis, but Cincinnati can get away with a four-man rotation for the time being. - A torn tendon in his right hand leaves RHP Brandon Morrow on the 60-day DL, giving J.A. Happ a chance to return to the rotation. Happ has been rocked in three relief appearances this year, so it may not be long before Marcus Stroman gets his turn. Stroman, a 2012 first-round pick, has been recalled from Triple-A Buffalo, where he was 2-2 with a 1.69 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 36 strikeouts in 26 2/3 innings. Stroman starts in the bullpen but figures to be next in line for a rotation opening. - With 1B Chris Davis on the DL due to a strained oblique, Steve Pearce is getting regular playing time for the Orioles. Pearce has done little (.222 AVG, .556 OPS) in 27 plate appearances this year, but since joining the Orioles in 2012, he has seven home runs, 29 RBI, a .253 average and .748 OPS in 248 plate appearances. - A strained hamstring has put White Sox CF Adam Eaton on the DL, giving Jordan Danks a shot at some regular playign time. In 300 career plate appearances, Danks is hitting .207 with a .606 OPS and a dozen stolen bases, so he hasnt clicked in the bigs yet, but had a respectable .772 OPS in four seasons (1566 plate appearances) at Triple-A. - Indians 2B Jason Kipnis is out with a strained oblique, and the Tribe has turned to 21-year-old Jose Ramirez. Ramirez doesnt have any power to speak of, but hit .308 with a .765 OPS and 75 stolen bases, in 1172 minor-league plate appearances. - Need a catcher? While Rockies C Wilin Rosario deals with a viral infection, consider Jordan Pacheco, who is the primary backup in Colorado. Pacheco had played primarily first and third base with the rockies, but, prior to this season, had seen action at catcher in 22 of 213 career games. This year, Pacheco has caught in 10 games, and is hitting .278 with a .769 OPS. He hasnt hit enough to have value as a corner infielder, but as a catcher? Thats a different story. - Tigers RHP Anibal Sanchez is on the DL due to a laceration on his finger, giving LHP Robbie Ray (3-2, 1.53 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 21 K, 29 1/3 IP at Triple-A) a turn in the Detroit rotation. Ray was acquired from Washington as part of the Doug Fister trade in the offseason. - A run-in with a kitchen knife has sent Giants RHP Matt Cain to the DL, opening up a spot in the rotation for Yusmerio Petit, the 29-year-old who has a 3.31 ERA in 73 1/3 innings with the Giants since 2012. - Angels 3B David Freese suffered a broken finger on the weekend, leaving the hot corner in the hands of Ian Stewart, the one-time top prospect who has power (hit 25 HR in 2009), but is hitting .186 with seven home runs in 396 plate appearances since the start of 2011. - Twins RHP Mike Pelfrey is sidelined with a groin problem, giving Samuel Deduno a chance to return to the starting rotation. Dedunos strikeout rate has improved, working out of the bullpen this year, though hes also giving up more base-runners than he did last season, when he was 8-8 with a 3.83 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 18 starts for the Twins. GOOD ADDS (Available in at least 40% of TSN leagues) Jhonny Peralta, SS, St. Louis - 7 HR, 15 RBI, .222 AVG, 13 R, 108 AB (Available: 48.6%) Omar Infante, 2B, Kansas City - 2 HR, 19 RBI, .282 AVG, 13 R, 110 AB (Available: 49.5%) Todd Frazier, 3B, Cincinnati - 5 HR, 18 RBI, .269 AVG, 17 R, 3 SB, 97 AB (Available: 40.6%) Chris Young, CF, N.Y. Mets - 2 HR, 9 RBI, .273 AVG, 10 R, 3 SB, 55 AB (Available: 95.8%) Juan Francisco, 1B, 3B, Toronto - 3 HR, 6 RBI, .277 AVG, 8 R, 47 AB (Available: 98.7%) Corey Kluber, RHP, Cleveland - 2-3, 3.60 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 48 K, 45 IP (Available: 82.4%) Travis Wood, LHP, Chicago Cubs - 2-3, 3.35 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 37 K, 37 2/3 IP (Available: 86.1%) Jonathon Niese, LHP, N.Y. Mets - 2-2, 2.20 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 24 K, 32 2/3 IP (Available: 77.0%) CLOSER NOTES - Sergio Santos has lost the Blue Jays closer gig after blowing back-to-back save appearances. Aaron Loup is the short-term option there, while Casey Janssen is due back from injury soon. - After being removed from the closers role, Angels RHP Ernesto Frieri may be about to reclaim the job from sidearmer Joe Smith. Frieri ha worked four perfect relief outings since he was bumped from the job. - The lonely Houston Astros closer job is being split, by Anthony Bass and Chad Qualls. As if one couldnt handle all those opportunities. - Oaklands Jim Johnson has pitched 10 1/3 IP since he was knocked out of the closers job, but that stretch has put him at the head of the committee which includes Luke Gregerson and Sean Doolittle. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. 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LeBron Shoes From China .com) - Delon Wright scored 17 points and No.CHAMAPIGN, Ill. -- Coming to Illinois on Saturday, a long list of milestones were on the line for Michigan State. Best start in team history. A chance for Tom Izzo to move up the ladder of Big Ten coaching wins. And, oh yeah, the top spot in the conference standings to protect. The Spartans (17-1, 6-0 Big Ten) checked off all those boxes, holding off Illinois in a sometimes frustrating, physical contest, 78-62. Izzo, who moved past Illinois Lou Henson and into the No. 4 spot on the list of all-time Big Ten wins with 215, called the victory a sign of progress. "Were getting there," he said. "Were gutting things out. Were better defensively than we were a month ago, were better rebounding than we were a month ago." No Spartans team before this one started with 17 wins in its first 18 games. The shot at that served as motivation, said Denzel Valentine, who had a game-high 11 rebounds and 15 points. "We kept saying, Lets make history," he said. While Michigan State won its 10th straight, Illinois (13-6, 2-4) has now lost four in a row. The frustration was apparent during several loud exchanges between coach John Groce and officials. The last one earned him a technical foul. But Groce said Michigan State was just better. "Todays issue wasnt fight; todays issue was we ran into a really, really good basketball team," he said. Izzo said he talked with Henson, who was at the State Farm Center, before the game, but downplayed moving into the No. 4 spot. Bob Knight holds the No. 1 spot with 353. "Its nice," Izzo said. "Im going to call Bob and make sure he realizes theres no worries. Nobodys catching him." Michigan State owned the boards early against the Illini, outrebounding them 24-10 over the first 20 minutes. The Spartans used that edge to open up a 10-point lead by halftime and held the Illini at arms length the rest of the night. Gary Harris had a game-high 23 points and Keith Appling added 15 for the Spartans. Tracy Abrams led Illinois with 15 points. Illinois closed to within six at 59-53 with 6:11 in the game on a pair of free throws by Abrams. But almost as quick as those shots sparked a little hope for Illinois, Appling snuffed it out with a long 3-pointer from the top of the arc. "For wwhatever reason, we fell down in the zone," Groce said.dddddddddddd "Appling made a big shot." Michigan was up 62-53 with 5:43 to play, and with the Illini shooting a tepid 37.7 per cent and unable to drum up many second chances, Michigan was comfortably out front. The Spartans played without 6-10 centre Adreian Payne, out for a third consecutive game with an ankle injury. But against an Illinois team with little inside presence, they didnt seem to need him. "We learned to play without him," Harris said. "Some other guys stepped up. Were building a deeper team." Michigan State outrebounded Illinois 38-25. Valentine was at times dominant, particularly in the first half. He had nine rebounds by halftime and held Rice to 12 points. Rice entered as the conferences second-leading scorer, averaging 17.7 points a game. The Spartans also made the most of their shots, sinking 55.8 per cent of them. Illini big men Nnanna Egwu and Maverick Morgan had a combined five rebounds and four points. Egwu hasnt scored in his past two games in spite of starting both and playing 55 minutes. Groces frustration has been growing with the losing streak. After Wednesdays loss to Purdue he charged toward officials to complain about calls. Early in the first half Saturday night, he shouted across the court at his own team after a miss, "I didnt want that!" He then turned and slammed his fist into the scorers table in front of the Illinois radio crew. Late in the game, after several confrontations with officials, he threw his suit jacket and was called for a technical foul. Groce declined to discuss his exchanges with officials or their calls, but both he and Izzo said they believe there are problems with how rule changes designed to increase scoring are being called. "In my opinion, its completely different than maybe what I saw on the (NCAA) video that was sent to me in the fall," Groce said. "I think everybodys confused," Izzo added. "Its hard on everybody." Illinois has a tough road ahead with its next four at No. 11 Ohio State, at Indiana and then at home against No. 14 Iowa and No. 3 Wisconsin. The Spartans play their next two at home, Tuesday against Indiana and Jan. 25 against Michigan. ' ' '