Thomas Godoj Thread » eady believe in him.Hes making plays down the

MINNEAPOLIS -- Neither the Minnesota Twins nor the Oakland Athletics wanted a postponement, despite a severe thunderstorm that delayed the first pitch by 2 hours and 42 minutes and left the ballpark largely empty.The long wait was well worth it for Tommy Milone and Twins.Kennys Vargas, Max Kepler and Miguel Sano hit home runs, Milone beat his old team and the Twins topped the Athletics 11-4 in a game that ended early Wednesday morning.When you win, it makes it look like a good decision so Im glad we got it in, Twins manager Paul Molitor said.The game started at 9:52 p.m. and ended at 1 a.m.They were right, As manager Bob Melvin said. They got it in.Winning for the first time in eight starts since Sept. 28, Milone finished the sixth inning for only the second time this season. Marcus Semien hit his 18th home run in the second, but that was all the As managed against Milone (1-2). He allowed five hits and one walk to the team that traded him to the Twins two summers ago, crediting catcher Kurt Suzuki for calling a smart game behind the plate.We were on the same page pretty much the whole night, Milone said.Milone averaged 4 1/2 innings over his first six starts this year. With top prospect Jose Berrios on a tear for Triple-A Rochester, the left-hander was likely pitching to keep his spot in the rotation. Molitor essentially acknowledged as much before and after the game.I try not to think about that. I try to just go out there and do what I do on the field, Milone said.Danny Valencia hit a three-run homer in the eighth to bring the As within 7-4, but Sano hit his three-run shot in the bottom of the inning to seal it and help the Twins (28-55) move ahead of Atlanta (28-56) in the race for the worst record in the major leagues.Vargas, recalled Monday from Triple-A Rochester, went deep for the first time since June 22, 2015, with a two-run, two-out home run in the fifth against Sean Manaea (3-5). Then Kepler homered on the next pitch.After a meager four-hit performance Monday, the Twins brought their bats to life. Suzuki, another former As player, had two RBI. Byron Buxton had two doubles, driving in one.The dark clouds rolled in early enough to cancel batting practice, but with both teams scheduled to travel Wednesday evening (Minnesota to Texas and Oakland to Houston) the preference was to avoid a doubleheader the next day. So they waited out the heavy rain, swirling wind and thunder and lightning, and the tarp was pulled off the infield at 9:17 p.m. In the clubhouse, some of the Twins gathered around shortstop Eduardo Nunezs cubicle to talk about his All-Star Game selection.Milone hadnt begun his pregame routine when the rain began, so he said he wasnt bothered much by the delay. Manaea might have been.I know he was pretty antsy, Melvin said. He kept coming in here asking me if Id heard anything. For starting pitchers, theyre the ones that are affected the most. Theyre very routine-oriented.WEATHER TRACKINGPaid attendance was announced at 16,938, the smallest crowd in Target Fields seven seasons. The actual number of people in the seats at first pitch couldnt have been much more than 1,000. The Twins granted fans ticket exchanges for a future game because of the delay, which was the 31st since the ballpark opened in 2010. There have been 14 postponed games and one suspended.TRAINERS ROOMATHLETICS: Oakland reserve catcher Josh Phegley, placed Sunday on the DL, had minor surgery in San Francisco to remove a cruciate ligament cyst on the inside of his right knee that was causing swelling and inflammation. Hell be reassessed in 10 days. Matt McBride has taken over as the backup.TWINS: Buxton was back in the Minnesota lineup after two days off to rest bumps and bruises. He crashed hard into the wall in left-center making a catch in the game Friday. In the seventh inning, Buxton made a sprinting grab of Jake Smolinskis smashed line drive and collided with the fence around the same spot.UP NEXTOakland RHP Sonny Gray (3-7, 5.42 ERA) will pitch Wednesday against Minnesota RHP Ervin Santana (2-7, 4.50 ERA) in the series finale.Gray is 0-2 with a 4.42 ERA in six starts since coming off the DL due to a trapezius muscle strain between his shoulder and neck. Santana gave up only three hits in his last start, going 6 2/3 innings in a defeat by Texas. That was his lowest hits total since opening day, when a rain delay limited him to two innings.Erik McCoy Youth Jersey . Miikka Kiprusoff had just announced his retirement after a decade-long run in Calgary and it would be up to Berra and Ramo to fill the void. Willie Roaf Womens Jersey . Hamelin, who triumphed in the 500 on Saturday, edged out Victor An of Russia by 0.021 seconds to maintain his lead in the World Cup standings. Russias Vladimir Grigorev was third. In the relay, Canada took control six laps from the finish line to beat Russia and the Netherlands. http://www.shoptheofficialsaints.com/Elite-Sam-Mills-Saints-Jersey/ . Paul Pierce couldnt believe he missed at the end. Young scored a season-high 26 points to spark a huge effort from the leagues most productive bench, and Los Angeles beat the Brooklyn Nets 99-94 on Wednesday night after blowing a 27-point lead. 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Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest of the route was unveiled Monday.INDIANAPOLIS -- Indianapolis Colts receiver Phillip Dorsett may be about to get his first big opportunity in the NFL.The 2015 first-round draft pick will be asked to play a much bigger role over the next month -- and perhaps longer -- after learning No. 2 receiver Donte Moncrief will miss four to six weeks with a fractured left shoulder blade.Moncrief was injured in the first quarter of Sundays loss at Denver and did not return, another big blow for a team already hit hard by injuries.Its a skill set that well miss, coach Chuck Pagano said Wednesday after making the announcement. Thank God weve got 13 (T.Y. Hilton) and thank God weve got 15 (Dorsett).Fortunately for the Colts (0-2) they have Hilton, who has been to the past two Pro Bowls, and Dorsett, who was drafted early because of his game-breaking speed.After that, Indy has a group of unproven youngsters.Quan Bray and Chester Rogers, the only other receivers the Colts kept to start the season -- had combined for just one NFL reception. So on Wednesday, they signed Devin Street off the New England Patriots practice squad.Street has seven catches, all with the Dallas Cowboys from 2014-15, and hell have four days to learn the offense and get in sync with Andrew Luck before Sundays game against San Diego.The Colts are trying to avoid their first 0-3 start since 2011, when Peyton Manning missed the entire season with a neck injury, and only their second 0-3 start since 1999, Mannings second season in the league.Hilton became one of Lucks favorite options after Reggie Wayne was not re-signed following the 2014 season and knows hell need to do even more with Moncrief out.Its hard, but I told my brother, weve got your back, Hilton said. The team will be looking to me and Phil more now.But now Dorsett will be thrust into a higher-profile job.The 5-foot-10, 185-pound Miami product struggled to make a difference early last season. He fell behind Hilton, Andre Johnson and Moncrief on the depth chart, and just when it appeared Dorsett might be ready to break out, he broke his lower left leg.He caught only four more passes after returning in December.The Colts released Johnson in March, movingg Dorsett into the No.dddddddddddd 3 spot and now with Moncrief down, hell move into the No. 2 spot. He promises to be ready.Im light years better than I was last year, Dorsett said, referring to an 18-catch rookie season. Its different ways I watch film now, that helps me slow stuff down, see how you adjust when the ball is in the air, that sort of thing.The difference has been noticeable on the field.He already has five catches for 124 yards and his average of 24.8 yards is much closer to what general manager Ryan Grigson envisioned when he took Dorsett at No. 29 overall.Teammates also have seen a change.Hes a young kid, who is making big strides from last year, Pro Bowl cornerback Vontae Davis said. And hes more confident.What the Colts need most, though, is productivity.Moncrief emerged last season as a solid No. 2 option and started this season with seven catches for 73 yards and one touchdown in less than five quarters.Now, its up to Dorsett to prove he can live up to the hype.The Colts already believe in him.Hes making plays down the field and hes not thinking, Pagano said. Hes speeding up and youre starting to see and feel his presence out there.Game notesQuarterback Andrew Luck was not on the field for the early portion of practice Wednesday. It was not immediately clear if the absence was part of the Colts plan to manage him better throughout the week. Pagano did not talk about Luck when listing the injuries Monday or Wednesday. Luck is expected to take questions following practice. ... Davis did limited work Wednesday, the first time hes been on the practice field since sustaining an ankle injury in mid-August. ... Safety T.J. Green (sprained right knee) also did limited work at practice while starting cornerback Patrick Robinson went through non-contact drills after being cleared from the concussion protocol. Safety Clayton Geathers (sore foot) did not practice for precautionary reasons, Pagano said.---Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '