s. He pitched 5 2-3 shutout innings against the Colorado Ro

OAKLAND, Calif. Troy Tulowitzki Jersey . -- Billy Beane considers Jon Lester a proven ace who can carry a pitching staff through the playoffs, just like he did last fall. The general manager acquired Lester to make sure Oakland gets there first. The baseball-leading, small-budget As won the mighty Lester sweepstakes Thursday, acquiring the left-hander and outfielder Jonny Gomes from the Boston Red Sox for slugging outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. "Once again players like this really dont come along too often," Beane said. "When you get a guy whos a legitimate No. 1 starter in the middle of the season and we currently sit in first place, were excited. ... Theres no looking ahead. The way the playoff system is now, you want to win the division." Oakland, with the best record in baseball at 66-41, also received cash from Boston in another blockbuster deal by Beane. The Red Sox also receive a draft pick. "I believe that the deliberations leading to the two trades we did today were deeply analyzed, thoughtful and value-added," As owner Lew Wolff said in an email. "The best trades are when all parties have potential benefits, and what Billy accomplished is an example of such a win-win. The calls I have received from other owners were very complimentary." Lester is 10-7 with a career-best 2.52 ERA in 21 starts in another outstanding season. He has allowed seven earned runs in his last eight games with 54 strikeouts and nine walks. But the Red Sox put him on the trading block because he can become a free agent after the season -- and Beane isnt ready to commit to re-signing the lefty. Lester, 30, was sought by many teams, including Pittsburgh and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The three-time All-Star originally was scheduled to start Wednesday night for the slumping Red Sox, who instead scratched Lester ahead of Thursdays non-waiver trade deadline. After winning their third World Series in 10 seasons last year, with Lester getting two of the four wins with a 0.59 ERA against St. Louis, the Red Sox are last in the AL East with a 48-60 record. They had Thursday off after losing for the eighth time in nine games to drop 13 games behind first-place Baltimore. While the Red Sox look to next season, the As are determined to take the next step after losing in each of the past two Octobers in five-game division series to Detroit. Oakland was off Thursday before returning home to begin a weekend series with Kansas City on Friday night. Lester is scheduled to start Saturdays game against the Royals. "Well I am awake," Friday starter Sonny Gray posted on Twitter when the trade news broke early Thursday. Oakland later sent lefty Tommy Milone to the Twins for outfielder Sam Fuld, who will help fill a void in centre field with Coco Crisp and Craig Gentry sidelined. Beane believes in starting pitching depth, and the As sure have it. Lester joins Gray (12-3), Scott Kazmir (12-3) and recently acquired Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel, obtained in a July 4 trade with the Chicago Cubs. Gomes, a fan favourite who grew up in nearby Petaluma, provides a veteran presence who was invaluable during the As run to the AL West title in 2012. He also was a respected clubhouse leader in Boston, which signed him as a free agent before last season. He is hitting .234 with six homers and 32 RBIs in 78 games. For Boston, this marks another big move of a starting pitcher to the Bay Area after Jake Peavy was traded to San Francisco on Saturday for two pitching prospects. The Red Sox traded John Lackey to St. Louis later Thursday. The 28-year-old Cespedes won the past two Home Run Derby titles at the All-Star game. The Cuban left fielder is in the third season of a $36 million, four-year contract he signed before spring training 2012. Cespedes is batting .256 with 17 homers and 67 RBIs. "Hes a tremendous talent, weve had a tremendous amount of success since hes been here," Beane said. "It is difficult. But if youre going to separate yourself from everybody else and try to get a player like Lester, you have to do something thats unique." Speculation had centred on the Red Sox seeking prospects to add to their already deep farm system. That would have given them more young players to use in another deal for an established player, possibly a power-hitting outfielder. They got that in Cespedes, whose 17 homers is the exact number hit this season by the nine Red Sox players who spent time in the outfield. And Gomes six were the most. Lester has said leaving the Red Sox doesnt rule out a return to the team next season. He had said he would take a hometown discount to stay in Boston, but the teams four-year, $70 million offer in spring training fell far short of what he could get on the open market. Lester leaves his only pro baseball organization. The Red Sox drafted him in the second round in 2002. He made his major league debut June 10, 2006, and got a no-decision in a 7-4 loss to Texas. In his nine major league seasons, Lester is 110-63 with a 3.64 ERA. Hes also a proven post-season star with a 3-0 record in his two World Series. He pitched 5 2-3 shutout innings against the Colorado Rockies in the clinching fourth game in 2007. "In Lesters case, were also dealing with a guy whos one of the best at his position in the game," Beane said, "and has been for a long time. It was just too good an opportunity to pass up." Custom Toronto Blue Jays Jerseys . Long snapper Patrick Mannelly announced Friday that he is retiring after a 16-year-career with the Bears, a span in which he played in a team record 245 games and snapped the ball 2,282 times. Russell Martin Jersey . Radulov scored the lone goal in the shootout, and the Predators edged the Minnesota Wild 2-1 on Tuesday night to reach 100 points for the second time in three seasons and fourth in seven. http://www.officialbluejaysjerseysonline.com/authentic-kevin-pillar-blue-jays-jersey/ . The Sochi organizing committee said in Fridays statement that the torch relay reached the North Pole on Oct. 19. Russian Polar explorer Artur Chilingarov, who led the mission, lit a special bowl at the North Pole sign. TORONTO -- It goes down as a comfortable win. But it was far from an impressive performance. "We set basketball back 15 years in the first half," Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey quipped after his team defeated the Orlando Magic 105-90 at the Air Canada Centre Sunday night. "But like I told our guys, were going to have a lot of games where were going to have to grind it out," Casey said. "For whatever reason, we struggle in the first half and then come through, turn it on. "But I also think thats a little bit of growth on our part." After shooting a woeful 41.7 per cent from the field in the first half, the Raptors shot 12-for-14 in the third quarter to blow the game open on the way to win their second straight and fifth in six outings. "Just coming out with a different kind of intensity," point guard Kyle Lowry said when asked about the key to turning things around in the second half. "Weve got to figure out a way to start the game the way we start third quarters. "Thats how weve got to come out from now on." Lowry had 17 points in the third as the Raptors (31-25) widened a three-point halftime lead to 15. Lowry, who was just 1-for-7 from the field in the first half, hit all five of his attempts in the third quarter. He had four from beyond the three-point arc in the period, including a 25-footer at the buzzer which brought the crowd of 17,435 to their feet. Lowry scored the final 14 points for the Raptors in the third quarter and the first two of the fourth quarter as Toronto stretched the lead to as much as 18 points. Toronto is six games above .500 for the first time since Feb.. Randal Grichuk Jersey. 24, 2010, when they were also 31-25. Facing the struggling Magic (17-41), the Raptors were uncharacteristically sloppy, turning the ball over 24 times, which led to 25 Orlando points and allowed the visitors to keep the game close. "Were not that good of a team to just ease our way into the game," Lowry said. "Weve got to come out and play with our hard-nosed and hard-headed intensity from the start." Lowry scored 28 points, including four three-pointers to run his career-high mark to 134 this season. DeMar DeRozan added 24 points for the Raptors, who had five players score in double-figures. Amir Johnson left midway through the third quarter with what was described by Raptors personnel as a right ankle sprain. He had 12 points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes before leaving. Casey said it didnt appear Johnson hurt it as badly as earlier in the season when he missed two games. Tobias Harris matched Lowrys 28 points to lead Orlando, which fell to 3-26 on the road. It was the Magics 15th straight loss away from home. The Raptors led 19-14 after the first quarter; 44-41 at the half and 80-65 going into the fourth. "You cant put your finger on the slow starts," DeRozan said. "Maybe we like a challenge sometimes by putting ourselves in a tough situation, so we can fight our way out. "We have to stop that and understand that we have to come out of the gate, so we dont make the game that hard on us." The Raptors visit the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday before returning home to host the Washington Wizards on Thursday and the Golden State Warriors next Sunday afternoon. 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