rmath of Vancouvers two set piece goals Wednesday was plainly evide

(SportsNetwork.com) - Melky Cabrera tries to continue his torrid start to the season on Wednesday when the Toronto Blue Jays resume a three-game set with the Houston Astros at Rogers Centre. Cabrera homered for the fourth straight game in Tuesdays opener and Toronto rolled, 5-2. Dioner Navarro went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI and Edwin Encarnacion went 1-for-1 with three walks and two runs scored for the Blue Jays, who evened their record at 4-4. Toronto starter Mark Buehrle (2-0), who punched out 11 batters in his season debut against Tampa Bay, tossed 5 1/3 innings on Tuesday, allowing eight hits and one run with three strikeouts and a walk. "Im not striking out 11, Im not going to strikeout 11 guys in my next five starts combined," said Buehrle. "I need my defense behind me." Brett Oberholtzer (0-2) absorbed the loss for the Astros and surrendered three runs on three hits with three walks and three strikeouts in 5 1/3 frames. "I thought he did a good job keeping us in the ball game," said Astros manager Bo Porter on Oberholtzer. "Those last two walks in the sixth really hurt us. We had our opportunities. We had men on base with less than two outs. When you get in those situations you have to capitalize." Cabrera managed just three home runs all of last season, a year that saw him miss time with leg injuries before having a benign tumor removed from his spine Aug. 30. With another home run on Wednesday Cruz would become the first Blue Jay to homer in five straight games since Jose Cruz Jr. went deep in six in a row Sept. 29-Oct. 5, 2001. "I feel 100 percent now and Im ready to go. Its good. I dont have any pain now," said Cabrera. Hoping to slow him down will be righty Lucas Harrell, who picked up right where he left off last season in his initial start of the season. Harrell lost a league-high 17 games a year ago and started his 2014 campaign off with a loss on Friday to Los Angeles, as the Angels battered him for five runs and seven hits in just three innings. "Its over with and on to the next start," Harrell said. "Ill get better for my next start." Toronto, meanwhile, will counter with right-hander Brandon Morrow, who lost to Tampa Bay his first time out. Morrow surrendered four runs and seven hits in five innings of that one. "It was just one of those things where you think you threw better than the end results," Morrow said. Toronto was 4-3 against the Astros last season. On Wednesday afternoon, the Jays optioned pitcher Marcus Walden to Triple-A Buffalo and recalled pitcher Neil Wagner. Toni Kroos Germany Jersey . Johnson shared an update after his surgery Tuesday on Twitter. He also wrote, "now lets get on the grind." The running back told The Tennessean he was having surgery in Pensacola, Fla. Matthias Ginter Germany Jersey . Or, for that matter, the aged. http://www.germanysoccerpro.com/Niklas-Sule-Germany-Jersey/ . The 18-year-old Januzaj has made his breakthrough at United this season, including scoring twice in a 2-1 win over Sunderland before the recent international break. His performances have sparked a debate about where his international future lies. Mats Hummels Germany Jersey . "Im going to send Webbie a six-pack (of beer) tonight," she said. Webb wasnt sure that would help. "Ill probably drink one and go to sleep," the Australian veteran said. The two players set up a Sunday showdown between former HSBC champions after finishing off their third rounds with identical birdies over three of the last five holes Saturday to separate themselves slightly from the rest of the crowded leaderboard. Jerome Boateng Jersey . The biggest shock of this seasons competition was on when Watford took a 2-0 lead after 30 minutes at Etihad Stadium, only for a remarkable Aguero-led comeback by City in the final half-hour. The Argentina striker produced clinical finishes in the 60th and 79th minutes to level the score before Aleksandar Kolarov put City in front in the 87th.The Whitecaps two games this week were actually very similar, except for one critical difference; Kendall Waston made the most out of a deep Pedro Morales free kick vs San Jose, where he didnt against DC. The "Towering Tico" outmuscled hulking Earthquake defender Victor Bernandez from a pinpoint Morales free kick to earn a first half penalty which the Chilean converted. The two combined again just prior to the hour mark off a Whitecaps corner with Wastons celebration equal parts elation with relief. Waston also had a first half chance from a Rosales corner, but skied it well over the cross bar despite being virtually unmarked on the play. Against DC United just three days earlier, Morales put the ball on a platter for the Costa Rican, but he nudged it wide of the far post. Had he converted, the Whitecaps might have been looking at six points from a possible nine, rather than the four they earned in their three-game home stand. Welcome to the margins of Major League Soccer, especially in the nitty gritty month of September. Teams coming to BC Place have employed a simple game plan; deny space for the Whitecaps quick forwards to run into. Its not a surprise anymore for Carl Robinsons team, which is then forced to play more east-west rather than north-south. Try as they might, the anemic Vancouver attack showed plenty of endevour and enterprise, but when it came to the critical through ball, or the definitive finish, there was simply no end product. Enter the set piece threat. Kendaal Wastons acquisition was billed as a "two birds one stone" signing.ddddddddddddnbsp; Hes a 65 aerial menace who can have a major impact in both penalty areas. Finally getting on the end of a well delivered ball will do wonders for the 26-year-olds confidence, who has managed to fend off adversaries with surprising ease. Hes also been named "Man of the Match" in back to back games. The aftermath of Vancouvers two set piece goals Wednesday was plainly evident. San Jose could no longer justify sitting back, and had the Whitecaps strikers been more clinical, it could have easily been four or five nil as space opened up. The 3-0 Timbers loss notwithstanding, Vancouver has been relatively steady at the back of late, with goalkeeper David Ousted taking the league lead in shutouts with nine after his 40th consecutive MLS Start Wednesday. The back-line has two veteran fullbacks being kept honest by two youngsters coming through, to go along with a diverse group of centrebacks. With the shield provided by a tenacious Mattias Laba, its clear that the Whitecaps path to a potential playoff spot rests on their ability to score timely goals the way they did against San Jose. With seven games left, and likely 12 points required to secure a post-season berth, the magnitude of each goal will be amplified, especially if the trend of close games continues. Vancouver has scored 35 and allowed 34 on the season for a plus-1 goal difference. Slender margins indeed. ' ' '