He allowed two hits in the ninth before

Its encouraging that a current player and a recent retiree have called for an overhaul of the law governing the dimensions of a cricket bat. However, I dont understand why both Josh Hazlewood and Ricky Ponting would agree that the change should only apply to bats used in Test matches.The shorter forms of the game also need to be a fair contest between bat and ball, unless theyre viewed more as entertainment, rather than being worthy of carrying the term cricket in their name.For more than a decade it has made no sense that bats keep improving dramatically while boundary dimensions are being reduced. This combination could only be satisfactory to a connoisseur of clouting or a sadist who had it in for bowlers.As the improvements in bat-making started to really take hold, it became obvious that they were changing the balance of the game in favour of batsmen. Edges that in the past would have been a catching opportunity for second or third slip were suddenly carrying two-thirds of the way to the boundary. This should have sounded alarm bells for lawmakers.The improvement in bats also coincided with a shift to a more conservative mentality in field placements. While this was at first a trend among captains who, influenced by the ubiquity of short-form cricket, erred on the side of containment, it became an obsession when point- and square-leg fieldsmen were regularly posted on the boundary from the reasonably early overs of a Test innings. By then the alarm bells in the halls of officialdom should have been deafening.The more recent improvements in willow manufacture mean the ball is now pinging off the bat at such speeds that bowlers and umpires are in grave danger of being seriously injured. When an umpire starts wearing a helmet or a protective shield on his arm, it shouldnt be difficult to interpret their view. Hopefully it wont be the gut-wrenching sound of sirens that finally influences officials into changing the law.Id only thought of the danger posed to bowlers and umpires in matches. However, former Australian wicketkeeper Ian Healy made the excellent point that young net bowlers engaged to prepare T20 batsmen were even more exposed to the danger posed by batsmen wielding lethal weapons. This could also apply at junior cricket levels, where there are large variations in the size and strength of players.One of the primary duties of crickets lawmakers is to maintain a balance - like an evenly weighted pair of scales - between batsmen and bowlers. When the balance is too much in favour of batsmen, it usually results in disgruntled bowlers fighting back by resorting to such drastic tactics as chucking or Bodyline. A good rule of thumb for lawmakers in maintaining that balance is, the mishits should by and large stay within the field of play. If a bowler is good enough to induce a mishit, there should be a reward; if theres no fielder in the vicinity, or there is but he drops the catch, then its bad planning or bad luck, but a mistimed shot shouldnt finish in the stands.When limited-overs cricket first captured the publics imagination, the points of excitement stressed (apart from a tense finish) were improvements in fielding and running between wickets. There wont be much brilliant fielding or the daring Virat Kohli-style of running between wickets if the bulk of the runs are scored in boundary hits.Administrators who believe a high proportion of fans crave sixes should consider the motive of those patrons. I liken six-craving fans to guys who frequent an establishment because the waitresses are topless. When another bar opens down the road shortly afterwards, with waitresses who are even more skimpily attired, they quickly shift their patronage.Its good that modern cricketers are clamouring for a change to the law regarding bat dimensions. However, itll be an even more effective clarion call when it is a current batsman who asks that changes to bat size should occur in all forms of the game. Wholesale Nike MLB Jerseys . U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield in Manhattan agreed that lawyers on both sides could make their formal requests by Nov. 8. A hearing is scheduled for a day earlier. Jordan Siev, a lawyer for Rodriguez, wrote in a joint letter to the judge from lawyers on both sides that MLB lawyers planned to ask that the lawsuit be dismissed. Cheap MLB Jerseys From China . "Were just throwing s--- at the wall hoping something sticks," said Tortorella about the possible line combinations for Fridays game against Columbus. 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TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays have always known they had the potential to break out in a big way after struggling through the first five weeks of the season. The bats have come alive over the last week and the Blue Jays are looking more and more like the team they were expected to be this year. Adam Lind and J.P. Arencibia homered as the Blue Jays crushed the San Francisco Giants 11-3 on Wednesday to extend their winning streak to a season-high four games. Ramon Ortiz worked seven solid innings for the win as Toronto (17-24) hit the double-digit scoring plateau for the third straight game. "Earlier in the year we were having a tough time scoring runs but like weve said before, theres a track record with the guys in this clubhouse," Arencibia said. "Theres too many guys that have done a lot of good things offensively for a long time to have that happen for an extended period of time." April was marked by a quiet Toronto offence, poor pitching and a freefall to the basement of the American League East. May has been more kind now that the bats are going and the quality starts are becoming more frequent. There is still plenty of work to be done and the Blue Jays remain stuck in the division basement. But the big names are starting to get the job done and it has fuelled a sense of optimism. Manager John Gibbons changed his batting order last week in Boston and it has paid off with big results. Melky Cabrera, Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion have all posted impressive numbers since forming a 1-2-3 punch at the top of the order. "We are really swinging the bats now," Gibbons said. "Were on a nice little roll." Toronto had a big first inning for the second straight night against the National League West leaders. The Blue Jays took advantage of some ugly San Francisco defence in a five-run first inning, added three more runs in the second and the rout was on. Giants starter Ryan Vogelsong (1-4) lasted just two innings, giving up six hits, eight runs -- three of them earned -- and two walks. San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy said it felt like "Groundhog Day" on the heels of a 10-6 loss the night before. "Probably the worst thing that could have happened for (Vogelsong) is what happened there," Bochy said. "Thats a lot of work in two innings." San Francisco (23-17) opened the scoring on a comfortable, breezy night at Rogers Centre. Angel Pagan hit a ground-rule double and later scored on a Pablo Sandoval sacrifice fly. Marco Scutaro and Pagan both madee errors in the bottom half of the frame and Toronto made the Giants pay.dddddddddddd Bautista reached base when Scutaro dropped a pop-up in shallow right field. Encarnacion walked and Arencibia hit a sinking liner that Pagan flubbed in centre field, allowing two runs to score. Lind followed with a two-run shot -- his third homer of the season -- and Emilio Bonifacio later added an RBI single. Munenori Kawasaki hit into a double play to end the threat. Cabrera doubled to lead off the second inning and Bautista drove him in with a single. Encarnacion flied out before Arencibia hit a rainbow blast for his 10th homer of the year. Ortiz (1-1) allowed one earned run and six hits to help Toronto sweep the two-game interleague set and record its first home series win of the year. Giants reliever Chad Gaudin entered in the third inning and issued one-out walks to Kawasaki and Cabrera. Bautista drove in a run with a double and Encarnacion cashed in another with a sacrifice fly. San Francisco put runners on the corners in the fourth inning but Ortiz -- who turns 40 this month -- escaped by getting Scutaro to fly out. Toronto added another run in the sixth inning when Brett Lawrie of Langley, B.C., scored from first base after Colby Rasmus doubled down the right-field line. Blue Jays reliever Mickey Storey came on in the eighth inning and gave up a pair of runs. He allowed two hits in the ninth before striking out Joaquin Arias to end it. Announced attendance was 32,863 and the game took two hours 54 minutes to play. Notes: Scutaro extended his hitting streak to 14 games with a ninth-inning single. ... The last time Toronto scored at least 10 runs in three consecutive games was nearly a decade ago (May 30-June 1, 2003). ... Cabrera had MRI exams done on both legs earlier Wednesday. Results revealed only irritation in the right quadriceps and left hamstring. ... Toronto batted around in the first inning for the second straight night. The last time the Blue Jays did that in the first inning of consecutive games was April 10-11, 1994 against the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics. ... The Blue Jays have a day off Thursday and will begin a three-game series against the Yankees on Friday in New York. Torontos Mark Buehrle (1-2) is scheduled to start the opener against Hiroki Kuroda (5-2). ... Torontos odds of winning the World Series have changed significantly since their poor start to the season. In the pre-season, the Blue Jays were a 7-1 pick on the Bodog website to win the World Series. Toronto is now a 22-1 pick. ' ' '