Fehlzeiten » Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said Monday after

HOUSTON - The Chicago Cubs hope Dexter Fowler will provide outfield strength and spark at the top of the batting order.He does control the strike zone really well, Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said Monday after acquiring Fowler from the Houston Astros for infielder Luis Valbuena and right-hander Dan Straily.Fowler, 28, hit .276 with eight homers and 35 RBIs last year in his only season with the Astros, who obtained him from Colorado for outfielder Brandon Barnes and right-hander Jordan Lyles.Fowler, who has a .271 career average, asked last week for $10.8 million in arbitration and was offered $8.5 million. He is eligible for free agency after the season.He can potentially lead off for us. I wont sit here and make the lineup card out for Joe (Maddon), but he certainly fits well in that role, Hoyer said. It really gives us much needed depth in centre field and in the outfield. We felt like we were a little bit imbalanced as far as our depth, that we were certainly a deeper team in the infield than we were in the outfield.The 29-year-old Valbuena played third base primarily last year but also saw time at second. He hit .249 with 33 doubles, 16 homers and 51 RBIs. Valbuena agreed Friday to a $4.2 million, one-year contract and can become a free agent after the 2016 World Series.Straily, 26, was 1-3 with a 6.75 ERA last season in eight starts and six relief appearances for Oakland and the Cubs, who acquired him as part of the trade that sent Jeff Samardzija to the Athletics. He was 10-8 for the As in 2013.The arrival of Fowler puts Arismendy Alcantara in more of a utility role. The departure of Valbuena creates an opening at third, although Hoyer insisted it will not accelerate prized prospect Kris Bryants arrival in the majors.He said Mike Olt, Tommy La Stella and Alcantara will compete for time until Bryant is ready.When Kris is ready, when we think hes ready to come up to the big leagues, well make that decision, Hoyer said. But certainly trading Valbuena is not gonna speed that clock up at all. Its all dependent on Kris.Chicago also agreed to a minor league contract with right-hander Daniel Bard, who has not pitched in the major leagues since 2013 with Boston. Bard had surgery in January 2014 for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, then agreed to a minor league deal with Texas. He made four appearances in June for the Hickory Crawdads of the Class A South Atlantic League and allowed 13 runs in two-thirds of an innings, a 175.50 ERA. Kris Draper Jersey .com) - Intrastate rivals collide Saturday as the Texas State Bobcats hit the road to take on the eighth-ranked Texas Longhorns in a non-conference battle at Frank Erwin Center. Ted Lindsay Jersey . Its the second time this season that Milan has been sanctioned by the league judge, after fans also subjected Napoli supporters to discriminatory chants. The ban will come into effect for Milans next match, against Udinese on Oct. http://www.hockeyredwings.info/authentic-mike-green-red-wings-jersey/ . Hollis-Jefferson went 5-for-6 from the field and added six rebounds, while Stanley Jefferson contributed 14 points for the Wildcats, who used their trademark tough defense to dominate the games final 24 minutes and advance to Tuesdays winners bracket matchup with Kansas State. Terry Sawchuk Jersey . Among the six changes: Drivers are now eligible if they have competed for 30 or more years in NASCAR or turned 55 in the calendar year before nominating day. Previously, drivers were not eligible until they had been retired for three years, so drivers can continue to compete and still reach the hall. Sergei Fedorov Jersey . Brazilian striker Brandao opened the scoring with a header in the 55th minute before winger Franck Tabanou volleyed home from close range to double the lead in the 61st.SAN DIEGO -- Less than five months after having back surgery, Wimbledon champion Andy Murray propelled Britain into the next round of the Davis Cup and earned some time off. Murray beat Sam Querrey 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-1, 6-3 to clinch Britains opening-round victory against the United States on Sunday at Petco Park. "Im proud of the way Im playing just now, because I had to do a lot of work to get back to where I want to be," Murray said after celebrating with his teammates on the red clay court in a temporary stadium in left field of the downtown home of baseballs San Diego Padres. "Im still not quite there yet," said Murray, who beat Donald Young in straight sets on Friday. "Winning matches of that length and quality so soon after the surgery is good. And changing surfaces and stuff. Ive done 13 weeks consecutively without a break of training and playing tournaments to try and get myself back. I need a break now to take some days off after I get back home. I deserve it." Murray won his 18th straight Davis Cup singles match and Britain beat the Americans for the first time since 1935. Britain advanced to the World Group quarterfinals for the first time since 1986. It will face Italy, which defeated Argentina. The United States is relegated to the World Group playoff in September and will need to win to stay in the World Group. The last time Great Britain won in the United States was in 1903 in the World Group Challenge Final at the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston. American captain Jim Courier was asked to put that in perspective. "It feels great to be alive in 2014," Courier said. "We certainly dont feel a lot of kinship to the last team that lost to the Brits on American soil since theyve been dead a long time. It has nothing to do with us. We come to play on our own terms." Murray split tiebreakers with Querrey in the first two sets, breezed through the third set in 29 minutes and won the match when Querrey returned a serve long. Murray leaned back and pumped both fists, and then swatted the ball into the stands on the opposite end of the court before joining his teammates in a celebration huddle. Later, he had a hot bath, an ice bath andd other treatment on his back.dddddddddddd Britain clinched the match at 3-1. The fourth singles match was cancelled. Murray reached matched point on Querreys serve in the eighth game of the fourth set before the American won three straight points to stay alive. After falling behind 15-30 in the ninth game, Murray got a new racket. He then double-faulted, giving Querrey break point. Murray won the next three points to clinch the match. In the first-set tiebreaker, Murray was down a mini-break before rallying to win when Querrey hit a drop volley into the net. "I tried to do a little too much with it," Querrey said "Every now and then you miss an easy one. It happened to be at a big moment." Querrey won the second-set tiebreaker on a forehand passing shot and then jumped for joy. Murray immediately rebounded by breaking Querrey twice to go up 4-0 in the third set. He broke Querrey again to win the set in a seventh game that went to deuce four times, clinching it when Querrey hit into the net. Murray said it was important to win the first set "because I felt like I was playing the better tennis for the most part of it. Then he started playing better at the end of the set. He probably played a better tiebreak than me as well. Just missed a couple of shots, like the volley on set point was a bad one, but he got himself into a great position. "If I had lost that it wouldve been tough after having served for it. Yeah, in these sorts of matches, first set can be crucial." Although Murray struggled on clay last year, he said he was surprised the Americans chose that surface for this match. He said the clay might have affected Querrey in his five-set loss to James Ward on Friday. "When we got here the court was pretty slippery and tough to move on," Murray said. "I would say for myself, one of my strengths is my movement on the court. I didnt know if that was something they had done intentionally or just the nature of putting down a temporary clay court. "Obviously it did have a bearing in the tie, you know, for Sam especially. I think his best surface is hard courts. He will have had all his best results on hard courts." 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