ual bashing self -- just in time to help Tanaka

SINGAPORE - Simona Halep has two entries in her off-season calendar: party with friends, and pump some iron.The Romanian was comprehensively beaten 6-3, 6-0 by Serena Williams in Sundays championship match at the WTA Finals and left Singapore with mixed feelings: disappointment at the loss yet satisfaction with a season which elevated her firmly into the elite of the womens game.In May last year, Halep was ranked No. 67 and the former top-ranked junior was struggling to transition into the power game at the highest level. Now she is ranked No. 4, having completed a week in which she comprehensively beat Williams — in the group stage — Eugenie Bouchard and Agnieszka Radwanska, losing just 11 games in the process.She may have played well below her best Sunday, but the party with friends and family back in Romania is still planned.Yeah, I will do, Halep said. I dont forget that I beat Serena this week.It wasnt my best day, but Im still happy and Im still enjoying this moment because its a good moment for me. Im still young. So I continue my way, my hard work every day to go to be a champion one day. But we will see if it will happen.The contrast between the game style of Halep and Williams was stark in the final. Halep likes to take her ground strokes early, using cross-court angles to keep her opponents running and off balance, but she had no opportunity to do that against Williams. Her American opponent used punishing ground strokes, mixed in with a lot of play at the net, to keep Halep on the back foot.The power deficit against the likes of Williams, Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova is the main area Halep needs to address to challenge for Grand Slam titles.Maybe to work more in the gym to be stronger, to have more power, was Haleps response when asked for her off-season priorities.I improved a lot this year, so Im happy with my game. Still, I have to work more on the shots, on the serve and the return also, because the return is very important to me.Halep made the French Open final as well as Sundays title decider, but was uncertain if the next step was going to come quickly.My dream is to win a Grand Slam, but I dont know if I can do next year, Halep said. I want to improve more in my game and then we will see what is going to happen. I want to remain in top 10 next year. Randal Grichuk Blue Jays Jersey . When New Zealand finally held on for an 8-7 win, France No. 8 Imanol Harinordoquy collapsed to the ground, having given every drop of energy he could muster, and lay prone as All Blacks danced around him in celebration. Few critics had given France any chance, but coach Marc Lievremonts team rallied from 8-0 down and came within one kick of taking the lead with 15 minutes remaining, only for flyhalf Francois Trinh-Ducs 49-meter effort to drift wide. Clay Buchholz Blue Jays Jersey . 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Kanes career has been defined by his brilliance in the Blackhawks biggest moments, and his tiebreaking goal with 3:45 to play in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals will rank among the best. Joe Carter Jersey .com) - Novak Djokovic captured a mens Open Era-record fifth Australian Open title on Sunday by defeating rival Andy Murray in the final in Melbourne.NEW YORK -- The last time Masahiro Tanaka lost a regular season game, Mark Teixeira was a reliable slugger in the heart of the Yankees batting order. Since August 2012, Teixeira has hurt a wrist and hamstring, missing most of last season and half of the first month of this season. Hes back looking like his usual bashing self -- just in time to help Tanaka on Saturday. Teixeira homered for the fourth time in his last five games and drove in three runs as the Yankees rallied past the Tampa Bay Rays 9-3 and stopped a season-high, three-game losing streak. "You want to put up numbers. You want to put up those home runs, and you want to drive in runs for your team, and when you start seeing that, then it makes you feel better about where you are physically," Teixeira. "Its been a struggle the last year coming back from this injury, but so far the results have been good this year." Teixeira reached 30 homers and 100 RBIs in each of his first three years with the Yankees before dropping to 24 homers and and 84 RBIs in 123 games in 2012. In 14 games this season, he has five homers to tie for the team lead and has 10 RBIs. "I never doubted him," manager Joe Girardi said. "I said all along he was a guy who could be 30 and a hundred for us." Tanaka extended his regular-season unbeaten streak to 40 starts, and Kelly Johnson hit a tiebreaking solo homer in the sixth inning off Josh Lueke (0-2), who also gave up a run-scoring single to Teixeira and a sacrifice fly to Alfonso Soriano in a two-run seventh. Tanaka (4-0) gave up solo homers to Desmond Jennings and Wil Myers around an RBI single by Ryan Hanigan, falling behind 3-0 by the fourth and looking shaky by the standard set over his first five big league starts. "I think I was able to get my rhythm back as I got deeper into the game," Tanaka said through an interpreter. New Yorks offence did the rest. Teixeira hit a two-run homer in tthe fourth, and Jacoby Ellsburys RBI single in the fifth tied it at 3.dddddddddddd. Signed by the Yankees from Japans Rakuten Golden Eagles during the off-season, Tanaka allowed three runs and eight hits in seven innings, striking out his last two batters to give him five or the day. "He just grinded it out," said Tampa Bays Matt Joyce, who struck out attempting to bunt for a hit in the first inning. "He was a little frustrated with himself at times. You could tell. And he just kept working through it." Tanaka is 32-0 in regular season games since losing to Seibu on Aug. 19, 2012. He did lose Game 6 of last years Japan Series. Jake Odorizzi retired the first nine Yankees in order, then allowed New York to go 4 for 8 with two walks before he was replaced by Cesar Ramos. Opponents are batting .140 (7 for 50) against Odorizzi in his first time through the batting order, .442 (19 for 43) his second time through and .500 (9 for 18) the third. Ellsbury led off the fourth with a single to start the Yankees offence, and Texeira followed with his shot. Brett Gardner added a two-run single in a three-run eighth inning. New York stranded two or more runners twice in the first five innings after doing it it four times Friday, including three times in extra innings during a 14-inning loss. NOTES: Girardi said the 12-pitch at-bat by Yangervis Solarte ending the third may have helped the Yankees break through against Odorizzi by making the young right-hander work and show his repertoire. ... The Yankees selected the contract of RHP Alfredo Aceves from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre early Saturday. ... James Loney had three hits, keeping alive a hit streak over his last 13 games at new Yankee Stadium. Myers has hit in all 12 of his games at the ballpark. ... Sundays game is a matchup of left-handers, New Yorks CC Sabathia (3-3) vs. Erik Bedard (0-1). ... Ellsbury had three hits, two runs and a steal. ' ' '