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NEW YORK – Colby Rasmus returned from a 33-game absence on Wednesday night and manager John Gibbons was eager to get another big bat in the lineup to provide his club a threat near the bottom of the order. “He gives us another power threat,” said Gibbons. “We havent had a whole lot of power lately.” The slumping Blue Jays, losers of seven of 10 entering Wednesdays play, activated Rasmus from the disabled list and sent his replacement, Anthony Gose, back to Triple-A Buffalo. It was a long road to recovery for Rasmus, whod been on the disabled list since May 13 with tightness in his right hamstring. Rasmus initially thought the injury would heal in a matter of days. “Its always a learning experience,” said Rasmus. “Pushing yourself too quick or too slow. Every injury is different. This is a different injury and I just had to learn what I did and, hopefully, next time Ill be able to correct it faster. But Im here now and ready to play.” Rasmus is one of the games streakier hitters. When hes hot, he hits home runs in bunches. When he slumps, he swings and misses a lot and strikes out often. In 37 games this season, Rasmus is hitting .222/.266/.489 (.755 OPS) with nine home runs. Twice this season, he has hit three home runs in a span of four games (April 10-13 and May 1-4), which account for six of his nine long balls. Still, Rasmus has struck out in 32.8 per cent of his plate appearances this season, compared to 29.5 per cent last year and 24.6 per cent for his career. “Yeah, I mean hes always been that way,” said Gibbons. “You wish it wasnt so often but, you know, I mean he can run into some balls too and make a difference that way.” LIND CONFIDENT HELL AVOID DISABLED LIST On Wednesday, the Blue Jays played a third consecutive game without the services of designated hitter/first baseman Adam Lind. Linds been down since fouling a ball off his right foot in Saturdays loss at Baltimore. He suffered a deep bone bruise and, on Sunday, was using crutches and wearing a walking boot. Hes since come out of the boot and hit off a tee on Wednesday afternoon. “Theres been improvements every day,” said Lind. “Now, were just working on a tape job to try and relieve as much stress or pain on my foot as we can so I can get in the lineup.” Lind wasnt sure whether he could pinch-hit on Wednesday night. Manager John Gibbons has a three-man bench, not including Lind, and the Blue Jays may be hesitant to use Lind in case he ultimately requires a trip to the disabled list. A DL stint, if needed, could be made retroactive to Sunday (making Lind eligible to return on June 30) as long as he doesnt appear in a game. Based on the progress hes made, Lind isnt planning on being placed on the disabled list. “Its not constant,” said Lind of the pain in his foot. “When I sit still it doesnt hurt. I have a tape job right now and its helped a lot. I hit with spikes, it wasnt so well. I hit with turfs and it was much better. If I pinch hit, Ill be in my turfs.” POWER OUTAGE The Blue Jays are slumping after winning 15 of 17 games. Theyve dropped seven of their last 10, thanks in part to a significant decrease in the number of home runs theyve been hitting. Toronto leads the major leagues with 93 home runs but has hit only four in the last 10 games. Jose Reyes (June 9, June 17) has two of them. The other two were hit by Edwin Encarnacion (June 9) and Juan Francisco (June 13). The Blue Jays won the June 9 game, 5-4 over Minnesota and the June 13 game, 4-0 over Baltimore but lost the June 17 game, 3-1 to New York. Entering Wednesdays play, Jose Bautista was without a home run in 10 games, his longest drought of the season. PRAY FOR NO RAIN The five-day forecast for New York City suggests the Yankees wont have a rainout during their three-game weekend series with the Baltimore Orioles. Thats important to the Blue Jays because right-hander Masahiro Tanaka, who beat Toronto on Tuesday night to improve his record to 11-1, is scheduled to start on Sunday. Naturally, the Blue Jays would like Tanaka to pitch against another divisional opponent. Add to that the fact the Yankees visit Toronto for three games starting on Monday. If the Yankees have a rainout this weekend, Tanakas start could be pushed back into the series with the Blue Jays. As it stands, Toronto is due to miss Tanaka next week. The Yankees are 12-2 in games Tanaka starts and 24-31 otherwise. TWO MORE DRAFT PICKS SIGN The Blue Jays formally announced the signings of third-round pick, left-handed pitcher Nick Wells (83rd overall) and sixth-round pick, left-handed pitcher Grayson Huffman (174th overall). Wells is 18 years old. Huffman is 19 years old. Nike Air VaporMax hoto Blue Black . - Erick Torres scored his 10th goal of the season on a stunning volley, and Chivas USA edged 10-man Real Salt Lake 1-0 on Saturday night. Nike Air VaporMax Pure White True White . -- Canadian freestyle skier Roz Groenewoud isnt letting surgery to both of her knees deter her expectations for the Sochi Olympics. http://www.cheapnikeairvapormax.com/ . LOUIS -- The St. Nike Air VaporMax Black Cherry . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Duck Calling With several marquee centres available via trade and expected to be available via free agency, the Anaheim Ducks could be primed to be big players in the coming days. Nike Air VaporMax Orange White Black . Mike Babcock has turned to the Montreal Canadiens goalie over Roberto Luongo, who backed Canada to a gold medal in Vancouver in 2010, for Canadas final preliminary round game against the ailing Finns.BELGRADE, Serbia -- Novak Djokovic has served many match-winning aces on the tennis court, but now he has fired a major one in the flood-hit Balkans. The worlds No. 2 tennis player has achieved what no politician has managed since the bloody Balkan wars in the 1990s: to at least temporarily reunite former bitter wartime foes as they jointly struggle against the regions worst flooding in more than a century. Djokovic has sparked worldwide financial and media support for victims of the massive river water surge that has killed at least 45 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless in Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia. The Serb has in the past triggered fury in the other former Yugoslav republics for what people considered nationalistic gestures, such as celebrating his victories with a three-finger victory sign that was used by Serb soldiers during their wartime campaigns in Croatia and Bosnia. What has set Djokovics flood salvage campaign apart is that he didnt just seek international support for Serbia. He also did it for Bosnia and Croatia which were at war with Serbia. All three states are still harbouring a deep mutual hatred and distrust, 20 years after the wars ended and the former Yugoslavia split up into seven different countries. "My heart is breaking when I see that so many people were evacuated and endangered in Bosnia! More than 950,000!!! Hold on brothers ... help will come from the world," Djokovic wrote on Twitter. "I also see that the east of Croatia is hit by floods ... I sincerely hope that it will not hit you like Serbia and Bosnia. Keep safe." "Long live the people of former Yugoslavia. Let God be with you," he wrote, adding a map of the former Yugoslavia with the flags of now different countries. The floods have triggered unprecedented regional solidarity in the Balkans, with the former Yugoslav countries sending rescue teams and humanitarian aid to each other over their borders.dddddddddddd. After beating top-ranked Rafael Nadal in the final of the Masters tournament in Rome on Sunday, Djokovic donated all the prize money -- about $500,000 -- to the flood victims. His charity foundation collected another $600,000. "There have not been floods like this in the existence of our people," Djokovic said. "It is a total catastrophe of biblical proportions. I dont really know how to describe it." Djokovics gestures triggered mostly positive public support in both Croatia and Bosnia. "Im not Djokovics supporter or like tennis," said Davor Buric, a university student in Zagreb, Croatian capital. "It is nice that he mentioned not only Serbia, but also Croatia and Bosnia. Djokovic has nothing to do with the war, and I have never heard him saying anything against other nationalities." In Bosnia, national football team coach Safet Susic said Djokovic had won "the support of the whole of Bosnia" with his campaign, and promised to support him in the upcoming Grand Slam tournaments -- the French Open and Wimbledon. Djokovic replied by saying he will support Bosnia at the World Cup in Brazil. Such sentiments in Bosnia and Croatia have prompted some commentators to nickname him "Marshal Djokovic" after Marshal Josip Broz Tito, the post World War II Yugoslav communist leader who managed to keep Yugoslavia united with iron fist. With his death in 1980, the country started unraveling along ethnic lines. "This water ... has destroyed what we have been building for the past 20 years," wrote prominent Croatian columnist and writer Vedrana Rudan in an ironic commentary on her web page. "Djokovic has sketched the map of Yugoslavia, he greets both our and his people ... the slaughter has separated us, the drowning has reunited us." Cheap Jerseys China NFL Jerseys China NFL Jerseys Wholesale Discount Basketball Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Baseball Jerseys Free Shipping Cheapest College Jerseys Sale Cheap Football Jerseys China Nike NFL Jerseys Canada Wholesale NHL Jerseys From China MLB Jerseys Outlet Canada Wholesale NBA Jerseys Canada Store Cheap Soccer Jerseys China Cheap Authentic Jerseys Canada ' ' '