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DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Alex Anthopoulos spoke volumes with what he didnt say on right-hander Ervin Santana. The Blue Jays had been in the mix for the former Kansas City Royal with several Toronto players making a public plea to sign the 33-year-old former all-star. But Santana, a Dominican who counts several Jays as friends, elected instead to sign with the injury-ravaged Atlanta Braves. "I probably dont want to comment on how close I felt we got or didnt get," the Blue Jays general manager said Wednesday. Anthopoulos deflected many questions on Santana, leaving the impression he was not happy with the way the process had gone. Asked if he felt used, he said "No, no. But (thats) probably the only thing Im going to say." Money and terms apparently werent factors in Santanas decision to sign with Atlanta. "He had a strong desire to pitch in the NL and there was no way to compete with that," said Anthopoulos, who is also Torontos senior vice-president of baseball operations. Was that always the case, he was asked? "Very good question," Anthopoulos replied, before suggesting it was better directed at the pitchers camp. However the Jays GM did say he was told "recently" of that strong NL interest. Such hints aside, Anthopoulos was clearly looking to take the high road, "Obviously its done. He made his decision. Hes in Atlanta. Great signing for them. I wish him the best. Sorry it didnt work out with us." Certainly the NL East, home to the .sub-500 Miami Marlins, New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies last season, might seem more hospitable than the thorny AL East. Especially when Santana is eligible for free agency again after this season. Santana has spent his entire career in the American League, with eight seasons as a Los Angeles Angel before being traded to the Royals in 2013. His career record is 105-90 with a 4.19 ERA. He became a free agent after turning down a US$14.1-million qualifying one-year offer from the Royals. Its the same deal he accepted from the Braves and likely in the same ballpark as the Jays offer. Minnesota reportedly tendered a three-year offer but at a lesser annual rate. Unlike last off-season, the Jays have been quiet in player acquisitions. So the Santana snub stands front and centre. Anthopoulos said everyone in the organization wanted Santana to become a Jay. "I think we all feel we did everything we could," he added. With Josh Johnson gone and question-marks over J.A. Happ and Ricky Romero, the Jays have been looking to bolster a starting rotation that features R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle and Brandon Morrow. Asked about the paucity of additions, Anthopoulos instead pointed to the healthy return of players like outfielder Melky Cabrera and pitcher Drew Hutchison. "We think Drews got a chance to be outstanding and hes put himself in a great position to make this club. I think if he does make this club, hes got a chance to have a tremendous year." Anthopoulos acknowledged the questions from fans and other observers. "All that being said, I can understand skepticism that comes with the job, the performance we had on the field last year. I think we will show how good we are when we break (spring training). I think the guys that we have tremendous upside but we would have loved to add someone just to have depth." "We werent going to force a deal and do things we really didnt believe in just to make a splash," he added. The GM said the Jays were "extremely close" to landing another starting pitcher in a trade only to see it not happen. He did not provide any other details. Bottom line, he says, the Jays like their talent but know it lacks seasoning in some quarters. So the search continues for that experience. NOTES -- Happ, whose spring training progress has been delayed by back problems, threw a side session Tuesday and "everything felt good," according to manager John Gibbons. Closer Casey Janssen, who has had soreness in his shoulder, was scheduled to throw a side session Wednesday. Dustin McGowan is also back after losing eight pounds to the same stomach bug that hit fellow pitcher Sergio Santos. Cheap Baseball Jerseys Authentic .C. Lions. The clubs former starting quarterback, assistant and head coach returned Thursday as its receivers coach. Fake Baseball Jerseys . - The first sign that Kansas Speedway was going to be a heartbreaker for Hendrick Motorsports should have come during qualifying when Jimmie Johnson inexplicably spun and earned one of his worst starting spots since 2005. https://www.fakebaseballjerseys.com/ . According to a release sent by the league, the Saskatchewan Roughriders were the only team to exceed the cap. Their total salary expenditure of $4,417,975 was $17,975 over the salary cap of $4. Wholesale Nike Baseball Jerseys . If Vettel wins at Suzuka on Sunday, and his nearest rival Fernando Alonso finishes worse than eighth, the German driver will join his compatriot Michael Schumacher and Argentine Juan-Manuel Fangio as the only men to win four consecutive titles. Cheap Nike Baseball Jerseys . The ninth-seeded Safarova doused Swede Johanna Larsson 6-2, 6-3 on the green clay at Family Circle Tennis Center. The Czech player was a finalist here two years ago and captured back-to-back doubles titles in 2012 and last year. CLEVELAND -- A trip to Progressive Field last month began a downward spiral for the Detroit Tigers. Their return visit could signal the start of a significant reversal. Max Scherzer pitched six strong innings, Miguel Cabrera homered and drove in three runs, and the Tigers beat the Cleveland Indians 10-4 on Sunday for a three-game sweep. The Tigers, swept in a three-game series at Cleveland in May, have won four in a row overall and reclaimed first place in the AL Central. "Were playing good baseball right now," Scherzer said. "If we play good baseball and do the little things right, were as good as any team in the American League. Thats what we did this series." The first trip to Cleveland began a 9-20 tailspin that dropped the Tigers out of first place for the first time this season. Manager Brad Ausmus is pleased his team finally seems to be out of its funk. "We played well here," he said. "Were playing better, obviously, but Im not going to make any declarations that anything is starting or finishing." Scherzer (9-3) bounced back from one of the worst outings of his career. The reigning AL Cy Young winner allowed 10 runs in four innings against Kansas City on Tuesday. Scherzer gave up one run and six hits, striking out eight. He was struck in the side of the right leg by Lonnie Chisenhalls line drive in the sixth, but recovered to throw him out and completed the inning. "That one hurt," Scherzer said. "He hit it good. My leg is planted into the ground, so it has no give. I wore the whole thing." Ausmus and a team trainer checked on Scherzer, who quickly indicated he wanted to remain in the game. Nick Swisher doubled, but David Murphy grounded out and Scherzer pumped his fist as he headed to the dugout. "His velocity actually went up after that," Ausmus said. Cabrera hit his 13th homer in the first, added an RBI single in the third and drove in a run with a grounder in the fifth when Detroit scored seven times. Josh Tomlin (4-5) allowed eight runs in four-plus innings. He faced six hitters in the fifth and all reached base. Cabrera, whose RBI double in the 10th inning Saturday gave Detroit a 5-4 win, lined a full-count pitch to right after Tomlin retired the first two batters in the firstt.dddddddddddd The Tigers took advantage of errors by shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and centre fielder Michael Bourn in taking a 9-0 lead in the fifth. "Against any team, if you give them extra opportunities, theres a decent chance you pay for it," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "They just blew it open and we helped them. They dont need the help." Singles by Ian Kinsler and Austin Jackson placed runners at the corners. Cabreras grounder scored a run -- the call of an apparent force play at second was overturned when a replay review requested by Ausmus showed the shortstop dropped the throw from Jason Kipnis before completing the out on Jackson. Bourn charged in for Victor Martinezs line drive but dropped the ball, loading the bases. J.D. Martinez, extending his hitting streak to 12 games, doubled to right before Nick Castellanos doubled to left for a 7-0 lead. Austin Romine added an RBI single off Kyle Crockett. J.D Martinez is batting .447 with four homers, five doubles and 11 RBIs in his hitting streak. Even though Torii Hunter is expected to return Tuesday in Texas after missing six games with a strained right hamstring, Martinez will remain in the lineup. "I dont see how I can take him out unless he tells he doesnt want to play or cant play," Ausmus said. Michael Brantley drove in three runs for Cleveland with an RBI double in the fifth and a two-run double in the ninth. NOTES: Cleveland has lost four of five at home since winning 10 straight at Progressive Field. ... Tomlin, who has lost three straight starts, has allowed a team-high 10 homers in 55 1-3 innings. ... The Indians committed three errors, bringing their season total to a major league-high 67. Cabrera leads the team with 14. ... ... Indians RHPs Justin Masterson and Corey Kluber have been taking batting practice and running the bases to get ready for interleague series at Arizona that begins Tuesday. ... Tigers LHP Patrick McCoy, called up from Triple-A Toledo following Saturdays game, made his major league debut and pitched a scoreless eighth. He replaced LHP Ian Krol, who has a sore shoulder, on the roster. ... Detroit RHP Chad Smith also made his first major league appearance and allowed three runs in the ninth. ' ' '