Herzlich Willkommen » when the Mavericks lost at the Los Angeles Lakers

PITTSBURGH -- Clint Hurdle doesnt want to manage the Pittsburgh Pirates unless Neal Huntington is his boss. Marcus Walden Red Sox Jersey . Huntington doesnt want to help run the club unless Hurdle is in the dugout. The combination thats returned the franchise to respectability will remain intact for years to come. Hurdle and Huntington agreed to new deals on Saturday that will keep them in Pittsburgh through at least 2017, giving the Pirates the kind of internal stability they havent enjoyed in decades. "Theres no place Id rather be," Hurdle said. Financial terms were not disclosed. The contracts include a club option for 2018. Both Huntington and Hurdle, chosen the 2013 National League Manager of the Year after leading the Pirates to 94 wins and a playoff berth, were in the final year of their current deals. Reaching a new agreement was a mere formality after a thrilling season in which Pittsburgh qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1992 and pushed the St. Louis Cardinals to five games in the NL division series. "I think we have a very solid team in place and they deserve the recognition," owner Bob Nutting said. "I think great organizations are stable organizations. Again, never static and never on autopilot ... (but) Im proud of the culture and the tone that the current team has." Its a tone that Huntington set from the day he took over in September, 2007. Faced with restocking a decimated minor league system and constrained by playing in a small market that makes splurging on high-profile free agents nearly impossible, Huntington has painstakingly rebuilt the Pirates from the inside out while stressing that success at the major league level would be the last step. Those steps coincided with Hurdles arrival in December, 2010 and the emergence of talents like homegrown star Andrew McCutchen, the reigning NL MVP. Pittsburgh has upped its win total in each of Hurdles three seasons, from 70 in 2011 to 79 in 2012 to 94 a year ago. Hurdle stressed most of the hard work was done before he was hired to replace Jim Tracy two months after the Pirates lost a whopping 105 games in 2010.. "When I was able to come in, just finding what we had, what had gone on, I felt confident the next move that took place would be here, the renaissance," he said. One the Pirates have no plans on stopping. The 27-year-old McCutchen is signed through 2018 and 25-year-old left fielder Starling Marte signed a new contract last month that could keep him with the team through 2021. Throw in the rapid development of former top pick Gerrit Cole -- who picked up his first win of the season on Friday night -- and the impending arrival of right field prospect Gregor Polanco and the farm system that used to be bereft is now among the most promising in all of baseball. While Hurdle insisted he wasnt concerned about his contract status when the season began, McCutchen called the announcement a relief. "Weve had managers in the past, they were here and they were gone," McCutchen said. "We have someone here thats going to be here and dont have to worry about him leaving or going somewhere else. Thats the change in the team with the success that weve had the past couple years and just doing better on improving." Nutting credited the mutual respect Hurdle and Huntington have for each other as the key to their success. Being able to check their egos at the door helps too. While Hurdle praised Huntingtons vision, Huntington believes the Pirates wouldnt have finished their transformation from laughingstock to contender without Hurdle. "He really was a perfect fit to bring the knowledge the passion the leadership, not just the Xs and Os," Huntington said. "Hes helped us all grow and helped us all get better and hopefully weve returned the favour." David Ortiz Jersey . The United States clinched the final berth into the Ford Worlds, March 28-April 6 at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, on Saturday in Blaine, Minn. Dustin Pedroia Red Sox Jersey . With a win tonight, Buehrle will match Yankees ace Masahiro Tanaka for the most wins in the majors with 11. Buehrle is 10-4 with a 2.32 earned run average, but has lost his last three starts, including a 7-3 setback at Yankee Stadium last Wednesday. https://www.cheapredsox.com/2871z-pedro-martinez-jersey-red-sox.html .com) - After Tom Brady added to an already illustrious legacy, Malcolm Butler established his by leaving the Seattle Seahawks, well, deflated.DALLAS -- Dirk Nowitzki says he wasnt thinking about the last time the Dallas Mavericks blew a 30-point lead and lost. The biggest collapse in franchise history was a long time ago, and he was too busy trying to make sure it didnt happen again. Nowitzki scored 22 points, Devin Harris hit the go-ahead shot in the final minute and the Mavericks rallied in the fourth quarter after blowing their huge first-half lead, beating the Portland Trail Blazers 103-98 Friday night. "Youre just out there battling," Nowitzki said. "Theyre a very, very good team. They came back a lot quicker than we wanted it to be, but we kept fighting and got the win." LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 30 for Portland, including 18 in the third quarter when the Blazers went in front for the first time at 69-67 after trailing 44-14 early in the second quarter. But Nowitzki didnt pause to remember Dec. 6, 2002, when the Mavericks lost at the Los Angeles Lakers 105-103 after leading 66-36 early in the third quarter. Rick Carlisle wasnt dwelling on the blown lead either. "How many whatever-point leads have we blown this year?" the Dallas coach said. "Theres been tons of them. Weve got to work to prevent it. Theres no harder way to do it than what happened tonight." The score was tied 98-all when Aldridge missed a shot from the lane and Harris won the scramble for the rebound. He dribbled the length of the floor and hit a leaning shot on the baseline and was fouled by Damian Lillard with 24 seconds left. "He busted my mouth open, so I knew I wasnt all the way in front of him," Lillard said. "But I figured since that was the second time that he dipped his head into my face, I figured they would call offensive foul. We still had a couple opportunities after that that we didnt take advantage of." After Harris free throw put Dallas up by three, Aldridges pass went over Lillards head out of bounds. Monta Ellis missed two free throws, but Vince Carter slipped between a pair of Portland players for the offensive rebound and was fouled. Carter made both free throws, and Ellis had a steal to seal a wild win that snapped the Mavericks season-high three-game losing streak. "I had some big miscues down the stretch," said Alddridge, who had 17 rebounds. Xander Bogaerts Jersey. "I missed some shots down the stretch. Fighting all the way back, being up and having the opportunity to win and not taking care of business." Dallas took its first 30-point lead at 40-10 on Brandan Wrights alley-oop dunk from Ellis early in the second quarter, one of many easy breakaway baskets early. Thomas Robinson had six points on a 12-1 run that started Portlands comeback, getting the Blazers within 19. That was Dallas margin to begin the third quarter, when Aldridge took over, scoring six straight early in the period and another six straight later. The Blazers, who led by 38 in a blowout win over the Mavericks the last time they were in Dallas in January, wiped out the last of the deficit on a 3-pointer by Wesley Matthews to knot it 67-all with 4:02 left in the third. The Blazers went ahead for the first time at 69-67 on a putback by Aldridge. "It was unbelievable," Wright said. "We got outscored by I dont know how much after that first quarter being up 40-10. They went on a heck of a run, but all its going to say in the paper tomorrow is that we got the W." The lead changed hands three more times late in the third, setting up a back-and-forth battle in the fourth. Portland pushed out to an 85-78 lead on another 3 from Matthews, who had 26 points, and a jumper from Mo Williams, but Harris hit a 3-pointer to finish an 8-0 Dallas run for a 90-89 lead. The Blazers went back up 98-92 on an alley-oop dunk by Aldridge, but Dallas pulled even when Sam Dalembert stole the ball from Lillard and tossed to Ellis for a breakaway layup. Jose Calderon had 19 for Dallas, including 15 in the first quarter. Ellis had 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Nowitzki had six assists and five rebounds. Harris finished with 12 points. NOTES: Robinson returned after missing four games with a left knee injury. He fouled out with 7:52 remaining. ... Ellis made his 500th career start. ... The Mavericks shot 53 per cent in their 115-110 loss to Denver on Wednesday. It was their best shooting percentage in a loss this season. ... The Blazers had season lows for points in a quarter (10) and the first half (38). The previous low for a first half was 41 in a 90-89 win over Phoenix. ' ' '