The Original Game » certainly need Morrison -- and everyone else

CLEVELAND -- The Indians had plenty of chances. Jeff Bagwell Jersey Large . They blew every one.With an opportunity to trim its magic number for winning the AL Central to one, Cleveland played sloppily on Saturday night and lost 8-1 to the Chicago White Sox, leaving the title -- and a playoff berth -- just out of reach.The Indians squandered early scoring chances against Jose Quintana (13-11) and disappointed a crowd of 32,088 fans who came hoping to see them move closer to the postseason.We had some really good chances early, and didnt do much with it, Indians manager Terry Francona said. And with a good pitcher like Quintana, he found himself.Clevelands magic number dropped to two after Detroit lost earlier to Kansas City. The Indians could have trimmed it further, and had a chance to clinch the title on Sunday in their regular-season home fine. However, theyll now need to win and get some more help from the Royals to wrap up their first division title since 2007 in front of their fans.Melky Cabrera and Jose Abreu hit RBI singles in the first off Cody Anderson (2-5), and Todd Frazier connected for his 39th homer in the sixth as the White Sox snapped a six-game losing streak.Quintana (13-11) gave up one run in six innings and beat Cleveland for the second time in 11 days. The Indians, who committed three errors, threw two wild pitches and had a passed ball, had Quintana on the ropes in the first two innings, but managed just one run.We had his pitch count up a lot early but we managed one (run), Francona said. We let him off the hook.With his rotation in disarray because of injuries, Indians manager Francona started Anderson and used seven relievers -- hardly an ideal situation for a team trying to lock down a postseason berth.The Indians, though, wasted the early opportunities against Quintana -- he threw 53 pitches in the first two innings -- and the left-hander got better as the game progressed.It was rough, White Sox manager Robin Ventura said of Quintanas first two innings. Locating-wise was probably the biggest thing. You really didnt see him like that too often. He gritted through it. He has a lot of heart in him to keep battling like that.Cleveland loaded the bases with one out in the first but Quintana got Carlos Santana to hit into an inning-ending double play. They had the bases full again in the second and appeared ready for a huge inning after Rajai Davis hit a one-out RBI single to right. But Coco Crisp got caught in a rundown for the second out and Quintana got Jason Kipnis to ground out.RED-HOT RAMIREZJose Ramirez has hit safely in his last 13 home games and is batting .432 (19 of 44) with eight doubles and 11 RBI in that span. He has 45 doubles, the most by a switch-hitter in club history.LINDORS SLIDEShortstop Francisco Lindor is hitless in his last 25 at-bats. He also had an error in the eighth, when the White Sox scored four times to make it 8-1.ODD LINEClevelands pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts and just one walk.GUYER PLUNKED -- AGAINIndians right fielder Brandon Guyer was hit for the 31st time, the most in the majors.TRAINERS ROOMIndians: Francona would like to give his players some rest in the seasons final week -- if possible. Lindor, for one, could use a break, but Francona acknowledged its tough to get fully re-charged at this point.Im not sure a day off just puts the spring back in your legs, he said. I think it helps, but I just think youve got to learn, thats part of growing up as a major league player.UP NEXTWhite Sox: Carlos Rondon starts the clubs final road game of 2016. Hes 0-2 with a 12.00 ERA in his past two starts.Indians: Josh Tomlins role in the postseason remains unclear. He could help himself with an outing similar to his last start, when he allowed one run and five hits in 6 2/3 innings. Cheap Custom Astros Jersey . Catch all the action on TSN2 at 11pm et/8pm pt. The nine-time Big 12 champion Jayhawks are positioning themselves for another title, as they have run out to a flawless 6-0 mark in conference play thus far. Custom Astros Jerseys .S District Court against Major League Baseball, the Office of the Commissioner and his own union, the MLBPA. http://www.customastrosjersey.com/ . There are some early surprises in the race for the Hart Trophy, but two of the contenders are the leagues biggest stars over the past decade. There are many more players in contention for the awards than just the three that Ive named, and a good or bad week can easily alter the landscape, but through the first 20 or so games of the NHL season, this is how the awards races look to me. INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indianapolis Colts spent Wednesday adapting to the new reality that leading tackler DQwell Jackson will miss the last four games of the regular season.One day after the league suspended Jackson for violating the leagues performance-enhancing substance policy, inside linebackers Edwin Jackson and Antonio Morrison were getting acclimated to being the defenses new signal-callers. Others tried to fill the void of one of the Colts steadiest locker room leaders.Its an obvious letdown, tight end Dwayne Allen said. We want those guys on the field, but we also understand mistakes happen.Neither the league nor the Colts have said what substance Jackson used.Jackson wont be permitted back at the team complex until Jan. 2, when the Colts will either be cleaning out their lockers or preparing for a playoff game.The timing couldnt be worse.After losing their first two games, the Colts (6-6) have been fighting to get back into playoff position . Now, with three wins in four games, Indy has moved into a three-way tie atop the AFC South with Houston and Tennessee, and seemed to be building momentum for the key stretch run.Suddenly, the offense appeared to be in sync, the defense was holding up better and everything seemed to be clicking.Then less than 24 hours after finishing a 41-10 thrashing of the New York Jets , NFL officials made the announcement.The 33-year-old inside linebacker made his only Pro Bowl two years ago and was having another solid season with 81 tackles -- 21 more than anyone else on the roster. He also had one sack and recovered two fumbles.But the more problematic issue is that Jackson was the most experienced inside linebacker on the team and, until Monday night, almost exclusively called the defenses.Edwin Jackson, who had never played in an NFL game until this season, got his first real taste of signal calling in short bursts against the Jets.That was very important because that was my first time actually getting the calls and relaying it to the defense, Edwin Jackson said. You dont want these things to happen, but it happens.The switch may have been coming regardless of the failed drug test.DQwell Jackson left Monday nights game in the fourth quarter with a concussion and had already eentered the leagues mandated concussion protocol. Custom Astros T-shirts. Because it usually takes players the better part of a week to clear all the steps, Jacksons status on a short week already could have been in jeopardy for Sundays crucial game with Houston.Losing him for four games, though, will be a bigger blow for a team that hasnt been above .500 all season. Indy still must visit AFC West leader Oakland and playoff contender Minnesota before closing out the season at home against struggling Jacksonville.Coach Chuck Pagano knows it will require more than just good play from Edwin Jackson, an undrafted player who spent last December on Indys practice squad. Theres Morrison, a fourth-round pick out of Florida; Josh McNary, a third-year player from Army who has done most of his work on special teams; and Luke Rhodes, a rookie from William & Mary who was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster Wednesday.Antonios tough, hes smart, he knows the defense inside, out. Hes a downhill, sideline-to-sideline guy. Hell be fine, Pagano said. Hes been told from Day 1 to prepare as a starter for this moment and hes done that. So that will give him a chance to play well.The Colts certainly need Morrison -- and everyone else -- to play well until DQwell Jackson returns.Its the National Football League and youre going to have adversity and youre going to have obstacles, Pagano said. Weve been without our quarterback before. Do you want to be? No. Weve been without (Robert Mathis) before. So its next man up.Game notes Right guard Denzelle Good was diagnosed with a concussion during the Jets game and nose tackle Zach Kerr and outside linebacker Curt Maggitt both complained of concussion-like symptoms after the game. All three are also in the leagues protocol. ... Mathis is listed as day to day with a biceps injury, and safety Clayton Geathers is considered week to week with a neck injury. ... Offensive lineman Joe Reitz, an Indianapolis native, was selected as the teams Walter Payton Man of the Year Award winner.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL . ' ' '