VIERA, Fla. Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal Jersey . -- Stephen Strasburg will make his second opening day start for the Washington Nationals when the National League East champions open the season at home against the Miami Marlins on April 1. Strasburg went 15-6 with a 3.16 ERA last season before he was shut down after 159 1-3 innings. The Nationals did not want to tax his arm in his first season back from Tommy John surgery. The decision to keep Strasburg on an innings count with Washington headed to the playoffs was the subject of debate last season. The Nationals lost to St. Louis in a deciding fifth game of the NL division series last season. There is no innings restriction planned for Strasburg this season. Erik Durm Germany Jersey . The assistants greeted Aldridge with compliments and high fives. Stotts had only one word for his high-scoring forward: "Thanks." Aldridge had 25 points and 16 rebounds in his return after missing seven games with a lower back contusion, and the Trail Blazers beat the Atlanta Hawks 100-85 on Thursday night to end a three-game losing streak. Cuauhtemoc Blanco Mexico Jersey . T.J. Brodie scored at 2:26 of the extra session to lead Flames to a 5-4 win over the slumping Blackhawks, whose overtime record fell to 0-6 this season.ST. LOUIS -- Rafael Furcal will be the St. Louis Cardinals regular shortstop the rest of the way. Even if he wasnt in the lineup for his first game. The 33-year-old Furcal arrived at Busch Stadium about five hours ahead of Sunday nights game against the Chicago Cubs and looking a bit bleary-eyed, so Daniel Descalso got the start at shortstop instead. Furcal got virtually no sleep after waiving a no-trade clause to complete the deal with the Dodgers late Saturday night, and tended to his family before packing for an early flight to the Midwest. Manager Tony La Russa said the decision had nothing to do with Furcals puny .158 average (6 for 38) with 10 strikeouts and one RBI against Ryan Dempster of Gibsons, B.C., the Cubs starter Sunday night. "It had nothing to do with Dempster, it has everything to do with common sense," La Russa said. "Hes got a lot of orienting to do here." Tired or not, Furcal had plenty adrenaline after joining a contender, and said he was ready to go. "Im so excited," Furcal said. "Who wouldnt want to be in this situation? Theyre looking for a win and Im looking for that, too." St. Louis got the two-time all-star without disturbing the 40-man roster. The Dodgers got outfielder Alex Castellanos, who was playing at double-A Springfield. "I think weve significantly improved our chance to win," La Russa said. "I think Rafael is a championship type player." Other recent additions have already contributed. Edwin Jackson won his first start Friday after coming in a three-team deal that sent outfielder Colby Rasmus to Toronto and left-handed reliever Marc Rzepcynzki and outfielder Corey Patterson already have made contributions. Mozeliak said the moves hiked the Cardinals payroll around US$3 million, and kept the top prospects in the house. "We didnt have to dip into that premium group of prospects we kept hearing about so we felt very fortunate," Mozeliak said. Furcal may be a rental, with the Cardinals inheriting a $12 million club option based on incentives the player cant reach because hes missed so much time. For now, it feels like home. As a gesture of respect, the Cardinals put Furcals locker between Albert Pujols and catcher Yadier Molina. "They put me in the middle, maybe they want to take care of me," Furcal said with a chuckle. Getting Jackson allowed the Cardinals to return Kyle McClellan to a setup role where he thrived the past three seasons. Ryan Theriot is likely to share second base with left-handed hitting Skip Schumaker, and Schumaker was one of the teams best outfield arms before moving to second base in 2010. "Every way you look at this, we just solidified a lot of the places we needed tto get stronger," Mozeliak said. Toni Kroos Germany Jersey. "And we did it rather quickly." Furcal was batting just .197 in 37 games while struggling with injuries this season but has three multi-hit games the last week. "I feel like more myself," Furcal said. "Everything is 100 per cent and I feel pretty good." Furcal replaces Theriot, who had been in a 2-for-38 slump before going 6-for-7 the last two games. Theriot subbed at second base on Friday night after pinch hitting and made his first start of the year at second base on Saturday. The Cardinals also got Theriot from the Dodgers, acquiring him last winter. Theriot had been strictly a second baseman with Los Angeles due to concerns about his range on defence and he had 16 errors. After the team closely monitored Furcals play the last handful of games, Mozeliak was convinced hed be a big upgrade defensively. The Cardinals were 1 1-2 games behind the Brewers. Furcal has a career batting average of .283 with 298 stolen bases and has been considered one of the best leadoff hitters in the game. Three of Furcals last four seasons have been injury-shortened. He mentioned retirement when he was sidelined by a fractured left thumb in April and also has missed time with a strained left side. He played in 150 games in 2009, but in 08, 10 and 11 he has played a total of 170 games. On Sunday, Furcal said he was joking when he mentioned retiring. "I tried to play around because one of the guys kind of asked me What do you want to do now? I said maybe retire, but thats not going to happen. I can still play. Im only 33." Furcal has 26 career leadoff homers and is second on the Dodgers career list with 14. Hes been to the post-season eight times, five with the Braves and three with the Dodgers, and was 6 for 12 in Los Angeles three-game division series sweep of the Cardinals in 2009. "Raffy was a pivotal part of our success in 2006, 2008 and 2009," Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti said. "Hes respected by his teammates and people around the game because of how hard he played day in and day out and his passion for being a Dodger." His 43 homers as a shortstop are third in Dodgers history behind Pee Wee Reese (122) and Glenn Wright (44). Castellanos, who turns 25 next week, was St. Louis 10th-round draft pick in 2008 and was batting .319 with 19 homers, 62 RBIs and 10 steals in 93 games. "Were getting a player who has shown a combination of power and speed," Colletti said. "We hope he can refine those abilities to a big league standard." To make room for Furcal, right-handed reliever Eduardo Sanchez (shoulder) was moved from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day DL and infielder Tyler Greene was optioned to triple-A Memphis. ' ' '
