MINNEAPOLIS - The Minnesota Twins have acquired left-hander Kris Johnson from the Pittsburgh Pirates for right-hander Duke Welker in a swap of minor league pitchers.
Anthony Rendon Authentic . Johnson went 0-2 with a 6.10 ERA in four appearances with the Pirates last season. He made one start for the Pirates and went 10-4 with a 2.39 ERA in 21 starts for Triple-A Indianapolis last year. He is a former first-round draft choice of the Boston Red Sox. Welker never played for the Twins. On Oct. 5, he was the player to be named later to complete the trade that sent Justin Morneau from Minnesota to Pittsburgh. Welker went 3-4 with a 3.57 ERA and nine saves in 48 appearances for Indianapolis last season.
Gio Gonzalez Authentic . Spieth again showed game well beyond his 20 years with a 9-under 63 on the North Course, giving him a one-shot lead over Stewart Cink going into the weekend at the Farmers Insurance Open.
Jayson Werth Authentic . Kitna told The Dallas Morning News (http://dallasne.ws/1aaJ38v ) of his plans Wednesday. Kitna retired after the 2011 season, his 15th in the league, and was coaching football at Lincoln High School in Tacoma, Wash.TRIESTE, Italy -- Christine Robinson and the Canadian womens water polo team got off to a fast start at the Olympic qualifying tournament on Sunday. The native of Lachine, Que., scored four goals to lead Canada in a 15-4 rout over Kazakhstan in its opening round robin match at the event. Monika Eggens of Maple Ridge, B.C., Katrina Monton of Dorval, Que., Marina Radu of Pointe-Claire, Que., and Calgarys Emily Csikos had two goals each for Canada. Krystina Alogbo of Rivieres-des-Prairies, Que., Tara Campbell of Baie-Durfe, Que., and Joelle Bekhazi of Pointe-Claire scored once each. "It was a really good win for us to get our jitters and our nerves out," said Robinson. "The game was a little bit close at first but I think the team came through towards the end." Head coach Pat Oaten agreed with Robinson that the Canadian team started the competition on the right foot. "This was a good game for the team and the start we wanted to the tournament," said Oaten. "Although we did start off the game a little slow, the athletes stayed focused on the game plan and kept the pressure on. "Outscoring Kazakhstan 9-0 in the second half showed our attention to detail and offensive skills." In Sundays other match, the Netherlands hammered Brazil 23-4.
Gio Gonzalez Red Jersey. Canada plays the Netherlands on Monday. "Were pretty familiar with the team," said Robinson. "We had a training camp with them a couple weeks ago and we had a lot of games and scrimmages. "Were going to be very well prepared and everyone is feeling confident." Canada, ranked eighth in the world, is in Group B with world champions and top-ranked Greece, Olympic champion Netherlands (world No. 7) and Kazakhstan and Brazil, ranked 13th and 14th respectively. The Group A teams are Russia (No. 3), Italy (No. 4), Hungary (No. 9) and Spain (No. 11). Like the mens qualifying tournament, the four winners of the quarter-final matches will qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. That will be determined April 20 in the crossover matches between the top four in each group. Canada knows how tough it can be to qualify for the Olympics in water polo. The Canadian women fell one win short at this stage prior to the 2008 Games, losing 5-2 to Greece in the decisive game of another qualifying event in Italy. Like the men, the Canadian women just missed out on qualifying via the Pan American Games. The women lost 27-26 to the U.S. on the 39th shot of a penalty shootout.
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