PHILADELPHIA - Canadian teenage forward Cyle Larin tops an intriguing crop of soccer talent available in an MLS SuperDraft that should see Canadian teams, with five of the first 13 picks, figure prominently. Scarpe Adidas Superstar 2 Donna .Orlando City SC picks first Thursday at the Philadelphia Convention Center, followed by fellow expansion team New York City FC, Montreal, San Jose and Portland.With three picks apiece in the first round, Toronto FC (six, nine and 11) and Sporting Kansas City (10, 12 and 20) will be busy whether they decide to trade selections or not.The Vancouver Whitecaps go 13th.The ball is now in Orlandos court. They have done their homework on Larin and seem more than comfortable with the young forward. Its a question of can anyone persuade them to part with the pick.Its a big day. We have the No. 1 spot, said Orlando assistant coach Mark Watson, who left more than a few marks as a hard-nosed Canadian international defender in his day. You hope to get a player of real quality.Having said that, he acknowledged its harder these days for any young player to make an immediate impact in the league.Midfielder Kyle Bekker is the highest Canadian pick in the MLS draft to date, going third overall in 2013 to Toronto. Like Larin, Bekker played for the Sigma FC academy in suburban Mississauga growing up.The draft atmosphere ramped up considerably Wednesday as coaches and GMs arrived from the MLS Combine in Florida. Coaches like Seattles Sigi Schmid and Chicagos Frank Yallop wandered through a downtown hotel lobby filled with delegates to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention.While UConns Larin and University of Washington midfielder Cristian Roldan have been singled out by many as the cream of the 2015 draft class, there are plenty of interesting prospects with players moving up and down as a result of the Combine. UCLA midfielder Leo Stolz, winner of the Missouri Athletic Clubs Hermann Award as the top NCAA mens player, will be an interesting risk-reward pick given the German-born Stolz is reportedly looking to start his career in Europe.There are a lot of players out there who can play in this league if you give them a chance, said Toronto GM Tim Bezbatchenko.I think theres a lot of talented players, added Toronto coach Greg Vanney. Im not sure if in this draft you have the one that really jumps out and says, Im going to change a team in a year or in this current season.With all three Canadian teams looking to field USL Pro teams this season, there are more minutes to go around for drafted players.Underclassmen Larin, Roldan, University of Central Florida forward Romario Williams, Syracuse University goalkeeper Alex Bono and North Carolina State defender Conor Donovan are especially attractive because their Generation Adidas contracts do not count against the salary cap.Notre Dame midfielder Nick Besler, younger brother to Sporting Kansas City defender Matt Besler, is one of 12 college seniors to have signed MLS contracts ahead of the draft. Those deals offer one year of salary cap relief.Coaches and GMs can be circumspect ahead of the draft, not wanting to tip their hand.But count Canadian national team coach Benito Floro as a believer in Larin, having already given the teenage striker three caps.The 19-year-old from Brampton, Ont., is fast, versatile, good on the ball and has a good head on his shoulders. He has some interesting qualities and a lot of desire to continue to grow as a player and serve the Canadian mens national team, Floro said in Florida at the Canadian team camp. He could be a good forward and striker.Larin will be busy on draft day. Hes in Jamaica with the Canadian under-20 team, which is slated to play El Salvador on Thursday at the CONCACAF U-20 Championship.I feel excited, he said in Jamaica. Im just ready to start my career in Major League Soccer and hopefully one of the teams will pick me and I can start my career in a good environment and I cant wait to just start playing.There is plenty of defensive help available with Bezbatchenko, for one, a believer that history has shown young defenders can make their mark quickly in the league.Canadian Skylar Thomas (Syracuse) joins Donovan, U.S. under-23 international Ramon Martin Del Campo, Tim Parker (St. Johns), Boyd Okwuonu (North Carolina), Oumar Ballo (UMBC), Aaron Simmons (California) and six-foot-seven Swede Axel Sjoberg (Marquette) as worthwhile options at centre back.And there is some fullback talent available too with Canadian Jordan Murrell (Syracuse), Otis Earle (UC-Riverside) and Andy Thoma (Washington) among others.Montreal has moved to bolster its defence with the additions of Bakary Soumare and Victor Cabrera after the departure of Matteo Ferrari and Heath Pearce. But Frank Klopas, head coach and director of player personnel, has shown a penchant in the past for drafting defenders and could do so again. A forward is also an Impact option.With just veteran Steven Caldwell and sophomore Nick Hagglund left at centre back, Toronto needs depth on the backline. Help at right back is needed, although coach Greg Vanney seems content with Ashtone Morgans ability behind Justin Morrow at left back.And while TFC has options in midfield, it has yet to sort out its best alignment.Bono, with his Generation Adidas deal, is also an attractive option in goal for a Toronto team looking to increase competition at every position.Vancouver, with a well-balanced squad, is looking for depth. Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi believes the 13th pick can net a player who can help right away, maybe not as a starter but certainly in the roster of 18. Other midfielders to watch include Fatai Alashe (Michigan State) and Dan Metzger (Maryland) with Jaineil Hoilett, younger brother of QPR attacking midfielder Junior Hoilett, a Canadian option.Forward talent includes Larin, Williams, Khiry Shelton (Oregon State), Andy Craven (North Carolina), Miguel Aguilar (San Francisco), Dzenan Catic (Davenport) and exciting Jamaican Akeil Barrett (Tulsa). Theres also Sagi Lev-Ari (Cal State Northridge) who has served time in the Israeli military. With Gilberto, Luke Moore, Robbie Findley, Jordan Hamilton, Bright Dike and possibly Jozy Altidore, Toronto already has an array of forwards.Weve got a good forward crew, Vanney said. So I think we need guys who can set them up and get them into good position to score goals.That search continues outside the draft with Juventus attacking midfield/forward Sebastian Giovinco and Real Betis defender Damien Perquis identified as targets.Toronto believes it is getting the equivalent of a top-five pick in Michigan State midfielder Jay Chapman, who is expected to get homegrown player status soon for TFC.Toronto has eight picks in the four-round draft which will see Rounds 3 and 4 take place Jan. 20 by phone. Vancouver has seven selections and will be looking for some diamonds in the rough with five picks in the lower two rounds.Other than its first-round pick, Montreal has a third- and fourth-round selection.Notes: Orlando City has traded forward Jairo Arrieta to D.C. United for an international roster spot. That gives Orlando 11 such international spots. Arrieta came to Orlando from the Columbus Crew via the expansion draft. ... U.S international midfielder Maurice Edu, who started his MLS career in Toronto, has signed a new deal with the Philadelphia Union.———Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter. Adidas Superstar Supercolor Gialle . -- Gary Harris gave No. Adidas Zx Flux Nere . Bartel, who is from Australia, punted 229 times for 9,904 yards with a 43.2 average in two seasons with the Ticats. Williams, the first overall pick by Saskatchewan in 2010, signed with Hamilton as a free agent a year ago and had one defensive tackle and one special teams tackle in just six games with the Ticats last season.The voting results for the Baseball Hall of Fame will be announced on January 8 in the new year. Unlike last year when nobody got in, there have been estimates of as many as five getting voted in this time around and as few as one, Greg Maddux. Going over the list of players already in Cooperstown, I found it interesting that four went by the nickname "Kid" or "The Kid". They would be former Expos and Mets star Gary Carter, the Brewers Robin Yount, the immortal Red Sox legend Ted Williams and one you may not be as familiar with, Charles "Kid" Nichols. "Kid" Nichols began his career in the Majors in 1890 and was through in 1906. But the numbers he put up were truly remarkable. Starting in 1890, with the Boston Beaneaters in the National League he went 27-19 with a 2.23 ERA. In seven of the next eight seasons he won 30 or more games. He finished his career with 361 victories against 208 losses and a 2.96 ERA. Not only that he started 562 games over his career and finished 532. In other words he pitched complete games in about 95 per cent of his outings. Granted it was a different era. In his first three seasons, 1890-92, the distance from the pitching mound to home plate was only 50 feet. Nevertheless Nichols was the main reason the Beaneaters won three consecutive pennants. After that though the mound was pushed back to its current distance of 60 6" but Nichols remained every bit as dominant. The funny thing is Nicholls wasnt physically imposing. It has been estimated he only weighed about 138 pounds when he broke in with Boston and looked like a teenager, hence the nickname "Kid". "Kid" Nichols threw straight over the top and threw few if any breaking pitches. He and others have credited this for his durability and good fortune in avoiding injuries. He had impeccable control, and an uncanny ability to change speeds on his fastball. Nichols was almost lost in the annals of baseball history and didnt get into the Hall of Fame until 1949 when he was selected by the Veterans Committee. One of the loudest voices in getting him elected was a charter member of the Hall of Fame was none other than Ty Cobb. The most amazing fact about "Kid Nichols" is that he won his 300th game when he was only 30 years old. Again, there is a bit of a caveat. During his career teams usually only carried five pitchers at most and depending on circumstance you could be pitching every second or third daay. Adidas Scarpa Sport Uomo. Still the numbers he put up and the career he had was amazing. Heres the thing Im wondering about. Its "Kid" Nichols Canadian connection. Baseball Reference.com claims he went to secondary school at Queen Elizabeth High School in Surrey, BC. If you click on the school name, Nichols name comes up along with another former Major Leaguer who attended the same school, Kevin Nicholson. Nichols was an American born in Wisconsin, who spent part of his youth in Kansas City. I can find no mention of how he wound up in a Canadian high school. Interesting to say the least. I also wanted to mention another "Kid" who is not in the Hall of Fame. You might remember the name "Kid" Gleason. He was the manager of the infamous 1919 Chicago White Sox, of the "Black Sox" scandal infamy. Gleason played no part in throwing the series to the Cincinnati Reds, in fact he called out some of his own players for tanking after they played a brutal first game of the World Series. Well before that series, Gleason was a decent player in his own right. In 1890 for instance, he pitched 506 innings and completed 54 of the 55 games he started. Gleason was also a decent position player over part of his career in addition to being a manager. It was said he was every bit the fiery competitor Cobb was, if not more so. Bringing Back Banks It seems only fitting, when Disney is releasing the movie "Saving Mr. Banks" about the making of the "Mary Poppins" movie, the Blue Jays should be shooting out a lifeline to a Mr. Banks of their own. Theyve signed right-hander Josh Banks, a pitcher they originally drafted in the second round in 2003 to a minor league deal. Banks only pitched in three games for the Jays back in 2007, then bounced from San Diego to Houston and finally to the minor league systems of the Giants and Orioles. He was actually released by the Os on March 31, 2012. So why is he back? Well back in the day Banks could throw eight pitches including a knuckleball. Now at age 31 he has re-invented himself as a knuckleballer. The Jays are hoping theyve caught "Lightning in a Bottle" on this one. Altogether now, the Jays have three knuckleballers in their organization, R.A. Dickey, Tomo Ohka who is coming back as a knuckler at age 37, and now Josh Banks. If Banks makes it after three years out of the Majors maybe Disney will come calling about another movie. wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap soccer jerseys wholesale jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap nfl jerseys china ' ' '