nfo to help you make your decision.A case for Kobe:The edge in career scoring, assists, steals, 3s and free-throw percentageTwo Olympic gold medalsA global impact culturally and ec

The Toronto Blue Jays spent a lot of their off-season rebuilding their starting rotation in order to be a playoff contender in 2013. Amid much hype from both the fans and the media, the Jays added reigning National League Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey, Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle. Before the first pitch of the season, there were a lot of Jays fans that had playoff visions after a 20-year drought. Unfortunately, things havent quite worked out. The rotation, which was believed to be a strength, has been their biggest issue. The Jays, who are last in the American League East, 11.5 games behind the Boston Red Sox and 8.5 games behind the Texas Rangers for the second wild card spot, have the second highest starters ERA in all of baseball at 5.07. Only the Minnesota Twins at 5.23 have been worse. The All-Star break has given not only the players but the fans and media time to assess what the Jays options are with regards to the starters and trying to contend this season. According to TSN Baseball Insider Steve Phillips, the Jays have what it takes to make a push for the playoffs with the starters the club already has in the fold. "Their starting pitching didnt pitch anywhere like its capable of in the first half of the season," Phillips stated. "Josh Johnson, I believe, will have a great second half. R.A. Dickey, who is healthier now will be the R.A. Dickey that the Mets had last season. "I look at the starting pitching as the difference to get the Jays propelled back into the pennant race and really making a run, not at the division, the Red Sox or going to do that, but be one of the two wild card teams in the American League." Phillips thoughts were echoed by Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion over the All-Star break. "I think the starting pitching," Encarnacion said. "If we want to win, we know and they know we need to pitch better." There was a great deal of speculation over the weekend that the Jays, along with the Texas Rangers, were front-runners in the hunt for Chicago Cubs starter Matt Garza; a situation that general manager Alex Anthopoulos denied on TSN1050 radio on Monday. Anthopoulos also stated that the club would not be sellers on the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline. "When we made all these acquisitions and trades, we did it with the thought that it was not only for one year," Anthopoulos said. "It just doesnt make sense to sell low on players. When players arent performing well, youre not going to get much in trade. "I dont see us doing anything where we take away from the team unless we clearly feel that we have depth in certain areas. But Id say right now, the only area I could see us having some depth is in the bullpen. So maybe we would be open-minded if there was a deal there to trade a reliever." With the Blue Jays post-season hopes continuing to fade, we ask: Do you think the Blue Jays can contend for the playoffs this season with the team and rotation they have? As always, its Your! Call.Danuel House Jersey . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. Tracy McGrady Jersey . The nimble-footed quarterback got his wish, dashing through the snow and a weary defence all the way into the NCAA record book. https://www.rocketsrookiesshop.com/Austin-Rivers-City-Edition-Jersey/ . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Gerald Green Jersey . The phone hearing is scheduled for 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt. Winchester, who was not penalized for the hit, appeared to make contact with Kellys head early in the first period of Thursdays game in Boston. Custom Houston Rockets Jerseys .C. -- Todd Fiddler scored a hat trick, including the overtime goal, as the Prince George Cougars survived an 8-7 win against the Kamloops Blazers in Western Hockey League play Sunday.Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan?were uniquely linked on the court, as their respective five-title careers intersected and often ran through each others. Duncans retirement announcement on Monday means both icons will be gone next year, a generations two biggest stars concurrently saying farewell.Consider how they ruled from separate kingdoms: From 1999 to 2014, either Bryant or Duncan played in the NBA Finals in all but three years. (Dwyane Wade played in each of the other three.)?Both are staples in the modern-era NBA Mount Rushmore. Along with John Stockton, they played the longest for a single team.?But comparing them head-to-head wholly and objectively is tricky. Kobe is one of the games most polarizing players ever. He never had Duncans organizational stability. Duncan, the humble craftsman, was never reliably marketable, nor overwhelmingly popular.So you tell us: Whose legacy is better? Below the poll is a little more info to help you make your decision.A case for Kobe:The edge in career scoring, assists, steals, 3s and free-throw percentageTwo Olympic gold medalsA global impact culturally and economicallyAn unquantifiable ruthlessness18-12 record against Duncan in the playoffsMore All-Defensive First Teams; more All-NBA First Teams; more All-Star Game MVPsSuccessfully defended a title three times81-point gameTim on Kobe: He was someone you had to keep an eye on, you had to worry about, you had to fear, because he was going to bring it.ddddddddddddA case for Tim:The edge in career rebounds, blocks, win share, VORP and PERMore MVPs; more Finals MVPsNever missed the playoffs in 19 seasonsStarted and played more games despite four years in college31-21 record against Bryant in the regular season#NBARank No. 1 all-time power forward ever; #NBARank No. 8 all-time NBA playerWon titles across three decades21/20/10/8 in a title close-out gameKobe on Tim: More cutthroat than people give him credit for. I loved everything about him on the court.A complete breakdown of their career statistics can be found here.[Credit: All photos Getty] ' ' '