Wartezimmer » penalty -- only to see his low shot to the bottom co

PHILADELPHIA -- Each time the 37-year-old, Dodger Blue version of Chase Utley stepped into the batters box Tuesday night, his former employers rolled out a new flourish to remind him of the gold-plated, Philadelphia red segment of his major-league career.As Utley strode toward home plate to face Vince Velasquez in the top of the first inning, the Phillies played his Led Zeppelin walkup song, Kashmir, in honor of his return to Citizens Bank Park. The crowd responded on cue, standing and cheering for almost 90 seconds as Utley doffed his helmet, patted his heart and showed some genuine emotion beneath that typically stoic exterior.During Utleys subsequent plate appearances, the scoreboard showed photos of him in his evolution from earnest first-round draft pick to franchise favorite. One minute he appeared on the Jumbotron as winner of the Paul Owens Award as the Phillies top minor-league position player in 2002. Two innings later, he reappeared beneath a ballcap and some facial stubble, exuding a Matthew McConaughey-like brand of cool in a pose from the teams 2006 Charity Calendar.All this reminiscing eventually got the juices flowing and prompted Utley to commandeer the drivers seat in the way-back machine. He launched a 96 mph fastball from Velasquez into the right-field seats in the fifth inning, and capped off his night with a grand slam two innings later to lead the Dodgers to a 15-5 rout of the Phillies.The win helped move the Dodgers into sole possession of first place in the National League West after the San Francisco Giants lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates late Tuesday. Thats quite an achievement given the Dodgers season-long run of injuries and the early hole they dug for themselves. But on this night, pennant races and practical concerns took a backseat to a heartfelt reunion.Before the night was through, the Philadelphia crowd gave Utley three standing ovations and summoned him for two curtain calls. Philly fans have a reputation as cynical and hard-bitten. But when they fall for an athlete, they fall hard.Its completely overwhelming, Utley said in a postgame news conference. The standing ovation my first at-bat is something Ill never forget. It was truly special. It really shows how passionate and how great the Philadelphia fan base is. It was probably one of the most nervous at-bats Ill ever have at any level. I was glad to get it over with, to be honest with you.Its hard to articulate the full extent Phillies fans love Utley, and would never dream of letting him buy a beer in the confines of the 215 area code. Part of it is the consistent performance that places Utley near the top of so many offensive categories in franchise history. He ranks among the Phillies top 10 in games, hits, runs, doubles, homers, RBIs and walks. And with six All-Star Game appearances, Utley ranks fourth among Phillies behind Hall of Famers Mike Schmidt (12), Steve Carlton (seven) and Robin Roberts (seven).Beyond the numbers, Utley played the game with a Derek Jeter-like field awareness and a sense of his surroundings that Philadelphia fans hold near and dear. They paid attention when he ran out every ground ball, advanced from first to third on a single, and found a way to win games by anticipating situations. Utley enjoyed his signature, Jeter-like postseason moment in Game 5 of the 2008 World Series, when he threw out Tampa Bays Jason Bartlett after an artful deke at second base.I never really made it look easy out there, Utley said. There are so many times Id meet a father with his son or even a mother who would praise the way I played, and would tell me they want their son to play that way. To me, thats a true compliment.It was a painful yet necessary and inevitable part of the Phillies rebuild when former general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. traded Utley to Los Angeles for minor-league pitcher John Richy and infielder Darnell Sweeney on Aug. 19 of last season. But Utleys first trip back to Philadelphia was worth the wait, not to mention chock full of statistical oddities.During his tenure with the Phillies, Utley played 779 games at Veterans Stadium and Citizens Bank Park and never hit two home runs and drove in five home runs in the same game. It took him five plate appearances as a Dodger to achieve the feat.According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Utley became only the second player to hit at least two homers in his first road game against a team that he played at least 1,500 games for. The other hitter to achieve the feat was Hall of Famer Frank Thomas, who went deep twice for the Oakland Athletics against the Chicago White Sox in 2006.Nights like this have been less common as Utley tries to find a way to navigate the rigors of a long season at an advanced baseball age. Before Tuesdays barrage, he was hitting only .231 with four homers in 208 at-bats since the start of June. But Dodgers manager Dave Roberts keeps running him out there in the leadoff spot because of what Roberts calls his consistently good at-bat quality.Roberts is also a sucker for leadership skills. Every day, he sees Utleys work ethic and example rub off on Corey Seager, Joc Pederson and the other young Dodgers in a way that can only benefit their development.If theres any player that you have to dig deeper than the numbers to find his value, Chase is head and shoulders above everyone else, Roberts said. When you want to play a certain style of baseball, to have Chase exude that every single day and not take a pitch off, its been invaluable for me as a first-year manager.Utley is all about style and substance. He sprinted around the bases after his first home run and picked it up a notch after the grand slam.Adam Rosales is probably the only guy youre going to catch with a faster home run trot, teammate Howie Kendrick?said.When asked if the second trot was the fastest of his career, Utley shrugged.I dont know, he said. Maybe you can check Statcast.Some numbers simply cant calculate a players impact on a roster, or a city. The outpouring of affection for Utley was a fitting tribute for his 13 years of hard, professional play, and his contribution to the Phillies extended run of success from 2007 to 2011. But unbeknownst to them, the 28,118 fans in attendance were on the receiving end of some equally fervent gratitude.I should be thanking them, Utley said. They motivated us and pushed us in the right direction. Im a true believer that the fans made us better players individually and gave us a chance to win on a daily basis. The true thank-you should be to them.Chase Utley, an athlete who has always taken pains not to reveal too much of himself for public consumption, rode adrenaline and love to a memorable homecoming Tuesday night. Now, to his everlasting relief, he can just go back to playing baseball. Ecco Shoes On Sale Australia . Nine days before the opening ceremony, organizing committee chief Dmitry Chernyshenko said Wednesday that Sochi is "fully ready" and will deliver safe, friendly and well-run games that defy the grim reports that have overshadowed preparations. Ecco Shoes Clearance Australia . LOUIS -- Alexander Steen scored a power-play goal with 59. http://www.wholesaleeccoaustralia.com/ . Miller finished in two minutes, 6.09 seconds, one day before the first medal race on the Alpine schedule. The 36-year-old American also turned in the top time in Thursdays opening training session. Wholesale Ecco Shoes . Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan scored shootout goals, and backup goalie Cam Talbot earned his second win in two nights as the Rangers shook off a late tying tally and beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 Monday night. Ecco Shoes Australia Factory Outlet . However, he did make them miss him a little less. Cundiff, who had the unenviable job of replacing Dawson last season, agreed Thursday to a one-year, $1. MONACO -- ??? Monaco sealed first place in Group E of the Champions League with a 2-1 win over Tottenham in a thrilling display of attacking football on Tuesday.Needing just a draw against the only side to remain unbeaten in the Premier League to progress to the knockout phase, Monaco did not hold back. However, it took the hosts 48 minutes to break the deadlock with a goal from Djibril Sidibe, who then turned provider when Thomas Lemar scored the winner five minutes later.Harry Kane had equalized from the penalty spot for Spurs, which can no longer qualify for the knockout phase.We got ourselves back in the game at 1-1 and it was schoolboy to concede straight after that, Kane said. We had to try to grind out a win because we were not great tonight. The second goal took the stuffing out of us. I just dont think on the day we were good enough.Monaco went ahead when Sidibe, unmarked in the box, planted a powerful header into the net from Benjamin Mendys cross.Monaco could not hold on to its lead for long as a rare mistake from Kamil Glik, who dragged Dele Alli down in the area, resulted in a penalty. Kane converted it with a powerful spot-kick.But Spurs defensive inadequacies were exposed less than a minute after their equalizer. From the resulting kick-off, Sidibe burst down the right before crossing for Lemar. The highly-praised midfielder, who scored in the corresponding fixture in September at Wembley, restored Monacos advantage with a shot into the far corner.It was a great evening, Sidibe said. Were playing with a conquering mindset at the moment.It was a deserved win for Monaco, which was the better team for most of the game.In a lively start, Tottenham createdd the first dangerous move when Son Heung-min beat the offside trap on a swift counterattack but lost his one-on-one with Danijel Subasic.dddddddddddd The South-Korean winger vainly tried to dribble the Monaco keeper and was forced wide.The hosts replied immediately through Fabinho, who made the most of a poor clearance to make his way into the box and was brought down by Eric Dier. Radamel Falcao, the Monaco captain, took the penalty -- only to see his low shot to the bottom corner superbly blocked by Hugo Lloriss diving save.With Kevin Wimmer replacing Jan Vertonghen in the heart of Tottenhams back four, Spurs struggled defensively and Monaco -- the highest-scoring side in Europes main domestic leagues -- gradually took control.With its midfielders often losing possession and committing a series of fouls as they tried to recover the ball, Tottenham failed to produce a single shot in goal during the opening 45 minutes.The French league side had another good chance when Mendy sent a cross-shot goalwards that Lloris parried away. Left unmarked in the area, Monaco striker Valere Germain tried his luck from the rebound but his header was too weak to surprise Lloris.Falcao and Sidibe then missed the target and Germain again came close after a pass from Bernardo Silva in midfield sent him through. The striker raced down the right flank and fired an angled low shot that ended just wide.Monaco created two more clear chances through Glik and Falcao after Lemar put the hosts back in front but Lloris ensured a nervy finale with some decisive saves. ' ' '