LAKELAND, Fla. - New Detroit Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler doesnt mind admitting he had gotten comfortable in Texas. Until his traded to the Tigers in the off-season for slugger Prince Fielder, Kinsler had spent his entire professional career in the Texas Rangers organization. He said he had an inkling after last season that he was on the trade block. He also said he was excited about a change. With the rumours swirling, Kinsler ended up with the Tigers who needed fielding and speed. The Tigers finished last in the American League in 2013 with only 35 stolen bases, 114 behind the Rangers. New Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said he wants to run more this year. Speedy Austin Jackson led the Tigers with eight steals as the Tigers relied on their sluggers, including Fielder, to knock in runs. With the trade of Fielder, the Tigers received Kinsler, who stole 15 bases for the Rangers last year, but has stolen more than 20 bases three times. In addition to Kinsler, the Tigers added Rajai Davis from the Toronto Blue Jays. Davis stole 45 bases for the Blue Jays in 2013. Kinsler was one of several high-profile additions for the Tigers during the off-season. He isnt expected to hit with Fielders power, but his line-drive hitting might be better suited for Comerica Park, which is a haven for line drive hitters, not sluggers. Kinsler lost nearly 20 pounds in the off-season once he was informed of the trade. "I like Comerica Park and wanted to lose weight," Kinsler said after reporting to Tigers camp on Sunday. "I wanted to get faster and get back to hitting line drives. If you hit it in the gap out there, you should get at least three (bases) out of it. I have more chances to run and set up the heart of the order. I never had to lose weight in Texas. As hot as it was, it was easy over there. I had to try to add weight over there. Now I have to lose it. Im ready to go right now." Ausmus said that the additions of Kinsler and Davis change the dynamics of the lineup. Former manager Jim Leyland wasnt big on stealing bases and his recent teams tended to be cautious on the bases. Ausmus said things might be different this season, his first as a major league manager. "Kinsler and Davis bring us the opportunity to get some more stolen bases," Ausmus said. "With Jackson and Torii Hunter to go with them, we have some speed this year. It is a different team with a different personality." Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said the discussions on the Fielder-for-Kinsler trade went quickly and set the new running philosophy into motion. "We wanted more speed, but if you look at last years team, we had very few places where we could just add speed to the order," Dombrowski said. We had to find a way and the Prince trade set everything into motion. Well be faster this year." Kinsler batted .277 with 13 homers and 72 RBI for the Rangers last season, but said he was prepared for a trade. "I wanted to go to a contender," said Kinsler, who lost two World Series with the Rangers. "It is a place I feel very strongly has a chance to win a World Series. It will be a new experience and I am excited to get out of my comfort zone. I love the park, it suits me, and I can run. We have star power on this team and I worked hard to lose those pounds because I expect to do a lot of running this year." NOTES: Once again, C Victor Martinez is working as a catcher during the daily bullpen sessions. Ausmus said Martinez will see duty behind the plate this season, especially during early interleague play. Ausmus said Martinez will be limited. "Theres no way hell catch 100 games this year," Ausmus said. "Hell work, but not as much as the other catchers.". Ausmus has started a new clubhouse ritual just before opening morning practice. The players and coaches get together and talk about not only baseball, but whatever is on their minds. Some of it, Ausmus said, is just good-natured kidding around. "It gives us a chance to laugh and laugh at each other," he said. "Its all in fun and to loosen things up."... The Tigers will host their first full-squad meeting no Tuesday even though most key position players have already reported. Cyber Monday Basketball Jerseys . The victory strengthened Liverpools position in the top four after Tottenham lost 1-0 at Norwich in the days late kickoff, cutting the north London club six points adrift of fourth place and the final Champions League slot for next season. Fake Basketball Jerseys China . Playing in his 19th career final, the second-seeded Tsonga was favourite to win the Open 13 for the third time and to secure an 11th career title, but he struggled with Gulbis attacking approach. https://www.fakebasketballjerseys.com/ . The three Calgary natives will compete after the sport was skipped by the Vancouver Games in 2010 but later included on the program for Sochi, Russia. The fight to include womens ski jumping prior to Vancouver went to the courts only to have the Supreme Court of Canada rule against the athletes appeal in 2009. Basketball Jerseys China . PETERSBURG, Florida – Heading into Thursday nights action, Dioner Navarro had caught 14 innings combined from starters Drew Hutchison and Mark Buehrle. Basketball Jerseys Black Friday . TSN was honoured with several awards, with Rod Smith and James Duthie sharing the win for Best Sports Host for SportsCentre and the NHL: Season On The Brink coverage, respectively.(SportsNetwork.com) - DeMar DeRozan has quietly coasted under the radar as one of the NBAs consistent scorers and will try to lead the Toronto Raptors to a perfect three-game homestand Monday versus the lowly Milwaukee Bucks. You can watch the game live on TSN at 7pm et/4pm pt. and listen live on TSN Radio 1050. DeRozan is averaging 22.3 points per game in his last nine and leads the Raptors with 21.3 ppg this season. He had 26 points in Saturdays 96-80 victory over the Brooklyn Nets and made 9-of-18 shots to go along with seven rebounds and five assists. Patrick Peterson ended with 14 points and 12 rebounds off the bench, Terrence Ross scored 14 points and John Salmons added 13 in a reserve role for Toronto, which has won seven of nine and 11 of its last 15 games. The Atlantic Division-leading Raptors ended Brooklyns season-high five-game winning streak. "Brooklyn is a tough team. Their defense is their strength. During their winning streak it was their defense that has helped them more than their offense," said Raptors coach Dwane Casey. Toronto has won four in a row at home and is 8-8 at Air Canada Centre. Milwaukee has the worst record in the NBA at 7-29 and is mired in a five-game losing streak. It suffered its third straight road loss in Saturdays 101-85 defeat at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Luke Ridnouur and O.dddddddddddd.J. Mayo scored 16 points apiece off the bench, while Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brandon Knight both had 13 points. Antetokounmpo also grabbed 11 rebounds and handed out five assists for the Bucks, who dropped to 4-15 as the guest and shot 39.5 percent. The Thunder recorded a 39-27 advantage in the third quarter and were led by NBA leading scorer Kevin Durant, who posted 33 points, 10 boards and seven assists. Serge Ibaka also had a double-double with 17 points and 17 rebounds. "It got away in the third quarter. I thought defensively we had some breakdowns and against a good team you just cant do that," said Bucks coach Larry Drew. "Offensively our shot selection wasnt very good and we didnt move the ball very well." Milwaukee hopes big man John Henson can return from an ankle injury Monday and is questionable against the Raptors. Henson is averaging 12.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.3 blocks, and hasnt played since Dec. 27 at Brooklyn. The Bucks sustained a 97-90 loss at home to the Raptors on Nov. 2, as DeRozan scored 17 points and Mayo tallied 16. Milwaukee had won the previous 10 matchups with Toronto until that recent setback and is still a dominant 14-3 in the previous 17 meetings between the teams. Milwaukee is unbeaten in its last five games north of the border. ' ' '