back to attempt a catch, but his glove hit the wall as the ball barely

ST. LOUIS -- Not long after Michael Sam waved to an adoring crowd at Missouris season opener, he looked down at his cellphone. It was 3 p.m. CT, the deadline for NFL teams to pare rosters to 53 players. And the Rams coach was talking to the players who didnt make the cut. He headed into the locker room. At some point, his phone rang with the bad news: He didnt make the cut. Twenty others were cut by the St. Louis Rams on Saturday, all of them mere footnotes. For Sam, it meant a roadblock in his journey to become the first openly gay player to make an NFL roster. Over and over, coach Jeff Fisher said, it was purely a football decision. "I will tell you this: I was pulling for Mike," Fisher said. "I really was, and I dont say that very often. Mike came in here and did everything we asked him to do." The seventh-round draft pick projected confidence while scrutinized at least as closely as Browns rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel. Hes been cheered by athletes and celebrities, denigrated by just a few. In the end, the defensive end couldnt make a team stocked with pass rushers and lost out to undrafted Ethan Westbrooks, who proved more productive and more versatile. Fisher believes Sam has an NFL future, and it still could be with the Rams. If hes not picked up by another team, he could land on the St. Louis practice squad. "I cant go there right now," Fisher said. "Coaches dont talk about practice squads because we have to see what happens. Well know better tomorrow afternoon." Wherever he lands, Fisher said "there will be no challenge, no challenges whatsoever." "Hes not about drawing attention to himself," Fisher said. "He kept his head down and worked and you cant ask anything more out of any player for that matter." On Twitter, roughly an hour after he was cut, Sam wrote "The most worthwhile things in life rarely come easy, this is a lesson Ive always known. The journey continues." He also thanked the Rams and city of St. Louis on Twitter, adding that he looks forward to a long and successful career. Sam was introduced to the Missouri crowd in the end zone alongside defensive E.J. Gaines, a sixth-round pick who made the team. He blew a kiss and waved before returning to the sideline, then posed for a few pictures before starting to look at his phone, and then headed for the locker room. Fisher personally delivered the news to the 20 others released in meetings Friday and Saturday, but didnt seem to mind that Sam was out of town, visiting his alma mater. The conversation was perfunctory, with plans for a face-to-face meeting on Sunday. "He said Yes sir, and he said, I understand. He said, Thanks for the opportunity, and I said, Mike, Im looking forward to visiting with you tomorrow, and he goes, I am, too." Sam was the SEC co-defensive player of the year at Missouri and had been projected as a mid-round draft pick. His stock fell after a poor combine showing not long after he came out as gay in February, and the Rams took him with the 249th overall pick out of 256. He kissed his boyfriend as a national television audience looked on, and arrived brimming with confidence and with a quick retort for anyone who contended he was in the NFL only because he came out. Fisher was proud to have made the landmark pick, but made clear from the start that Sam would be judged on talent. The cameras followed, but the extra attention did not seem to faze Sam or his teammates. Veteran defensive end Chris Long noted rosters are always made up of players from different backgrounds. Players said Sam was part of their family. Sam shed weight before training camp to be faster for special teams duty, reporting at 257 pounds. But after the preseason opener, Fisher said hed have to make the team based on defensive end play. Sam came out publicly following his final season at Missouri, though he had told his teammates before it began. It was no distraction. Missouri tied the school record with 12 wins and won the SEC Eastern Division and Sam had 11 1-2 sacks. Sam was lightly regarded out of Hitchcock, Texas, a town of about 7,000 along the Gulf Coast about 40 miles southeast of Houston. His first two years at Missouri, Sam backed up Aldon Smith and Jacquies Smith, both of whom are in the NFL. From the start, teammates seemed to like having Sam around. His energy was infectious and, if there were problems, they stayed behind closed doors. Publicly, Sam was just another late-round pick trying to make the Rams, which, like other NFL teams, held sensitivity training early in camp. The Oprah Winfrey Network put off a planned documentary on Sam, saying it would allow him to focus on his dream. At one point, Sams Rams jersey was the No. 2 seller among rookies online, trailing only Clevelands Johnny Manziel, and Sam was among just 10 draftees selected by the NFL to be featured on commemorative coins. Sam headed to the ESPY Awards to pick up the Arthur Ashe Courage award. He got a hug from Hall of Famer Jim Brown on his way to the stage and fought back tears throughout his speech. He told the audience: "Great things can happen when you have the courage to be yourself." Cheap Kobe Bryant Shoes . - Chicago Bears general manager Phil Emery was so busy in free agency he didnt mind having a few extra weeks to prepare for the draft. Kobe Bryant Shoes Free Shipping . Jacobs scored two in the first end, but Jahr briefly took charge with two in the second end and two more in the third. Jacobs, from Sault. Marie, Ont., gave Canada some breathing room, following his big fourth end by adding two more points in the fifth to go up 7-4. https://www.cheapkobebryantshoes.com/ . Cabrera is hitting .218 with three homers and 16 RBI in 80 games this season. The Padres recalled second baseman Brooks Conrad from Triple-A El Paso to replace Cabrera on the roster. Wholesale Kobe Bryant Shoes . Many of those eyes are in the United States of America, a country that the sport has wanted on its side for some time. On Sunday the football Gods delivered once again, only this time it was time for good old USA to experience as much heartache as joy. Kobe Bryant Shoes From China . They have homered once every 27.3 at bats, which just happens to be the third best mark in the American League, albeit just 10 games into the season.ARLINGTON, Texas -- Nick Tepesch and Robbie Ross helped the Texas Rangers hold off the Seattle Mariners. Tepesch, back from the minor leagues, earned his first major league victory in more than 10 months and the Rangers edged the Seattle Mariners 4-3 on Wednesday. Ross, back in the bullpen after an unsuccessful stint in the rotation, bailed Tepesch out of a seventh-inning jam. Neal Cotts, whose ERA has ballooned from 1.11 in 2013 to 4.34 this season, had a strong eighth. Joakim Soria, back in a closers role this year for the first time since 2011, pitched a perfect ninth inning for his eighth save in eight opportunities. The Rangers offence had three first-inning runs and Shin-Soo Choos leadoff home run in the bottom of the fifth that broke a 3-3 tie. Choos fifth homer went into the bullpen in left-centre. "Two strikes, I was in a rough spot. I think about more (getting) on base," he said. "Got a home run that got up in that gust a little bit, thats it," Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said. "Its a tough ballpark to pitch in, but I thought (Chris Young) did a pretty darn good job for us. Texas turned two double plays. The second was on Ross second pitch after entering the game with one out and runners on first and second for the Mariners. Pinch hitter Stefen Romero grounded to Adrian Beltre, who stepped on third base and threw to first to complete the inning-ending double play. "I was thinking, Gosh, here we go! Im in a situation where I like to be. I was pretty amped," Ross said. "I wanted to be out of that inning without those runs scoring." Tepesch (1-0) allowed five hits and two walks in 6 1-3 innings for his first win since defeating Houston 10-5 on July 5, 2013. The second-year pitcher threw a career-high 112 pitches. It was his second start this season for the Rangers after being recalled from Triple-A Round Rock, where he was 6-1. Texas manager Ron Washington has noticed a difference. "He has an out pitch right now. Hes got that slider working, and hes able to llocate his sinker.dddddddddddd With that going on and commanding the baseball, I think theres the difference right there." Washington visited Tepesch on the mound with one out in the seventh and Dustin Ackley coming up. Tepesch assured the manager he was OK. Then he walked both Ackley and John Buck. "I just wanted to know how he was feeling," Washington said. "Did he think he had enough to get this lefty up there? Because I had a lefty ready. The look in his eyes, he convinced me, and I had to end up getting Robbie to bail me out." After that, it was Cotts striking out Robinson Cano, who had homered earlier, and Seager, who entered the game with a .358 average in Arlington, with a runner on second base in the eighth. Against former Rangers right-hander Chris Young (3-2), Daniel Robertson led off the first with a walk and scored on Elvis Andrus homer. Alex Rios singled home the third run. Seattle tied it in the fourth. James Jones tripled and scored on Michael Saunders single. Cano then hit his two-run homer. Center fielder Michael Choice ran back to attempt a catch, but his glove hit the wall as the ball barely cleared it. Seattle had only one baserunner against Tepesch in the first three innings: Seager on a leadoff single in the second. He was erased in an unusual 4-5-3 double play. With Texas defence shifted to the right, Smoak grounded to second baseman Luis Sardinas, who threw to Beltre covering second. Beltres relay throw to first beat Smoak. Young gave up seven hits and three walks in 6 1-3 innings. "You have those games where if you can limit the damage early, you feel like youll pitch a good game, and I gave up one too many in the first," Young said. NOTES: Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder (neck) missed a fourth consecutive game, and centre fielder Leonys Martin (stiff neck) was not in the starting lineup for the second game in a row. Martin entered the game as a defensive replacement in the ninth. ... The teams split the two-game series. ' ' '