MIAMI - The convicted ringleader of a smuggling organization that brought more than 1,000 Cubans into the U. Ronnie Harrison Jersey .S., some of them baseball players including Texas Rangers outfielder Leonys Martin, was sentenced Monday to more than 14 years in federal prison.U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard rejected a request for leniency by Eliezer Lazo, whom she noted was paid $22,000 a month through the scheme — not counting the percentages of any professional baseball contracts the players signed. Prosecutors say Martin paid the Lazo group $1.2 million after signing with the Rangers in 2011.Thats a lot of money, Lenard said.Lazo, 41, will begin serving the sentence after finishing an unrelated five-year prison term for money laundering in a Medicare fraud case. In the smuggling case, he pleaded guilty in August to extortion conspiracy.The Lazo organization smuggled Cubans by boat to Mexico for $10,000 each, more for the baseball players, according to court documents. They would then usually travel to the U.S. border crossing at Laredo, Texas, and ask to be permitted to stay in the U.S.Under the U.S. wet foot, dry foot policy, Cubans who reach dry land in the U.S. are generally allowed to remain while those intercepted at sea are returned to the communist island. Lazos attorney, William Clay, said many of Lazos customers were overjoyed to make it to the U.S. despite the costs.They had gotten what they bargained for, Clay said.But Assistant U.S. Attorney Ron Davidson said migrants who couldnt pay were held for ransom by armed guards, often threatened and sometimes beaten. Although Lazo himself did not participate in any violence, Davidson said he was well aware it was going on.This man is not a freedom fighter, Davidson said.The case also provided a glimpse into how Mexican drug cartels get their cut of the migrant smuggling business. Court documents show that in the Cancun area, the Zetas cartel charges Cuban smugglers $10,000 per boat and up to $3,000 per migrant to allow them to pass through their territory and assist in paying bribes to local officials.No evidence surfaced in the case that Martin or any of the other valuable Cuban ballplayers were mistreated. Only Martin has been identified by name in the Lazo case, but other Cuban stars such as Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig have also been smuggled through Mexico.Aside from being free from Cuba, baseball players from that country have an incentive to go to a third country such as Mexico before signing MLB contracts. If they came directly to the U.S., they would be subject to the MLB draft and likely sign a less lucrative deal. Going to Mexico first makes them free agents looking for the highest bidder.Martin, a speedy outfielder, signed a five-year, $15.5 million contract with the Rangers in 2011. Last year he batted .274 and stole 31 bases.Clay indicated he may appeal Lazos sentence, calling it unreasonable because Lazo offered to co-operate with investigators before he was indicted and had only a limited role in the extortion. For his part, Lazo apologized for his crimes through a Spanish interpreter.I am very repentant and remorseful for the crimes I have committed, Lazo said. I am so sorry I got involved in these issues._____Follow Curt Anderson on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Miamicurt Wholesale Jaguars Super Bowl Jerseys . Sundays game against the Colorado Rapids at B.C. Place Stadium has important implications in determining Major League Soccers playoff picture and will also mark the final game in the career of veteran South Korean defender Young-Pyo Lee. Leon Jacobs Jersey .com) - The NFL is investigating whether the New England Patriots intentionally deflated balls during Sundays AFC Championship Game against Indianapolis. http://www.cheapjaguarssuperbowljerseys.com/taven-bryan-super-bowl-jersey/ .5 million, four-year contract with the Texas Rangers that could be worth $32. SAN ANTONIO -- Although the San Antonio Spurs seem rather methodical and downright boring to some, they are enjoying themselves this season and that is ruining the fun for others. Tony Parker scored 19 points before sitting out the fourth quarter and the Spurs beat the Boston Celtics 104-93 Wednesday night, winning their eighth straight overall and remaining undefeated at home. San Antonio had 27 assists and six players score in double figures, rallying from a lethargic start to lead by as many as 19 points in the second half. "Those moments when we start to play better D, push the ball and be more aggressive, then its fun to watch, its exciting and thats what we need," San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili said. "We are not exciting in a way that were going to have alley-oops and windmills (dunking) and stuff like that, but we pass the ball really well. We penetrate and pitch, and everybody gets involved and thats fun." Kawhi Leonard had 16 points and Tim Duncan rebounded from a poor outing in San Antonios previous home game to score 13 points. Boris Diaw had 12 points, Tiago Splitter added 11 points and 10 rebounds and Danny Green 11 points for the Spurs (10-1). San Antonio shot 48 per cent from the field and was 8 for 21 on 3-pointers as Boston struggled to close on the Spurs shooters. "Phew," Celtics forward Jared Sullinger said, exhaling when asked about the Spurs ball movement. "Theyre a tough team to play. On any given night, anybody can go off. Honestly, they move the ball. They care less about scoring; they play together as a team. "They have go-to players but they hardly ever use them because they move the ball so well and they play as a team, so theyre hard to guard. Sullinger, Avery Bradley and Jeff Green each had 19 points for Boston (4-9), which has lost five straight. There were 10 lead changes and 14 ties in the first half, as neither team was able to sustain any momentum. While the Spurs werent happy with the early efforts, first-year coach Brad Stevens was pleased with the Celtics forging a 48-all tie at the half. "The team that played tonight could be a really fun group to build with," Stevens said. "I think thats what you take from here. We talked about this early in the year. Theres going to be nights where we measure progress a little bit differently." That progress was stunted in the second half, as San Antonio wass able to pull away midway through the third quarter behind strong individual efforts by Leonard, Parker and Ginobili. Youth Jaguars Super Bowl Jerseys. Leonard keyed the resurgence, scoring 10 of 12 points, including a 3-pointer that put San Antonio ahead 61-52 with 8 minutes left in the quarter. "He can do that kind of thing," Diaw said. "He is really talented and he proved that already last year. This year is no different. Sometimes, when he gets it going, it is going to be very hard to stop (him)." Leonard had 12 points, five rebounds and two steals in the third quarter, as San Antonio outscored Boston 32-22. "Im still having fun; thats why Im still playing," Leonard said. "Were winning, you cant have more fun than that, when youre winning and on a good team." Parker made two dazzling layups, first presenting the ball with his right hand to draw a defender out of the lane and spinning back for a layup between defenders and then spinning away from a defender in the lane for a layup on the right side of the basket. Ginobili literally wrapped a pass around a defender, tossing behind around a charging Brandon Bass to find Diaw cutting to the basket for a layup. Ginobili finished with five points and six assists. After scoring only two points in the Spurs previous home game against Washington, Duncan made the games first two baskets as the team targeted him early. He finished 3 for 13, but was 7 for 8 on free throws while also grabbing nine rebounds. NOTES: San Antonio is tied with Indiana for the leagues best record, but its victories have come against teams with a combined winning percentage of .408 entering Wednesdays games. Only two the Spurs wins have come against teams above .500. Their only loss was against Portland, which is 10-2 after defeating Milwaukee. ... Bostons Keith Bogans was not with the team due to an undisclosed illness. ... San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich was issued a technical foul with 4 minutes left in the game after haranguing referee David Guthrie continually for a lack of calls. Popovich smiled, appearing amused by the technical. ... The Big Three of Duncan, Parker and Ginobili have played 629 games together, which is the most amongst active teammates and fifth all-time. The trio surpassed Derek Harper, Brad Davis and Rolando Blackman of the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday and trail the leading trio of Robert Parrish, Kevin McHale and Larry Bird by 100 games played together. Cheap Nike Buccaneers Jerseys Cheap Nike Packers Jerseys Cheap Nike Vikings Jerseys Cheap Nike Lions Jerseys Cheap Nike Colts Jerseys Cheap Nike Texans Jerseys Cheap Nike Jaguars Jerseys Cheap Nike Dolphins Jerseys Cheap Nike Patriots Jerseys Cheap Nike Jets Jerseys Cheap Nike Browns Jerseys Cheap Nike Broncos Jerseys Cheap Nike Chiefs Jerseys Cheap Nike Bengals Jerseys Cheap Nike Steelers Jerseys Cheap Nike Titans Jerseys ' ' '