TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays had been looking for a right-handed bat to even out a predominantly left-handed lineup. Athletics Blake Treinen Jersey . They may have found a suitable option in infielder Danny Valencia. Toronto acquired Valencia -- whos hitting .333 against left-handed pitchers in his career -- from the Kansas City Royals on Monday in exchange for right-handed pitcher Liam Hendriks and catcher Erik Kratz. "We have a lot of left-handed bats on the roster right now and we certainly could use some help from the right side" Blue Jays manager Alex Anthopoulos said on a conference call. "Dannys had a lot of success. Weve actually inquired about him in the past but havent been able to get anything done. "Weve been really trying to find all year ... that right-handed bat. Hes had success at the big league level doing that and doing it well. Its a good fit for us." Through 36 games with the Royals this season, Valencia has a .282 batting average -- including a .354/.386/.492 slashline against lefties -- with five doubles, two home runs and 11 RBIs. Hes expected to report Tuesday to Fenway Park in Boston, where the Jays are currently playing a three-game set. Aside from a valuable bat, the 29-year-old Valencia is also versatile in the field, playing most of his career big league games at third base but also filling in at second and first, as well as the DH spot. Anthopoulos said that flexibility was a big draw for the Blue Jays, who are still missing starting first baseman/designated hitters Edwin Encarnacion (strained quadriceps) and Adam Lind (foot). "I think the No. 1 factor that we got with Danny is his success versus left-handers and what he can do in the box," the GM said. "Whether (Blue Jays manager John Gibbons) decides to put him at third, DH, first, hell ultimately make that decision. Im not concerned where hell find spots for him. I think it will work out fine." Also missing from the Blue Jays lineup is starting third baseman Brett Lawrie, who broke his right index finger after taking a pitch on the hand in Cincinnati five weeks ago. Anthopoulos wouldnt say that having Valencia on the team would mean Lawrie could be permanently shifted to second base, a position hes played 32 games this season. "I wouldnt read anything into it," Anthopoulous said. "Things change so fast. "With respect to Brett, ideally youd like to have any player be at one position the entire time but ... the great thing we see is that our players want to win and theyre willing to play anywhere on the diamond," he added. "Weve even had Encarnacion play left field. "So its been a really selfless attitude across the board. When Brett comes back well see what the health of the team is, well see whos playing well, and well come up with a game plan at that time." Kratz, 34, is expected to report to Kansas City on Tuesday. He hit .198 with three homers and 10 RBIs in 34 games for Toronto, and .299 with a .354 on-base percentage through 27 games at triple-A Buffalo. Hendriks, meanwhile, was 1-0 with a 6.08 ERA in three starts for Toronto. He was a triple-A All-Star this year at Buffalo, going 8-1 in 18 games (16 starts) with a 2.33 ERA. While Anthopoulous said no other moves are in the mix as of now, he didnt rule out the possibility that more trades would be made ahead of the July 31 deadline. "I think theres always a chance but I think all 29 other GMs would say the same thing," he said. "I think its been very active in terms of phone calls, emails, texts, everyone seems to be exchanging ideas but thats expected. ... Trades are hard to make. "I wouldnt say were close to anything, but this deal came together fast so ... were going to continue to talk to clubs." Athletics Frankie Montas Jersey . A top pitching prospect, one who the ball club is pinning some of its future hopes, takes the spot of a veteran who once was viewed as a future ace but who, to this point, hasnt realized his potential and may never. Athletics Mark McGwire Jersey . -- Another baseball tradition is about to largely disappear: a manager, with a crazed look in his eyes, charging the field and getting into a face-to-face shouting match with an umpire. http://www.cheapathleticsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=athletics-matt-joyce-jersey . The team reported the signing on its website Thursday, but said Friday the deal was off in "a mutual parting of the ways that had to do with the language of the contract.Thursday night, the Blue Jays not only dropped out of first place in the American League East, they also fell below the threshold of qualifying for either of the two Wild Card spots in the American League. Their 4-1 loss at Oakland to kick off the 10-game road trip coupled with Baltimores 5-2 win at home over Texas put the Jays in secondnd place place in the East, one percentage point back of the Orioles. It also dropped them behind the second and third place teams in the West, the Angels and the Mariners, who now hold those Wild Card slots. With 75 games still to play, its really too early to stress over that, but it did get me thinking about the West. Major League Baseball didnt come to the left coast until 1958 when the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers moved there in tandem to cash in on a new and expanding market. The American League didnt get a west coast club until the league expanded in 1961 adding the Los Angeles Angels and the new Washington Senators, essentially replacing the team that moved to Minnesota. There have been 53 seasons where it was possible for two west coast teams to have met in the World Series, from 1961 through 2013. Over that span there have only been four true western World Series. In 1974, the Oakland As won their third Fall Classic in a row, beating the Dodgers 4 games to 1. In 1988, 14 years later, Orel Hershizer, Kirk Gibson and the rest of the Dodgers upset Oakland 4 games to 1. The following year, 1989 in the infamous "Earthquake" series, the As swept the Giants in four-straight. Finally in 2002, the Angels beat Barry Bonds and the Giants in seven games for their one and only World Series title in their 42nd year of existence. Two teams that have never met in the World Series are the Dodgers and the Angels. Could it possibly happen this year? Well, its not so far-fetched. The Dodgers have won seven of their last 10 and have climbed over the Giants into first in the NL West by a half-game. They also have the second-best record in the National League to Milwaukee. The Dodgers hitting stats are pretty impressive. Theyve scored 367 runs, fourth in the Senior Circuit, but second to Milwaukee in terms of teams holding playoff positions, They are third in team batting average in the National at .257 and third in OPS at .729. But its in the pitching department where they really impress. They are second in pitching ERA to Washington at 3.23. Theyve made 57 quality starts and four of their five starters have won at least eight games. The other, Josh Beckett has five wins and a no-hitter to his credit. The leader of the staff, and the best pitcher in the Majors right now, Clayton Kershaw, has nine victories and a no-hitter, in a near perfect game of his own. They have some flaws and a worrisome shoulder issue with shortstop Hanley Ramirez, but right now, the Dodgers look like the best all-around team in the National League with apologies to the Brewers. Over in the American League, the Angels have won eight of their last 11 and have closed to within three-and-a-half games back of Oakland in the West. They have latched on to that first Wild Card slott. Athletics Jerseys China. The Halos are second in hitting in the American League behind the As. They have scored 408 runs, four more than the Blue Jays with three games in hand. Theyre also tied with Oakland in home runs with 91. They also have a .749 OPS behind only the Tigers and Blue Jays. The Angels pitching staff isnt as deep as the Dodgers, but their top three starters Jared Weaver, C.J Wilson and Garrett Richards have combined for 26 wins. They are fourth in team ERA in the AL at 3.86 and have made 47 quality starts. Their bullpen has been up and down, but skipper Mike Scioscia is hoping Joe Smith and Jason Grilli, who was just picked up from Pittsburgh, can do the job at closing time. The big plus-factor with both the Angels and Dodgers is hungry ownership. Arte Moreno bought the Angels from Disney in 2003, the year after they won that World Series over the Giants, They havent been back to the Fall Classic under his stewardship. The Dodgers ownership group, which includes Magic Johnson, bought the club in 2012 for a record $2 billion. They are determined to win a championship, something the Dodgers havent done since 1988. The Angels, who have played out of Orange County for the bulk of their existence have nearly always played second fiddle to the Dodgers in the L.A. market. The Dodgers hold the single game attendance record of 115,300, when they played their season opener at the old Memorial Coliseum as part of a charity fund-raising event. But the Angels are no slouches in the attendance department either. Last year marked their 11th-straight season of drawing at least 3 million fans. They have also had 30 seasons of drawing 2 million, which is second in Major League history to only the mighty Yankees. We havent had a so-called "Cross-town" World Series since 2000, when the Yankees beat the Mets in the battle of New York. The White Sox and Cubs havent done it since 1906, when the " no-hit wonder " White Sox defeated the Cubs. These kinds of match-ups are few and far between.They used to be commonplace in the early 20s and late 40s and throughout the 50s, when the Yankees, Dodgers and Giants all held sway in New York. Im not saying the Angels and Dodgers are definately going to meet in the World Series, but there is a decent shot, and it would provide some great storylines and some compelling viewing and listening. - The Yankees are a hard team to get a handle on. Theyre sitting at .500 at 42-42 in the A.L. East and theyve lost five more than theyve won at home.Yet for all of that, in Derek Jeters final season, they are still only three-and-a-half games back of the Orioles and Jays in the division. Still, what appears to be the weakest Yankees team in four decades will have to decide soon whether to become a buyer or seller at the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline. The new that C.C Sabathia has been shut down indefinately with a flair up of his swollen knee again, has got to have them thinking about next year and beyond. Still, they are the Yankees and this is Jeters final season. Stay tuned. Jerseys NFL China Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys From China Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale China Jerseys NFL Jerseys China Discount Soccer Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys China China NCAA Jerseys Cheap Cheap Nike Dolphins Jerseys Cheap Nike Patriots Jerseys Cheap Nike Jets Jerseys Cheap Nike Bengals Jerseys Cheap Nike Browns Jerseys Cheap Nike Steelers Jerseys Cheap Nike Texans Jerseys Cheap Nike Colts Jerseys Cheap Nike Jaguars Jerseys Cheap Nike Titans Jerseys Cheap Nike Broncos Jerseys ' ' '