Pirate Galaxy » game with left wrist discomfort. Hei called

It’s been a stressful year for Conor McGregor – that swashbuckling charm that enticed us all was replaced by angst as he sought revenge for a major humbling. But now the swagger is back, and that could spell trouble for Eddie Alvarez… The cocksure smile was first wiped from McGregors bearded face back in March when, minutes after a surprise defeat to Nate Diaz, he astutely assessed his own shortcomings. He emerged with credit for explaining the inefficient energy that led to his loss but that moment forced the UFCs great entertainer into a volcano of vengeance.Gone were the one-liners that had been a welcome part of every McGregor pre-fight tirade. He should be commended for locking himself away for five months to become the subject of his own sports science experiment, embracing the harsh desert environment of Nevada in an effort to match Diazs fitness, but the toil took an obvious strain. Watch Conor McGregor clash with Eddie Alvarez at their press conference It included the debacle of UFC 200, a milestone event that McGregor was expected to lead with Diaz as his dance partner. Amid rumours of a rift between the enigmatic Irishman and his employers, he was eventually removed from the event due to failing to attend a New York press conference on the premise that he was too busy training - this, in turn, led to the infamous retirement tweet that broke social media records and had the sports world wondering. McGregor had always been proud of the businessman behind the athlete but never had such malice crept into the forefront of his merriment.The foreboding of McGregors mission to rectify his sole UFC defeat to Diaz took an uneasy turn in the days before he re-entered the cage - plastic bottles were hurled between the fighters respective entourages in an ugly spectacle that shone a light on the pressures of the upcoming performance. The featherweight champion from Ireland addressed the major flaw on his record by outpointing Diaz in a 25-minute slog when the seeds of five laborious months were finally sewn. He cut a relieved and justified figure afterwards, yet still the laughter has only recently resurfaced.McGregor had his audience in hysterics during a press conference alongside Alvarez, the lightweight champion who he will challenge next, in a welcome return to the fighter who first captured imaginations two years ago. His put-down of Jeremy Stephens, a fringe contender who shared the same stage, was the type of hilarious response absent from the Diaz chapter.More recently, he appeared to genuinely enjoy a public work-out at Madison Square Garden, the venue for his fight, successfully completing a free-throw of a basketball on the home turf of the New York Knicks. On Thursday, the faux-aggression displayed was akin to a WWE sketch rather than anything more threatening. Better than Rousey? Exclusive interview with Joanna Jedrzejczyk McGregor is at his best acting as a jester not a juvenile. His wit, when deployed with humour, has played havoc with opponents mind-sets heading into previous fights - on more than one occasion it could be attributed to making them act irrationally during the heat of battle.This is the same McGregor who, two years ago, reduced Diego Brandao to a ball of pent-up frustration by insightfully detailing what lay ahead. Dustin Poirier got the full brunt of McGregors comedy routine - Hes a quiet little hillbilly, I have nothing against the guy, Im sure he grew up in a circus or a fair, hes a nice little kid - before Jose Aldo was tortured verbally for nearly a year and was in disbelief when the Irishman stole his championship belt during a Dublin event. His UFC career has been horrendous. Hes very, very lucky to be in the position he is. He understands that. Conor McGregor on Eddie Alvarez Analysing Alvarezs world title win, McGregor quipped: I thought it was very sloppy. The shot selection was very, very poor. He got blessed. He got blessed with a lucky shot. His UFC career has been horrendous. Hes very, very lucky to be in the position he is. He understands that.McGregor first caught the imagination of the wider sports world for boldly describing the downfalls of established champions, mixing a tongue-in-cheek assessment their skills with hilarity-inducing rants that less articulate opponents simply couldnt respond to. Losing briefly muted him but rediscovering his shtick is troublesome for Alvarez.McGregor, with designer sunglasses hiding his poker face, has returned to the casino as the high-stakes gambler that he is. He looks revitalised by the fresh challenge of Alvarez, whose wrestling acumen could well prove to be a flush hand. Defeat would undo much of McGregors brash talking but thats exactly how hes excelled in the past. Watch Conor McGregor clash with Eddie Alvarez at their press conference Also See: Joanna Jedrzejczyk exclusive McGregor: Im not just talk Alvarez: Ill make McGregor quit Bones Jones banned for a year Custom Milwaukee Bucks Jerseys . "Hes going to have hip surgery on Jan. 7, and hell be expected to rehabilitate for four to six months beyond that," Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said Friday in an interview. Custom Basketball Jerseys Outlet . Aaron Harrison scored a 22 points for Kentucky (6-1), which has won four in a row following a Nov. 12 loss to current No. 1 Michigan State. Julius Randle overcame a scoreless first half and added his sixth double-double in as many games with 14 points and 10 rebounds. http://www.customjerseysbasketball.com/ . 24 Baylor in a Big 12 clash between teams trending in opposite directions. Andrew Wiggins made 10-of-12 from the foul line and scored 17 for Kansas (14-4, 5-0 Big 12), which capped a stretch of four straight games against ranked opponents unscathed. Discount Custom Basketball Jerseys .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Custom Dallas Mavericks Jerseys . -- Arizona raced out to a big lead and did not back off, hitting the accelerator instead. PITTSBURGH -- Pirates rookie Jameson Taillon keeps building up his innings by limiting his pitches.Taillon threw three-hit ball for eight innings and Pittsburgh got a pair of RBI from David Freese to beat the San Diego Padres 4-0.Taillon (3-2) struck out four, walked two and threw 101 pitches.Pitch efficiency continues to be first and foremost for me, manager Clint Hurdle said. Its very, very attractive. Today, he averaged just 12 pitches per inning. ... I think it was 18 out of 22 first-pitch strikes. Hes pounding the zone.Taillon has improved his two-seam fastball and is developing his changeup.Im just playing with pitch sequencing. I had my curveball early, it kind of went away for a couple innings in the middle of the game. Thats when the changeup played, he said.Taillon matched his longest outing in the majors. The Padres put only one runner in scoring position against him.Neftali Feliz got two outs in the ninth, and also gave up a single and a walk. Tony Watson posted his fourth save by striking out Jabari Blash.Josh Harrison hit a leadoff double in the first off Christian Friedrich (4-8) and scored on Freeses single.Freese hit an RBI double in the third and scored on a single by Gregory Polanco.Harrison singled home a run in the fourth.Similar to last start, just a couple bad pitches, Friedrich said. I felt pretty good, just would be happier trying to go deeper into games, obviously, and would like to knock out some of those big-run innings.Starling Marte snapped an 0-for-12 streak by getting twoo hits and scoring a run.ddddddddddddWe talked this morning to come out with some energy and get going, Freese said. We knew how hot it was going to be and knew they were going to be ready to roll. We had to step up and get it done.SIXTH MANClayton Richard will join the Padres rotation as they go with six starters beginning on Sunday. San Diego is in a stretch of 16 consecutive games and wants to use an extra starter in order to keep down the workload of Friedrich, who threw only 58 1/3 innings in 2015, and 23-year-old Luis Perdomo.TRAINERS ROOMPirates: C Francisco Cervelli did not play after leaving Wednesdays game with left wrist discomfort. Hei called the issue numbness and said it stemmed from tendinitis. Hurdle said he expects him to play sometime soon. ... 1B John Jaso missed his second straight game with general soreness stemming from a collision at home plate Tuesday.UP NEXTPadres: Paul Clemens (1-2, 4.61 ERA) will make his third straight turn in the rotation as the Padres begin a three-game series in New York against the Mets. He has not pitched more than five innings in any appearance this season.Pirates: Ivan Nova (8-6, 4.83) will make his second NL since coming over from the New York Yankees at the trade deadline as the Pirates start a three-game series at the Los Angeles Dodgers. He gave up three runs in seven innings in his first start with Pittsburgh on Sunday. ' ' '