Pirate Galaxy » d stuff, Maddon said. We had a chance to

Each month, yoga coach Gwen Lawrence shows us the best poses for athletes. As always, consult a doctor before you begin any new exercise program.Whether youre a pro athlete -- or a keyboard warrior spending hours pounding away at your desk each day -- wrist care is important and makes sense. As an athlete, you need to have grip strength, be able to absorb falls and have powerful arm strength. One key to gaining those qualities is a supple wrist. If youre at your desk all day youre overdeveloping all the tiny muscles in your hands and wrists, which can then develop chronic pain.Try these wrist openers to gain freedom in your hands and wrists.Reclining seated mountainTo properly open a joint, you need to stretch surrounding joints and muscles at the same time. This pose accomplishes that for you.Keys to the pose:* Start on the floor, sitting up straight.* Place your hands on the floor behind you. Play around with the direction the fingers point according to where you feel the best stretch. Whatever you choose, be sure your hands are symmetrical to each other.* Lean back on your hands, with your palms flat and fingers spread evenly.* Inhale, lengthen your spine and push the floor away. Then exhale, open your chest and heart forward, while squeezing the shoulder blades together behind you.* Do this move for one minute of focus and breathing.Inverted tableThis move takes the reclining seated mountain to the next level. You might want to progress to this once you feel you are executing the previous pose well. You will continue to stretch the entire shoulder girdle, forearms and wrists. Then progressively add the strength element of the arms when you lift up, making it a well-rounded yoga move.Keys to the pose:* Start sitting, and place your hands on the floor behind you with your fingers spread and palms flat.* Make sure you find the optimal direction for your fingers to point for the best stretch for you. Keep your knees bent and feet flat. Distribute your weight evenly between your feet and hands.* Inhale and lift your hips off the floor, aiming to eventually lift them as high as your knees. Exhale, then lower back down.* When youre in the lift, push evenly into your hands, pushing the floor away, and gently squeezing your shoulder blades toward each other. Pause before you lower.* Do this for 1-3 minutes depending on your ability.Downward facing dogThe beauty of this pose is that you get a less direct, gently angled stretch on the wrist joint, while strengthening all the shoulder and arm muscles at the same time.Keys to the pose:* Set your hands shoulder-width apart, with palms flat and fingers spread out evenly.* Your feet should be approximately hip-width apart. For the purposes of your wrists, do this pose with bent knees.* Inhale and push the floor away, then exhale gently and drop your head down toward the mat.* Breathe and hold this pose for 30 seconds to one minute.Wrist turnsThis pose is the kingpin stretch for the wrists and should be considered as an everyday move if you are experiencing tightness and pain in the wrist joint. Approach this move slowly and mindfully, so as not to be too aggressive when you first do it.Keys to the pose:* Start on your hands and knees. Make sure your wrist joint is directly under your shoulder joint.* Stretch one wrist at a time. Turn the right wrist to the right, moving a little more each time until one day, your fingers are pointed toward your body.* Inhale, push the floor away, lengthen the neck out of your shoulders and hold for 30 seconds. Slowly come out of it and switch sides.* Do this move two times on each side.Reverse wrist openersAll the previous moves focus on a flexing stretch of the wrist joint -- this move is unique, because you will finally feel an amazing extension stretch. It might feel strange at first because its not a stretch you do or feel regularly, so approach it slowly and, before you know it, the small muscles in the wrist joint will begin to release and you will finally experience new freedom and flexibility in the wrists.Keys to the pose:* Start on your hands and knees. Bring your left wrist under your shoulders, palm facing up. Spread your fingers evenly.* Put your right hand on top of your left wrist to gently press down on the left hand.* Lean into the stretch until you reach your limit, then hold and breathe for 30 seconds to one minute.* To come out of it, lean away from the stretch and slowly release your left wrist.* Repeat the move on your right hand. Tim Heed Sharks Jersey . The Montreal Canadiens announced on Friday that the veteran forward will return to the teams line-up on Saturday night when the Habs visit the Nashville Predators. Brenden Dillon Sharks Jersey . 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OAKLAND, Calif. -- With Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester holding down the front end of the rotation, the Chicago Cubs were already in good shape to make a playoff run in the fall.Kyle Hendricks is almost certain to be a big part of that as well, especially if he keeps pitching like he has the past three months.Hendricks added to his already impressive season with another strong outing, pitching into the eighth inning for his fifth win since June to help the Cubs beat the Oakland Athletics 3-1 Sunday and complete a three-game sweep.I think he can be effective any time, Chicago manager Joe Maddon said. The gun doesnt say a big number but after those changeups and the curve ... if he elevates at 90, I promise you, and you can see the reaction of the hitters, that 90 is a lot quicker than it reads on a scoreboard.Hendricks (11-7) was dominant against an As team that lost for the eighth time in nine games, Chicagos right-hander allowed three hits over 7 1/3 innings, struck out four and retired 17 straight before Marcus Semiens one-out home run in the eighth.Hendricks lowered his ERA to 2.17, second-lowest in the majors among qualifiers behind the Dodgers Clayton Kershaw.When youre rolling like this you try to stay in that same mindset, keep doing your same work, Hendricks said. I just fell behind Semien 3-1 and said, `Here it is, and he hit it.Pedro Strop retired two batters and Aroldis Champan pitched the ninth for his third save since arriving in a trade from the New York Yankees on July 25.Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler both homered off As starter Sean Manaea (3-7). Bryants home run was his 27th this season, one more than the two-time All-Star had in 2015 when he was the NLs rookie of the year.The Cubs seventh straight win improved them to a major league-best 69-41 and marked their 10th series sweep this season. That topped their mark from a year ago, and increased their lead in the NL Central to 11 1/2 games over St. Louis.Bryant and Soler finished with two hits apiece for the Cubs. Bryant homered leading off the sixth while Soler -- who homered in the series-opener Friday after being activated from the disabled list earlier in the day -- hit his seventh home run this season leading off the seventh.ddddddddddddnthony Rizzo added an RBI double in the eighth.The As had not scored in 19 consecutive innings before Semien hit his 23rd home of the year, a towering solo shot that ended Hendricks day.We couldnt do enough offensively to put any pressure on them, Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. We needed to score more runs to give (the starters) some help.LEAVING THEM ONThe Cubs missed numerous chances to break the game open. Wilson Contreras and Javier Baez struck out to end the second after Chicago put runners on the corners. The Cubs loaded the bases with no outs in the third but failed to score, then stranded three more runners on base in the eighth. Their pitcher escaped a lot of moments but he did have really good stuff, Maddon said. We had a chance to score many more runs than we did.TRAINERS ROOMCubs: Soler handled the DH duties in all three games against the As but that will change when Chicago opens a two-game series against the Los Angeles Angels at Wrigley Field on Tuesday. Soler will be back in the outfield, most likely in left where he has started 34 games this season.Athletics: RHP Sonny Gray was placed on the disabled list with a strained right forearm. Its the second stint on the DL for Gray, who was pulled from his start against the Cubs on Saturday after only five innings. ... Chris Smith, a right-handed reliever, was called up from Triple-A Nashville to replace Gray on the roster.UP NEXTCubs: RHP John Lackey (8-7) pitches the opener against the Angels. Lackey has one win in his last two starts after a five-game losing streak.Athletics: RHP Kendall Graveman (7-7) faces the Orioles on Monday at the Coliseum. He has been Oaklands most consistent pitcher over the past two months, with six wins in his previous 12 starts. ' ' '