right thumb) was placed 15-day disabled on Saturday to make room for Weaver on the roster.Cubs: After a bullpen session Friday, RHP Hector Rondon (sor

Ryan Hoffman has endorsed Kieran Foran as the type of winner the Warriors desperately need to help the NRLs most enigmatic line-up finally break their premiership duck.Foran is yet to receive the green light from the NRL to resume playing following his well-documented struggles with mental illness, but is hopeful of resurrecting his career in his native New Zealand next season.The former Kiwi international is undergoing shoulder rehab at the Warriors, with the club confident the league approves his registration - hopefully by Christmas.With Cronulla landing their maiden title in 2016, after North Queensland broke through last year, the Warriors and Gold Coast are now the only two teams in the competition without a premiership.Hoffman has personally won three with Melbourne, though two were later stripped for the Storms salary-cap breaches.With a qualified opinion, the classy back-rower believes Foran - who guided Manly to the 2011 premiership - is exactly what the Warriors need to go to the next level in 2017.Just his status in the game. Hes a bloke thats done everything - thats a winner, Hoffman told AAP at Wednesdays Auckland Nines launch in Sydney.Hes a successful player, he knows what winning looks like and he knows what it takes to win so hell be a great example for a lot of our players.Hoffman also believes Foran would be the perfect foil for the Warriors go-to man and former Golden Boot winner Shaun Johnson.Hes a premiership-winning ball-player and we lost a very, very good five-eighth in Thomas Leuluai last year, he said.To hopefully get another one like Kieran come along would put us in the right direction and take a little bit of pressure off Shaun as well.Despite their star-studded roster, the Warriors have failed to make the finals since losing to Manly in the 2011 decider and Hoffman says fans have every right to be frustrated at the sides unpredictable nature.Youd love to know the magic formula (of success). Youd probably sell it for a million dollars, he said.But its a mental thing with us. Its about making sure our head space is in the right direction.Basically for the Warriors its going to be about us being comfortable about being uncomfortable. For every person in the club, we need to make sure were working hard for the greater good of the team.With Kiwi great Stephen Kearney replacing Andrew McFadden as head coach in 2017, Hoffman is confident the Warriors can deliver.Our focus in 2017 is playing to our potential, he said.Its going to be playing the way the Warriors should and need to play and its a bit of a fresh start but a fresh start with a bit of continuity with Andrew being involved but having Steve coming in.Its been a good pre-season but the proofs going to be in the pudding come the NRL season. Custom Hockey Jerseys . After Mondays hard-fought loss, the wait seemed longer than usual. Getting set to go their separate ways for a short Christmas break, the Raptors coach credited his team for their effort on a seemingly impossible three-game road trip, urging them to build on that success when they get back to work at the end of the week. Fake Hockey Jerseys . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. https://www.fakehockeyjerseys.com/ . - The Oakland Raiders re-signed offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Friday. Cheap Hockey Jerseys China . Its an influence in football and a big part of the game. Cheap Hockey Jerseys . -- Nathan Pancel scored twice as the Sudbury Wolves defeated the North Bay Battalion 4-2 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. CHICAGO -- Following two stints in the minors this season, Randal Grichuk is back in the majors and eager to prove he belongs.Grichuk hit a grand slam that capped a six-run burst in the eighth inning and the St. Louis Cardinals stopped the Cubs 11-game winning streak, beating Chicago 8-4 Saturday.After a run-scoring wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the eighth put the Cardinals ahead 4-2, Grichuk connected.It was his second homer since being recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Thursday -- and it came on his 25th birthday, no less.I feel like a lot of people let that opportunity slip away thinking theyre going to have many more, Grichuk said. Im definitely thankful for being up here right now and getting the opportunities, and Im definitely trying to take advantage of it.Brandon Moss and Jedd Gyorko also homered for St. Louis.Addison Russell hit his 14th homer for the NL Central-leading Cubs.Alex Reyes (1-0) pitched three scoreless innings of relief to get his first major league win in his second appearance.St. Louis starter Luke Weaver gave up two runs on four hits in his major league debut. The 22-year-old was lifted for a pinch hitter after four innings and 85 pitches.Carl Edwards Jr. (0-1) allowed five runs while getting only two outs.Chicago starter Kyle Hendricks struck out 12, matching a career best, in seven innings. He gave up five hits, including two homers. His ERA rose slightly from 2.17 to 2.19.Just two bad changeups, really, two changeups up (in the strike zone), Hendricks said. That was about it. Hopefully, we could keep that winning streak going, but well start a new one tomorrow.It was 2-all in the eighth when the Cardinals loaded the bases with one out. Edwards Jr. struck out Yadier Molina with a breaking pitch in the dirt and the ball bounced off the chest of catcher Willson Contreras and rolled toward the third-base dugout, allowing Stephen Piscotty to score.Edwards then walked the next two batters to force in another run. Joe Smith relieved and Grichuk hit his slam.It means a lot, Grichuk said. Its definitely a confidence booster. In Wrigley against the Cubss, a division rival, its definitely big and, hopefully, the confidence can carry over through the rest of the season.ddddddddddddUTURE ACES?With Weaver and Reyes, 21, the Cardinals have a pair of prized pitching prospects. Manager Mike Matheny was asked if he allowed himself to think about both being in the rotation next season while watching them on Saturday.I wont deny that that hit me at some point in that game, Matheny said. I even turned to (bench coach) Dave Bell and said, `This is really impressive stuff. These kids are making a nice first statement.You probably couldnt throw them into a hotter spot than what we just threw them into. This is a tough place to pitch and watching them . not just survive, I thought they looked terrific, he said.LA STELLA UPDATEThe Cubs are awaiting a decision from INF Tommy La Stella, who was put on the inactive list earlier this week after failing to report to Triple-A Iowa following a demotion last month. La Stella returned to his home in New Jersey.Im still very optimistic about him coming back, but nothing has really abruptly changed right now, manager Joe Maddon said. I think he was very clear how he felt. I think we were very clear back to him how we felt.TRAINERS ROOMCardinals: OF Matt Holliday (broken right thumb) was placed 15-day disabled on Saturday to make room for Weaver on the roster.Cubs: After a bullpen session Friday, RHP Hector Rondon (sore triceps) reported no physical complications. Maddon said the reliever was real close to a return to the active roster ... RHP Pedro Strop, who had an arthroscopic procedure to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee on Thursday, was back in the clubhouse on Saturday walking on crutches. Hes expected to be sidelined four to six weeks.UP NEXTCubs RHP John Lackey (9-7, 3.56 ERA) pitches the finale on Sunday. Lackey, who jumped from the Cardinals to the Cubs in the offseason, is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA against St. Louis this season. RHP Mike Leake (8-9, 4.79) goes for the Cardinals. ' ' '