ERST LESEN! » final. Another former champion, Italian

SAN DIEGO - Sometime soon, a baseball will be getting a prominent spot among the trophies on Justin Verlanders mantle. Its the ball he hit up the middle for a single in the second inning Saturday night, the one that will forever shut up his teammates. Verlander had the first two hits of his career and recovered from throwing 31 pitches in the first inning to pitch seven strong innings and lead the Detroit Tigers to a 6-2 victory over the San Diego Padres on Saturday night. "It felt great. Its been a long time and I can finally get all these guys off my back ...," Verlander said. Verlander had been 0 for 26 with 15 strikeouts in his career when he stepped in against Ian Kennedy in the second inning and singled up the middle. When the ball came back to Kennedy, he tossed it to a ball boy near the Padres dugout. Home plate umpire Seth Buckminster motioned for the ball boy to throw it to the Tigers dugout. "I think the Padres and probably Ian didnt know that I had never had a hit," Verlander said. "Its been nine years in the big leagues now. They probably werent thinking about that but I sure as heck was. I was watching that ball like a hawk." The last time Verlander had a hit? "High school. Its been a long time," he said. "I guess I have no more leverage," catcher Alex Avila said. "Were all happy for him. It was fun to watch." Verlander cited a list of times when he came close to getting a hit. "I think its kind of been an anomaly that I havent had one yet," he said. "I feel like Ive probably hit five or six hard that have been caught." Verlander singled to right in the fourth, although he had to hustle to avoid being thrown out by Chris Denorfia. "I hit it pretty hard, too. It was a bang-bang play but I beat it out, thank goodness," said Verlander, who eventually scored on Torii Hunters two-run single. The sight of Verlander (1-1) on the mound at Petco Park was another reminder of how the Padres flubbed the top pick in the June 2004 amateur draft. Not wanting to pay a big signing bonus, the team passed on players such as Jered Weaver, Stephen Drew and Verlander in favour of local shortstop Matt Bush. Bush, who signed for $3 million, never reached the big leagues and had numerous off-field problems. In December 2012, he was sentenced to four years and three months in a Florida prison for a drunken driving hit-and-run crash. Verlander was taken by the Tigers with the second pick. He has thrown two no-hitters and came within two outs of a third, won the AL MVP and Cy Young Award in 2011, was voted AL Rookie of the Year in 2006 and is a six-time All-Star. Verlander allowed two runs and eight hits, struck out eight and walked one. He improved to 2-0 against the Padres, having also beaten them at Petco Park in 2008. "Hes a guy who obviously has that power arm when he needs to," San Diegos Yonder Alonso said. "He works his way into the game and if he feels like hes in trouble, hes going to attack. He made some good pitches but we just missed a lot of guys on base." The Tigers had plenty of offence one night after being held to one hit by Andrew Cashner in a 6-0 loss. Austin Jackson hit a two-run double one batter after Miguel Cabrera was intentionally walked to load the bases in the ninth; Hunter, who missed the previous two games with a bruised left knee, hit a two-run single; and Cabrera and Ian Kinsler each had an RBI double. Rajai Davis scored three runs. San Diego got its runs on Jedd Gyorkos sacrifice fly and Yasmani Grandals RBI single. Kennedy (1-2) allowed four runs and eight hits in six innings. He struck out seven and walked one. NOTES: A candidate in the Padres in-season contest to find a new public address announcer committed a big flub in the first inning. As Cabrera, the two-time AL MVP, walked to the plate, he was announced as Austin Jackson. Cabrera turned and looked up at the booth. Frank Anthony, the Padres PA announcer since Petco Park opened in 2004, was fired in January so the team could hold open tryouts as part of the 10th anniversary of Petco Park. ... The series concludes Sunday when reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (0-0, 1.20 ERA) is scheduled to face Tyson Ross (0-2, 4.35). TreQuan Smith Saints Jersey .C. -- After turning Tobacco Road into "Raleigh Top," Tennessee is headed to the round of 16. Wil Lutz Jersey . In mens doubles, Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil and American Jack Sock reached the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3), 6-4 win over Croatian Mate Pavic and Andre Sa of Brazil. http://www.saintsrookiestore.com/Saints-Bobby-Hebert-Jersey/ . QUARTERBACKS Carson Palmer (vs Colts)Last week: 30/42, 419 yards, 2 TDsWinners of their last three and now tied for the final wild card spot in the NFC, the Cardinals are worth keeping an eye on. Rickey Jackson Womens Jersey . General Manager Sam Presti said the three-time All-Star had knee swelling that would not subside, and the procedure was intended to solve the problem. He said doctors determined that a loose stitch was to blame for the swelling, that Westbrooks lateral meniscus has healed properly and the procedure was successful. Marshon Lattimore Jersey . As future stars prepare to make the big leap to the professional ranks, TSNs Draft Week delivers wall-to-wall coverage of both the NHL and NBA Entry Drafts, highlighted by exclusive live coverage of both events.Paris, France (SportsNetwork.com) - Serena Williams highlighted Sundays winners in the first round of the French Open. The world No. 1 Williams began her title defense at Roland Garros with a 6-2, 6-1 win over French wild card Alize Lim on Court Chatrier. Williams was erratic at times, piling up 36 unforced errors, but the 17-time Grand Slam singles champion saved all seven break points she faced and fired 37 winners to just seven for Lim, who was making her debut in the main draw of a major. "I was a little nervous, as I always am in my first rounds. Its kind of always hard for me to shake those nerves," Williams said. The American beat Maria Sharapova last year to capture her second career French Open crown. She also won this clay-court tournament in 2002, beating older sister Venus in the final. Another former champion, Italian Francesca Schiavone, was ousted on Day 1, losing 6-3, 6-3 to Croatias Ajla Tomljanovic. Schiavone won the French Open title in 2010 and was the runner-up to Li Na the next year.dddddddddddd Third-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland advanced, defeating Chinas Shuai Zhang 6-3, 6-0 on the red clay at Stade Roland Garros. Radwanskas best result at the French Open was a spot in the quarterfinals last year. Venus, an owner of seven Grand Slam singles titles, moved into the second round after posting a 6-4, 6-1 win over 17-year-old Swiss Belinda Bencic. The 29th-seeded Venus played her 58th career match at Roland Garros, the most among active players. Other seeded winners included No. 8 Angelique Kerber of Germany, No. 14 Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain and No. 31 Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia. Romanian Monica Niculescu rallied to beat 25th-seeded Estonian Kaia Kanepi 5-7, 6-3, 6-1. American Varvara Lepchenko, Austrian Yvonne Meusburger, French wild card Claire Feuerstein, Slovakian Anna Schmiedlova, Spaniard Garbine Muguruza, Swede Johanna Larsson and Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova also moved into the second round. ' ' '