Arizona general manager Steve Keim did not want to look

TEMPE Ugo Amadi Jersey , Ariz. (AP) — at tape of Kyler Murray. The Cardinals traded up in last year’s draft to take Josh Rosen, so it’s not like they needed another quarterback.Ever diligent, Keim forced himself to watch the reigning Heisman Trophy winner.What he saw made it impossible to look away.“The more and more we dug in, the more it became crystal clear Kyler Murray was the pick,” Keim said Thursday night after the Cardinals took Murray with the No. 1 overall pick of the draft. “I’ve been doing this 20 years and I’ve seen guys who can throw like him, guys who can run it like him. I can tell you I’ve never seen the combination he brings to the table.”The Cardinals appeared to have their quarterback of the future in last year’s draft, when they moved up five spots to take Rosen out of UCLA at No. 10 overall.Rosen had an up-and-down rookie season, throwing for 2,278 yards and 11 touchdowns with 14 interceptions, but there was no indication Arizona would be seeking a new quarterback anytime soon.The hiring of former Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury during the offseason helped change the dynamic in Arizona.Kingsbury’s wide-open offense put up prodigious numbers in Lubbock and twice produced the national leader in passing yards.The 39-year-old coach has brought his pass-first offense to the desert and Murray seems to be the perfect fit to run it. Kingsbury even recruited Murray to Texas A&M when he was the offensive coordinator there in 2012 and the two have known each other since the quarterback was 15.“He’s a dynamic talent and I don’t know anybody has seen that combination as a runner and passer,” Kingsbury said. “To be able to start as a pocket passer, throw from different arm angles, throw with touch then take it 80 (yards) on any snap. I’m excited.”Though small for a quarterback at 5-foot-10, Murray is strong-armed and shifty, with an ability to feel pressure and avoid big hits. He threw for 4 Dwayne Haskins Jersey ,361 yards and 42 touchdowns with 11 interceptions at Oklahoma last season, adding 1,001 yards and 12 more touchdowns on the ground.A backup to Baker Mayfield in 2017, he followed in the footsteps of his former teammate by winning the Heisman Trophy and being taken with the No. 1 overall pick a year later. Mayfield, now with the Cleveland Browns, quickly congratulated his successor in Norman.“I feel we can be very dangerous,” Murray said. “He’s one of the best in the world at calling plays. I can’t wait to get up there with him. It’s been a long time coming and I hope he feels the same.”The Cardinals had been on the clock for three months, yet seemed to have a hard time deciding what to do with the fourth No. 1 overall pick in franchise history.Murray’s decision to play football instead of baseball added a layer of intrigue, even with Rosen on the roster.Arizona’s brass said it was still undecided days before the draft, leaving fans and media wondering if they would take Murray, pick a defensive player or trade down and get more value.It ended up being Murray, giving the Cardinals two top-10 quarterbacks.Keim said he received calls about trading for the No. 1 pick and for Rosen, but none were enough to move the needle toward making a deal.“Bottom line, Josh is a really good football player and we’re not going to get into the business of letting good football players just walk out of here,” he said. “You can’t have enough good depth. Needs constantly change and needs could change at that position. We know we’ve got a very good player in Josh Rosen.”
If the Houston Astros are heading into a two-game series against rival Texas with the idea that they’ll be able to push around the rebuilding Rangers and get back on track after three straight losses D.K. Metcalf Jersey , maybe it’s time to think again.

The Astros will send struggling left-hander Dallas Keuchel (4-8, 4.22 ERA) to the mound in the first game of the series on Tuesday at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Texas will counter with right-hander Austin Bibens-Dirkx (1-1, 3.57).

Houston lost three straight games in Tampa Bay last weekend, including a 3-2 setback on Sunday, and dropped its first series since May 28-30 at Yankee Stadium.

The Astros were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position on Sunday and 0-for-14 in the series. Houston managed just seven runs in the four-game series — all on homers, including two solo shots Sunday by Evan Gattis.

It was the Astros’ fewest runs in a four-game series on the road since they scored five at Tropicana Field against the Rays in 2014.

“We didn’t do enough to win the game or the series,” Astros manager AJ Hinch told mlb.com. “We made some mental errors, we had some big moments that they executed some pitches. One-run games, a couple of losses this series, are tough to swallow. We’ll take it to the next city, but this one sucks.”

The Rangers, meanwhile, have been as hot as the triple-digit temperatures in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Texas is 12-6 since the Astros swept a four-game series from them in Arlington on June 7-10 and have won a season-best five straight series, including taking two of three games last weekend at home against the White Sox.

Texas ended that series with a 10-5 loss on Sunday in which ace starter Cole Hamels struggled, allowing a season-high seven earned runs and nine hits http://www.seahawksauthorizedshops.com/authentic-cody-barton-jersey , which matched his high for the year.

Hamels, who has been the constant subject of trade talks for the past month, said afterward that he was blocking out that talk and it had no effect on his performance.

“It’s not a big deal. It’s out of my control,” Hamels said. “I have to go and pitch, and hopefully that’ll be the last time I have to answer that question.”

Keuchel took a no-decision in his last start on June 27 against Toronto, allowing six runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings of the Astros’ 7-6 comeback victory. He surrendered five runs in the first inning before settling in to pitch five scoreless innings.

Keuchel, the 2015 AL Cy Young Award winner and a 2-time All-Star (2015, 2017), will make his 18th start of the season and third against the Rangers this year. He is 9-9 with a 4.03 ERA in 25 career games, all starts, against Texas and is 1-1 with a 4.15 ERA in 17 1/3 innings versus the Rangers in 2018.

Keuchel has not been as successful this season as over the past four seasons but he’s still inducing a high ground ball rate and soft contact. He leads the AL in groundball to fly-ball ratio (2.64), while ranking third in soft contact percentage (23.1 percent).

Bibens-Dirkx will make his fifth start of the season and his first start against the Astros. He’s coming off a no-decision against the San Diego Padres on Tuesday, when he allowed two hits and struck out six in five scoreless innings in a game that San Diego won 3-2. Bibens-Dirkx is 0-1 with a 3.18 ERA at home this season.

Bibens-Dirkx was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock before his June 20 start against Kansas City for his second stint with Texas in 2018. He will be working on regular four days’ rest; the Rangers are 2-2 in his four starts this season.