ing when Moss hit his third grand slam of the season. "You want to cash them in with runners on base," Moss

GLASGOW -- Canadas Ryan Bester is confident a Commonwealth Games gold medal is in his future. He will just have to wait a little longer. Bester grabbed an early lead before Scotlands Darren Burnett took over and ran away with the mens singles lawn bowling final 21-9 on Friday. It was a disappointing end to the tournament for Bester, who was looking for Canadas first-ever gold at the Games in lawn bowling -- a sport also commonly referred to as lawn bowls. "I just wasnt good enough and Darren played well," said Bester. "Too many short bowls. Thats what happens but Im still quite happy with silver in Scotland." As he should be. The 29-year-old became the first Canadian to finish second in the event since W.S. MacDonald won silver at the 1934 Commonwealth Games in London. In a sport where many of the competitors are much older, Bester should have plenty more chances to climb atop the podium. "At the end silver is brilliant," said the Hanover, Ont., native. "Canada has never won gold in the lawn bowls, so thats my goal." Bester lives and plays professionally in Australia, and has picked up an accent since moving there following a bronze-medal victory at 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. Asked if he thought a gold medal will ever come his way, he simply replied with: "Eventually." "(Silver) is not too bad," he added with a smile. "I still have a few years left to try to win it." Bester led 3-0 after the three ends, but Burnett scored four in the fifth and three more in the sixth to blow the game wide open at 10-3 in front of a partisan crowd at picturesque Kelvingrove Lawn Bowls Centre. A small pocket of Canadian supporters tried to get behind their man, but Bester couldnt recover as Burnett built an insurmountable lead. "I dropped a couple short and then he got a four and a three," said Bester. "Once he got off to a big lead I was a bit chasing, which is pretty hard to do." Bester chipped away to make it 14-9 in the 15th end, but three more from Burnett in the 16th all but sealed it. The two men shook hands afterwards, with the Scottish crowd hailing the police officer who had to lobby for time off from work to be able to compete at the Games. "I came in with confidence knowing that I was going to get a medal," said the 38-year-old Burnett. "To get gold is icing on the cake. "I started most of my games with a dodgy first few ends and I wanted to come in and put Ryan under pressure. I did that and, thankfully, his hitting was slightly off today." In Fridays bronze-medal match, Australias Aron Sherriff defeated New Zealands Shannon McIlroy 21-8. Bester made his debut at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, England, at the age of 17 back in 2002, and became the first Canadian to win a world title when he took home the pairs crown two years later. Although the sport is popular in many corners of the world, Bester said it would be nice if his performance in Scotland helps get more people in Canada interested. "Hopefully people just go out and give the sport a try," said Bester, whose home club will be the site of lawn bowling when Gold Coast, Australia, hosts next Commonwealth Games in 2018. "Im sure theyll fall in love with it. "Its exactly the same as curling. Everyone loves watching that in Canada. This can be the summer-type of curling." Cheap Jordans . -- Fantasy football owners and Denver Broncos fans can rest easy: Peyton Manning is back. Cheap Jordan Shoes . She still remembers the massive roar of the home crowd when the Canadians walked out on the pitch before 47,784 fans at Commonwealth Stadium in 2002. Lang expects a similar reception for the Canadian team as the host nation at this years tournament, which begins Tuesday. http://www.cheapairjordanshoes.com/ . Beckham says "nothing has been confirmed yet, but its something I am very excited about." He adds that "Miami is something that really excites me because there is a great energy down there. Sale Jordan Shoes . -- Once again, Carlos Santana was a huge hit in Kansas City. Cheap Air Jordan Retro . At 11:06 of the first period, Neal struck Marchand with his knee when Marchand was down on the ice. Marchand remained in the game. Neal was assessed a kneeing penalty for his hit on Marchand.OAKLAND, Calif. -- A warm day helped Brandon Moss reach another milestone and it helped Jeff Samardzija enjoy even more run support. Moss hit a grand slam and the Oakland Athletics gave Samardzija more run support than he has had all season in a 13-1 victory over the Houston Astros on Thursday. "I didnt realize it went over the fence," Moss said. "I thought it was going to be a sacrifice fly. Then I saw it bounce around and was shocked. Thats not a home run at night. Being a day game, the ball carries better." Jed Lowrie had three hits and drove in a run for the As, who have the best record (63-38) in baseball and are a season-best 25 games over .500. Chris Carter hit a home run for the Astros, who fell to 2-4 since the All-Star break. Samardzija (2-1) gave up a leadoff single to Jose Altuve and then retired 10 straight before Carters 20th home run put Houston on the board. He did not walk a batter and struck out six. He retired 12 of 13 following Carters blast. Carter was the lone Astro to get past second base against Samardzija, who received a combined 13 runs of support over his final six starts with the Cubs. "I was just trying to get quick innings and not keep the defence out there very long," Samardzija said. "I wanted to keep them in hitting rhythm. When you get a lead like that, you just take a deep breath." Samardzija was 2-7 with the Cubs despite a 2.83 ERA. He entered with the third-lowest run support in the majors at 3.05 runs per outing. "Im having a lot of fun playing here," Samardzija said. "I just attacked the zone and threw a lot of fastballs." Scott Feldman (4-8) lost his straight start, lasting 5 1-3 innings. He allowed six runs and nine hits, walking five and striking out four. "He battled but at the same time they did a tremendous job of hitting with runners in scoriing position," Astros manager Bo Porter said.dddddddddddd. "Thats pretty much what was the difference in the ballgame." Feldman allowed at least six runs for just the third time this season but for the second time in three starts. He has allowed 16 runs and 27 hits over his last 17 2-3 innings. "It was a battle for him all day," Porter said. "Early in the game he really had his breaking ball working, and they started laying off and made him come back into the zone." The As were ahead 4-1 entering the sixth inning when Moss hit his third grand slam of the season. "You want to cash them in with runners on base," Moss said. "It was a situation where the guy had to make a good pitch and I hit it. I had the bases loaded in the at-bat before and ended up hitting a weak grounder to first." Stephen Vogt added a three-run double in the eighth. Josh Reddick, who had two doubles, added a sacrifice fly. Donaldson and Derek Norris, who had three hits, each drove in runs in the third. Sogard scored on a wild pitch. Crisps sacrifice fly in the fourth put the As ahead, 4-1. NOTES: RHP Jim Johnson was designated for assignment before the game, ending a short, tumultuous relationship with the As fans, who have booed him since opening day. ... As OF Yoenis Cespedes (sprained right thumb) could return to the starting lineup on Friday. ... As INF Alberto Callaspo (right hamstring strain) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment on Saturday. .. RHP Jason Hammel (0-2, 9.00) is scheduled to make his third start for the As against the Rangers in Texas on Friday. ... LHP Dallas Keuchel (9-6, 3.29) starts for the Astros at home against Miami, which begins a 10-day, 10-game homestand, the longest of the season. ... Samardzija improved to 21-3 lifetime when receiving at least three runs of support. ' ' '