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Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Chicago Cubs formally ushered in another new era by introducing former Tampa Bay Rays skipper Joe Maddon as their new manager on Monday. The team also announced that Maddon agreed to a five-year contract in which financial terms were not disclosed, though ESPN reported the deal to be worth $25 million and includes incentives tied to making the postseason. The Cubs moved quickly to obtain Maddons services after the two-time American League Manager of the Year opted out of his contract with the Rays on Oct. 24, shortly after Tampa Bay general manager Andrew Friedman left the organization to become the president of baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Maddon, who guided the small-market Rays to four playoff appearances and the 2008 AL pennant over the past seven seasons, joins a long-suffering Cubs franchise that has endured five consecutive losing campaigns and last won the World Series in 1908. This is a 1-in-107 a year opportunity for me, said Maddon during Mondays press conference. The challenge is so outstanding. How could you not want to be in this seat? The Cubs future appeared bright even before the hiring of the enthusiastic and ever-optimistic Maddon, though. Chicagos present farm system is ranked among baseballs strongest and the Cubs are expected to be significant players in free agency this offseason, something Maddon never experienced during his successful nine-year run with the low-budget Rays. Those factors, coupled with Friedmans departure and the presence of Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein -- who nearly hired Maddon as the Red Sox manager in 2004 while then Bostons GM -- played a role in Maddons decision. I knew there was a lot of common ground philosophically, said Maddon. I know that the synergy between the front office and the manager is really, really important. This is a really good fit for me personally. I feel very comfortable here. The 60-year-old takes over a Cubs team that showed improvement in Rick Renterias lone season as manager, with Chicago posting a 73-89 record in 2014 after winning 66 and 61 games the previous two years. Despite those strides, Epstein informed Renteria last week of his intention to pursue Maddon and make a switch. Renteria was offered another position within the organization but predictably declined. Even though they annually operated with one of the lowest payrolls in the majors, the Rays were a consistent contender for much of Maddons reign. Lauded for his ability to work with young players and to maximize the available talent on hand, the charismatic manager guided Tampa to six consecutive winning seasons that began with the unexpected 2008 World Series run. Joe is a combination of just about everything we look for in a manager, said Epstein. Everyone associates him with new-school because theyve used analytics in Tampa and hes so open-minded and so progressive. But this is an old-school baseball guy with a wealth of knowledge. Its hard to find old- school and new-school in the same package. The Rays, who had never won over 70 games in their first 10 seasons prior to that 2008 breakthrough, also reached the playoffs in 2010, 2011 and 2013. Maddon amassed a 754-705 overall record in Tampa Bay, easily the most of any manager in club history. Munir El Haddadi Jersey .As he has so often done, the 35-year-old Cahill delivered for his country in its time of need, scoring twice in a 20-minute period after halftime. Australia, the 2011 finalists, will face either defending champion Japan or the United Arab Emirates next week for a spot in the final. Marc Bartra Jersey . -- Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston says Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher was on the money when he said that the Heisman winner might play two more years of college football. http://www.barcelonasoccerpro.com/Authe ... na-Jersey/. The Thunder knotted the series with a 92-89 overtime victory in Memphis Saturday night. It was the third overtime contest during the four games of this series. "Now its tied up 2-2," OKC head coach Scott Brooks said. Adriano Barcelona Jersey . -- The Chicago Bears have agreed to terms with safety Brock Vereen and QB David Fales on four-year contracts. Jeremy Mathieu Jersey . After a complete air swing at the net in the second set, she smiled ruefully and drew in some long, deep breathes. She netted a service return on her first match point.MINNEAPOLIS - Hours before Phoenix completed its biggest comeback of the season, coach Jeff Hornacek said the Suns needed to approach each remaining game as their last if they wanted to make the playoffs. The Suns played more desperately than Minnesota on Sunday and inched closer to the Western Conferences final playoff spot. They also delivered a serious blow to the Timberwolves fading post-season hopes. Markieff Morris scored 25 points as the Suns overcame a 22-point deficit and a near triple-double by Kevin Love to beat the Wolves 127-120 and move within a half game of eighth-place Memphis. "Weve had a few of those, havent we?" Hornacek said. "Im always proud of the way they come back at the end of games, they never give up. We were playing horribly for a half, maybe partway into the third quarter and somehow they ended up pulling that game out." While Hornacek lamented his teams tendencies to start slow, the Suns were fortunate the Wolves — who fell six games behind Phoenix — have a habit of starting strong before fading. Now the Suns are hoping the Wolves psyche can recover in time to put up big points again when they play at Memphis on Monday. Phoenix, meanwhile, continues its road trip in Atlanta. "If we want to be contenders and be in the playoffs, we got to start showing it by winning these kind of games," P.J. Tucker said. "We came out and played in the second half." Phoenixs bench outscored Minnesotas 61-20, and the Suns shot a season-high 57 per cent from the floor to overcome .......... 36 points and 14 rebounds. The Wolves All-Star forward fell an assist short of a triple double and committed a crucial turnover in the final minute. With the game tied at 118, Love lost the ball in the paint and Eric Bledsoe made a fast-break layup. Gerald Green, Bledsoe and Tucker each hit a pair of free throws in the closing seconds. "If we start out the ggame like that wed probably be up 20," Bledsoe said.dddddddddddd The Suns tied a season high by allowing 41 points in the first quarter and trailed 103-93 heading in the final period, but they outscored the Wolves 34-17 in the fourth. Minnesota, meanwhile, blew its largest lead of the season. "That was our playoffs right there, and we lost. So this one hurts a lot more than the others," a visibly frustrated Love said. The Wolves scored a season-high 73 first-half points — they needed every one of them because the Suns shot 61 per cent and still found themselves trailing by 11 at halftime. Minnesota built its early lead thanks to a 14-0 first-quarter run fueled by a balanced offence. Every Wolves player who checked in scored. But Morris shot Phoenix back into the game with 15 points in the second quarter on 6 for 8 shooting. "We shouldve won that game, plain and simple," Love said. Phoenix has won five of its last six. Bledsoe had 21 points for the Suns, Tucker had 19 and Goran Dragic 18. The Suns won for only the fifth time when trailing after three quarters. "Im so tired of doing that," Tucker said. "We get 20-25 down and its like, lets play. Its unreal." Notes: Kevin Martin had 25 points for the Wolves. . The officials hit Phoenix with four technical fouls, including one on assistant coach Mike Longabardi. . Crews scrambled to prepare the court after Target Center hosted the National Collegiate Hockey Conference championship game Saturday night. They didnt have enough time to remove the ice, so they constructed the court above it for Sundays game. . Wolves G J.J. Barea scored two points in his first game since spraining his left foot in Thursdays loss to Houston. Barea was questionable heading into the game but told coach Rick Adelman he felt better after warming up Sunday. . The Wolves have scored 30 points in the first quarter five straight games. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '