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BALTIMORE - Orioles third baseman Manny Machado began serving a five-game suspension Monday, nearly three weeks after Major League Baseball initially levied the sentence and five days after his appeal hearing. Machado was suspended and fined on June 10 for intentionally throwing his bat on the field during an at-bat in Baltimores game against Oakland on June 8. Machado immediately appealed the suspension, and spoke for about an hour Wednesday in an appeal hearing in Baltimore with MLB official Joe Garagiola Jr. The initial decision was upheld, meaning Machado will miss the Orioles four-game series against visiting Texas that began Monday, along with Friday nights game in Boston. "When we went in for an appeal I thought we had a good case, we had a great case," Machado said Monday afternoon. "We said what we had to say. It didnt come out how we wanted it to, but going into the appeal you know its going to be 50-50. Its something you cant control. I think we did the right thing, its a flip of the coin and we came up short. ... So now were just going to have to deal with the consequences." So will the Orioles, who will be forced to play with a 24-man roster. Chris Davis, who usually plays first base, was at third base on Monday night. "Thats the worst part about it. Were down a man," Machado said. "Obviously I dont want to put my team in that situation, especially five tough games." Machado tossed his bat in the direction of third base during a plate appearance in which Oakland reliever Fernando Abad threw successive high-and-tight pitches. After the bat went soaring, both benches emptied. Machado and Abad were ejected. Abad was fined but not suspended. "I didnt throw the bat at the pitcher. I didnt harm anybody. And Im going to get five games," Machado said. "I didnt charge the mound. I didnt get in a fight. ... This is an unfortunate event and Im going to have to deal with it." Orioles executive vice-president Dan Duquette said: "Obviously, we were disappointed. We were hoping the suspension would be reduced, and we thought there were good reasons it should have been reduced." In the opener of that series against the Athletics on June 6, Machado yelled in the face of Oaklands Josh Donaldson after the third baseman tagged him on the chest and caused him to lose his balance. Both benches emptied, but there were no ejections. "It sounded like they were giving him four games for the bat and they were also giving him an additional game for the Friday night," Duquette said. "I hadnt heard of a case where they went back and retroactively apply a suspension. ... The umpires didnt recommend any discipline; Manny stayed in the game. So that was kind of puzzling." Machado, 21, said he learned a lesson from the experience. "Dont do it again," he said. "You dont want to be in this situation. No one wants to be in it. Well just go from here and try to put this behind me and just go on playing baseball." Orioles manager Buck Showalter hoped the five-game sentence would be lowered after the appeal, but was ready to move on after the punishment remained in place. "It was surprising," Showalter said. "Were not going to dwell on it. We understand the rules and why things are in place for different reasons. There are repercussions for actions in baseball as there are in life in general. Hopefully, there will be some positive that comes out of it where Manny is concerned in the future and for all players, managers and coaches." Machado missed the first month of the 2014 season recovering from off-season knee surgery and got off to a slow start at the plate. Just before Mondays suspension, however, he had 10 hits over an eight-game span to raise his batting average 15 points to .239, and he also hit three home runs in his previous four starts. That made the timing of the suspension even tougher to take. "Definitely. It just (stinks)," he said. "I was starting to feel a little better at the plate and here they come with that bomb, five games. It was going to come. It was just about time to come. Unfortunately it came in the wrong spot, but hey, nothing you can do about it." Air Max 270 Sale Cheap . Therrien would not confirm his lineup for the game, but he did have the same line combinations practicing together for the third straight day which is usually a pretty good indication of what the lineup will be. Air Max 270 Clearance Sale . - Olympic champion Marielle Thompson accomplished her mission of defending her skicross World Cup title at Nakiska Ski Area on Saturday. http://www.cheapairmax270uk.com/ . Bjoerndalen, who had failed to win any major race for two years before Sochi, writes in a Facebook entry that he is "full of energy and inspiration" after winning the 10-kilometre sprint and mixed relay at last months Olympics. Air Max 270 Sale UK . INJURIES - Cardinals 1B Matt Adams has been put on the DL with calf tightness, resulting in some lineup shifting, with Allen Craig moving from right field to first base, so that the Cardinals could bring up top prospect Oscar Taveras, who was the No. Clearance Air Max 270 Uk . Calgary finished atop the CFL standings with a 14-4 record and earned the right to host the West Division final at McMahon Stadium on Nov.FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Once Tom Brady gets their offence rolling, the New England Patriots are tough to stop.Some of the NFLs top teams — Denver, Detroit, Cincinnati and Indianapolis — all lost to the AFC champions by at least 22 points.Now the Patriots are in the Super Bowl against the defending champion Seattle Seahawks, whose four losses were by a total of 22 points.This is an incredible defensive unit, Patriots offensive co-ordinator Josh McDaniels said. They can take the ball away from you. They can get to the quarterback. They can stop the run. It will be an incredible challenge.The Seahawks, with the NFLs best defence, could stage their second straight Super Bowl blowout, having beaten the Broncos 43-8 last year.Pretty close to the Patriots 45-7 pasting of the Colts in last Sundays AFC title game.It feels great to impose your will on a team, wide receiver Brandon LaFell said in a clubhouse filled with smiles, and thats what we did all night.The route to the Super Bowl on Feb. 1 takes the Patriots to Glendale, Arizona, where theyll try for their fourth NFL title and first in 10 years.The coaches prepare us for whatever we need to get the win, said fullback James Develin.Even if it involves him catching a 1-yard touchdown pass, his 11th reception in 37 NFL games, as he did Sunday.Or offensive tackle Nate Solder being eligible in that game to catch a 16-yard scoring pass, the first reception in his four seasons.Or having backup offensive lineman Cameron Fleming line up as an eligible receiver nearly 30 times against Indianapolis.I certainly think its been a staple of our team that when we need a play, different guys have stepped up all year long and weve been able to produce points to win games, said special teams captain Matthew Slater. Its not how you get those points. Its just having them.And theyve had plenty.In consecutive games, the Patriots beat Cincinnati 43-17 and Buffalo 37-22.After a 27-25 squeaker over the New York Jets, the runaways resumed — 51-23 over Chicago, 43-21 over Denver, 42-20 oover Indianapolis and 34-9 over Detroit.ddddddddddddIn those 20-plus point wins, the Patriots scored on their first six possessions against Chicago, three of their first four of the second half against Denver, all four of the second half against Indianapolis before running out the clock and four in a row to end the first half against Detroit.Its not realistic for us to expect to continue to blow teams out like that, or, I dont want to say blow out, but win by a large margin, Slater said after beating the Lions. I cant really put my finger on what it is. I think its a culmination of things and preparation, I think, is at the forefront of that.In the next six games, there was just one trouncing, 41-13 over Miami.That was nearly the last one — until they overcame two 14-point deficits to beat the Baltimore Ravens 35-31 in the AFC championship game.That narrow victory gave them a chance for a bigger one.The Colts were about to be crushed again.Leading 17-7 at halftime, the Patriots scored touchdowns on their first four possessions of the second half and had their eighth win of the season by at least 22 points.Wide receiver Julian Edelman credited the coaches for the teams offensive rhythm.They scheme up the plays, he said. They go with what the feel is.The high-scoring roll began with a 43-17 win over Cincinnati the week after a 41-14 drubbing by Kansas City left the Patriots at 2-2. Beating the Bengals launched them on a 7-1 run with five of those games against playoff teams.It seemed like every team was at the top of their division and playing really well. In the end, it probably served us well, coach Bill Belichick said. It was a very competitive schedule. Our guys had to prepare and work really hard every week to be ready for those challenges. They did that.Now theres just one left.There are 32 teams that started. There are two remaining, Brady said. Were trying to be the one that finishes off the season the way you want to.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '