HOUSTON -- James Shields kept the Houston Astros off-balance all night. Then late in Thursdays 5-1 win, the Kansas City ace really heated up. He struck out the side in the sixth and did the same in the seventh before striking out the first batter in the eighth to make it seven in a row. Astro after Astro simply watched the pitches zip past them -- five players in that span struck out looking. Shields finished with 12 strikeouts in eight innings as the Royals completed a three-game sweep of the Astros. "He moved it around very effectively," manager Ned Yost said. "He was locking guys in, was locking up guys down and away, just had it all going." Shields (1-2) gave up one run and four hits, all singles. "We were pounding the strike zone and getting strike one and getting ahead of the hitters and thats an aggressive team over there and when you get ahead in the count and make your pitches youre successful," he said. His 12 strikeouts were his most as a Royal and the most by a Kansas City pitcher since Zack Greinke also struck out 12 on June 13, 2010, against Cincinnati. The seven straight Ks by Shields were one shy of the franchise record of eight in a row set by Blake Stein in 2001. The right-hander got back to his winning ways after seeing his nine-game road victory streak snapped in his last start at Minnesota when sloppy defence led to six unearned runs in a 7-1 loss. Scott Feldman (2-1) yielded four earned runs and nine hits in six innings. It was the first tough outing for the Astros newcomer after he had allowed just one run and seven hits combined in his first three starts. "It seems like they found a lot of holes," Feldman said. "Theyre a tough lineup, for sure." The Royals were up by two when Alcides Escobar hit a two-run double in the fourth to make it 4-0. Salvador Perez added an RBI double in the fifth. Kansas City scored 15 runs in this series after managing just five runs combined last weekend while getting swept by the Twins. The Royals got to Feldman early, with Nori Aoki hitting a leadoff double and later scoring on a groundout by Eric Hosmer. Alex Gordon, Billy Butler and Mike Moustakas hit consecutive singles to start the second to push the lead to 2-0. There were runners at second and third with one out in the fourth when Escobar sent them both home with a double to centre field. Aoki singled to begin the fifth before a one-out single by Hosmer. Perez hit a ball that diving centre fielder Dexter Fowler missed for a double that scored Aoki and pushed the lead to 5-0. Hosmer was out at home on the play. Shields allowed a pair of singles in the first inning before retiring the next 10 Astros. Houston didnt have another baserunner until Chris Carter drew a leadoff walk in the fifth. Carter advanced to third on a single by Matt Dominguez, but Dominguez was out trying to stretch it into a double. Manager Bo Porter was clearly frustrated when asked if he wishes Dominguez would have been more cautious on the play, pausing 18 seconds before answering the question. "Its just not smart, obviously," Porter said. "And sorry for taking so long to answer the question. I went and asked Matt Dominguez: Do you think youre invisible? You are down 5-0 and the ball is right in front of you. So, to answer your question, no, I dont like it. There was nothing smart about it, and next question." Carter scored on a sacrifice fly by Alex Presley to cut the lead to 5-1 later in that inning. Presleys out was the first of nine straight Astros retired by Shields, including the seven strikeouts in a row. A single by Presley came with one out in the eighth and Jonathan Villar drew a walk, but Shields ended the threat by striking out Fowler before a fly out by George Springer. NOTES: The Royals challenged a call after Presley was called safe on a grounder in the second inning. The play was overturned for the third out of the inning. ... Royals LHP Bruce Chen, who was scratched from Thursdays start a day before with a sore back, said he was feeling better on Thursday and expects to be ready to start on Saturday. ... Kansas City OF Lorenzo Cain was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a left groin strain and LHP Justin Marks was recalled from Triple-A Omaha to take his place on the roster. ... Houston selected the contract of LHP Raul Valdes from Triple-A Oklahoma City and optioned LHP Kevin Chapman there before Thursdays game. Corey Moore Jersey . Hes recovered from a scary injury and cleared to play. Mingo, who was hospitalized with a bruised lung he sustained in an Aug. Greg Mancz Jersey . Sopoaga hit the upright with his first shot at goal from 15 metres. He then kicked nine goals in succession -- two conversions and seven penalties -- before being replaced in the 62nd minute, three points short of the Highlanders record for most points in a match. http://www.nfltexansproauthentic.com/Bl ... ey-Jersey/. Although head coach Randy Carlyle jokingly wondered how much actual training Bolland got done while in London. "I dont know how much training goes on when you go back to the junior team that you played for so I wouldnt read too much into that," laughed Carlyle after the Maple Leafs were put through an up-tempo practice that concluded with a 10-minute bag skate on Thursday. Custom Houston Texans Jerseys . Maximilian Arnold put Wolfsburg ahead in the eighth minute, when the stationary Fallou Diagne allowed him to guide Patrick Ochs cross beyond the helpless Freiburg goalkeeper, and Ivica Olic doubled the lead three minutes later after Luiz Gustavo did well to set him up. Xavier Su a-Filo Jersey .Cameron sustained his third concussion in three seasons last week on a hit by Oakland safety Brandion Ross, who was fined $22,050 by the NFL for the helmet-to-helmet blow.HARRISBURG, Pa. -- A handcuffed Jerry Sandusky testified by video link for nearly three hours Tuesday about his Penn State retirement deal and ties between the university and the youth charity he founded, as a hearing began to determine if he should get retirement benefits cancelled over his child molestation conviction. Speaking from the western Pennsylvania prison where he is serving a 30- to 60-year sentence, Sandusky described how he retired from Penn State in mid-1999 to take advantage of an early retirement incentive, and then was immediately rehired on a temporary basis to coach one last season. A hearing examiner is taking evidence about the post-retirement benefits Sandusky received and the universitys connection to The Second Mile charity as part of Sanduskys appeal of the pension forfeiture. Sandusky said that after the 1999 season, he never received another paycheque or W-2 tax form from Penn State, never held himself out to be a Penn State employee and was even given a retirement party. At issue is whether he could be considered a school employee about a decade later, when he committed sex crimes against two boys that meet the states standards for forfeiture. Sandusky disputed documents that claim he received dozens of payments from Penn State after 1999. "I dont know the exact number for sure, but I know it was in the neighbourhood of three," he said. "It was far from 71." Sandusky was the only witness called by his lawyers, and the afternoon session began with a retirement system employee reading a timeline that outlined the former coachs history with the pension agency, starting when he was hired by Penn State in 1969. He lost a $4,900-a-month pension in October 2012, the day he was sentenced for 45 counts of child sexual abuse. The decision also precluded his wife, Dottie Sandusky, from collecting benefits. She attended the hearing Tuesday in Harrisburg. The State Employees Retirement System (SERS) ruled that his convictions for involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and indecent assault fell under Pennsylvanias Public Employee Pension Forfeiture Act. Sandusky had opted to participate in the state-sponsored retirement system while at Penn State, which is a "state-related" university, but he was not a state employee. At the heart of the dispute is whether Sanduskys ties to the university after his retirement, including some payments, made him a "de facto" Penn State employee while committing the crimes in question. His lawyer has argued he was not and that his employment contract was not renewed after the forfeiture law took effect in 1978 so its terms do not apply to him. Sandusky attorney Charles Benjamin has said Penn State made only six payments to Sandusky between 2000 and 2008, and three of them involved travel costs. The other three were speaking fees of $100, $300 and $1,500. In a Dec. 9 filing, Benjamin also argued that Sandusky did not fit the definition of "school employee" under the forfeiture law. "No reported case in the history of Pennsylvania jurisprudence has ever applied a de facto employee analysis to deny someone his retirement earnings, and SERS should not bow to political pressure and mob rule to deny claimant his retirement earnings," Benjamin wrote. In recent weeks, there was a dispute over the SERS witness list, which included two former Penn State administrators facing alllegations of a criminal coverup about Sandusky, former athletic director Tim Curley and former vice-president Gary Schultz.dddddddddddd A SERS lawyer said at the start of the hearing that both men asserted their Fifth Amendment rights not to testify. There is currently no trial date set for Curley and Schultz, who are being prosecuted in the Dauphin County Courthouse, about two blocks from the SERS headquarters. It likely will be several months before the hearing examiner, Michael Bangs, produces his written recommendation to the retirement system board. If the board rules against Sandusky, he may appeal to Commonwealth Court. Meanwhile, a lawsuit filed by Joe Paternos family and others against the NCAA needs the schools involvement in order for parts of it to proceed, a state judge ruled Tuesday. The 25-page opinion by Judge John Leete delivered a mixed decision by dismissing some elements, keeping others alive and leaving the door open for an amended lawsuit to be filed. Leete said breach of contract claims, however, cannot continue without Penn States participation because the school is an "indispensable party," given that the lawsuit could affect the universitys interests and contractual rights. The lawsuit seeks to void a consent decree between the NCAA and Penn State over handling of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal, an agreement that imposed a $60 million fine, a four-year ban on post-season play, a reduction in scholarships and other penalties. "If the consent decree is declared void, as plaintiffs request, Penn State would lose the benefits it bargained for, including avoiding harsher sanctions and limiting further loss that could result from a prolonged investigation," Leete wrote. He added that the NCAA had indicated earlier that the football program could be shut down if the decree was invalidated. Paterno family attorney Wick Sollers said the decision allows the critical claims in the lawsuit to go forward. The ruling will let "the bright light of legal discovery" shine on the facts and records, he said. Paterno died in 2012, weeks after the scandal erupted and he was fired as football coach. A Penn State spokesman declined to comment. "We are exceedingly pleased that the court rejected the plaintiffs effort to undo the consent decree," NCAA chief legal officer Donald Remy said in a statement. "As this was the last remaining legal challenge to the validity of the consent decree, we hope the courts decision finally brings closure to this issue and allows the Penn State community to continue to move forward under the consent decree and the athletic integrity agreement." The judge threw out a claim of interference with contractual relations but kept in place civil conspiracy and commercial disparagement elements. "Plaintiffs identified disparaging statements accusing Joe Paterno of enabling and concealing child sexual abuse and knowledge or reckless disregard with respect to their falsity," Leete wrote. He said that although the family did not meet a legal standard generally required in disparagement claims, the requirement is lifted when the disparaging statements are libelous. Leete also tossed parts of the defamation allegations, except as they apply to university trustee Alvin Clemens and two former coaches who sued, William Kenney and Jay Paterno, Joe Paternos son. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '