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CLEVELAND -- On his way out to the field for pregame batting practice, Jason Kipnis hung a hard right in the Indians clubhouse to give Jason Giambi a big hug. "Great to see you," Kipnis told Clevelands respected designated hitter. "You, too, little brother," Giambi said. Big G is back with the Indians. Almost. Sidelined since spring training by a fractured rib, Giambi has been cleared to play and is scheduled to be activated from the disabled list Monday, when the Indians open a four-game series with the Kansas City Royals. The 43-year-old recently played in several games in a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment at Double-A Akron, a stop that helped his swing and also brought back memories of his path to the big leagues. "Sometimes you forget the grind," Giambi said. "Its been 20 years since I was a minor leaguer." While he was with the Aeros, Giambi and teammate Michael Bourn, who was with him to rehab a strained hamstring, treated the minor leaguers to several meals and found themselves serving up advice to some of the youngsters in Clevelands system. It comes naturally to Giambi, who is still playing but may one day try his hand at managing. He was a finalist for Colorados opening before signing with the Indians before last season. "Id like to, but the universe will determine that, not me," Giambi said with a laugh at his locker. "I love the nuances of the game and being a part of that. Ive played for some of the greatest managers in the game, Tony La Russa and Joe Torre and Tito (Terry Francona) and Jim Tracy." Giambi said hes ready to play, but the Indians will wait until after the weekend. Giambi took batting practice before Fridays series opener against Toronto and looked to be himself while launching several home runs into the right-field seats. The Indians have opened 7-8 without Giambi, and Francona said his presence has been missed inside the clubhouse, dugout and on the field. "Guys know hes there," Francona said. "Shoot, I know hes there. Because G is never going to back down from anybody and that doesnt mean you have to fight or anything. But its a nice teammates to have around. He can be a settling influence. He can kick somebody in the pants. Hes a great guy to have around. "Believe me, I wouldnt say all these things if they werent true. This is how I feel." Giambi injured his rib during spring training and was placed on the DL on March 30. While he batted just .183 last season, he hit nine homers and drove in 31 runs in 186 at-bats. Giambi also provided perhaps the seasons signature moment, when he belted a pinch-hit homer in the 10th inning to beat Chicago on Sept. 24. The homer helped propel the Indians to their first playoff appearance since 2007. While some fans look only at Giambis statistics and wonder why the Indians would dedicate a roster spot to an aging, situational hitter, Francona says Giambis impact goes way beyond numbers. "G can change the game in the batters box," Francona said. "Hes not here to hit .300, that would be great. But hes here to change the game with one of his swings and he has the ability to do that." Joe Girardi Cubs Jersey . The 18-time champions, who havent won the title since 1990, moved two points behind Arsenal after the leaders were stunned 6-3 at Manchester City on Saturday. Defending champion Manchester United trails Arsenal by 10 points after winning 3-0 at Aston Villa to avoid a third successive league loss. Ernie Banks Cubs Jersey . Plata blasted a rising shot to the upper left corner for his team-leading seventh goal of the season. He got the kick after referee Allen Chapman ruled Chris Tierney fouled John Stertzer in the penalty area. https://www.cheapcubs.com/2930t-anthony-rizzo-jersey-cubs.html Jody Davis Cubs Jersey .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes hope they now have the leadership tandem in place to turn the franchise around. Derek Holland Cubs Jersey .com) - James Harden put the Houston Rockets on his back and willed them to an overtime victory on Thursday.NASHVILLE -- Geno Auriemma and Connecticut stand alone in womens college basketball, and they reached the top in unprecedented fashion. The Huskies routed Notre Dame 79-58 in the first championship game featuring undefeated teams, winning their record ninth national title. Auriemma broke a tie with Pat Summitt and Tennessee for most all-time, doing it in her backyard. Breanna Stewart, who was The Associated Press Player of the Year, scored 21 points to lead the Huskies (40-0) while Stefanie Dolson added 17 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists. Auriemma took out his senior centre with a minute left and the game well in hand with the pair embracing in a long hug. "We beat a great, great team," Auriemma said. "Notre Dame is a great team. For them to have the season they had and lose their starting centre and to do what they did, I cant say enough about their players, coaching staff and it took everything we have. I knew if we played great wed have a chance to win." The victory also meant that UConn is now the centre of the college basketball world with both the mens and womens teams winning the championship in the same year again. The mens team beat Kentucky in the title game Monday night. This pair of victories came a decade after the Huskies became the only school to accomplish the feat. "I couldnt be prouder of what the men did last night," Auriemma said. Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw congratulated the UConn coach when they shook hands after the game. "I said something like, I thought we were playing the Miami Heat for a while you guys are just that good. What a great season, you know things like that," McGraw said. "I thought ... LeBron was the only thing they were missing." While the names change at UConn, from Rebecca Lobo to Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore and now Stewart, Auriemma has been the constant, winning nine titles in only 20 seasons -- including the last two. Hes never lost in a national championship game. "Congratulations to the UConn Huskies for winning the 2014 NCAA National Championship!," Summitt said in a statement emailed to The Associated Press. "My compliments also to coach Geno Auriemma for winning his ninth national title. He has accomplished this feat in record time." It was the fifth unbeaten season for Auriemma and UConn and the first time the Huskies went 40-0 -- matching Baylor as the only schools to accomplish that feat. The victory was also Connecticuts 46th straight dating back to last seasons NCAA tournament title run. Its the third longest streak in school history -- well short of the NCAA record 90 straight they won. The loss was Notre Dames third in the title game in the past four years. Kayla McBride finished off her stellar career with 21 points to lead the Irish, who were looking for theiir first championship since 2001.dddddddddddd After proving to be no challenge for the Huskies during the first 15 years of the rivalry which began in 1995, Notre Dame had owned the series lately, winning seven of the previous nine meetings. UConn though has won the last two, eliminating Notre Dame in the Final Four last season before topping them in the championship game this year. The two former Big East rivals, who have no love lost for each other, put on a show in a game that womens basketball hoped could transcend the sport. The coaches added to the drama of the game with their verbal sparring on Monday. But it was Auriemma who got the last word again. Even with the loss, it was a spectacular season for the Irish. Notre Dame lost Skylar Diggins to graduation and changed conferences to the ACC. Neither mattered as they ran through their opponents, winning by an average of 25.6 points while taking both the conference regular season and tournament championships. The Irish lost senior Natalie Achonwa to a torn ACL in the regional final win over Baylor. Notre Dame wore warmup shirts with Achonwas nickname "Ace" below her No. 11. The team played inspired basketball in the Final Four win over Maryland where Notre Dame outrebounded the Terps by a record margin. The Irish couldnt muster a similar effort against UConn and its gigantic front line. Stewart, Dolson and Kiah Stokes dominated the interior. The Huskies outrebounded the Irish 54-31 and held them to a season-low in points. After the teams traded shots early on, Stewart -- who earned outstanding player of the tournament honours for the second straight season -- fueled a 16-0 run as the Huskies, who have played stellar defence all season, held the Irish without a point for nearly five minutes. Stewarts lay-in with 11:02 left made it 22-8. A minute later, Dolson had an acrobatic tip to Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis for another layup. The Irish stayed in the first half by hot 3-point shooting by Michaela Mabrey and Jewell Loyd. Trailing 37-25 with 4:09 left in the first half, the pair sparked a 13-6 run, hitting three 3-pointers which brought the Irish faithful to their feet. UConn led 45-38 at the half, shooting 57 per cent from the field and having 16 assists on their 21 baskets. The Huskies closed the door on any Irish comeback scoring 18 of the first 22 points in the second half to put the game away. Stewart and Dolson had 10 points during the burst. "Im probably one of the luckiest people in the coaching profession because I get to coach players like Stefanie and Bria" Hartley, Auriemma said, fighting back tears. "Yeah, I get to coach guys like that and thats why we can do what we do." Dolson had promised President Barack Obama at the White House that the Huskies would be back, and UConn delivered. ' ' '