Howard refused to let the Rockets give in to fatigue.MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Los Angeles Clippers tightened their defence waiting

TORONTO – The visitors clubhouse at Fenway Park is a difficult place to hide. M.J. Stewart Buccaneers Jersey . Its cozy confines create an awkward dynamic in which players navigate their way around pillars, couches and assembled media. Its also difficult for coaches and their protégés to find a place to chat away from the watchful eyes of onlookers. Such was the case last Wednesday when young outfielder Kevin Pillar was spotted sitting with hitting coach Kevin Seitzer at the latters cramped locker stall. The discussion lasted at least 20 minutes. It was underway when the media horde went into John Gibbons office for the daily pregame briefing and hadnt finished by the time the manager had concluded his daily séance. At the time, Pillar was hitting .143 since his recall from Triple-A Buffalo. He was jumpy in the batters box and routinely going after bad pitches out of the strike zone. "I got in the cage with him, I wanted to talk to him," Pillar told TSN.ca. "I think I had two at-bats against (Felix) Doubront, someone I felt comfortable against, struck out, grounded out and those were my only two at-bats of the game and I was pretty upset that night. I knew I wanted to talk to him." Seitzer approached Pillar in the batting cage and asked him how things were going. Pillar answered truthfully and Seitzer told the 25-year-old to find him later that afternoon. Pillar went to his locker and jotted down a series of notes he wanted to pass on to his coach. "Mostly about how maybe my struggles last year carried over here a little bit," said Pillar. "When I got called up this time I felt super comfortable. I was hitting real well in Triple-A. It was that I was hitting well. I just felt comfortable; I was confident and I knew I was ready to come up here this time. I felt like I was starting that downward spiral again of being up here and feeling bad for myself and not understanding why Im not performing and why Im changing things I did down there just because Im in the big leagues." The discussion that ensued revolved around Pillars approach. He needed to get back to being aggressive early in the count. If he got the pitch he was looking for, give it a rip. Seitzer still holds the piece of paper Pillar gave him. "He told me at some point down the road were going to go back and look at it and well be able to tear it up," said Pillar. "Its been about a week since then. Hopefully its in the past." On the day after the sit down Pillar started as the Jays beat Red Sox ace Jon Lester by a score of 7-2. He went 3-for-4 with a run scored. Including that game, hes 7-for-13 (.538) with two doubles in five games. "When Im ready to hit from pitch one then I start getting my timing down, I start seeing the fastball, I start recognizing the breaking balls that are up in the zone, the good ones to hit," said Pillar. "When Im passive up there is when I start second-guessing, Im not really seeing the ball, Im swinging before I recognize what pitch it is." Pillar has been the right-handed half of an effective platoon with Anthony Gose. The two have provided offence and plus-defence in the absence of Colby Rasmus, whos been on the disabled list since May 13 with right hamstring tightness. NAVARRO PLAYING IN PAIN Dioner Navarro was back in the starting lineup less than 24 hours after suffering a bruised left index finger. He was hurt in the fifth inning of Tuesday nights win over the Rays when Jose Molinas bat smacked Navarros hand on a follow through. "I missed a few days with the quad thing and I cant be sitting here and watching the game," said Navarro. "I tested it this morning and I feel good enough and I let them know I was ready to play today." Navarro keeps a bat in his apartment and took some dry swings before coming to the ballpark. He wore a splint for the remainder of Tuesdays game, which forced him to swing the bat with the injured finger straightened out. "I just love to play, man," said Navarro. "I love to play. I kind of put myself in the situation where I want to be again, you know playing after being a back up the last three years and now Ive got this opportunity and its been such a wonderful experience being around these guys." SETBACK FOR SANTOS? Reliever Sergio Santos, on the disabled list since May 10 with a right forearm strain, wont throw from flat ground again until possibly Sunday after experiencing a problem during his Tuesday session. Santos and his skipper describe the issue differently. "It got a little tender," said manager John Gibbons. "So we backed him off a bit. Thats a little bit of a setback." "I wouldnt call it a big, big setback," said Santos. "When I got out to 110 (feet) just stepping on it a little bit, didnt hurt, wasnt painful, just backing off for a day, resting it and then throwing again." JANSSEN GETS NIGHT OFF Closer Casey Janssen has appeared in nine games in 17 days since his return from a strained oblique. He missed most of spring training with stiffness in the back of his pitching shoulder and then injured his oblique on March 28 in Montreal. With the Blue Jays winning almost everyday, hes been called upon more than expected and was feeling sore on Wednesday morning. He wasnt available for Wednesday nights game. "Just sore, general soreness," said Janssen. "Got back and ran the gauntlet a little bit here. Just going to try to steal a day here; hopefully they dont need it and anyway the guys down there can do my job anyway." This isnt the first time Janssen has been unavailable since his return. He appeared in back to back games on May 20-21 and wouldnt have pitched under any circumstance on May 22. He then appeared in the game on May 23 and wasnt available on May 24. Janssen is converted each of the eight save opportunities hes had this season. Jordan Whitehead Jersey . The outdoor event will be played on Dec. 31 between alumni of the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park, the home of the Philadelphia Phillies. Vinny Curry Jersey . After a 10-game skid, winning sure feels good. Atlantas third error in the last two innings allowed Jackie Bradley Jr. http://www.shoptheofficialbuccaneers.com/Elite-Alex-Cappa-Buccaneers-Jersey/ . -- Houstons All-Star tandem of James Harden and Dwight Howard refused to let the Rockets give in to fatigue.MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Los Angeles Clippers tightened their defence waiting for the offence to come around. The result was a second-half burst with a strong push from the reserves to lead Los Angeles to a 101-81 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday night. "I looked up at one point, and we were shooting like 28 per cent," Clippers forward Blake Griffin said. "Our defence was keeping us there, then we finally took the game over when we started hitting shots. Thats a good lesson for us." Reserves Darren Collison and Jamal Crawford scored 15 points each to lead the Clippers. Chris Paul also had 15 points and eight assists as Los Angeles snapped a two-game losing streak. Griffin added 14 points and nine rebounds, while DeAndre Jordan had 10 points and 14 boards. The performance was a reversal from the previous night when the Clippers lost 107-97 at Atlanta -- an effort coach Doc Rivers called "awful." Rivers credited Griffin and Jordan with stopping the Memphis frontline, particularly Zach Randolph, who was returning from missing two games after ingrown toenail surgery. "I thought those two guys fought hard down low," said Rivers, who recorded his 600th win. "I just thought their leadership defensively was why we won the game." Kosta Koufos led Memphis with 17 points, while Mike Conley had 16 on 6-for-8 shooting. Quincy Pondexter scored 15, and Randolph had 12 points and 12 rebounds, but made only four of his 13 shots. The Clippers shot 13 for 20 in the fourth quarter as Paul and Griffin sat on the bench, leaving the game to the backups. "The Clippers played real well defensively," Koufos said. "They established themselves early in the second half. They hit some tough shots." The Clippers trailed 42-40 at the break before outscoring Memphis 61-39 in the second half while shooting 56 per cent. Los Angeles reserves ended the night outscoring their Memphis counterparts 50-31. "That team has a lot of good players," Randolph said. "They have a lot of good bench playeers that could be starting. John Lynch Buccaneers Jersey. " As is the case when the two get together, it was chippy from the start. After meeting in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs the last two years, a rivalry has developed. Early in third, Jerryd Bayless shoved Griffin for a flagrant 1. Then Randolph started mouthing with anyone in a Clippers uniform. And the lobbying for calls from both teams led official Danny Crawford to warn the coaches he had heard enough complaining. In the meantime, the Clippers turned up the defence, enabling them to click off a 21-7 run to open the quarter for a double-digit lead. "I thought the way we responded was good," Griffin said. "There are challenges mentally and physically, and I think that was a mental challenge for us. We were mentally tough in that situation." The rally helped the Clipper outscore Memphis 24-11 in the frame and carry a 64-53 lead into the final quarter. Los Angeles connected on 10 of its first 14 shots in the fourth, continuing to build the lead to as many as 24. Several Clippers players said the frustration from games like the one at Atlanta is they believe in their ability to play good defence. "It would be one thing if we knew were werent capable of it, and we didnt have the bodies and the people to execute it, but we do," Paul said. "We have myself, young, athletic guys that know what were capable of. I may not be athletic, but I am young." NOTES: The road team has won the last five games in the series. Memphis last regular season home win over the Clippers was April 9, 2012. ... Los Angeles now holds a 36-35 edge in the all-time series. ... Memphis G Tony Allen sat out with a bruised hip suffered in the Grizzlies victory over Phoenix on Monday. ... The Clippers are on a seven-game road trip that opened with a 107-97 loss at Atlanta on Wednesday. They have one other seven-game swing in mid-January. ... Counting the first-round playoff games the last two seasons, the Grizzlies and Clippers have played 22 times since Jan. 26, 2012. 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