The Pittsburgh Penguins superstar was voted MVP of the b

DETROIT -- Minnesota manager Paul Molitor shrugged off any attempt to connect Terry Ryans firing with the teams punchless performance against Detroit.Im not going to put those two things together, Molitor said. It is a tough day, and I suppose you could ask every individual, but I dont think it had an impact. Once you get on the field, you just have to play.Ricky Nolasco pitched six strong innings for the Twins, but he allowed Justin Uptons homer in the second for the games only run, and Minnesota lost 1-0 to the Tigers on Monday night. Earlier in the day, the last-place Twins announced that Ryan, their general manager, had been fired.Detroits Matt Boyd (1-2) allowed three hits in six outstanding innings. He struck out seven with one walk. Three relievers finished for the Tigers, with Francisco Rodriguez pitching a hitless ninth for his 26th save in 28 chancesWeve been struggling offensively coming out of the break, and that didnt change, Molitor said. We had a lot of trouble with Boyds offspeed pitches.Nolasco (4-8) allowed one run and three hits.Uptons homer was his 200th. Although the Tigers left the bases loaded in the third, Boyd and the bullpen made their one run stand up. Monday was the longest scoreless start of the 25-year-old left-handers career. The Tigers acquired him in last years trade that sent David Price to Toronto.The only real misstep by Boyd came in the sixth, after he snagged Joe Mauers line drive up the middle. Looking pleased with himself, Boyd flipped the ball from his glove to his bare hand and then threw the ball into left field in a failed attempt to start the toss around the infield.Boyds biggest jam was in the fourth, when he got Eddie Rosario on a grounder for the third out with two on. The Twins didnt have another baserunner until Miguel Sanos one-out walk in the ninth.HONOREDThe Tigers gave tickets to some Dallas police officers who were in town for the funeral of Michael Krol, a Michigan native who was among the five officers killed earlier this month by a gunman in Dallas. The officers were shown in the crowd on the big screen at the start of the fifth inning, and fans gave them a standing ovation. There was a brief pause before the game restarted, and a couple umpires joined in the clapping.I got goosebumps. That was probably one of the coolest things Ive seen, Tigers catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia said. The whole city kind of stood up and rallied and let those guys know that we do support them. Those guys lay their lives on the line.NO KsNolasco did not strike out a batter, the first time thats happened to him since he lasted only two innings in a start July 6, 2014, against the New York Yankees.It was a weird day, not punching anyone out, but I felt really good, Nolasco said. I think the extra days coming off the break really helped me.TRAINERS ROOMTigers: LHP Daniel Norris (right oblique strain) allowed a run and five hits in four innings in a rehab start for Triple-A Toledo. Detroit manager Brad Ausmus said hes not sure if Norris will need another rehab start or not. ... RHP Warwick Saupold (right groin strain) was reinstated from the DL and optioned to Toledo.UP NEXTTwins: LHP Tommy Milone (2-2) takes the mound Tuesday night against Detroit. He allowed two runs in five innings in a win over Texas on July 10.Tigers: RHP Anibal Sanchez (5-10) tries again to turn his miserable season around. He brings a 6.75 ERA into Tuesdays matchup.---Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtrister China Jerseys Cheap . -- Sergey Tolchinksy scored his second goal of the game 3:56 into overtime as the Sault Ste. Cheap Jerseys From China . The Brazilian goalkeeper signed a loan deal with the Major League Soccer club on Friday as he looks to get playing time ahead of this summers World Cup in his home country. https://www.chinajerseyscheap.us/ . Ronaldo produced a spectacular individual performance on Tuesday, scoring all three goals and guiding Portugal into the next years World Cup in Brazil with a 3-2 victory in Sweden. The Real Madrid forward has scored 66 goals in 2013, but the last three may be the boost he needs to upstage Messi after FIFA unexpectedly extended the voting period for the Ballon dOr to Nov. Fake China Jerseys . Perez, 35, posted a 1-2 record with a 3.69 earned-run average in 19 relief appearances last season. His season ended Aug. 9 due to a torn ligament in his left elbow. Perez joins infielder Andy LaRoche and catcher Mike Nickeas with minor-league agreements for 2014 that include invitations to attend spring training. China Jerseys Stitched . In the lead up - which seemed to begin the moment Mike Geiger blew the whistle in Houston last Thursday night - the Impact rumour mill went into overdrive. The speculation went into meltdown mode, of the golden nugget variety. TORONTO -- Sidney Crosby was stewing after each of the first two periods in Game 2 of the World Cup of Hockey finals.When the final horn sounded, he was sporting an ear-to-ear smile.Crosby set up Patrice Bergerons game-tying goal with 2:53 left in the third period on a power play that paved the way for Brad Marchands short-handed goal with 43.1 seconds remaining to be the winner, lifting Canada to a 2-1 victory over Team Europe and the World Cup of Hockey title Thursday night.The Pittsburgh Penguins superstar was voted MVP of the best-on-best tournament, with a World Cup-high 10 points, just three months after winning his second Stanley Cup and earning the Conn Smythe as MVP of the playoffs.I dont have to look too far to think about how tough it was a year ago starting out the season, Crosby said. I think I appreciate this a lot.Crosby had a slow start last year in the NHL before finishing strong.Likewise, the Canadians struggled early in Game 2 before a furious and fantastic finish.Crosby was part of a scrum at the end of the first period in which his helmet was knocked off near Europes net at the end of the first period.After the second period ended, Crosby lingered on the icee to shout at Swiss defenseman Roman Josi.ddddddddddddCrosby was clearly frustrated at being kept off the scoresheet, playing with a pair of Boston Bruins, Marchand and Bergeron, who had combined for 22 points through the first five games.They were shut out through two periods. In the final period, though, each of them played a tangible part in the comeback.Crosby, as usual, led the way with his play at both ends of the rink.The player once known as Sid the Kid is now 29, playing perhaps the best hockey of a career that has always been under the microscope.Hes dealing with the big burden of carrying so much responsibility in a very calm way, said Europe coach Ralph Krueger, a Canadian, who was a consultant for coach Mike Babcock during the 2014 Olympics. I think it takes a lot of experiences to be able to settle into that. I saw him the first time at the world championships in Latvia in 2006 when he rocked the world stage for the first time.---Follow Larry Lage at www.twitter.com/larrylage and follow his work at www.bigstory.ap.org/content/larry-lage ' ' '