hristenson leading the offense, the U.S. now has a true shot at the podium. Four years ago in London, the veterans of this group were on the other end of a

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto doesnt come to your job and bother you, and it seems hed like to be paid the same respect at his place of business.Playing at home against the St. Louis Cardinals, Votto briefly engaged with a Reds fan while attempting to catch a foul ball along the first-base line in the top of the seventh inning.The Reds star was prevented from catching the ball when he made contact with a fan in a Reds shirt who was also going for the ball. A displeased Votto briefly stared at the adult fan before grabbing at the Reds logo on the mans shirt, presumably underscoring that the Cincinnati fan should attempt to stay out of the way of the home teams defense.Although neither man came away with the offering off the bat of the Cardinals Stephen Piscotty, the fan did eventually get a ball -- and an apology -- from Votto.Television cameras at the game caught a glimpse of the ball, which read, in part, Thanks for being so understanding, and Votto also took time to pose with the fan.I made a mistake crossing the stands-field boundary, Votto said after the game. I misplayed it, and I took my frustration out on the fan. I felt bad about it. He apologized, but I was the one who shouldve been apologizing to him for bullying him.This was not Vottos first run-in with a fan. The veteran first baseman has taken to tweaking fans on the road by feigning throwing souvenir balls into the stands before tucking them away.Votto went 4-for-4 with an RBI and a walk in the Reds 7-5 walk-off win over St. Louis. Casey Stengel Jersey .1 million pounds ($61.2 million) on Saturday, giving the beleaguered English Premier League champions a major lift. Custom Don Mattingly Jersey . Soukalova missed only one target and completed the 15-kilometre course in 40 minutes, 32.6 seconds for both victories in this seasons individual discipline. Darya Domracheva of Belarus was second, 34. http://www.customyankeesjersey.com/custom-michael-king-jersey-large-2164i.html . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. Mike Tauchman Jersey . As he recorded his 23rd and 24th points of the evening, a segment of the sellout Air Canada Centre crowd expressed their appreciation for the Raptors point guard with a smattering of MVP chants. Tyler Wade Jersey . P.A. Parenteau scored early in the third period to help the Avs edge Toronto 2-1 on Tuesday night. Cory Sarich also scored for Colorado (3-0-0), which is off to its best ever start. RIO DE JANEIRO -- John Speraw ran along the sideline about as close as he could to actually being in the action, cheering Aaron Russell to make a save while crashing into the barrier some 20 feet behind the end line.I was willing him to get that ball, the U.S. coach said. Im into it. Its the Olympic Games.Russell didnt quite get there. Moments later, Micah Christenson pulled off a nearly identical play and kept the point going.It has taken that kind of hustle -- not to mention several heart-to-hearts -- for the semifinals-bound U.S. mens volleyball team to put itself in position for an Olympic medal.It gives me goosebumps talking about it and thinking about it because those are the plays that were all making for each other, said Christenson, one of eight U.S. first-time Olympians. Were sacrificing everything we have for each other and we can really see that, its really evident in our play. And I dont think thats ever going to stop. Those are kind of defining moments in our tournament that really help us.The fifth-ranked Americans topped second-ranked Poland 25-23, 25-22 25-20 on Wednesday, building serious momentum at Maracanazinho arena after dropping their initial two matches to Canada and Italy before stunning Brazil and finishing off France.Brazil beat Argentina 25-22, 17-25, 25-19, 25-23 and will play Russia in the semifinals Friday.The U.S. will play Italy, which beat Olympic first-timer Iran in straight sets. That included a 31-29 first set that finally ended on Italy captain Emanuele Birarellis block. The Italians beat the U.S. in four sets during pool play -- and the Americans havent lost since.We started this tournament horribly, not how we wanted to play, U.S. outside hitter Taylor Sander said. We really learned from those two mmatches.dddddddddddd Now, were playing every match like its a gold-medal match.Sitting in his hotel room a week ago, Speraw had his doubts after the 0-2 start. Then, the jitters subsided, the volleyball got far better after those team chats, and everything clicked for his young group.I had a hunch that if this team -- as young as they are and as inexperienced as they are, without tons of adversity -- if we were going to reach our very best, it was going to take some adversity within this tournament, Speraw said. I dont think any of us expected to come into this volleyball match against Poland, as good as they are and as well as they were playing, and come away with a 3-0 win. Its really remarkable. We demonstrated an incredible amount of poise.From David Lees leaping blocks and fist-pumping celebrations to high-flying kills by Sander all afternoon and steady setter Christenson leading the offense, the U.S. now has a true shot at the podium. Four years ago in London, the veterans of this group were on the other end of a quarterfinal sweep at the hands of Italy.Speraw is typically subdued. This time, he let loose on the sideline, yelling and raising his arms in triumph.He wants this as bad as we do, if not more, Christenson said. Hes a very level-headed guy, but he also has the yearning to win so much.Speraw embraced a youth movement for this four-year Olympic cycle. Hes proud of the progress made in a matter of 10 days.Were competing really hard, and thats all I can ask of these guys, Speraw said. Guys are playing with incredible fight and energy. Im beyond ecstatic were in the position to play for a medal in Rio. ' ' '