Stanton in left and Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers in right. The

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The roars from the field had died away. Kauffman Stadium had fallen silent for the first time all night. In the Royals clubhouse, Alex Gordon had finally peeled off his dirt-stained jersey.He had just watched the San Francisco Giants celebrate their third World Series title in five years, capped by a 3-2 victory in Game 7 on Wednesday night. But all he could think about was whether he could have scored the tying run with two outs in the ninth inning.It was a good hold, Gordon said, eventually. Close, but just short.Summing up the Royals season along with their season finale.The Giants had taken the lead in the fourth inning, and the game amounted to a battle of bullpens. San Francisco turned to its ace, Madison Bumgarner, and he kept breezing through the Kansas City lineup, right up until Gordons two-out single to left field.The ball skipped past Gregor Blanco and reached the wall, and Gordon churned around third base and headed home. But he couldnt get a good read on where the ball was because of the lighted scoreboard in left field, so he relied on third-base coach Mike Jirschele for guidance.Jirschele said stop. Gordon put on the brakes.He was left standing 90 feet from home when Sal Perez popped out to end the game.Its tough to pick the ball up from the dugout with that board out there, Royals manager Ned Yost said. There was some hope that it might happened, but it didnt.Still, the season will be remembered for much more than how close the Royals came to forcing extra innings one more time. It will be remembered for their 12-inning wild-card win over Oakland, and sweeps of the Angels and Orioles in their first playoff appearance since 1985.It will be remembered for Yordano Venturas inspired pitching performance in Game 6. And the gutsy performances by the brilliant bullpen. It will be remembered for James Shields and Wade Davis, and the way they taught a losing clubhouse how to win.It will be remembered for waking a baseball-starved city from its slumber.The character we had in this clubhouse is what Ill remember the most, said Shields, who now becomes a free agent and will likely pitch elsewhere for next season.We battled, first baseman Eric Hosmer said. I think you saw how much heart we have.It was on display one last time in the World Series.After splitting the first two games at home, Kansas City lost two of three in San Francisco, returning to Kauffman Stadium needing a victory just to force a deciding Game 7.The Royals got it in a 10-0 rout behind Ventura, who dedicated the victory to the late Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras, his good friend who died in a car crash over the weekend.Kansas City rallied once more in the finale, falling behind 2-0 in the second inning when the Giants managed back-to-back sacrifice flies against Royals starter Jeremy Guthrie.In the bottom half, Butler laced a single up the middle, and Gordon drove in a run with a double. He later took third base on a fly out by Mike Moustakas, and then hustled home for the tying run when Omar Infante sent another flyball to centre field.Once the Giants regained the lead, though, the Royals couldnt find an answer.Obviously, we wanted to win, Gordon said, but to be in this situation with these young guys and what theyve done this post-season, Im just proud to be a part of this team.Now, the question is whether it will take them another 29 years to return.Along with the likely departure of Shields, the Royals will have to make some hard decisions with players such as Butler, who holds a pricy option for next season. But young cornerstones in Hosmer, Perez and Lorenzo Cain should provide the foundation for the next few years.You know, the organization has a special time to build on what we have here, Butler said, and thats a rare thing to have, to have this much talent in here and go into next year having the majority of that back. Not every team has that. 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The Packers, Lions and Bears were a combined 35-15 and as long as Jay Cutler can say healthy, all three could make the playoffs in 2012. Nike Air Max 97 Outlet . -- Barry Bonds is all set to return to the San Francisco Giants.NEW YORK -- Without regard to fan or player balloting, here are our selections for the 85th All-Star game July 15 at Target Field, home of the Minnesota Twins since 2010. There are 34 spots on each roster, with at least 13 reserved for pitchers. Every major league club must be represented. The deadline for fan voting was midnight Thursday. Rosters will be announced Sunday night. The winning league, which gets home-field advantage in the World Series, has won five consecutive championships. ------ American League: First Base -- Coming off consecutive MVP awards, Detroit slugger Miguel Cabrera gets the start even though Chicago rookie Jose Abreu and Torontos Edwin Encarnacion have more homers at this power-packed position. Encarnacion is listed as a designated hitter on the fan ballot, but hes played the vast majority of games at first base. Oakland bopper Brandon Moss was the toughest player to leave off the squad. Second Base -- The surprise starter is pint-sized Houston dynamo Jose Altuve. Seattles Robinson Cano and Detroits Ian Kinsler, both producing with new teams, are on the bench. Shortstop -- Yankees captain Derek Jeter takes a bow in his final season, though he hasnt done much damage at the plate. Alexei Ramirez of the White Sox beats out Kansas Citys Alcides Escobar for the backup role. Third Base -- Adrian Beltre has been a bright spot in a miserable year for banged-up Texas. He earns the starting job. Kyle Seager is enjoying a breakout season in Seattle, and Oaklands Josh Donaldson also makes it after getting snubbed a year ago. At last check, Donaldson had a big lead in fan balloting. Catcher -- Salvador Perez makes his second straight All-Star squad for Kansas City, and this time hes the starter. Kurt Suzuki represents the hometown team in his first season with the Twins. It was very difficult to deny Derek Norris of the Athletics, who has been so productive in limited at-bats. Outfield -- Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels starts in centre, with Baltimore newcomer Nelson Cruz in left and Torontos Jose Bautista in right. Cruz had a comfortable lead at DH in fan voting, but hes actually spent more time in the outfield. The reserves are Clevelands Michael Brantley, Baltimore centre fielder Adam Jones and Oaklands Yoenis Cespedes. Designated Hitter -- Victor Martinez of the Tigers has nearly as many home runs as strikeouts. Amazing. Those numbers help put him in the starting lineup over Boston stalwart David Ortiz, last years World Series MVP. Starting Pitchers -- Mariners ace Felix Hernandez gets his first All-Star start. Hes joined on the staff by Japanese right-handers Masahiro Tanaka of the Yankees and Yu Darvish of the Rangers, along with Angels first-timer Garrett Richards, reigning Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer and Tigers teammate Rick Porcello.dddddddddddd The left-handers are Torontos Mark Buehrle, Oaklands Scott Kazmir, Chicagos Chris Sale and Tampa Bays David Price. ... Ortiz and Price arent exactly chummy. Could make for an interesting clubhouse. Relievers -- Now that Mariano Rivera has retired, someone else gets a chance to anchor the bullpen. Red Sox closer Koji Uehara, Kansas Citys Greg Holland and As lefty Sean Doolittle all have what it takes. ------ National League: First Base -- Arizona slugger Paul Goldschmidt is the starter at a spot loaded with splendid hitters. Behind him are Atlantas Freddie Freeman, Chicagos Anthony Rizzo and Washingtons Adam LaRoche. Rejuvenated in Colorado, Justin Morneau serves as the DH -- giving Minnesota fans a former Twins star to cheer. Second Base -- Dodgers speedster Dee Gordon gets the nod thanks to all those stolen bases. Chase Utley returns for Philadelphia following knee problems, and steady bat Daniel Murphy represents the Mets. Shortstop -- Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies is the runaway choice, backed up by Hanley Ramirez from Los Angeles. Third Base -- Its a pair of unexpected first-timers at the hot corner in Todd Frazier from Cincinnati and reserve Anthony Rendon from Washington. Catcher -- Another surprise behind the plate, where Milwaukees Jonathan Lucroy starts over two established stars: Buster Posey of the Giants and Yadier Molina of the Cardinals. They both make the roster, but Miguel Montero of the Diamondbacks barely gets squeezed out. His numbers deserve recognition. Outfield -- NL MVP Andrew McCutchen from Pittsburgh is in centre, flanked by Miami strongman Giancarlo Stanton in left and Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers in right. The second-string unit is comprised of Brewers centre fielder Carlos Gomez, Braves slugger Justin Upton and San Franciscos Hunter Pence. Starting Pitchers -- Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright also warrants his first start in an All-Star game. The rest of the group includes Reds teammates Johnny Cueto and Alfredo Simon, Zack Greinke and Josh Beckett from the Dodgers, veteran Tim Hudson of the Giants and youngster Julio Teheran of the Braves. The left-handers are two-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers) and Madison Bumgarner (Giants). Kyle Lohse from the Brewers was the hardest omission of all. Relievers -- Francisco Rodriguez, closing again in Milwaukee, punctuates a renaissance season with his first All-Star selection in five years. Rounding out the bullpen are Atlantas Craig Kimbrel, San Diegos Huston Street and Washingtons Rafael Soriano. ' ' '