TEMPE, Ariz. -- Los Angeles Angels pitcher Mark Mulder tore his left Achilles tendon Saturday, cutting short his comeback and possibly bringing his career to an end. Mulder last pitched in the majors in 2008 for St. Louis. The 36-year-old left-hander was hoping to make the Angels rotation after being invited in January to spring training, but team spokesman Eric Kay said Mulder felt a pop during agility drills. Mulder will wait for the swelling to go down before surgery is scheduled. He then faces a six- to eight-month recovery, meaning his career could be over. "I can handle this," Mulder wrote on Twitter. "But seeing my son in tears when he saw me in a boot and crutches and I told him I wasnt going to pitch. That was tough." Mulder won 103 games over nine major league seasons with Oakland and St. Louis, including a 21-win season in 2001. He struggled with arm injuries and had surgery over his final two campaigns with the Cardinals, throwing his most recent major league pitch on July 9, 2008. Mulder had been working as a television analyst and was trying to make a comeback after retooling his delivery. He sounded optimistic that he would make the team when pitchers and catchers reported on Friday. "Ive worked hard and what Im doing right now is good," Mulder said. "I know its working and Im excited for the opportunity." Now, a career that was derailed by two shoulder operations could be finished for good after this injury. It was cruel and somewhat fitting for a pitcher who dominated early in his career but was sidelined for much of the latter part. Mulders best season was his second in 2001, when he went 21-8 with a 3.45 ERA while anchoring a dominant rotation with Barry Zito and Tim Hudson. He followed that up by winning 19, 15 and 17 games for Oakland the next three years and then going 16-8 for St. Louis in 2005. But his career got derailed after that. He made just 26 starts and won six games from 2006-08, posting a 7.73 ERA during that time. Wholesale Nike Shoes . The redshirt freshman finished the regular season with nearly 3,500 passing yards, and 35 touchdowns with another three on the ground while leading the Seminoles to the top of the BCS Rankings. Cheap Nike Shoes Authentic .Y. -- Mark Steenhuis scored four goals and added two assists to lead the Buffalo Bandits over the Toronto Rock 12-10 in National Lacrosse League action on Saturday. https://www.wholesalenikeshoesauthentic.com/. Irving played 10 minutes Sunday night before going to the locker room. He had two points and four assists, missing all five of his shots. The All-Star game MVP is the top scorer among Eastern Conference point guards with 21. Cheap Nike Shoes From China . After Mondays comments by Coach Claude Noel that its work first and skill second, and that more “A” games are needed, the Jets responded with a 47-shot effort. If not for terrific goaltending by Braden Holtby the Jets would have had two points in regulation. Cheap Nike Shoes For Sale . The 34-year-old averaged 10.1 points and 2.7 rebounds in 82 games played in 2013-14 with the Utah Jazz. Jefferson has averaged 14.5 points, 4.MELBOURNE, Australia -- One by one, Serena Williams is matching the feats of tennis greatest legends. Her next challenge comes at the Australian Open, which starts Monday with Williams seeking her 18th Grand Slam title -- an accomplishment that would match Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. "It would mean a lot to be on the same level as such great players," Williams said in a pre-tournament news conference Saturday, quickly adding a dash of humility. "I still have a lot of work to do. I obviously want to reach that level, but Im not there yet." "Hopefully, Ill get there," she added. The No. 1-ranked, No. 1-seeded player is entering the new season after a spectacular year. In 2013, Williams won 78 of her 82 matches including the French Open and the U.S. Open. She earned more than $12 million in prize money, a record for womens tennis. At 32, an age where most professional players are in decline, Williams is playing the best tennis of her career, says Navratilova, who predicts that Williams will win in Melbourne and go on to eclipse Steffi Grafs 22 major titles in the Open era. "If she can stay healthy, theres no doubt she can go into the 20s. The sky is the limit," Navratilova said earlier this week. In terms of Grand Slam titles, no woman playing professional tennis today comes close. In a distant second place is Williams big sister, Venus, who won seven major titles during a career that is now waning because of age, injuries and an autoimmune disease that saps her energy. Venus last Grand Slam win came at Wimbledon in 2008. No. 2 Maria Sharapova, a four-time Grand Slam winner, is coming back after playing just one post-Wimbledon match in 2013 due to hip and shoulder injuries. She sat out the last two months of the 2013 season and says she is still nursing her shoulder with "precautionary" anti-inflammatories at times. "Im happy to be back playing a Grand Slam," said Sharapova, who toree her rotator cuff in two places in 2008, requiring surgery that kept her off the tour for nearly a year.dddddddddddd. "Im happy to get myself back in form and really start well here." The player who is considered the greatest threat to Williams is No. 2 Victoria Azarenka, the two-time Australian Open defending champion. Williams has defeated Azarenka in 14 of their 17 matches -- but Azarenka has excelled more recently in Melbourne where Serena has won five titles but none since 2010. Asked why she has stumbled in Melbourne in recent years, Williams half-joked: "I just wasnt able to stay on two feet. Literally." Last year, Williams tumbled to the court in her first-round match after turning her right ankle. She was then upset in the quarterfinals by Sloane Stephens. "Ive been doing a lot of exercises for my ankles and trying to make sure that theyre pretty stabilized," said Williams. Williams got a strong start to the new season, with back-to-back wins over Sharapova and Azarenka earlier this month in Brisbane. She beat Sharapova in the semifinals and overcame Azarenka in the final. In Melbourne, Williams will only get the chance to play one of them. Azarenka and Sharapova are on the opposite side of the draw from Williams and could end up playing each other in the semifinals. Sharapovas first-round match is against Bethanie Mattek-Sands on Tuesday, when Azarenka faces Johanna Larsson of Sweden. Williams starts her Australian Open campaign Monday against Australian teenager Ashleigh Barty and has 2011 U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur and two-time Australian finalist Li Na in her half of the draw. Barty, who is 17 and ranked 153rd, is bound to have rowdy home crowd support as she steps onto centre court against the worlds top player. "Obviously theyll want Ashleigh to win, (and want) her to do well," Williams said. "Under any other circumstances. Id probably be rooting for her as well." ' ' '
