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COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- Two players who began their careers at opposite ends of the spectrum nearly three decades ago ended up in the same place on Sunday -- with their names etched on plaques at the Baseball Hall of Fame.For Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza, the culmination of their long journeys was tinged with tears all around.I stand up here humbled and overwhelmed, Griffey said, staring out at his family and tens of thousands of fans. I cant describe how it feels.The two became a piece of history on their special day. Griffey, the first pick of the 1987 amateur draft, became the highest pick ever inducted. Piazza, a 62nd-round pick the next year -No. 1,390 -- is the lowest pick to enter the Hall of Fame.Griffey played 22 big-league seasons with the Mariners, Reds and White Sox and was selected on a record 99.32 percent of ballots cast, an affirmation of sorts for his clean performance during baseballs so-called Steroids Era.A 13-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove Award winner in center field, Griffey hit 630 home runs, sixth all-time, and drove in 1,836 runs. He also was the American League MVP in 1997, drove in at least 100 runs in eight seasons, and won seven Silver Slugger Awards.Griffey, who fell just three votes shy of being the first unanimous selection, hit 417 of his 630 homers and won all 10 of his Gold Gloves with the Seattle Mariners. He played the first 11 seasons of his career with the Mariners and led them to the playoffs for the first two times in franchise history.Thirteen years with the Seattle Mariners, from the day I got drafted, Seattle, Washington, has been a big part of my life, Griffey said, punctuating the end of his speech by putting a baseball cap on backward as he did throughout his career.Im going to leave you with one thing. In 22 years I learned that one team will treat you the best, and thats your first team. Im damn proud to be a Seattle Mariner.Dubbed The Natural for his effortless excellence at the plate and in center field, Griffey avoided the Hall of Fame until his special weekend because he wanted his first walk through the front doors of the stately building on Main Street to be with his kids, whom he singled out one by one in his 20-minute speech.There are two misconceptions about me -- I didnt work hard and everything I did I made look easy, Griffey said. Just because I made it look easy doesnt mean that it was. You dont become a Hall of Famer by not working, but working day in and day out.Griffeys mom, Birdie, and his father, former Cincinnati Reds star Ken Sr., both cancer survivors and integral to his rise to stardom, were front and center in the first row.To my dad, who taught me how to play this game and to my mom, the strongest woman I know, Junior said. To have to be mom and dad, she was our biggest fan and our biggest critic. Shes the only woman I know that lives in one house and runs five others.Selected in the draft by the Dodgers after Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda, a close friend of Piazzaa father, Vince, put in a good word, Piazza struggled.He briefly quit the game while in the minor leagues, returned and persevered despite a heavy workload as he switched from first base to catcher and teammates criticized his erratic play.Mom and dad were foremost on his mind, too.Dad always dreamed of playing in the major leagues, said Piazza, just the second Hall of Famer depicted on his plaque wearing a Mets cap, after Tom Seaver in 1992.He could not follow that dream because of the realities of life. My fathers faith in me, often greater than my own, is the single most important factor of me being inducted into this Hall of Fame. Thank you dad. We made it, dad. The race is over. Now its time to smell the roses.Piazza played 16 years with the Dodgers, Marlins, Mets, Padres and Athletics and hit 427 home runs, including a major league record 396 as a catcher. A 12-time All-Star, Piazza won 10 Silver Slugger Awards and finished in the top five of his leagues MVP voting four times.Perhaps even more impressive, Piazza, a .308 career hitter, posted six seasons with at least 30 home runs, 100 RBI and a .300 batting average (all other catchers in baseball history combined have posted nine such seasons).Though the Dodgers gave him his start, Piazza found a home in New York when he was traded to the Mets in May 1998.Three years later, he became a hero to the hometown fans with perhaps the most notable home run of his career. His two-run shot in the eighth inning at Shea Stadium lifted the Mets to a 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves in the first sporting event played in New York after the 9/11 terror attacks.Piazza paid tribute to that moment.To witness the darkest evil of the human heart ... will be forever burned in my soul, Piazza said. But from tragedy and sorrow came bravery, love, compassion, character and eventual healing.Many of you give me praise for the two-run home run in the first game back on Sept. 21st, but the true praise belongs to police, firefighters, first responders that knew that they were going to die, but went forward anyway. I pray that we never forget their sacrifice.Attendance was estimated at around 50,000 by the Hall of Fame, tying 1999 for second-most all time. Adidas NMD Womens Pink . The parade and rally were held to celebrate the Saskatchewan Roughriders 45-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Sunday in the CFLs championship game. Adidas NMD R2 Sale . Manuel was offered a position the day he was fired. He accepted earlier this week and the team made the announcement Friday. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/ . Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan scored shootout goals, and backup goalie Cam Talbot earned his second win in two nights as the Rangers shook off a late tying tally and beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 Monday night. Adidas NMD Mens Black and White . Ibaka equaled a career high with 20 rebounds, adding four blocked shots and 15 points as the Thunder smothered the Milwaukee Bucks offence in a 92-79 victory Saturday night. Adidas NMD R1 Japan Black .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. The announcement of BCCIs upcoming season, which includes a record 13 home Tests, with much fanfare in June exuded a sense of optimism in their planning. That the Duleep Trophy, shelved in 2015-16 owing to a busy international calendar, was set to be reintroduced in a new avatar in the pink-ball format, spelt out their intention to adapt to the winds of change. The idea of playing the Ranji Trophy at neutral venues to prevent home teams from tampering with pitches to suit their strengths was seen as a move to negate the unfair advantage.Three months on, the BCCI is yet to make any headway into the domestic schedule. While they have cited the ongoing legal battles with the Lodha Committee for the delay in announcement of the fixtures, it cant be used as an excuse to draw public sympathy. ESPNcricinfo looks at all the talking points yet to be addressed with less than two weeks to go for the domestic season.Unavailability of top players for Duleep TrophyA majority of the 17-man Test squad in the West Indies is likely to be joined by MS Dhoni, the limited-overs captain, and a few others for the two T20Is against West Indies in Florida on August 27 and 28. The next rung of players, many of whom were a part of the national side for the limited-overs series in Zimbabwe in June, will be in Australia with the India A squad for the quadrangular one-day series followed by two four-day matches. That leaves the selectors with a very limited pool to choose from, which means the tournament, originally billed as the curtain raiser for Indias upcoming Test season, will lose its significance even before a ball has been bowled.Duleep Trophy formatThere is no clarity on whether it will be a three or four-team affair. Originally scheduled to involve four sides, the BCCI may have no option but to whittle it down to three teams because of non-availability of big names and the A tour of Australia. There is also confusion over allotment of venues for the tournament. Scheduled to be played across three venues, the BCCI has reportedly zeroed in on Greater Noida, although an official or final decision is yet to be made.Duleep Trophy with pink ball or red ball?During the BCCIs inaugural conclave,, which involved all its stakeholders in June, president Anurag Thakur stated emphatically that the feedback from top players would be considered before continuing their pink-ball trial.dddddddddddd With the top players set to miss the tournament, there is now a question mark over that experiment. Furthermore, India wont be hosting a day-night Test against New Zealand as things stand, with the board announcing all games to be played during the series starting at 9.30am. The board is said to have received mixed responses from players who featured in the league final conducted by the Cricket Association of Bengal.Ranji Trophy scheduleThe proposal of the cricket committee to play all Ranji Trophy matches at neutral venues have been ratified, but everything else surrounding the competition has been left hanging. The schedule, normally announced in June-July, is yet to be unveiled. There is also confusion over how the tournament will be played out.A hectic T20 schedule from January culminating with the World T20 at home in April forced the board to schedule the limited-overs tournaments - the Vijay Hazare Trophy (50-overs) and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (T20) immediately after the group stages of the Ranji Trophy in 2015-16. It remains to be seen if the BCCI will adopt the conventional method of playing the first-class tournament followed by the limited-overs matches this season, given the Indian team is expected to play just a handful of T20s at home.New teamsThe Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh, which was an Associate member of the BCCI, was given Full Member status after a Special General Meeting in February this year, paving the way for their Ranji Trophy debut in the 2016-17 season. As things stand, they are slated for an entry into Group C, which will consist of 10 teams. What of Bihar, which has received full membership following a directive from the Supreme Court? While the Bihar Cricket Association is eligible to vote in the board elections and also feature in the domestic tournament, clarity from the BCCI on the matter is still awaited. ' ' '