The Times from Shreveport, Louisiana • Page B4

Page 4B Times OXON HILL, Md. The champion Chicago Cubs closed their only real need, getting All- Star reliever Wade Davis. The Washington Nationals, well, they opened quite a debate by trading not one, not two, but three talented, young pitchers for outfielder Adam Eaton. Ian Desmond wound up in a new spot, reaching a $70 million agreement with Colorado, and there were a couple other lesser deals Wednesday during the last full day of the winter meetings. free agent market and the trade markets have both been a little Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said.

are picking up a little Closers Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen were still in play, and Pittsburgh trade not yet, anyway outfielder Andrew McCutchen. As expected, the Cubs completed a deal for Davis. To get a closer been dominant for the last three years, the World Series champions sent outfielder Jorge Soler to Kansas City. Davis, who finished out the win that clinched their 2015 title, moved right into the ninth-inning role Chapman held at Wrigley Field. Cubs manager Joe Maddon avoided any assessment of who was best.

Instead, he offered: just different kind of But the opinions so blurred after the NL East champion Nationals made their deal with the Chicago White Sox. Aday after missing out on White Sox ace Chris Sale, Washington traded top prospect Lucas Giolito, strong-armed Reynaldo Lopez and 2016 first- round draft pick Dane Dunning to get Eaton. Right away, Nats fans lit up Twitter, wondering why their team paid such a hefty price. Washington GM Mike Rizzo blink at swapping the trio. feel comfortable with the deal.

done a lot of deals. I like win-win he said. think the White Sox did a great job of acquiring good, potential upside players. We got ourselves a good, young skillful player that we can control at below-market values for five sea- sons. And, again, you got to give to he said.

Eaton, who turned 28 on Tuesday, batted .284 with 14 home runs and 59 RBIs, stealing 14 bases and hitting an AL-leading nine triples. He topped the majors with 18 outfield assists. see the arrow still going up with Rizzo said. Praised Nationals manager Dusty Baker: not afraid to get dirty and grimy, greasy, nasty do everything there is to beat The 22-year-old Giolito was the first-round pick in 2012. He made his big league debut in June and was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in six starts in the majors.

Lopez is also 22, and went 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA in 11 games last season. The 21-year-old Dunning was drafted out of Florida. view all three of them, actually, as having the potential to become front-end-of-the-rotation White Sox GM Rick Hahn said. still a fair amount of development with each of In other deals, San Francisco agreed to trade pitcher Chris Heston to Seattle Mariners for a player to be named, a person with knowledge of the talks told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been finalized.

Heston pitched a no-hitter in going 12-11 as a rookie in 2015, but spent most of this year in the minors. Also, the Marlins reached agreements with pitcher Jeff Locke and catcher A.J. Ellis. MLB WINTER MEETINGS Cubs get closer Davis, Nats trade 3 young pitchers for Eaton BEN WALKER ASSOCIATED PRESS AP Kansas City general manager Dayton Moore, left, and Chicago Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer, announce a trade during Major League Baseball's winter meetings in Oxon Hill, Wednesday. The World Series champion Chicago Cubs have acquired star closer Wade Davis from the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Jorge Soler.

ship in highest classification since 2004 and added an exclamation point to an amazing turnaround. After the Eagles lost to Allen (45-10) and Neville (35-16), they rattled off 12 straight wins, including a sweep of District 1-5A and playoff victories against teams (St. John Curtis, Scotlandville) that entered those games with a combined 34-1 record. tough losses against two great opponents and our kids never stopped head coach Byron Dawson said. did a great job of bouncing back from adversity.

At Evangel, the standard is the standard, and winning state Evangel allowed two touchdowns in district play and outscored its final dozen opponents 591-75. Such dominating performances against quality teams rekindle memories of some of the squads immortalized in the hallways on campus. Are the Eagles back? back is being state champions in 5A, then said Dawson, whose staff includes several former champion Eagles. proud of these guys. going to savor the favor.

We feel like a favor from God. We usually do a 24-hour rule, but probably going to do a month, two-month, three-month rule. just going to enjoy it right Pastor Denny Duron, founder, says Dawson is the football coach come across. How does Dawson feel about the comparisons to champion teams of the past? Sure, he led this group to the first state title in six years, and they certainly were dominant, but the 1998 Evangel graduate was a member of three state championship teams who combined to post a 44-1 record. tell you what; these guys are well Dawson joked.

a small, private school that plays up in the highest classification, so tough. But these guys work hard, do all the little Dawson, former two-time state shot put champion, has long preached sharpens The theory surely seemed to ring true this season. thought I was crazy playing the largest school in Texas in a $60-million stadium and then the next week playing Dawson said. games showed us our weaknesses. It was abig slice of humble Allen (14-0) and Neville (13-0) are a combined 27-0 entering this weekend.

believe about peaking at the right Dawson said. Neville will face Edna Karr in the Class 4A title game at the Dome on Saturday. What would happen if Evangel got arematch? would be a different football team that played them in Week Dawson said. Evangel quarterback Connor Curry tossed three touchdowns, rushed for another and was named the Most Outstanding Player on Friday. Although his first three seasons as a starting quarterback live up to he and his teammates stayed the course.

try to be anyone else, I just try to be Curry said. teammates had my back. you buy into a system, where success will come from. The coaches, they have so much experience and wisdom, whenever you just listen to them, they going to lead you astray. I just submit to Curry, unprovoked, finished one of answers during the postgame news conference early Saturday morning.

In regards to the start of the year, Dawson said, you win, sometimes you Curry chimed in. Evangel is poised for another great run as many of the stars of suffocating defense, like Ardarius Washington, Elijah Chatman and Davin Cotton, return in 2017. And, win or lose, the Eagles will again learn early. The Week 1 opponent? Allen. push them, we stretch Dawson said of his players.

always going to strive to be the Twitter: Evangel Continued from Page 1B career in Waldo, Arkansas, educating teenagers from a correctional facility with guards looking on. She currently teaches an ACT Prep class inhabited by several Tors Alex Scruggs, Robinson, Kelsey Smith while also serving as the in- school supervisor for The latter rarely includes members of the Haynesville High School football team. football players are the best students because coach (David) Franklin and his staff make sure they work hard every day on the field and in the Williams said. tell them to work in life like you do in football and always be When father, was running the program, put up with no according to Williams. will punish them if they talk back to a she said.

had one young man come in one day and say his legs were hurting because I had told David something he did and he was forced to run a Cora and Wilbert had two children, Kathy Williams-Johnson and Marlon, who was recruited to Grambling by the late, great Eddie Robinson following 1983 trip to the Super- dome. Rob told me if I put Marlon in his hands he would graduate and be a respectful young man. He did Williams said. Married for 52 years, Cora and Wilbert have been part of a group of volunteers who prepare meals for the team on Thursday afternoon for a number of years. Wilbert still helps weekly despite being disabled due to a war injury suffered in Kuwait.

Cora misses most Thursdays now due to choir practice at the Bethel Baptist Church, where Haynesville running back Jerious Bittle attends. That strong faith makes Cora Williams confident about what will happen following the final horn sounds at state championship game. or lose, the boys and coaches will thank God for the opportunity to play there, because I know what kind of kids we she said. Sunday morning, whatever church the boys go to, be congratulated for the performance whether they won or lost. settle down and get ready for mid-terms next week.

Because we let football interfere with Twitter: Watson Continued from Page 1B.