NEU » set, Kelly said of beating Alabama.Where many people watch

Koreas contributions to Major League Baseball have run the gamut in recent years. Jung Ho Kang, the crown jewel of transplants, is an .800 OPS anchor in the Pittsburgh Pirates order. Seattles Dae-Ho Lee flashed some power this season, with 14 home runs in 104 games. Baltimores Hyun Soo Kim hit .302 without a lot of pop, and Byung Ho Park batted .191 in 62 games with Minnesota before a demotion to the minors and season-ending wrist surgery in August. That was hardly what the Twins had in mind when they signed him to a four-year, $12.85 million contract a year ago.So who will be next on the list? The primary name on MLBs Korea radar has California roots, an outsized personality and enough of a mystery factor to suggest he could be a wild card in this winters free-agent market.His name is Eric Thames, and Toronto fans might recall him as a platoon outfielder with the Blue Jays in 2011 and 2012. After drifting from Seattle to Houston to the NC Dinos in the Korean Baseball Organization, he has lured a procession of scouts to the city of Changwon, on Koreas southeastern coast. The?San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics and Tampa Bay Rays are among the clubs that have followed Thames in Korea and expressed varying degrees of interest in him, sources said.Thames, 30, has spent the past three years putting up cartoon numbers that bring to mind the success enjoyed by Tuffy Rhodes and Wladimir Balentien in Japan. In 2015, Thames won the MVP award and a Gold Glove at first base, became the first KBO player to hit 40 homers and steal 40 bases in a season, logged a .391/.497/.790 slash line and became the first player in Korean baseball to hit for the cycle twice in the same season.This year, Thames regressed slightly, but he still hit 40 homers and logged an OPS of 1.101 for the Dinos, who lost to the Doosan Bears in the KBO final, known as the Korean Series.Now that Thames has reached the end of a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Dinos, options abound. He could return to the Dinos, although his success might have priced him out of the KBO. He could pursue a deal in Japan. Or he could plunge into the MLB free-agent market, where the left-handed power-hitting options include Michael Saunders, Colby Rasmus, Mitch Moreland, Adam Lind,?Pedro Alvarez and Brandon Moss.Is Thames an everyday option for a team in search of a power bat, or more of a platoon type? Interested major league teams arent the only ones asking that question. Four years since his last big league at-bat, Thames is curious what the future might bring.Yes, the thought has crossed my mind a few times, Thames said in a recent email to ESPN.com. Im wondering about how my new mindset could transfer over. Next year feels like light years away! Who knows where I will end up.Thames has taken a roundabout route to this point. He played high school ball at Bellarmine Prep -- a private Jesuit school in San Jose, California, that produced big leaguers Pat Burrell and Kevin Frandsen?--?and signed with Toronto as a seventh-round pick out of Pepperdine University in 2008. He was at the bottom of the 40-man roster for a 111-loss Houston team and playing winter ball in Venezuela in December 2013 when representatives for the Dinos squad approached his agents at Sosnick, Cobbe & Karon with interest.As a bearded, muscular, 6-foot-1, 220-pounder with power and an abundance of tattoos, Thames had a certain?appeal for the Dinos.They had done their homework, said Adam Karon, Thames agent. They told us they were interested because, Hes a comic book hero with a prep school education.Thames was initially skeptical about his long-term prospects in the Far East. He planned to go to Korea for a year, then return stateside. But his natural curiosity prompted him to keep an open mind. Shortly after signing with NC, Thames bought the Rosetta Stone Korean program and dove head-first into learning the language.When you look at this as just a paycheck, thats when you struggle, Thames said. The key is to enjoy the ride. Fully embrace the experience. [The] Hangul [alphabet] is pretty easy to learn, so I was able to pick it up easily. I am not fluent by any means, but speaking like a baby is better than not knowing any at all.As Thames immersed himself in the Korean culture and began clearing fences with regularity, he developed an ardent following. He patiently signed autographs for long lines of fans at Masan Stadium, and he grew accustomed to having meals interrupted by fans in search of selfies.Going anywhere with him is insane in that country, Karon said. Its like going out with the Beatles. Girls are crying and people are trying to touch him and get pictures. Ive never seen anything like it.Celebrity came with a price. In late September, Thames was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and suspended nine games. The legal limit for blood alcohol content in Korea is 0.050, considerably lower than in the U.S., and Thames registered a 0.056. He apologized and subsequently did community service as a penance.A Far East scout for an MLB club said Thames showed a strong work ethic in Korea and was popular with his teammates. The natural question is how his skills will translate to the majors. Can he adjust to higher level of competition and bigger ballparks in the majors? Thames has more of a line-drive swing than loft power. Can he catch up to 94-95 mph fastballs after feasting on 89-91 mph heaters in the KBO?Hes very aggressive at the plate and on the field, too, for that matter, the scout said. Hes a first-ball fastball hacker, boy. Hes trying to hit the ball hard. Sometime you see guys who are happy to make contact and put the ball in play. Thats not him. Hes gonna hurt somebody someday.Thames defense in the outfield was considered below-average in Toronto. He moved to first base in Korea and will most likely be viewed by MLB teams as a combination first baseman-corner outfield-DH candidate. A National League front office man said he wouldnt be surprised if teams were willing to give Thames a multiyear deal to return to the States.You have an element thats going to be skeptical, the executive said. Hes already played over here, and he wasnt a tremendous success the first time. But you have to ask yourself, Is this guy a late bloomer?Look at some of the money that Cuban players have gotten. Whats the difference here? I think somebody is going to bite, and hell get a contract for two years and $12 million, or three years and $15-18 million.Thames, who majored in integrated marketing and communications at Pepperdine, is back on the open market as a more mature, worldly player than the one who first traveled to Korea in 2014. He has embraced meditation and is a fan of Shawn Greens book, The Way of Baseball: Finding Stillness at 95 mph.I focus on the process rather than the results, Thames said. When I was younger, I just wanted to be liked by fans and wanted to be an All-Star, but there is a process to succeed at that high of a level. I believe meditation is very important. It helps keep your head above water. It helps you live in the present moment.The present finds Eric Thames open to offers and interested in seeing how much MLB teams value his achievements in Korea. After traveling roughly 6,000 miles to find himself, hes about to discover how it feels to be wanted back in the states. Fake Balenciaga For Sale . Pettersen, winner of last years Evian Championships, had nine birdies and three bogeys, holding off a series of challengers led by Marion Ricordeau of France. The second-ranked Norwegian made her season debut after missing the LPGA Tours opening event last month in the Bahamas because of a shoulder injury. Cheap Balenciaga . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. https://www.fakebalenciaga.com/ .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. Fake Balenciaga From China . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. Fake Balenciaga . The 17-year-old native of Marystown, N.L., pulled out of Skate Canada International last month in Saint John, N.B., with the same problem. OXFORD, Miss. -- The safe move would have been to run the ball on third-and-a-foot inside their own territory. Up 17-10 in the third quarter, on the road, against No. 2-ranked Alabama, no one would have blamed Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly for handing the ball off and hoping for a new set of downs. But then Eddie Jackson started cheating down into the box from his safety position. Laquon Treadwell and Quincy Adeboyejo were lined up to Kellys left, the defense was showing man-coverage and there was suddenly no longer any help over the top. Kelly couldnt pass that up. Armed with the run-pass option, he chose the latter.But then the snap shot wildly over his head. Kelly tipped it high into the night sky. Like Willie Mays on the warning track, he turned away from the line of scrimmage completely, jumped and caught the ball over his shoulder. Before his feet could touch the ground, he spun back around and in one motion fired the ball to his left just as he was tackled. It looked like pure desperation, but it wasnt. Somehow he knew that Treadwell would be there.Adeboyejo, who hadnt moved from the line of scrimmage as he watched Kelly gather himself and throw, woke up and started sprinting, following the path of the ball. He didnt see its intended target until Treadwell and defensive backs Cyrus Jones and Minkah Fitzpatrick collided. Jones got a piece of the ball, it caromed off Fitzpatricks helmet and hung there as if suspended in mid-air. Adeboyejo barely broke his stride. He caught it underhanded like a loaf of bread and kept on running past the defense, which had slowed down thinking the play was over. Ole Miss scored and went on to beat Alabama for the second year in a row, 43-37. (Watch the play again here.)Like everyone else, Javon Patterson initially thought it was a busted play. Ole Miss freshman left guard had let the pass-rush reach Kelly and said, Thats on me, thats my job. And afterward? He called it a blessing from the Lord.Chads a very, uh, energetic guy, Patterson said, so he can make plays like that.Dan Werner, from his seat high up in the press box as offensive coordinator, watched his quarterback in disbelief. He thought, Well, hes going to fall on it and were not going to get the first down. ... What in the world is he doing? ... We might get lucky on this deal and if Laquon catches it we get the first down. ... Ah, this is going to get intercepted. Finally, he said, Quincy catches it and ... Im back happy again.Werner phoned down to Kelly on the sideline. He chuckled into the receiver. That one worked out, he told him, but dont ever do that again.Nearly a year later, Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze agrees. He shouldnt have done that, he said on Monday, previewing Saturdays matchup of No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 19 Ole Miss in Oxford.And Kelly? Well, he sees things differently. Everyone he spoke to afterward, including friends and family, asked, Why throw it? His response: I mean, why not throw it, right?I was just trying to make some plays, he said. Thats part of who I am.Hows that for confidence? He doesnt like his nickname Swag Kelly, but boy does it fit. Its that bravado, that self-belief, that unflinching ability to hurl the ball downfield that allowed Ole Miss to beat the eventual national champs last year. And its the same ability he shares with his predecessor, Bo Wallace, who led a furious second-half comeback against Alabama the year before.While the rest of college football struggles to find an answer for Nick Sabans defense, Ole Miss has it figured out. Before Clemson coach Dabo Swinney famously coined the term B.Y.O.G. it was a pair of SEC quarterbacks who won with nothing but pure guts.Bo Wallace is coaching now. Two years removed from his playing days at Ole Miss, hes at home in Tennessee working as an assistant coach on his younger brothers high school football team.He watched only bits and pieces of last years Alabama-Ole Miss game, but he knows what it must have felt like for Kelly to win. Asked what he remembers most about beating the Tide in 2014, Wallace said, It was a heck of a party after the game.It wasnt his favorite win, but he knows its the one hes most known for. Its my signature win, he said.Alabama was ranked No. 3?at the time. Ole Miss was No. 11. It had been more than a decade since the Rebs had knocked off their SEC West rivals. When it was all saidd and done, the fans would rush the field, the goal posts would be carried out of the stadium and pop star Katy Perry would be seen in a few local bars soaking in the celebration.ddddddddddddWallace wasnt surprised by the outcome. He said he honestly thought their receivers were better than Alabamas defensive backs. Whereas most teams play it conservative against Sabans defense, their plan was to attack and try to move the ball downfield. Trailing 14-3 in the third quarter, Wallace stepped on the gas. First he found tight end Evan Engram down the middle for a big gain. Then he threw into tight coverage, a back-shoulder pass to Treadwell in the red zone that went for a touchdown.Alabamas DBs were too well coached to let anything get behind them, Wallace said. But then in the fourth quarter, Wallace looked off a safety, saw him bite toward the line of scrimmage and fired the ball over the top to Vince Sanders for the score. Werner said that most quarterbacks would have hit the check down, but not Wallace, who earned the nickname Dr. Bo for his often sporadic but never insecure style of play.Like Kelly, Wallace was a quarterback with a big arm and good legs. The two went to the same junior college, East Mississippi. And when Kelly was looking at Ole Miss as a recruit, it was Wallace who hosted him on his visit.More importantly, though, theyre both tough as nails.His competitive makeup is something you dont see in a lot of quarterbacks, Wallace said of Kelly.Dan Werner doesnt coach fear.Ole Miss veteran offensive coordinator doesnt even say the word interception in his quarterback meeting room. Instead, he talks about going through the progressions and taking the shot if its there.I dont want negative thoughts, he explained. Instead of telling them what I dont want them to do, I tell them what I do want to do.The end result is a confident quarterback.Since 2014, Ole Miss ranks seventh among Power 5 schools in completions of 20 or more yards. At the same time, the Rebs interception-per-attemmpt ratio is the 14th highest among Power 5 teams at 3.3 percent.The big thing is for a quarterback to feel like his coach is confident in him and trusts him, Wallace said, and if I make one mistake, let me go out and still sling it around.I think thats huge and something that Hugh is going to let Chad do. You saw it against Florida State.Its true. After Kelly fired off four first-half touchdown passes against the Seminoles, he went into a slump. He wound up with three picks. But Ole Miss kept passing and Kelly hit Van Jefferson for a 20-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter that made it a one-score game. The Rebs lost, but Kellys belief wasnt shaken.Its that same belief that gives Ole Miss a glimmer of hope against an Alabama team thats once again ranked No. 1 in the nation. The Tide defense, with pass-rushers like Tim Williams and Jonathan Allen, is downright menacing. But Kelly isnt scared. He and Wallace are two of only five quarterbacks to throw for three touchdowns and no interceptions against a Saban-coached Alabama defense. Why not do it again?Its a mindset, Kelly said of beating Alabama.Where many people watched Alabamas season-opening 52-6 win against USC and saw dominance on the part of the Tide, Kelly saw opportunity. USC was moving the ball downfield early and then slowed up, Kelly said. He wasnt sure why.They play a lot of man coverage and I feel confident in our wide receivers that they can beat man coverage, he said. Thats why theyre here. Thats their job.Theres that confidence again. Listening to Kelly and Wallace, its all so matter-of-fact. The mystique around Alabama disappears. Theyve beaten them twice, so they know theyre human.And, truth be told, that belief is what it takes.Werner said that dinking and dunking the ball against Alabama is playing right into their hands. Taking shots downfield is a must for Kelly. If theres a receiver in single coverage deep, Werner said, Throw it.Hes got the same attitude that most good quarterbacks have, Werner said of Kelly. Which is: Put the ball in my hands and let me make some plays. Its not like hes thinking: Man, these guys are really good and I cant do this and I cant do that. Hes trying to find the positive. ' ' '