NEW YORK -- Brian McCann still wanted to catch, a lot. So with his options limited in the New York Yankees lineup, the seven-time All-Star gladly accepted a new opportunity in Houston.McCann waived his no-trade clause and was sent, along with $11 million, to the Astros on Thursday for a pair of young minor league pitchers.The Yankees acquired right-handers Albert Abreu and Jorge Guzman.It had to be the right fit, McCann said on a conference call. It wasnt going to be just anywhere.McCanns playing time diminished in the second half of the season as rookie Gary Sanchez emerged as a power hitter behind the plate. Sanchez hit 20 home runs in just 53 games.It was like nothing Id ever seen before. He was the best player in the game, McCann said.The 32-year-old McCann hit .242 with 20 homers and 58 RBI this year.We entered the offseason with the acquisition of a catcher as a primary focus, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said in a statement.Brian McCann is a great fit for the Astros as he is not only a good defensive catcher, he is also a left-handed hitter with proven run-producing ability, he said. His experience and his ability to impact his teammates will be a significant benefit to our team.Jason Castro made the most starts at catcher for the Astros last year, batting .210 with 11 homers and 32 RBI.Evan Gattis, known more for his slugging than his catching, also saw time at the spot.Houston and the Yankees met in the AL wild-card game in 2015. They both went 84-78 this year and missed the playoffs.Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said the trade gives the team financial flexibility for potential free agents and trades.Houston stepped up and I think all parties got what we wanted, he told reporters.McCann made 86 starts at catcher last season, his fewest since he was a rookie with Atlanta in 2005. He figured next year in New York likely would mean catching once a week, plus some platoon time as a designated hitter.I wanted to catch every day, he said. I feel like I still have a lot of good years left.McCann also likes what he sees in the Astros, praising a lot of great young pieces.I wanted to be a part of it, he said.McCann hit 24 homers in 2006 and has hit at least 18 home runs in every season since then. He has 245 career homers with 888 RBI while batting .266.This was McCanns third season in New York after signing an $85 million, five-year deal as a free agent.McCann is due $17 million in each of the next two seasons, and the Yankees will pay $5.5 million both years.The Yankees had a $15 million option for 2019 with no buyout. The option became McCanns if he had at least 1,000 plate appearances combined in 2017 and 2018, had at least 90 starts at catcher in 2018 and didnt end up that season on the disabled list.The 21-year-old Abreu was a combined 3-8 with a 3.72 ERA for two teams in Class A. The 20-year-old Guzman was a combined 3-4 with a 4.05 ERA with two rookie-level teams. Nike Shoes Australia Sale . -- Three close looks at the bucket, three misses. Cheap Nike Shoes Australia . -- Arizona raced out to a big lead and did not back off, hitting the accelerator instead. http://www.nikeshoesaustraliacheap.com/ . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Nike Shoes Australia Online . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. Cheap Nike Shoes Wholesale Free Shipping . - The Oakland Raiders re-signed offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Friday. COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The Texas A&M volleyball team made sure its five seniors were victorious in their final appearance at Reed Arena as the Aggies defeated LSU, 25-17, 25-27, 25-18, 25-22, in front of 2,604 on Thanksgiving Eve.It was the sixth consecutive home victory for the Aggies, who improved to 20-8 overall and 14-3 in Southeastern Conference matches with only a Saturday match at Auburn remaining on the regular season schedule. LSU, which had gone home triumphant in three of its last four trips to College Station, falls to 9-19 overall and 4-13 in SEC play.The Aggies set a school record for digs in an SEC match with 103, with senior defensive specialist Victoria Arenas and junior libero Amy Nettles both posting personal season highs with 25 and 24 digs, respectively. Senior setter Kaysie Shebeneck had a career-high 12 digs and also posted the second double-double of her career by adding 15 sets in two sets played. Junior starting setter Stephanie Aiple dished out 28 assists, appearing in three sets.Senior middle blocker Jazzmin Babers added a team-high four blocks to give her 549 for her career, putting her within four blocks of breaking the Texas A&M all-time career record of 552 total blocks held by Cindy Lothspeich (1994-97). Sophomore middle blocker Kaitlyn Blake had three blocks, including two block assists to give her 136 blocks assists and put her in fourth place all-time in the A&M season block assist records.The Aggies used an 11-1 run to open up a 14-5 lead in the first set. The Tigers, who were outhit, .192 to .120, got back within seven points for the second time at 22-15 before the teams began to trade points for the remainder of the frame.There were 17 ties and four lead changes in the second set, which saw LSU outhit A&M, .177 to .137, to pull off the win and even the match at a set apiece. A&M equaled its largest lead at 14-11 before LSU charged back, scoring four unanswered point to go up, 15-14. A&M tied the score seven times before retaking the lead at 23-22 following back-to-back kills by Babers. LSU got a kill coming out of a timeout to tie the score, but McGee put the Aggies at set point with a cross-court shot, which LSU unsuccessfully challenged that the ball landed wide.An A&M attack error evened the score, and the Tigers served an ace to go up, 25-24.dddddddddddd A&M called a timeout, and LSU served long when play resumed, knotting the score at 25-all. The Tigers Toni Rodriguez caromed a kill off the Aggie block to put LSU at set point for a second time, and A&M followed with an attack error to end the set.LSU held a 15-14 advantage in the third set before a dump kill by Aiple marked the start of a 5-0 run by the Aggies. A&M, which outhit LSU, .189 to .026, held the lead for the rest of the set and was ahead, 22-18, when Hans powered the ball through the seam in the LSU block to record her seventh kill of the set. Junior outside hitter Ashlie Reasor followed with a well-placed tip kill, and Hans capped the stanza with an ace.There were 13 ties and six lead changes in the fourth and final set. The Tigers had used a 3-0 run to take a 12-11 advantage, but Hans countered with a kill and an ace to put the Aggies back on top, 13-12. A&M, which hit .270 while holding LSU to a .158 hitting efficiency, took its largest lead of the frame at 19-15 following three consecutive attack errors by the Tigers. LSU would fight back and tie the score at 21- and 22-all before McGee pounded down a kill on one play and then softly tipped the ball in for a kill on the next play to put A&M at match point. McGee then teamed with Babers for a block to close out the contest.A&M outhit LSU, .192 to .128, for the match, and led in kills (63-46), assists (57-44) and digs (103-78). The Tigers led in aces (5-2) and blocks (10-7).All five A&M seniors saw action in their final appearance in front of the 12th Man at Reed Arena, including Katelyn Labhart, who was in the starting lineup as a defensive specialist and Emily Hardesty, who came off the bench to play outside hitter. The seniors were then honored in a postmatch ceremony.With the victory, Texas A&M finished 8-2 in home matches and also reached the 20-win milestone for the third consecutive year and the 17th time in 24 years under head coach Laurie Corbelli.The Aggies match at Auburn on Saturday begins at 12:30 p.m. at Auburn Arena. ' ' '