CHICAGO -- Manny being Manny has been a positive so far for the Chicago Cubs. Jon Ryan Jersey . President of baseball operations Theo Epstein praised Manny Ramirez on Friday for his work with the Cubs minor leaguers in Arizona, and said the former major league star could join Triple-A Iowa next week. Ramirez signed a minor league deal in May and reported to the teams facility in Mesa to get some at-bats in extended spring training. When Ramirez moves to Iowa, he will be a player-coach for Chicagos top farm club. "Ive gotten unsolicited emails and texts from a lot of the staff down there saying that hes been a breath of fresh air and the best thing that ever happened to the kids down in Mesa," Epstein said before the Cubs 6-3 victory against the Pittsburgh Pirates. "So Im really pleased with the impact hes making on the organization. "Probably sometime next week that hes ready to go to Iowa, but were not in a rush because hes making an impact with the young kids down there who are getting their first taste of pro ball as well as guys like Jorge Soler, who are there rehabbing. Mannys been a really nice influence so far." The 42-year-old Ramirez is a .312 hitter with 555 home runs in 2,302 games covering 19 major league seasons. But the Cubs brought him in to serve as a mentor for some of their young players and insist he is not a candidate for a promotion to the major league club. The addition of Ramirez was a bit of a gamble for Epstein, who was the general manager in Boston when the enigmatic slugger helped the Red Sox win the World Series in 2004 and 2007. Ramirez was suspended for 50 games in 2009 while with the Los Angeles Dodgers after testing positive for a banned drug. He retired in April 2011 instead of serving a 100-game ban for a second positive test while with Tampa Bay, but later agreed to a reduced 50-game suspension and played in the minors for Oakland in 2012. He also has been criticized in the past for lackadaisical play, but Epstein thinks he can be a valuable teacher for Chicagos rich minor league system. "Hes been meeting with the young kids there daily, pulling them aside, talking about hitting, talking about not making some of the same mistakes that he made off the field, really keeping them focused on working hard and having a passion for the game and doing things the right way," Epstein said. When Ramirez gets to Iowa, he will get a chance to work one of the majors best prospects in third baseman Kris Bryant. The No. 2 overall selection in last years draft hit .355 with 20 homers in 68 games with Double-A Tennessee, and then belted a two-run shot in his debut with Iowa on Thursday night. The promotion to Triple-A means Bryant is just one step away from joining the Cubs, but Epstein made it sound as if that would be next season at the earliest. "I dont forsee a scenario where hed be up this year," he said. "I dont think its the right thing to do for someone in his first full professional season, barring extraordinary circumstances both in respect to the player and whats going on at the big league club." Epstein also is pleased with what he has seen so far from this years first-round pick, Kyle Schwarber. The No. 4 overall selection from Indiana University was quickly promoted from Chicagos short-season Class A affiliate in Boise, Idaho, to Single-A Kane County. There is some question about whether Schwarber will play catcher or left field in the pros, but it looks as if that decision can wait for now. "We decided this year, his first exposure to pro ball, were going to have him see a lot of time in left field, let him catch about once a week, maybe twice a week, so he can stay fresh with his catching, DH some so that he can keep his bat in the lineup when he needs a day off," Epstein said. "Then were going to sit down at the end of the minor league season and see whether its an appropriate time to make a call." Luke Joeckel Jersey .com) - The Vancouver Canucks hope an upcoming stretch of home games will be enough to get the club into the postseason. Richard Sherman Jersey .com) - A chant of Zeke reverberated around AT&T Stadium before Ezekiel Elliott powered into the end zone for his fourth and final touchdown. http://www.seahawksfansprostore.com/Black-Paul-Richardson-Seahawks-Jersey.html?cat=953 . The Toronto Argonauts (11-7) look for an opportunity to repeat as CFL champions when they host the surging Hamilton Tiger-Cats (10-8) on Sunday.Austin, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - A showdown between two of the Big 12s premier teams turned out to be no contest at all. Five Oklahoma players finished in double figures and the 16th-ranked Sooners held Texas to 30 percent shooting en route to a 70-49 rout of the No. 10 Longhorns in front of a stunned crowd at the Erwin Center. Buddy Hield led Oklahomas balanced attack with 13 points, with TaShawn Thomas compiling 12 points and 11 rebounds as the Sooners (11-3, 2-0 Big 12) rolled to their fourth straight win. I like the way our guys played, said Sooners head coach Lon Kruger. I thought their focus from start-to-finish was really good defensively. It was Oklahomas defense that set the tone for the lopsided victory, though, as Texas (12-3, 1-1) continually came up empty while being swarmed on possession after possession. They just punched us in the mouth, said Longhorns forward Jonathan Holmes. Javan Felix was the lone Longhorn to reach double-digit points, finishing with 13 points. Texas doomed itself with a major cold stretch right out of the gate, misfiring on 11 of its first 12 shots as the Sooners raced out to a 13-3 lead behind 3- pointers from Hield, Isaiah Cousins and Ryan Spangler. The Longhorns kept on missing, resulting in a 33-14 deficit at the end of a first half in which Texas went a miserable 6-of-30 from the field. Texas had some looks that didnt go down, and that always helps, but I thought our guys had a little to do with that, Kruger said. Tyler Lockett Jersey. I thought our perimeter guys from the weak side did a good job trapping the post. I thought our awareness on the weak side was pretty good and we didnt really get hurt when we trapped the post. Oklahoma didnt let up after the break, as Cousins drained a pair of triples to highlight a 9-2 run to begin the second half that staked the Sooners to a commanding 42-16 advantage. The Sooners led by at least 20 points the rest of the way, with the margin swelling to 56-28 when Dinjiyl Walker followed a Thomas bucket with back-to- back layups, the last coming with 9:41 left to play. Cousins ended 3-of-5 from beyond the arc in a 12-point effort, while Walker and Jordan Woodard contributed 10 points each for Oklahoma. Game Notes Oklahoma had lost eight straight at the Erwin Center prior to last Januarys 88-85 win in Austin, the first of a season series sweep for the Sooners ... Texas has dropped two of its last three home games after winning 15 straight at the Erwin Center ... The Longhorns lost their Big 12 home opener for just the third time in 17 seasons under head coach Rick Barnes ... Oklahoma has held every opponent this season under 70 points. 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