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Any NFL team that drafts Michael Sam will be taking on much more than a rookie pass-rusher. But experts say the smart approach for a team that signs the leagues first openly gay athlete -- from a marketing and public relations standpoint -- is to simply let Sams on-field play speak for him and his team. "While this is a significant announcement given the sport, the general hope is that hes just accepted as one of the other men on the roster, and therefore his marketability is still simply tied to his ability to play well on the field and ultimately make the team," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon. Sam declared Sunday that he is gay in interviews with ESPN, The New York Times and Outsports. The Missouri All-American had already come out last August to his coaches and teammates, who respected his privacy. Now Sam is entering uncharted territory as he prepares for the NFL draft. The SECs co-defensive player of the year was projected to be a mid-round selection. At 6-foot-2, 255 pounds, Sam will likely have to transition to outside linebacker, which could impact where hes drafted. But announcing hes gay could also have an impact on his draft status. "Im not naive to think there arent potentially some owners or executives out there who will say, Eh, Im not so sure now." said Golden State Warriors President and Chief of Operations Rick Welts, who came out publicly in 2011. "But also, I hope, there are a lot who would say, Theres an opportunity to do something that I think our fans would actually embrace. And if were supposed to win football games, if this guy helps us win football games, thats somebody we should have on our roster." Sam, 24, joins a growing list of active athletes to publicly come out, including Robbie Rogers, a winger for Major League Soccers Los Angeles Galaxy, and Brittney Griner, who plays for the WNBAs Phoenix Mercury. Conner Mertens, a kicker for Division III Willamette University, came out as bisexual late last month, and is believed to have been the first active college football player to publicly announce his sexuality. Griner, as one of the WNBAs brightest stars, was the centerpiece of the Mercurys marketing campaign. She also made a point of supporting causes that are important to her. "There was nothing about her that was difficult in marketing. We supported what she wanted to do with bullying and the LGBT community. We made those connecting points," said Amber Cox, president of the Mercury before leaving to go to the Big East last fall. Nike has also thrown support to LGBT athletes, signing both Griner and Jason Collins, a former NBA player who came out last year, to sponsorship deals, and launching its "Be True" campaign. Profits from the .BeTrue collection are being donated to the LGBT Sports Coalition to support the goal of ending discrimination in sport. Mark Elderkin of the Gay Ad Network, an online media platform for national advertisers, said NFL teams need only look at Sams track record. "Theyre going to make their choices based on who the best college athletes are. And theyre going to choose Michael if they deem him the best pick. So, I think they need to focus on the facts, and his performance over the years, his All-America status and everything hes done for Missouri," Elderkin said. "Also his relationships with the fans, and with the positive energy he has around his teammates and their full support, shows that hes not going to be disruptive to the team in any way, but is going to add value." But its still a reality that gay athletes face a backlash. Derogatory comments were easily found among the positive posts on social media and other online commentary following Sams announcement. A Pew Research survey last year of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender adults in the U.S. found that just 4 per cent saw pro sports leagues as friendly toward LGBT people, while 59 per cent saw the leagues as unfriendly and 36 per cent saw them as neutral. Still, even over the past year there have been significant overall victories in gay and lesbian rights, most notably two U.S. Supreme Court decisions in June. One ruling cleared the way for ending a ban on same-sex marriages in California; the other struck down a 1996 law passed by Congress that banned federal recognition of same-sex marriages. It remains to be seen how growing tolerance extends to the NFL playing field. "I think the point thats being made in a lot of the discussion is, Lets just move on," Swangard said. "If the guy makes a team, then he makes the team. His sexual orientation shouldnt be the story." Uchenna Nwosu Chargers Jersey . -- Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw was placed on the 15-day disabled list Saturday for the first time in his seven-year career because of a swollen muscle in his left upper back. Kyzir White Chargers Jersey . Howard hit a three-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-3 win over the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday night. http://www.chargersfansofficial.com/uchenna-nwosu-jersey/. Altidore strained his left hamstring in the Americans opener against Ghana on June 16 and didnt play in their next two games. "We dont know how much because we need to see how hes going, but hes available," U. Custom Los Angeles Chargers Jerseys . -- Phil Mickelson came to the St. Virgil Green Chargers Jersey . -- Canadas Justin Shin shot an 8-under 64 on Thursday on PGA Wests Nicklaus Tournament Course to take the first-round lead in the Web.ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Houston Astros saw a completely different Jered Weaver than the one they faced 6 1/2 weeks ago at Minute Maid Park, when they hit four home runs off him. The Los Angeles Angels ace pitched a two-hitter Wednesday night in the rematch, posting his first complete game in nearly two years, and Albert Pujols hit a go-ahead home run in the sixth to lead the Halos to a 2-1 victory. "Those guys roughed me up a little bit at their place, so I wanted to come in here and have a good game and keep us in it as much as possible," Weaver said. "Their guy was throwing a good game, too. So it was nice to come out on top." Weaver (5-3) threw 94 pitches while going the distance for the 12th time in 241 career starts and first time since Aug. 6, 2012, when he beat the Athletics 4-0 with a four-hitter at Oakland. "It was definitely exciting to run out there for the ninth and hear the fans," Weaver said. "Thats what you pitch for -- to go deep into games and finish it off." Weaver struck out five, walked one and retired 17 of his last 19 batters -- including 10 straight after giving up a leadoff homer to George Springer in the fourth. The three-time All-Star is 5-1 with a 1.70 ERA over his last seven starts. Weaver hit Springer with a pitch with one out in the ninth, then picked him off after getting a sign from manager Mike Scioscia in the dugout. He got the final out by retiring Dexter Fowler on a popup to third base. "In that situation, Im not really worried about baserunners. But Scioscia called a great pickoff there," Weaver said. "Usually when I look over, I can see a little bit of the runner. But when I looked over before that pick, I couldnt see him. So I figured he was off the bag pretty good. I just made a good quick move, and that definitely took a lot of pressure off." Weaver threw a called third strike to Jason Castro in the fourth for his 1,281st career strikeout, overtaking Mike Witt on the Angels career list behind Nolan Ryan and Chuck Finley. "I didnt even know that I was coming up on any milestone like that at all," Weaver said. "I think I threw strrikeouts out the door maybe two years ago.dddddddddddd I mean, its great when youre young and you just want to go out there and try to strike everybody out. But then you realize that getting early outs is just as important and it helps you get deeper in games." Collin McHugh (2-3) lost his third straight decision over four starts despite allowing just two runs and four hits in seven innings. The right-hander struck out seven and walked two. Erick Aybar drove in the Angels other run with a third-inning single. "You know coming into it that Weavers arguably one of if not the best pitchers in this league," McHugh said. "So you know that youre not going to be able to give up a lot and that its going to be a dogfight." Pujols who homered twice on Sunday against Tampa Bay ace David Price, drove a 2-1 pitch into the top tier of the double-decker bullpen in left field for his 13th homer this season and 505th of his career to surpass Eddie Murray for 25th place on the career list. On hand to see it was Air Force staff sergeant Tom Sherrill of Pomona, California, who came up with Pujols 500th home run ball on April 22 at Nationals Park in Washington. "What I did two or three weeks ago, I put that in the past. Ive flipped the page," Pujols said. "My goal is to try to concentrate on whats in front of me and help this organization win. I dont get caught up too much in numbers." NOTES: The jockey and trainer for Triple Crown hopeful California Chrome -- Victor Espinoza and Art Sherman -- each threw out a ceremonial first pitch. ... Angels CF Mike Trout missed his first game of the season because of a sore left hamstring, but was available to pinch-hit if necessary. He expects to be back in the lineup Friday night for the start of a three-game series with Kansas City. Collin Cowgill started in CF for the third time this season and robbed Jose Altuve of a hit with a diving catch of his shallow flyball leading off the game. Altuve was 0 for 4, ending his career-best 12-game hitting streak. ...... Pujols had 43 home runs against the Astros, tying Aramis Ramirez for the most among active players. 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