KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Once the new year rolled around, Ned Yost turned his attention to the upcoming season, the new pieces that the Kansas City Royals brought in and the possibilities for new lineups.He made the prospect of a contract extension seem almost like an afterthought.I think were in great shape headed into this year, Yost said Tuesday, shortly after the club announced their managers one-year boost through the 2016 season.We came as close as you can to winning a world championship last year, he said, and when you dont do it, it leaves a taste in your mouth. Its something you strive to do, and I think everyone in that locker room will tell you they want to finish this thing off.Yost became the Royals manager in May 2010 and presided over a massive rebuilding effort that culminated with the end of a 29-year playoff drought this past season. The Royals took San Francisco to the seventh game of the World Series, leaving the tying run on third base with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, before their season finally ended.With most of the major pieces of that team back, combined with free-agent acquisitions such as Alex Rios, Kendrys Morales and Edinson Volquez, hopes in Kansas City are higher than ever that the long-downtrodden franchise will be able to compete for the post-season again.As we all know, baseball is a very tough business, Royals general manager Dayton Moore said. Youre always striving for organizational harmony, and we have our key leaders — in this case the manager — signed through the next two years, it helps to create that harmony.The longest-tenured manager in club history, Yost will soon become its winningest. He already has 373 victories, trailing only Dick Howser (404) and Whitey Herzog (410), and should eclipse two of the franchises iconic names by the time summer rolls around.Yosts contract was due to expire after the upcoming season, but there was little question that he would receive an extension. He has a close relationship with Moore dating to their days in the Braves organization, and Yosts ability to guide a young and unproven lineup to its first AL pennant since the Reagan administration only strengthened his organizational standing.Not everything has gone perfectly for Yost, of course.He has often been lampooned for his in-game adjustments, including a questionable decision to use starter Yordano Ventura out of the bullpen in the playoffs. And his often-surly nature, which has seemed to mellow with time, has drawn the ire of some longtime Royals fans.He came to our organization in a point in time when we needed to be re-energized, and Ned brought a lot of hope and optimism, Moore said. Those are the character traits that we believe are very important for a successful major league manager.Yost said hes been busier this off-season than ever, doing appearances and events just about every weekend since the season ended. But even as he sat in a deer stand on Tuesday, waiting for something worth shooting to amble by, his thoughts were already on the upcoming season.I go back and I look at the World Series and theres not much I would have done different, Yost said. I feel like we were in every single game. You look at the matchups we had, the situations that ended up costing us, they were all matchups we wanted. ... They just didnt work out. But you still have that taste, you know? 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Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson.AUGUSTA, Ga. -- A quick stroll across the manicured landscape of Augusta National afforded a glimpse of why this Masters is so hard to figure out. On the putting green in a quiet moment of practice was 20-year-old Jordan Spieth, one of a record 24 newcomers who has every reason to believe he can win. On the golf course for the final day of practice was Webb Simpson, a former U.S. Open champion and one of 21 players who have captured the last 24 majors. And under the oak tree outside the clubhouse was Miguel Angel Jimenez, the 50-year-old Spaniard trying to make sense of it all. He recalled his first Masters in 1995, when Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal shared secrets to Augusta National, such as keeping the ball in the right spots on the green and "to realize here that the target is not the hole." "The more you play, the more you like, no?" Jimenez said as he leaned against his golf bag, looking relaxed as ever behind his aviator sunglasses. But as he considered the rookies -- Spieth and Patrick Reed, Harris English and Jimmy Walker -- he dismissed the notion that experience was required for a green jacket. "There are 24 guys here for the first time," he said. "But theres a reason they are here, no?" Nowhere to be found, of course, was Tiger Woods. Out of golf until the summer because of back surgery, out of the Masters for the first time in his career, the show goes on. "Well, we miss Tiger, as does the entire golf world," Masters chairman Billy Payne said. "He is always a threat to make a run and do well and win here at Augusta National. ... Nevertheless, this is the Masters. This is what we hope is the best tournament in the world, one of the greatest sporting events. And I think we will have a very impressive audience and have another great champion to crown this year." The course closed for practice Wednesday afternoon, and a stream of fans made their way over to the Par 3 Tournament, where occasional cheers broke the silence. It was a precursor of what was sure to follow over the next four days at a major that rarely fails to deliver drama. Even without Woods. "Its probably the most anticipated week of the year," Rory McIlroy said..dddddddddddd. "Its been eight months since weve had a major. Its Augusta. ... Theres a lot of guys that seem like once they drive up Magnolia Lane here, something lights up inside them." That could be Phil Mickelson, who last year won the British Open at age 42 and now has a chance to join Woods and Arnold Palmer with a fourth green jacket. It could be Adam Scott, trying to join Woods, Nick Faldo and Jack Nicklaus as the only back-to-back winners. Considering how this year has gone, it could be anybody. Jason Day, Sergio Garcia and former Masters champion Zach Johnson are the only players from the top 10 who have won anywhere in the world. Only one of the last seven winners on the PGA Tour was ranked in the top 75. "I think if youre outside the top 50 in the world this week, youve got a great chance," U.S. Open champion Justin Rose said with a laugh. Rose, however, falls on the side of experience -- knowing where to miss, knowing where you cant afford to miss, where the hole locations tend to be on the contoured greens and using the slope to get the ball close. "Always you can have the unknowns," he said. "But I would say 15 guys are pretty strong favourites." Woods has become a polarizing figure in golf, especially at the Masters. Since he last won a green jacket in 2005, only once has Woods finished out of the top six. Thats what made him so compelling at Augusta. He always seems to be there. And thats why this Masters seems to lack definition. No one is dominating golf at the moment. Walker has the most PGA Tour wins (three) this season, but this is his first Masters. Scott had a chance to go to No. 1 in the world three weeks ago at Bay Hill, but he lost a three-shot lead in the final round to Matt Every, who had never won in his career. Never has there been this much chatter about Masters rookies. Then again, there has never been this many. And theyre not bashful about their chances. "Doesnt matter if youve played here once or if youve played here 50 times," Reed said. "When it comes down to it, its just going to be that whoever is playing the best is going to walk away with the trophy." So maybe its not that hard to figure out, after all. 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