CHICAGO -- Manny being Manny has been a positive so far for the Chicago Cubs. 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." Sam Darnold Jets Jersey . Ending a nine-game losing streak? That gave the Milwaukee Bucks veteran forward a reason to smile. Trenton Cannon Jersey .Kessy tried to show what he can do playing left wing for the Oilers in 5-0 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday in pre-season action. http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Jets-Isaiah-Crowell-Jersey/. The shortstop still grieves, but it will be nights like the one Segura had in a 5-2 victory Monday over the Cincinnati Reds that will provide some distraction. Terrelle Pryor Sr. Jets Jersey . -- Ben Brust scored 19 points to lead six Wisconsin players in double figures as the No. Trumaine Johnson Jets Jersey . - IndyCar racing officials expressed confidence on Monday that the NOLA Motorsports Park will be able to complete more $4.BRANDON, Man. -- Jake DeBrusk scored once and set up three more as the Swift Current Broncos doubled up the Brandon Wheat Kings 6-3 on Friday in Western Hockey League play. Connor Sanvido had a goal and an assist for the Broncos (12-8-1), who extended their win streak to six games, while Andrew Johnson and Graham Black each registered a goal and an assist. Jordan Harris and Jay Merkley added single goals. Richard Nejezchleb scored twice for the Wheat Kings (9-11-0) and Ryan Pulock had the other. Swift Currents Landon Bow made 35 saves for the win as Brandons Jordan Papirny stopped 35-of-41 shots in a losing cause. Both clubs went 2 for 6 on the power play. --- BLADES 4 WARRIORS 3 MOOSE JAW, Sask. -- Alex Moodie stopped 39 shots as Saskatoon held on to defeat the Warriors. Nathan Burns led the Blades (9-10-2) with a goal and an assist while Nick Zajac and Collin Valcourt each had a goal and an assist. Brett Stovin added a single goal. Jack Rodewald, Travis Brown and Josh Uhrich scored for Moose Jaw (6-11-4). Justin Paulic made 26 saves for the Warriors. --- REBELS 3 ICE 0 CRANBROOK, B.C. -- Patrik Bartosak only had to stop 19 shots to blank Kootenay. Conner Bleackley, Rhyse Dieno and Cole Chorney scored for Red Deer (8-11-1) while Dominik Volek chipped in with two assists. Wyatt Hoflin made 25 saves for the Ice (9-8-2), who were shutout for the second time this season. Kootenay fell to 6-6-0 on home ice. --- CHIEFS 6 HURRICANES 2 LETHBRIDGE, Alta. -- Mitch Holmberg scored three times and had an assist as Spokane handed the Hurricanes their eight loss in a row. Adam Helewka, Carter Popoff and Jackson Playfair also scored for the Chiefs (14-6-0) while Reid Gow tacked on two assists. Giorgio Estephan and Russell Maxwell had a goal apiece for Lethbridge (2-15-3) and Carter Folk had a game-high 22 minutes in penalties. Garret Hughson stopped 21 shots for Spokane. Hurricanes netminder Corbin Boes made 31 saves in defeat. --- TIGERS 5 RAIDERS 3 MEDICINE HAT, Sask. -- Daniel Wapple turned away 40 shots and Cole Sanford score twice as the Tigers toppled Prince Albert. Logan McVeigh, Chad Labelle and Jacob Doty also scored for the Tigers (12-3-33) and Trevor Cox registered three assists.dddddddddddd Leon Draisaitl scored for the Raiders (11-7-2) and set up both Josh Morrissey and Dakota Conroy. Nick McBridge made 44 saves for Prince Albert. --- OIL KINGS 5 BLAZERS 0 KAMLOOPS, B.C. -- Tyler Santos stopped 33 shots for his first-career shutout as Edmonton crushed the Blazers. Brandon Ralph led all Oil King (12-7-1) skaters with two goals while Curtis Lazar, Edgars Kulda and Henrik Samuelsson added the others. Sam Grist and Jordan Thomson were both minus-three for Kamloops (6-12-2). Bolton Pouliot allowed three goals on 15 shots before being pulled for Taran Kozun, who stopped 23-of-25 shots in 33 minutes of relief for the Blazers. --- ROCKETS 5 COUGARS 2 KELOWNA, B.C. -- The Rockets scored four straight goals in the third period to earn their sixth win in as many outings. Tyson Baillie, Colton Heffley, Nick Merkley and Ryan Olsen scored in the final 20 minutes for Kelowna (13-2-2) which trailed 2-0 early in the second period, while Riley Stadel scored his clubs first goal of the contest. Marc McNulty and Jordan Tkatch supplied the offence for the Cougars (7-10-4). Jackson Whistle made 26 saves for the Rockets as Ty Edmonds turned back 46 shots for Prince George. --- SILVERTIPS 2 AMERICANS 0 EVERETT, Wash. -- Tyler Sandhus goal 1:30 into the second period stood up as the winner as the Silvertips defeated Tri-City. Mirco Mueller added an insurance goal for Everett (13-3-2) and Daniel Cotton stopped 14 shots for the shutout. Tri-City lost in regulation for the first time in eight outings as they entered the game 6-0-1 in its last seven games. Eric Comrie made 33 saves for the Americans (11-9-2). --- ROYALS 5 THUNDERBIRDS 3 KENT, Wash. -- Coleman Vollrath stopped 43-of-46 shots as Victoria beat Seattle. Brandon Magee and Brandon Fushimi each scored twice for the Royals (11-9-1) while Tyler Soy had a goal and two assists. Shea Theodore scored all three goals for the Thunderbirds (11-6-2). Seattles Justin Myles started in net but was pulled when he gave up three goals on seven shots. Danny Mumaugh took over in goal and stopped 11-of-12 shots in 35 minutes of relief. Cheap Hockey Blackhawks Jerseys Cheap Hockey Avalanche Jerseys Cheap Hockey Stars Jerseys Cheap Hockey Wild Jerseys Cheap Hockey Predators Jerseys Cheap Hockey Blues Jerseys Cheap Hockey Jets Jerseys Cheap Hockey Ducks Jerseys Cheap Hockey Coyotes Jerseys Cheap Hockey Flames Jerseys Cheap Hockey Oilers Jerseys Cheap Hockey Kings Jerseys Cheap Hockey Sharks Jerseys Cheap Hockey Canucks Jerseys Cheap Hockey Golden Knights Jerseys Hockey Team Canada Jerseys ' ' '