Die Macht » hit eight aces in a match that lasted 1 hour

BOSTON -- Nothing like a pre-dawn phone call from Red Sox slugger David Ortiz to get you out of bed in the morning.At least thats the idea behind a Boston Public Schools initiative that starts next month, when middle- and high-school students will be able to sign up for wake-up calls from Big Papi.Wake up! Its David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox. Get out of bed and get ready for school. Your future is yours, he says on the calls.The 40-year-old All-Star designated hitter has said hell retire after this season. He leads the majors in slugging percentage, on-base average and extra-base hits this year.Boston schools superintendent Tommy Chang said Monday the goal of the Ortiz calls is to help kids get to school on time and fight absenteeism.Boston Mayor Marty Walsh called it a fun, outside-the-box approach to a chronic problem. Nationwide, the U.S. Department of Education says more than 6 million students -- 13 percent of all school-age Americans -- missed at least three weeks of school in the 2013-14 academic year, the most recent for which figures are available.Red Sox president Sam Kennedy said he hopes the calls, which are being offered free of charge, will help inspire, motivate and encourage children to attend school. The calls will be available in English and several foreign languages, though Ortiz wont be speaking all of them.Bostons school system ran a pilot of the wakeup calls last year, trying them out on two dozen students at the Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers, a charter high school in the shadow of Fenway Park.Xaquiel Martinez, a 9th-grade student there, acknowledges he was tardy to school nearly every day before getting the wake-up calls, which helped him get out the door on time.With Ortiz wrapping up his final season with the Sox, Changs office says it may tap the New England Patriots for a future call.No word on whether Tom Brady or Rob Gronkowski could be rousing students next.---Follow Bill Kole on Twitter at https://twitter.com/billkole . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/william-j-kole . Jaren Jackson Jersey .J. -- New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee. Grayson Allen Jersey . - Levi Browns tenure at left tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers is over before it even began. https://www.cheapgrizzlies.com/624p-zach-randolph-jersey-grizzlies.html . Radwanska, making her debut in the Seoul tournament, hit eight aces in a match that lasted 1 hour, 4 minutes at Olympic Park tennis stadium. "It was definitely a very good match -- I was playing really good tennis," Radwanska said. Kyle Anderson Jersey . -- The Missouri Tigers might not have a roster full of superstars. Memphis Grizzlies Shirts . Woodson said during a radio interview Thursday that the Knicks Carmelo Anthony doesnt get the same calls as other superstars. FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Stars announcer Dave Strader plans to work as many games as possible this season while undergoing treatment for a rare and aggressive form of cancer in his bile duct.Strader released a statement through the team Wednesday saying there is no cure for cholangiocarcinoma. But he said the cancer is treatable and that is fighting every day and doing everything the doctors tell him to do. He thanked the Stars, fans and the entire NHL for their support for himm and his family.ddddddddddddhe Stars first revealed in June that Strader had been diagnosed with cancer, but gave no other details then.A 36-year veteran in broadcasting, Strader joined the TV and radio simulcast with the Stars last season. He has also worked for the NBC Sports Network and served stints with Florida, Arizona and Detroit in the NHL. ' ' '