DETROIT -- On a day of dandy Detroit debuts, Alex Gonzalez helped Brad Ausmus start his tenure as Tigers manager with a win. Miami Heat Shirts . Gonzalez lined an RBI single off Greg Holland in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Tigers a 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday in Ausmus first game since replacing Jim Leyland. Victor Martinez homered for Detroit, and Justin Verlander was sharp aside from a three-run fourth inning that wasnt all his fault. "Theres two things that could have spoiled opening day for me," Ausmus said. "One, if we lost. And two, if the sun wasnt out. Because for me opening day, the sun is out, fans are having fun, theyre eating their popcorn, drinking their beer. The energy is higher." Kansas City lost its sixth straight opener. Ausmus was upstaged a bit by another newcomer on a bright, pleasant day in downtown Detroit. Gonzalez was acquired by the Tigers in late March following an injury to shortstop Jose Iglesias. Detroit is just hoping he can fill in competently, and Gonzalez did not impress at first. His error in the fourth helped the Royals score an extra run, but he made up for that with a tying triple in the seventh. Gonzalez then singled with men on first and third in the ninth. "Ive played on a lot of opening days -- I dont even remember all of them -- but this one was special," Gonzalez said. "I was looking for a pitch that I could elevate, and I got one. I rounded first and all I saw was the whole team coming at me." Joe Nathan -- another new face on Detroits roster -- pitched a scoreless ninth. Nathan (1-0) signed with the Tigers to become their closer, but hell have to wait a bit longer for a save opportunity. Holland didnt have a save chance either after converting 47 of 50 last year. Instead, the right-hander came into a difficult situation in the ninth and couldnt get out of it. Wade Davis (0-1) yielded a one-out walk to Alex Avila and a single to Nick Castellanos before Holland allowed the single to Gonzalez. "I get paid to get people out, and I didnt do it today," Holland said. "Were not here to fight and compete. Were here to win." Detroits Tyler Collins made his major league debut as a pinch runner for Avila -- and ended up scoring the winning run. Salvador Perez had four hits for Kansas City. Although there were still a few patches of snow in the Detroit area Monday morning, the game was played under a sunny sky with temperatures in the 50s. With its recently re-sodded field, Comerica Park looked sharp. But the Tigers, coming off three straight AL Central titles, were sloppy at first. Right fielder Torii Hunter dropped a routine flyball in the second, and although Verlander pitched out of that jam, he couldnt escape the fourth. Salvador Perez tied it at 1 with a one-out RBI double off Verlander, and Lorenzo Cain slapped an RBI single through the hole into left field to put Kansas City ahead. After a two-out walk, Gonzalez bobbled Norichika Aokis slow grounder for an error that loaded the bases. Verlander then walked Omar Infante, forcing in Kansas Citys third run of the inning. Verlander had surgery in January after injuring his groin, but he pitched 20 scoreless innings during spring training. He allowed three runs -- two earned -- and six hits in six innings Monday, walking three and striking out two. That was enough for a no-decision. Verlander was making his seventh straight start on opening day, and hes only 1-1 in those games. "I never seem to find a win on opening day, but the bullpen shut them down and we got one anyway. Thats all that matters," Verlander said. "Every opening day is special, but this one meant a little more, because I had to really work and grind to get here for this one after the surgery." With Kansas City ahead 3-1 in the seventh, Austin Jackson hit a one-out triple and Avila drew a walk. Aaron Crow replaced starter James Shields and struck out Castellanos, but the third strike was a wild pitch that allowed Jackson to score. Gonzalez followed with a triple to the gap in left-centre. Shields gave up three runs and five hits in 6 1-3 innings. NOTES: Infante received a hand from the Detroit crowd when he was introduced with the Kansas City players before the game. He left the Tigers and signed with the Royals in the off-season. ... The crowd of 45,068 was the second-largest in Comerica history. ... It was the fourth four-hit game of Perezs career. ... The Royals were 67-6 last year when leading by 2 or more runs at any point from the seventh inning on, according to STATS. Miami Heat Gear . Wall made the comment in a speech to a Regina business crowd that included Lesnar. The U.S. wrestler and retired mixed martial artist says he was visiting his brothers farm in Saskatchewan and decided he wanted to hear what the premier had to say. Stitched Heat Jerseys . -- At the beginning of training camp, Andrew Bogut set a goal to play all 82 regular-season games and regain his place among the NBAs best centres. https://www.cheapheatonline.com/ . Parmelee hit a game-ending shot in the ninth inning and the Minnesota Twins overcame David Ortizs big night to beat the Boston Red Sox 8-6 on Tuesday.Thursday in Pretoria, South Africa, Oscar Pistorius was to learn his fate. Instead, he only got part of the story from Judge Masipa. Pistorius will return to Court on Friday to learn whether he will be convicted for killing Reeva Steenkamp. So what happened Thursday? Lets break it down. The Charges The issue being determined at trial was whether Pistorius killed Steenkamp intentionally, or as Pistorius alleged, he killed her by accident believing her to be an intruder. There were three layers of charges for the Judge to consider: premeditated murder, murder and culpable homicide. Judge Masipas job was to start with the most severe charge (premeditated murder), and if the prosecution failed on that one, move on to the next charge. Premeditated Murder Premeditated murder requires intent to murder plus planning the murder. Premeditation is reserved for robust planning and doesnt capture an intent that materialized right before a crime was committed. In order to establish this charge, you need some planning ahead of time. Judge Masipa correctly concluded that Pistorius should not be convicted of premeditated murder. Frankly, there was no chance the prosecution was going to meet with success on this one. While this was a domestic dispute gone terribly wrong, there was no planning element. On to the next charge. Murder Since there was no conviction on premeditated murder, Judge Masipa went on to consider the next charge on her list, namely, murder. To make out murder, the prosecution had to show that Pistorius intended to kill Steenkamp that night. So its like premeditated murder without the planning component. This is where Judge Masipa surprised a lot of people (and got it wrong in my opinion). The totality of the evidence supported intent. However, Judge Masipa did not see it that way and opined that the prosecution failed to establish that Pistorius intended to kill his girlfriend. She went on to conclude that "on the murder charge, the evidence is purely circumstantial." Judge Masipa is correct that the evidence was "purely circumstantial," However, circumstantial evidence gets a bad rap. Convictions in the majority of criminal cases are secured by relying on circumstantial evidence (or evidence that relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact). Its unusual to get a confession or other direct evidence. This is why you look to the circumstances. The prosecution led by lawyer Gerry Nel presented strong evidence supporting intent. The prosecution called a number of witnesses, including Michelle Burger, Charl Johnson, Dr. Johan Stipp and Estelle van der Merwe, who testified that the lights were on and they heard arguing and screaming. Stipp recounted that he heard female screams that sounded like a woman "scared out of her mind." Burger described female screams as "petrifying" and added this: "I was sitting in bed and I heard her screams," Burger testified. "She screamed terribly and she yelled for help. I heard the screams again. It was worse. It was more intense. Just after her screams, I heard four shots. Four gun-shots... You could hear it was blood curdling screams. You cannt translate it into words. Wholesale Heat Jerseys. . The anxiousness in her voice, and fear. It leaves you cold. She screamed terribly and she yelled for help." This is important evidence because Pistorius alleged all along that the couple never talked after they went to bed at 10pm and the room remained dark. This is just the tip of the Pistorius iceberg. For an in-depth review of the evidence, please click here and here to read my previous articles on Pistorius. I also analyzed Pistorius testimony on my TSN radio show Offside. For that, click here and here to listen to my review of the case. Ultimately, in view of the evidence as a whole, it is exceedingly difficult to agree with her conclusion. Third and final charge: Culpable Homicide After Judge Masipa cleared Pistorius on premeditated murder and murder, she moved on to the third and final charge: culpable homicide. This charge means that Pistorius negligently killed Steenkamp (or that the killing was an accident). In a brief afternoon session, Judge Masipa addressed the test for culpable homicide: what would a reasonable person do in the same circumstances? Judge Masipa found that Pistorius had other options with respect to dealing with the perceived threat. He could have called security for help, which would have taken less time than shooting through the bathroom door four times. As well, when the intruder entered the bathroom, he was actually closer to the balcony and could have used that opportunity to call for help. Judge Masipa then concluded that Pistorius was indeed negligent: "Pistorius had time to think and consider his actions. Im satisfied his actions werent that of a reasonable person. He acted too hastily and used excessive force. His conduct was negligent." Just as Judge Masipa was prepared to announce her decision on culpable homicide (which seemed like a conviction), she adjourned for the day. It was only 2:28pm; there was still time. It was an abrupt end reminiscent of The Sopranos series finale. Friday Judge Masipa will return to court on Friday to reveal her ruling on culpable homicide (as well as the lesser gun charges). Then, and only then, will we know if Pistorius will be convicted. Prison Time and Sentencing Premeditated murder calls for a compulsory life sentence, while murder results in a compulsory sentence of 15 years. But that doesnt matter any longer since these charges have been tossed. On culpable homicide, the legislation does not provide for specific prison time. Rather, the sentencing is discretionary (varies from fines to prison time), although its not unusual to see prison time in South Africa of 5-10 years for this type of crime. Still, given its discretionary nature, it is possible that Pistorius will not face any prison time. As I noted in my @EricOnSportsLaw Twitter account, its possible that Judge Masipa adjourned early to allow the sides to reach a deal. Just an unenthusiastic theory though. Ultimately, this would be a surprise development. If Pistorius is convicted on Friday, he will not be sentenced. That happens later at a sentencing hearing, where both side argue as to the suitable length of Pistorius jail time. ' ' '