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TORONTO -- A reflective J.P. Arencibia says he has been his own worst enemy in the past. "A lot of my struggles were from doubts and trying to do too many things," the former Blue Jay told reporters Friday upon his return to Rogers Centre with the Texas Rangers. The 28-year-old Arencibia also admitted he had heaped pressure on himself by worrying about all the permutations of what might happen when he stepped into the batting box. Now he has come to the realization that simple is best, it seems. "God gave me abilities to do something special on the field. What are those?" he said. "So I can say All right, I need to work on those things. And not worry about everything else. And when I get into the plate, think of one pitch at the time. Not hey, if I take this pitch, is it going to affect this pitch?" Arencibia endured a horror show of a 2013 season with Toronto, hitting .194 with 148 strikeouts in 474 at-bats. He did hit 21 homers and 54 RBIs. He said it was a year of pressure, his mind going a mile a minute. "Fortunately I was able to put the ball in play at times but I wasnt good," he said. "I was fighting myself," he added. "I was in my own way. That was the biggest thing. I had to go down (to the minors) and kind of get out of my own way." It seems to be working. He slammed a three-run homer off R.A. Dickey in the seventh inning Friday. Arencibia signed with Texas as a free agent, hitting .133 with a .182 on-base percentage in 20 games before being sent to the triple-A Round Rock Express in mid-May. He was recalled Thursday. With three other catchers (Robinson Chirinos, Chris Giminez and Geovany Soto) on the Rangers active roster, Arencibia has been getting a crash course in playing first base. He hit .279 with 14 home runs and 41 RBIs in triple-A. He got the start Friday at first base, becoming the eighth Ranger this season to start there. Asked if he was a first baseman or catcher now, he said that wasnt his decision. "Obviously they know I can catch and they have a lot of catchers on the roster. So right now if playing first is best for the team, thats what Im doing. Ill work hard to be the best first baseman I can be." The stint in the minors helped slow the game down, he said. "I 100 per cent needed it," Arencibia said. "It was something that was necessary. I went back and had to iron something out and be who I can be. "That was really the main thing -- changing my mentality and really understanding myself ... Obviously you dont want to be down there, and at the beginning it was tougher but more and more as I was down there, I realized there was good purpose behind it. And I was proud of myself to get past that and bounce back." Arencibia said his struggle was to be himself. "A lot of times I tried to be somebody I wasnt. I tried to be maybe what baseball or whatever I thought needed to do statistically to be a better player. And by doing that, by not being myself, I went backwards. "Im the player I can be (now). I went back to triple-A and really tried to be that." That mindset included being aggressive at the plate "and looking to do damage as opposed to worrying about swinging at a pitch in the first or making this mistake or that mistake." Arencibia was warmly received by some of the Rogers Centre staff before the game, with hugs and handshakes. He said he was not worried about how the crowd might react. "I know the people that cared about me and the people I impacted," he said. "Whatever may be the reaction, good or bad, I wish everybody well. Obviously I cant control that stuff." He received a smattering of boos when the Rangers starting lineup was announced. The fans were far more vocal at his first at-bat -- a strikeout that turned the boos to cheers. Arencibia was far more cutting in Texas in May when quizzed by the Toronto Star about his time in Toronto. "I learned the media controls a lot of things and the only question that you guys were writing in the off-season was what they were going to do behind the plate, when obviously the pitching was something that needed to be addressed," he told the newspaper. "But I was the only question because I was the villain of the team." Asked Friday whether he regretted such comments, he said: "Im not really here to talk about any of that stuff. We all said what we needed to say. Im excited to be back in the major leagues." Arencibias life has also changed off the baseball field. In June, he married Band Perry singer Kimberly Perry in Greeneville, Tenn. Fake Nike Shoes . Osmond, of Marystown, N.L., fell in the middle of her routine and placed fifth in the ladies free skate at Iceberg Skating Palace (110.73 points), but that was all the Canadians needed after a strong performance by Kevin Reynolds in the mens free earlier Sunday. Discount Nike Shoes From China . -- Athletics manager Bob Melvin is already starting to run out of superlatives to describe Scott Kazmir. https://www.nikeshoeschina.us/.com) - Rakeem Christmas scored 21 points, B. Clearance Nike Shoes From China . The Red Wings hadnt played the night before. The Boston Bruins had. A month from now, or two months from now, it doesnt matter. But right now it does matter, when you start and you play back to back, its wear and tear on you for sure, Babcock said. Cheap Nike Shoes From China . Calgarys Bo Levi Mitchell and Montreals Troy Smith will be the starting quarterbacks in a CFL season-opener for the first time in their careers. Both want to reinforce their No. 1 status. You can watch the game live in the first half of a doubleheader on TSN and TSN GO at 3:00pm et/Noon pt.After both picked up a much-needed victory to begin the week, the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames look to come out of the holiday break with a second straight victory on Friday night in the third installment this season of the Battle for Alberta. The Oilers were in the midst of a season-high six-game slide before knocking off the Winnipeg Jets 6-2 on Monday. Taylor Hall had a goal and two assists as Edmonton put the game away with a three-goal third period. Hall set up David Perrons goal with 3:20 to go in the second period that snapped a 2-2 tie and joined Jeff Petry and Nail Yakupov as the third-period goal scorers. Jordan Eberle and Sam Gagner also lit the lamp. The Oilers had scored just six goals and been shut out three times over their losing streak. "We stuck with it and were finally rewarded for our hard work," Edmonton head coach Dallas Eakins said of his teams perseverance. "We had a good start and we were able to maintain it." Ilya Bryzgalov made 18 saves in Edmontons first win since Dec. 10. The Oilers have not won two in a row since a three-game run from Nov. 16-21. The Flames brought an 0-2-2 winless stretch to a close on Monday with a 4-3 shootout win over the St. Louis Blues, getting a game-tying goal from defenseman Mark Giordano with 5.1 seconds left in regulation. After St. Louis Patrik Berglund was called for roughinng, Calgary pulled goaltender Reto Berra and Giordano ripped home a one-time feed from Jiri Hudler.dddddddddddd. "We felt like the last three or four games weve been playing really well, but we havent been getting the results," Giordano said. "Against one of the best teams in the league to come back and win in that way, it leaves a good feeling. Its going to be a nice Christmas break for sure." Hudler and Mike Cammalleri had a goal and an assist each, while Berra ended with 32 saves. Calgary center Matt Stajan did limp into the dressing room in overtime after getting hit and his status for tonights second contest of a five-game homestand is unknown. These two rivals have split two meetings this season, with the Oilers notching a 4-2 victory in Calgary on Nov. 16 before the Flames responded with a 2-1 overtime decision in Edmonton on Dec. 7. Calgary has won 12 of the previous 17 meetings overall and 11 of the last 14 at home. Berra was in net for the first two meetings this season, posting a 1.97 goals against average. Bryzgalov is 10-7-1 with a 2.69 GAA in 18 career meetings with the Flames, while Devan Dubnyk is 5-4-2 with a 2.46 GAA versus them. He started the previous two encounters. It is unknown which goaltender will start tonight as Edmonton is also set to host Bryzgalovs former Philadelphia Flyers club on Saturday. ' ' '