MINNEAPOLIS -- Diagnosed with cancer in his neck, Minnesota Twins general manager Terry Ryan has taken leave from his job for treatment and recovery. The timetable for his return is unclear, but the prognosis is optimistic. Though sobered by and concerned about the news, the Twins expressed confidence in the ability of their front offices long-time leader to beat the disease and get back to running the team. "I dont doubt hell get this knocked out," assistant general manager Rob Antony said. "Hes a tough bird, as he would say." The Twins released a statement on Monday from Ryan, who thanked his doctors, friends and colleagues for their work and support. "Its my intention to see you back at the ballpark as soon as possible," Ryan said. During his recent annual physical exam, the 60-year-old Ryan asked team physician Dr. Vijay Eyunni to examine a hard lump on his neck about an inch in diameter that had appeared a few weeks earlier. Further tests revealed squamous cell carcinoma. The squamous cells are in several parts of the body, but Eyunni said the source and cause of the cancer was undetermined. All that was known, he said, was that it was in his lymph node but had not spread to anywhere else. "The good news is we caught it early," Eyuinni said, adding: "As you know, both mentally and physically, hes very strong. So with treatment and radiation, its going to help him a lot. Hell recover better than someone who is not healthy." Ryan was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and expected to have surgery on Tuesday. Radiation treatment will likely follow. But once removed, Eyunni said, this type of cancer does not come back. "It should be completely done. It does not regenerate anymore," Eyunni said. Despite the positive outlook for a full recovery, this close-knit organization felt a collective anxiety and letdown upon learning of Ryans condition. "My family is praying for Terry Ryan and his family. Cancer is a terrible thing and we are hoping for a fast recovery," reliever Brian Duensing said on Twitter. "Cancer news hit close to home today. Sickened to hear about one of the men I respect most. My prayers are with you Terry," closer Glen Perkins tweeted. Manager Ron Gardenhire, in an email, said hes had a "rough few days" in regard to Ryans cancer. "You wont find a better boss or a better friend," Gardenhire said. Ryans primary concern, his colleagues said, was with his wife and adult children and how they would take the news. "But beyond that, he took it really well," Eyunni said. "He says, Doc, lets move on. I want to get this done." Ryan initially became general manager in 1994, stepping down 13 years later, citing burnout. After serving as a special assistant to general manager Bill Smith for four seasons, Smith was reassigned, and Ryan reassumed the job in 2011. In his statement, Ryan expressed confidence in Gardenhire, Antony and the rest of the baseball operations department to keep the Twins on the right track. "I met with Terry last week when he told all of us what was going on, and I started asking him questions about how he wanted me to handle this and that, and he just looked at me and basically said, Youve been around here long enough. Youve been in all these meetings. You know what goes on in spring training. Just go down and do your thing," Antony said. "He said, You know what youre doing. So that felt good." In addition to vice-president of player personnel Mike Radcliff, a member of the organization since 1987, special assistants Smith and Wayne Krivsky and have each previously been major league general managers, Krivsky with Cincinnati. For now, theres no plan on when or how much to consult with Ryan regarding general operations and key decisions. Antony told Ryan to call him when he feels good enough to participate. The Twins start spring training in Fort Myers, Fla., next week. "All I want to hear is the call that he says he had his checkup and the thing is completely gone and now he can start getting back to a normal routine and life, and whether that comes in March or April or whatever, it doesnt matter," Antony said. "Its the end result more than anything." He added: "There comes a time you need to put your family and your personal health and everything in front of your job and the game, and hes a smart enough guy to know that this is the time to do that right now." Nike Baseball Jerseys . 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. Nike NFL Jerseys 2020 . Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas appeared to be on track to gain election from the Baseball Writers Association of America on Wednesday, and Craig Biggio could join them. https://www.cheapmlbjerseysjustwholesale.com/. However, Therrien added that Galchenyuks status for next Wednesdays game against the Detroit Red Wings is questionable. Galchenyuk has been out since Jan. 6 with a broken right hand. Adidas NHL Jerseys 2020 . 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. Nike MLB Jerseys .C. - The housecleaning continues for the B.TORONTO - Given the conditions, Toronto FC manager Ryan Nelsen said the game would be decided by "a scrappy goal or a moment of quality." Unfortunately Colorado (3-1-1) scored the scrappy goal while Toronto midfielder Kyle Bekker came oh so close to two late moments of brilliance Saturday. "To tell you the truth, in the second half I thought there was only going to be one team that was going to win that game," said Nelsen. "The cruelty of football isnt it when you hit the post and 30 seconds later they score at the other end." Former Toronto forward Edson Buddle decided the game with his 99th career MLS goal, from close range in the 77th minute, as the visiting Rapids edged an injury-ridden Toronto side 1-0 before an announced sellout of 22,591. Colorado, which had been on its heels earlier in the second half, took advantage of a Toronto defensive letdown to secure the three points. Toronto (3-2-0) was without five starters including star striker Jermain Defoe (hamstring) and midfielder Michael Bradley (quadricep and groin), whose combined salaries are almost US$13 million this season. Also missing were midfielders Jonathan Osorio and Alvaro Rey (both hamstrings) and central defender Doneil Henry (knee). "I think their depth was tested today," said Colorado defender Drew Moor. "Id be lying if I said when we saw the team sheet that it didnt make us a little more hungry." While Nelsen wanted to talk about those players who were on the pitch rather than the ones missing, he couldnt resist point out that any team would struggle without "five very influential players." "Especially a young team like us." Adding to Torontos woes was the fact that attacking midfielder Dwayne De Rosario, who was subbed out in the 67th minute, was walking with a limp after the game with what Nelsen called a muscle injury. Toronto plays in Dallas next weekend and then has a bye to regroup. The club could well opt to have some of the injured players skip the Dallas game to give them more time to recover. Bradley had been a question-mark for Saturday and failed to recover in time. Nelsen said Bradley faced being out for "several weeks, pushing on months" if he had played and aggravated his injuries. The star midfielder played for both the U.S and Toronto last week, with his body paying the price. Colorado was missing leading scorer Vicente Sanchez, who did not make the trip because his wife is expecting their first child. The drab game reflected the conditions: grey skies and a stiff wind blowing on a bumpy pitch. "There was only a few spells of decent soccer being played out there," said Colorado coach Pablo Mastroeni. "The rest of it was grit, rolling up your sleeves, second balls and battles. Thats what I said to the guys going in. This game is not going to be about soccer, its going to be about determination and will and fight and getting those second balls and shieldding and putting balls in dangerous spots.dddddddddddd" That is exactly how the goal happened. Austrian defender Thomas Piermayr found Dillon Serna in the penalty box with a long ball from the right flank, Serna drove it back into the box, Deshorn Brown got his head to it and the ball found its way back to Serna as the Toronto defence struggled to keep up. Serna passed to Dillon Powers who drove into the box, attracting two Toronto defenders before raking a short ball back to an unmarked Buddle in front Seconds earlier, Bekker had bent a free kick round the wall and off the goalpost. Bekker hit the woodwork again in stoppage time. Asked what he thought after hitting both free kicks, Bekker replied: "Goal." "I thought he was brilliant today," Nelsen said of the 23-year-old Canadian. "Absolutely brilliant, one of our standout players." Colorado had lost all six of its previous games at BMO Field against Toronto although it did win the MLS Cup here in 2010, beating FC Dallas. Torontos bench was young and green with 18-year-old Jordan Hamilton, 21-year-old Nick Hagglund, 22-year-old Gale Agbossoumonde, 23-year-old Ashtone Morgan, 24-year-old Joe Bendik and Andrew Wiedeman, and 25-year-old Ryan Richter. Just having Morgan on the bench was a surprise. The fullback was listed as being out with a hip flexor strain, which might explain why he took virtually no part in warmup. Nelsen said later Morgan could not have played, but was on the bench to be part of the team. The pitch was an improvement from the home opener three weeks ago but still cut up quickly. The bumpy surface and stiff cross-field wind did not help the quality of the game, with giveaways galore early on. Colorado looked for a patient buildup while Toronto opted for a more direct approach. Neither produced much of note although there were chances as the first half wore on with Colorado recovering from a slow start to come back at the home side. Gabriel Torres shot wide and Buddle was stopped in close by Toronto keeper Julio Cesar. At the other end, a header from a sliding Gilberto was just wide of the post after a nice cross from Mark Bloom. But for a team missing so many regulars, Toronto kept it together. Bekker looked calm in central midfield and his influence began to grow in the game. Toronto began to press in the second half. A Mark Bloom cross flew invitingly through the Colorado box. Then a De Rosario header popped just over the bar as Toronto pressed around the 60-minute mark. Three former TFC players started for Colorado — Nick LaBrocca, Nathan Sturgis, and Buddle — with Marvell Wynne on the bench. The 32-year-old Buddle played just 10 games for Toronto in 2007, failing to score. "Bitterly disappointing," was Toronto captain Steven Caldwells assessment of the game. "We just feel if we put in performances like that, were going to win a lot more games than were going to lose," he added. ' ' '