KANSAS CITY, Mo. Bryan Bulaga Super Bowl Jersey . -- Even after a lengthy replay, Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire still thinks the call was wrong. No worry. When he was ejected for arguing the play in the third inning Tuesday night, it gave him a nice vantage point -- a flat-screen TV and a comfy chair in the clubhouse -- to see Kyle Gibson shut down the Kansas City Royals for seven innings in a tense 2-1 victory. The play in question was Chris Parmelees sinking liner to left field that Alex Gordon appeared to trap while sliding. The umpires ruled it a catch, though, likely saving a run. Gardenhire quickly challenged it, only to be incensed when a review of 3 minutes, 31 seconds let it stand. A nose-to-nose confrontation with plate umpire Ted Barrett resulted in him getting tossed. "Honestly, I know youre not supposed to go out there. I just wanted to find out how that happened," Gardenhire said. "Thats the part a lot of managers are trying to figure out, what did they see? I know they dont want it to go any longer, but its gone on long enough. "I was just looking for an explanation. He threw me out really quick. He was really hot." Gibson was hot in an entirely different way. He allowed a single by Alcides Escobar in the third inning and another by Nori Aoki in the sixth over seven dazzling innings. Gibson (9-8) was at his best his last inning, too, setting down the Royals in order in the seventh on four seemingly effortless pitches. "I had a great view for it," Gardenhire said with a smile. Casey Fien worked the eighth before Glen Perkins ran into trouble in the ninth, giving up a leadoff double to Omar Infante and an RBI single to Eric Hosmer. Perkins bounced back to get three straight pop outs and record his 26th save of the season. "The loss is frustrating in general. It doesnt matter how it is," the Royals Billy Butler said. "Its not fun to lose, especially in a 2-1 game like that. We should have put up more runs." Josh Willingham hit a sacrifice fly in the third inning and Brian Dozier provided a run-scoring single in the fifth off James Shields (9-6), who battled command all night. He threw 124 pitches -- two shy of his career high -- while walking four in only six innings. Gibson, who was shelled by Tampa Bay his last time out, has made a habit of rebounding back from ugly outings. He followed a miserable performance against the Angels with a strong one against Texas, and a lousy start against the Yankees with six shutout innings against Seattle. "I dont know what it was tonight," he said. "I just had a lot of confidence." ROAD WARRIORS: The Twins have won six of their last seven on the road dating to July 8, a good omen considering their upcoming schedule. After two more in Kansas City, the Twins play three at the White Sox. They have two at home against San Diego followed by six more on the road. PROUD PAPA: The Twins played short-handed while outfielder Oswaldo Arcia spent time with his family following the birth of his baby boy. Twins assistant general manager Rob Antony said Arcia declined to take paternity leave and plans to arrive in Kansas City for Wednesdays game. TRAINERS ROOM Twins: Catcher Joe Mauer (strained right oblique) swung in the batting cage and plans to hit live batting practice Wednesday. Right-hander Ricky Nolasco (sore elbow) also felt good after a bullpen session. He plans to throw another one Thursday. Royals: Hosmer was back in the lineup after missing six of the past seven starts with a bruised right hand, while left-hander Jason Vargas (appendectomy) also reported no problems after a four-inning simulated game. "Today went well," Vargas said. ON DECK Twins: Right-hander Phil Hughes (10-7) will make his first start since leaving a game July 24 against the White Sox with a bruised right shin. Royals: Left-hander Danny Duffy (5-10) threw seven shutout innings his last time out against Cleveland, only to get stuck with a no-decision. Clay Matthews Super Bowl Jersey . New York Red Bulls. TSN primes Vancouver fans for the start of the 2014 season with MLS on TSN: Season Preview Special airing tonight at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt on TSN2 (encore Friday at 3:30pm et/12:30pm pt on TSN2). Preston Smith Super Bowl Jersey . Onyshko, from Minnedosa, Man., will compete in artistic gymnastics while Hanet, from Kelowna, B.C., will compete in lawn bowling as a para-athlete. "It is exciting that our Canadian athletes are starting to arrive at the Games Village," said Chantal Petitclerc, Canadas Chef de Mission. http://www.shoptheofficialpackers.com/Elite-Aaron-Jones-Packers-Jersey/ . Tampa Bay Buccaneers RB Doug Martin broke the news that hes cleared for full activity moving forward. BARCELONA, Spain -- Diego Costa sparked Atletico Madrids exhilarating 2-1 comeback at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday, while Lionel Messi converted a late penalty to keep Barcelona one point behind the Spanish league leaders with a contentious 1-0 win at Espanyol. Cristiano Ronaldo scored as well before Gareth Bale netted a brace as Real Madrid routed Rayo Vallecano 5-0 at home, breaking a rare two-game losing streak and keeping their team within three points of the pacesetters. A tireless Diego Costa cancelled out Iker Muniains opener before Koke "Jorge" Resurreccion followed with a 55th-minute header to keep Atletico on course in its search for its first league title since 1996. Messi made sure Barcelona stayed right behind Atletico with seven games left by slotting in a spot kick in the 77th when Espanyol defender Javi Lopez handled in the area. Ronaldo leads the league with 28 goals through 31 games. Diego Costa is next with 25, trailed by Messi with 23. Barcelona hosts Atletico on Tuesday in the Champions League quarterfinals, a preview of their meeting in the last round of the Spanish league season. Diego Costa was a nightmare for Bilbaos defence, and could have had at least one more goal given the number of opportunities he fought hard to create. He did help leave Bilbao with 10 men by earning a second yellow card for Aymeric Laporte in the 86th. "Diego Costa is huge for us," said Koke. "We have seen that from the start of the season and I only hope he keeps it up. We knew that we were visiting a tough ground and the game was like we expected. Diego (Costa) had space to roam and we found him. Then we turned it around." Muniain took advantage of a rare defensive lapse by Atletico to hit six minutes in when he chased down a pass touched on by Aritz Aduriz and used one touch to lob the ball over onrushing goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. Atleticos answer came in the 22nd when Koke intercepted Ander Iturraspes ill-advised pass and left Diego Costa alone to beat goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz. After Diego Costa almost struck again seconds after the restart, Koke pplayed Filipe Luis wide and ran forward to nod his returned cross into the net to momentarily silence the raucous San Mames crowd. Jason Spriggs Super Bowl Jersey. Diego Simeones side still needed Courtois one-handed stretch to swat away Adurizs header with 10 minutes to play. Simeone called his teams game the "best of the season." "We are aware of the great match we played," said Simone. "We went straight at recovering the ball and exploiting the space up front for Diego (Costa). We didnt waste time despite falling behind. We always knew how we wanted to play." Bilbao was left in fourth place and in control of the last Champions League spot with a six-point advantage over Sevilla after it lost 1-0 at Celta Vigo from Manuel "Nolito" Agudos 87th-minute penalty. Espanyols physical style kept Messi and the crosstown visitors in check until Lopez was whistled, allowing Messi to score the spot kick for his eighth goal in his last four games and save Barcelona from a costly draw. Barcelona was fortunate, however, that the referee did not see the ball hit Lopez after Dani Alves cross first ricocheted off Neymars arm, as television replays appeared to show. "Derbies are always tough, and this was a tense game with lots of interruptions, fouls and controversy," Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets said. "Three weeks ago we were in a difficult situation. Now we are in a privileged one and control our fate. I hope it stays like that until the last game against Atletico." Espanyol played the last seven minutes and injury time with 10 men after goalkeeper Kiko Casilla used his hands outside the box. Lopez had to take over goalkeeping duties with Espanyols three substitutes already made and played admirably, making two saves. Ronaldo and Bale were the main attractions in an otherwise dreary, rainy, and lopsided match at the Santiago Bernabeu. Ronaldo opened from Bales pass in the 15th before setting up Dani Carvajal in the 55th. Bale scored twice on the break in the 68th and 70th. Substitute Alvaro Morata curled in Madrids fifth in the 78th. ' ' '