PARIS -- Rafael Nadals path to a record-extending ninth French Open title could take him through a series of matches against the men who beat him on clay this season. Reggie White Jersey . The top-seeded Nadal was drawn Friday to possibly face No. 21 Nicolas Almagro in the fourth round, then No. 5 David Ferrer in the quarterfinals. "Those are opponents that know how to play well on clay," Nadal said. "But its never easy." The other mens quarterfinal matchups could be No. 2 Novak Djokovic vs. No. 8 Milos Raonic, No. 3 Stan Wawrinka vs. No. 7 Andy Murray, and No. 4 Roger Federer vs. No. 6 Tomas Berdych. The possible womens quarterfinals are No. 1 Serena Williams vs. No. 7 Maria Sharapova in what would be a rematch of last years final won by Williams, No. 2 Li Na vs. No. 6 Jelena Jankovic, No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska vs. No. 8 Angelique Kerber, and No. 4 Simona Halep vs. No. 5 Petra Kvitova. Ferrer, who lost to Nadal in the 2013 final at Roland Garros, upset him in the Monte Carlo quarterfinals last month. Almagro ended Nadals 41-match winning streak in Barcelona by beating him in the quarterfinals there a week later. Those defeats were both in best-of-three-set matches. The French Open, like all Grand Slam tournaments, uses a best-of-five format for men, and Nadal was asked Friday whether that gives him an advantage on clay. "I give my most every point, every game, every set. Whether its (best of) three or five, if you want to win, you have to play well," he said. Nadal has three losses on clay in a season for the first time since 2004, when he was only 17 and had yet to play a match at the French Open. He was beaten in the Rome final last weekend by Djokovic; they only could meet in the final in Paris. Djokovic has won the pairs last four meetings, but Nadal is 5-0 head-to-head at the French Open, including victories in the 2012 final and 2013 semifinals. Djokovic, a six-time major champion who needs a French Open title to complete a career Grand Slam, and Federer, owner of a record 17 major titles, were drawn to meet in the semifinals. Nadal, who stands third among men with 13 Grand Slam trophies, could meet Australian Open champion Wawrinka in the semifinals. Nadal is 59-1 for his career at the French Open, with four titles in a row in 2005-08 and again in 2010-13. Williams won the clay-court Grand Slam tournament in 2002, beating her older sister Venus in the final, then waited 11 years before adding a second French Open trophy in 2013. The Williams sisters were drawn Friday to face each other in the third round, which would be their earliest meeting at a Grand Slam tournament since their very first matchup, in the second round of the 1998 Australian Open. Venus is seeded 29th at the French Open. Shes won seven Grand Slam singles titles, 10 fewer than Serena, who holds a 14-10 edge in head-to-head matches. "It never gets easier," Serena said. "Shes essentially the love of my life, so its definitely difficult." Jaire Alexander Jersey .C. -- The Steve Smith era in Carolina is over. Davante Adams Jersey .  Arsene Wenger reportedly wants to convert the player into an attacking force, much like he did with Robin Van Persie.SARASOTA, Fla. -- Ubaldo Jimenez waited until spring training began before signing a four-year, $50 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles. It wasnt a comfortable feeling. "It is very difficult to wait. I know Im not the only one who had headaches," Jimenez said. Because signing Jimenez cost the Orioles their first round draft pick, it was a hard decision for executive vice-president of baseball operations Dan Duquette. "We made that conscious choice to put those resources into our current team on the starting pitching staff and thats what we felt we had to do to stabilize our team and be competitive in the AL East," Duquette said. Baltimore was a surprise playoff team in 2012, won 85 games in 2013 and didnt make a big free agent acquisition until this week when they added South Korean right-hander Suk-min Yoon and the right-handed Jimenez. "It took a lot of patience by the fans and a lot of patience by us to add veteran starting pitchers, but this is a robust market for the veteran starting pitchers. Every starting pitcher that we were in onn, there were four or five other clubs also in on that pitcher actively trying to sign him with good offers," Duquette said. Jimmy Graham Jersey. . The Orioles have a likely starting rotation of Jimenez, Chris Tillman, Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez and Bud Norris. Jimenez, who won 19 games in 2010 for Colorado, and 13 with Cleveland last season, including four straight in September, can help the teams rotation immensely. "Ubaldos going to make the pitching staff. Hes got a good shot at it," manager Buck Showalter said. "Hes worth waiting on." Jimenez has never pitched in the American League East, and unlike some of the other higher profile free agent pitchers, looks forward to working in a tough division. Jimenez will attempt to justify Baltimores investment. "Thats definitely is a lot of money. Im just going to go out there and show everything I have. Im not going to be trying to do too much because then its going to mess everything up. I have to be who I am. I cant be thinking about doing too much," Jimenez said. ' ' '