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ST. Adam Jones Orioles Jersey . LOUIS -- The plan called for Adam Wainwright to get a little tuneup for the NL division series opener. The right-hander was so efficient, he stayed in there long enough to earn his 19th victory, an RBI and a triumphant exit, too. "I wanted to stay sharp," Wainwright said after the St. Louis Cardinals showed no letup after clinching the NL Central, beating the Chicago Cubs 6-2 Saturday for their fifth straight win. "Ten days off is too much, I think, between starts. Its good to get in there, get some good work in, get a knock and get the win." Matt Holliday homered for the second day in a row and Yadier Molina drove in two runs for St. Louis (96-65), which entered the day tied with Atlanta for the NL lead in wins. All three of them were taken out before the finish and manager Mike Matheny removed Wainwright (19-9) after getting the first out of the sixth so hed get an ovation. "Youve got to tiptoe around how you do that, we want to make sure we respect the other club," Matheny said. "It worked out fine." The start time was moved up three hours to avoid a forecast of storms. The Cardinals mailed vouchers to all ticket holders, whether they attended or not, for a game in 2014. The crowd of 42,520 was a few thousand shy of a sellout. Wainwright allowed two hits in 5 1-3 shutout innings and tied for the league lead in victories with Washingtons Jordan Zimmermann, who lost his last scheduled start Wednesday in St. Louis. According to STATS, Wainwright is the third Cardinals pitcher to lead the league in victories twice, also doing it with 19 wins in 2009. Dizzy Dean (1934-35) and Mort Cooper (1942-43) are the other Cardinals pitchers to twice lead the league in wins. Bob Gibson did it once. The Cubs averted a second straight shutout loss by scoring twice in the ninth against former St. Louis closer Edward Mujica. Anthony Rizzo led off with a homer and Donnie Murphy had an RBI double against Mujica, who has allowed 18 hits in 7 1-3 innings with two blown saves this month and lost his job to rookie Trevor Rosenthal. Mujica has 37 saves but is in danger of getting left off the post-season roster for the first round. Matheny was noncommittal about using Mujica in the regular-season finale, saying hed see "how he feels." Seth Maness earned his first career save by getting Darwin Barney on a double play ball. Edwin Jackson (8-18) allowed six runs and eight hits in 2 2-3 innings before leaving with mild side discomfort that he said bothered him as the game went on. He leads the majors in losses. "At the end of the day Ive got three more years here to look forward to," Jackson said. "I definitely look forward to changing things and changing everything around." The Cubs have lost 11 of 14, scoring two or fewer runs nine times in that stretch. Wainwright got his sixth RBI of the season with a single off third baseman Donnie Murphys glove in a four-run third. Wainwright entered 1-6 with a 5.16 ERA at home against the Cubs. Hes 6-0 with a 3.72 ERA at Wrigley Field. Holliday hit his 22nd homer, a two-run drive in the first that put his average at .300 and likely wont play Sunday to keep it there. The Cardinals broke away in the third when Holliday and Matt Adams drew one-out walks ahead of Molinas two-run double, and Pete Kozma had an RBI single. NOTES: Jake Westbrook (7-8, 4.67) gets a spot start Sunday in place of Joe Kelly (9-5, 2.81), wholl follow him in relief. Westbrook has battled elbow and back issues and has pitched once this month, and in his past four starts since July 29 has allowed 19 earned runs in 21 1-3 innings. "Im excited to get the opportunity," Westbrook said. "Ive been throwing, just not as fast as its going to be tomorrow. Hopefully itll be a good day." The Cardinals are unlikely to pick up a $9.75 million mutual option next year on the 36-year-old Westbrook. ... Jeff Samardzija (8-12, 4.33) starts for the Cubs. ... Molina has four hits and five RBIs in the first two games of the series, giving him a team-leading 16 RBIs against the Cubs. ... According to STATS, Jackson is among four pitchers since 2000 to throw a no-hitter and later lose 17 or more games. Also on the list are Ubaldo Jimenez last year, Derek Lowe in 2011 and Justin Verlander in 2008, all with 17 losses. Nelson Cruz Jersey .C. -- The Charlotte Bobcats said head coach Steve Clifford underwent a successful procedure Friday to have two stents placed in his heart. Eddie Murray Authentic Jersey . And former Maple Leafs coach Ron Wilson certainly knows his pain. "Its pretty hard to coach there without allowing some of these things to kind of affect you," Wilson told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun in his ESPN.SAN FRANCISCO -- Warming up in the bullpen, Barry Zito could hardly see when triple amputee Marine Cpl. Nick Kimmel hopped out of his wheelchair on a new pair of prosthetic legs to throw out the ceremonial first pitch with his right arm and lone remaining good limb. Matt Cain provided the highlights of that emotional pregame Memorial Day moment for his fellow San Francisco starter, who has aided the young veteran with emotional and financial support through his Strikeouts for Troops foundation. Zito then took the mound himself and outpitched Trevor Cahill in a matchup of former Oakland Athletics All-Stars, and Brandon Belt helped back his day with an RBI triple in the Giants 4-2 win against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday. "It was kind of unfortunate I couldnt be a part of it. I couldnt really look down there and see what was going on," Zito said of watching Kimmel, who came to spring training this year with other Marines. "I talked to Cainer and he said he got up on his legs. That was pretty awesome to hear because Ive been watching his progress and getting the videos on the cellphone." Gregor Blanco doubled twice and drove in a run for his second two-double game in four days and made a pretty game-ending catch on the warning track in right with two runners aboard. Blanco also scored on a double-steal to get things started in San Franciscos three-run first. Majors hits leader Melky Cabrera followed up his four-hit day in Sundays 3-2 win at Miami with a 1-for-3 outing to push his total to 74 hits -- on an afternoon when home run king Barry Bonds was among the sellout crowd of 42,295 and stopped by the clubhouse for a visit before the game. Cabrera singled in the sixth to give him 47 hits for May, tying him with Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda for third-most hits in a month in San Francisco history. If he gets to 49, he would match Hall of Famer Willie Mays for second most. Zito (4-2) allowed two runs on seven hits in seven innings to win for the third time in four starts, bouncing back from an 8-5 loss at Milwaukee in which he was tagged for eight runs and five hits in three innings. Cahill (2-5), traded to the defending division champion D-backs in December by the rebuilding As, extended his winless stretch to five starts -- and is 0-3 during that span since winning at Washington on May 1. The right-hander struck out five and walked two, while allowing four runs and eight hits in six innings. Clay Hensley struck out two in the eighth and Santiago Casilla finished for his 13th save in 14 chances after surrendering a pair of singgles. Manny Machado Jersey. . The Giants held on while starting a stretch with 13 of 16 games at home. Cahill singled in the third for his second career hit and first since 2009 in his rookie season in Oakland. He snapped an 0-for-26 stretch. Pinch-hitter John McDonald hit a solo home run in the eighth for Arizona as the last batter against Zito, who made his way from the mound to the dugout to a warm ovation for the second straight home start. It was McDonalds first career pinch-hit homer. Justin Upton hit an RBI double for the Diamondbacks, but they missed other key opportunities, including stranding runners on second and third in the third inning. Arizona was looking to build some momentum after it took two of three from Milwaukee at home to end a string of six straight series losses at Chase Field. "There were too many mistakes to make up today," manager Kirk Gibson said. "It was my fault for not having them ready. We had opportunities. We hit the ball on the button but right at people. If we play better that should not make a difference." Zito will continue to monitor the progress of Kimmel, who served in Afghanistan and was injured by a roadside bomb. "The fact that he came up and did this was huge," Zito said. "Im just so happy for him." Everybody considered it a fitting day for Zito to pitch considering all of his assistance to service members and their families and injured military members. "Barry played a major role in that," manager Bruce Bochy said of Kimmel. Also Monday, the USS Nimitz air craft carrier could be seen beyond the right-field facade. NOTES: Injured Giants 3B Pablo Sandoval, working back from a broken hamate bone in his left hand that required surgery, was examined by team orthopedist Dr. Ken Akizuki and all went well. He could be back playing for the Giants in a couple of weeks following a rehab assignment in the minors. ... Gibson celebrated his 55th birthday. ... The Diamondbacks made their first trip to AT&T Park of the year after the division rivals already played six games in Arizona. They wont meet again in San Franciscos waterfront ballpark until six games here in September. ... The Giants Emmanuel Burriss singled in the second for his first hit of the year vs. Arizona after beginning 0 for 11. ... A moment of silence was held before the national anthem on Memorial Day for all of the fallen U.S. troops. ... Upton, 0 for 4 Sunday vs. the Brewers, has hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games. ... RHP Ryan Vogelsong (3-2) pitches Tuesday night against LHP Joe Saunders (3-3). cheap jerseys from china cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
