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MILWAUKEE -- The Milwaukee Brewers roughed their old teammate, Zack Greinke, handing the right-hander his first loss at Miller Park. Evan Gattis Braves Jersey . Carlos Gomez hit a go-ahead two-run double, Jonathan Lucroy tied a career high with three hits and five Milwaukee relievers combined for five scoreless innings as the Brewers beat Greinke and the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-2 Tuesday night. Mike Fiers (1-2), Michael Gonzalez, John Axford, Brandon Kintzler and Jim Henderson pitched Milwaukee to only its fourth victory in its last 19 games by allowing four singles. Henderson threw the ninth for his ninth save, striking out pinch-hitter Scott Van Slyke with runners on first and second. "When the bullpen comes together like that and shuts those guys out for the rest of the game, even though their record isnt that great, thats a good hitting team," said Fiers, who got out of a bases-loaded jam with one out in the fourth. "We definitely did a great job coming out of the pen." Greinke (2-1), making his second start since returning from a broken left collarbone, gave up season highs of nine hits, five earned runs and three walks in four-plus innings against his former team. The right-hander, traded by the Brewers to the Los Angeles Angels last July 27 before signing with the Dodgers in the off-season, had won his first 15 decisions in Milwaukee. "I didnt think about it at all," Greinke said. "Everything was bad, not just command. Just no feel out there, no adjustments to be made. Started out bad. I got out of some jams early but never really got better." Greinke gave up four runs in the fourth by allowing hits to the first five batters. Jean Segura led off with a triple over the head of right fielder Andre Ethier and came home to tie the score at 2-2 on a single by Ryan Braun. Singles by Aramis Ramirez and Lucroy loaded the bases for Gomez, who gave Milwaukee a 4-2 lead with a ground-rule double over the left field wall. "Zacks a great teammate," Gomez said. "I faced him when he was in Kansas City and he really had my number. So we had that conversation (when Milwaukee was in Los Angeles at the end of April) and I said, I want to face you, now. And he said, all right, but Im going to do the same. Im going to strike you out. He probably laughed at my first at-bat (a strikeout). But I continued to look for good pitches to hit. He threw me one and I hit a double." Matt Guerrier replaced Greinke and gave up a run-scoring grounder to Yuniesky Betancourt that increased the lead to 5-2. Milwaukees rally ended when Gomez was picked off third by Guerrier before Jeff Bianchi was caught stealing second. Brewers starter Hiram Burgos lasted only 3 1-3 innings, as the rookie right-hander gave up two earned runs, six hits, four walks and struck out three. "It sure would be nice to get into the seventh inning with some of our starters," said Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke. "Our pitch count is going up way too fast. He got himself into trouble but made some pitches to get out of it." Lucroys two-out single in the first gave Milwaukee a 1-0 lead. Los Angeles went ahead in the fourth on run-scoring singles by Greinke and Nick Punto. However, the Dodgers left 14 runners on base, including nine in the first five innings, to lose for the seventh time in their last eight road games. "Thats really kind of been the story as far as our offence has been concerned," Los Angeles manager Don Mattingly said. "We had the right people up in the right spots. We had our chances. We just werent able to do it." NOTES: All 10 of the Dodgers hits were singles. . Milwaukee won for just the second time in its last nine home games. ... Greinke was 25-9 in 1 1/2 seasons with the Brewers. ... The Dodgers were trying to win consecutive road games for just the third time this season. ... Home plate umpire Wally Bell warned both benches when Ronald Belisario threw behind Lucroys back in the seventh. In the top of the inning, Ethier was hit in the elbow on a pitch from Axford. ... Matt Kemp, from Midwest City, Okla., will donate $1,000 to the Oklahoma tornado relief fund for every homer he hits through the All-Star break. Brandon Beachy Braves Jersey . The team says Paul is day to day and is questionable for Mondays game against New Jersey. Paul is averaging 18.0 points, 8.4 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 37.3 minutes in nine games for the Clippers, who beat Miami and the Lakers in their last two games. Phil Niekro Jersey . The top-ranked Czech Republic will visit Canada for a first-round tie Feb. 7-8, 2015. "This will be our first World Group tie and the team knows that no matter who the opponent, it will be a very talented team that is one of the best in the world," Canadas Fed Cup captain Sylvain Bruneau said in a release.ZURICH, Switzerland -- It will be Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Zlatan Ibrahimovic for a place at the World Cup. Portugal and Sweden were the first two teams drawn by FIFA on Monday for the European playoffs, though the pairing was talked about as a clash of superstar forwards in a two-leg series scheduled for Nov. 15 and 19. "World-class players like Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic, they do something extra to change the game," Sweden coach Erik Hamren said. "I am pleased we have one, too. But we need our team to be really good." Also, France will play Ukraine, with the return game in Paris; Greece was paired with Romania; and Iceland, the lowest ranked of the eight teams at No. 46 in the world, will host the first leg against Croatia, which fired its coach last week. The four winners will complete Europes 13 entries in the 32-team World Cup draw on Dec. 6 in Salvador, Brazil. Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic were consigned to the playoffs after their teams finished second in their qualifying groups behind Russia and Germany, respectively. "They will be evenly balanced and very competitive games," Portugal coach Paulo Bento said. "Ibrahimovic is an imposing figure, but the Swedes are more than that, they are good collectively." Portugal also had to advance to the 2010 World Cup through a playoff, after twice drawing 0-0 with Sweden in the group. France, the 2006 World Cup runner-up, also makes its second straight trip to the playoffs after defending champion Spain won its group. Four years ago, a notorious handball by Thierry Henry helped France beat Ireland in extra time. "(Ukraine) dont concede many goals and it will be a long away trip for us," France coach Didiier Deschamps said. Freddie Freeman Jersey. "But to have the return leg at home is a good thing." France and Ukraine last met in a 2012 European Championship match which was delayed several minutes after kick off by a torrential rain storm in Donetsk. France eventually won 2-0. Iceland, which has a population of about 315,000, is looking to become the smallest country ever to play at the World Cup. That record is held by 2006 qualifier Trinidad and Tobago, which had about 1.2 million. Though Iceland lacks the recent pedigree of Croatia, the 1998 semifinalist, the pairing pits a veteran coach against a novice. Iceland coach Lars Lagerback will be trying to reach his fourth straight World Cup with a third different team. He coached his native Sweden at the 2002 and 2006 tournaments, and Nigeria in 2010. Croatias playoff matches mark the coaching debut of 42-year-old Niko Kovac, who stepped up from the under-21 team to replace Igor Stimac, who was fired after poor results. "I met Niko a little when he took his (coaching) license," Lagerback said. "He looks like a clever guy." Kovac said he "did not expect this situation" and will work alongside his brother, Robert, another former World Cup stalwart for Croatia. "With him I am never afraid," said Kovac, who will be focusing on teamwork. "There was no team on the pitch. We have some good players but everyone working for himself." Greece coach Fernando Santos said he would have preferred to play the first match in Romania. "My message to the fans is that they should believe in the national team, go to the stadium, fill it, and put pressure on our opponents," Santos said. cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
