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PITTSBURGH —James McDonald takes the mound every five days with a chip on his
shoulder, eager to prove the Pittsburgh Pirates are legit. Terrell Suggs Elite Jersey . “I want to be
the guy that shows other teams that were for real, that we do have quality
players here,” McDonald said. He definitely made a statement on Saturday,
scattering four hits over seven innings to win his fourth straight start and
lead the Pirates to a 3-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants. Mike McKenry
hit a solo homer as the Pirates won for the ninth time in 11 games. They are
guaranteed at least a share of the NL Central lead through the All-Star break,
heady stuff for a franchise with 19 consecutive losing seasons. Pittsburgh has a
pair of All-Stars in centre fielder Andrew McCutchen and closer Joel Hanrahan,
but McDonald made a pretty good case that he should be in Kansas City next week
too after striking out 10 against no walks and lowering his ERA to a sparkling
2.37. “(McDonald) had it all working today,” San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy
said. On the mound and at the plate. McDonald, who had Pittsburghs only hit in a
5-0 loss to Matt Cain and the Giants on April 13, led off the third with a walk
against Ryan Vogelsong (7-4) and made it all the way home on Neil Walkers double
to deep left-centre field. A visibly winded McDonald slowly made his way to the
dugout after racing 270 feet on the hottest day in the 12-year history of PNC
Park. He was briefly worried he wouldnt be ready to head out for the next inning
when the skies opened up. A 27-minute rain delay followed, cooling things off
and giving McDonald a chance to regroup. “The baseball gods must really like me
right now,” said McDonald, who added a single to in the fifth. Hey, for once its
good to be a Pirate. Walker finished with two doubles to extend his hitting
streak to 11 games and Hanrahan worked the ninth to pick up his 23rd save.
Vogelsong was solid but not quite spectacular. He allowed three runs and eight
hits in seven innings. “It happens,” Vogelsong said. “Obviously hes having a
good season and throwing the ball well. Going in you know its going to be a
tough game. He just pitched a little bit better than me today.” Ryan Theriot and
Gregor Blanco had two hits apiece for the Giants, who have dropped six of eight.
“We got a good start from Vogelsong but we ran into one of the better pitched
games weve seen,” Bochy said. “They got some key hits there. We had trouble
getting guys on base.” Bochy declined to speculate whether McDonald and
Vogelsong—who began the day fourth and first in the NL in ERA —deserved to
be All-Stars. “You cant take em all,” he said. No matter, McDonald will
certainly welcome the break after developing into a workhorse. The 27-year-old
right-hander who only made it through seven innings five times in the first four
years of his career has now done it eight times in the last 14 starts.
Masterfully mixing his curveball with a fastball that rarely missed the strike
zone, McDonald had little trouble with the Giants. He threw 77 of his 106
pitches for strikes and the Giants only managed to get the ball to the outfield
five times against him. “Straight As once again,” Pittsburgh manager Clint
Hurdle said. “He was very efficient. A couple of times when he got into jams, he
found a way to get out of them.” McKenrys seventh homer of the season and fourth
in his last 11 games gave Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead in the fourth and it was more
than enough for McDonald. McDonalds only hiccup came in the sixth when Blanco
singled with two outs, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a liner up
the middle by Theriot, who hung in there after falling behind 0-2. “Those things
help you win ballgames,” Bochy said. “But we just couldnt do much.”
Pedro Alvarez provided some insurance in the sixth when he doubled home
McCutchen. McDonald quickly retired the side in order in the seventh before
walking off to a loud ovation from the ninth sellout crowd of the season in a
city that is quickly warming to the thought of Pittsburgh as actual contenders.
“Every day is a statement day,” McDonald said. Jason Grilli struck out the side
in the eighth before Hanrahan—who was knocked around a bit recently—took
advantage of some brilliant defence by shortstop Clint Barmes. NOTES: The
Pirates moved back to 10 games above .500 (47-37) and are now 8-0 at home on
Saturdays this season … The series concludes on Sunday when Tim Lincecum (3-9,
6.09 ERA) faces Pittsburghs A.J. Burnett (9-2, 3.74). Dennis Pitta Elite Jersey .J. —The New York
Jets were a delicious treat for the San Francisco 49ers. Pernell McPhee Jersey . As negotiations with
the NHL resumed Tuesday, NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr indicated that the
union was getting close to responding to the leagues initial proposal, which
included a decreased share of hockey-related revenue, term limits on contracts
and a 22 per cent salary rollback. http://www.nflravenssportshop.com/nike-anquan-boldin-womens-jersey/
. 24 Texas A&M Aggies took a 45-40 victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
It was the 70th meeting between the teams and will be the final time they face
each other as Big 12 Conference foes. Ray Rice Jersey . Still, theres no
quarterback controversy with the New York Jets. McElroy became the first
quarterback to lead the Jets into the end zone this preseason in a 28-10 loss to
the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night. Anquan Boldin Super bowl Jersey . Sherritt,
who was named the CFLs Defensive Player of the Month on Wednesday, sat out
practice this week due to an injury sustained in last weeks loss in
Calgary.Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) – Stacy Lewis rallied for her fourth
LPGA Tour win of the season on Sunday, but she remained No. 2 in this weeks
womens world rankings. Lewis is still 3.14 average points behind No. 1 Yani
Tseng. Tseng and Lewis were again followed by Na Yeon Choi and Inbee Park.
Suzann Pettersen and Shanshan Feng exchanged places with Pettersen up to fifth
and the LPGA Champion down to No. 6. Jiyai SShin held steady in seventh and was
trailed by Ai Miyazato, So Yeon Ryu, Mika Miyazato and Paula Creamer. Jameel McClain Jersey. Sun Ju Ahn inched up
one to 12th and Catriona Matthew moved up two to No. 13. Amy Yang slid a pair to
14th, while Cristie Kerr dipped a notch to 15. Azahara Munoz, Karrie Webb and
I.K. Kim remained 16th to 18th. Angela Stanford and Chie Arimura exchanged
places with Stanford up to 19th. ’ ’ ’