Dein erstes Forum » ptimistic, and a bit more ready for the rac

CHICAGO -- The St. Louis Cardinals are further down than usual in the NL Central standings. Still, they may see the major league-leading Chicago Cubs in October, and theyre coming out of a four-game series at Wrigley Field with some extra confidence.Stephen Piscotty hit a three-run homer, Brandon Moss followed with a solo shot one out later and the Cardinals used a five-run eighth inning to beat the Cubs 6-4 on Sunday night.Piscotty hit his 17th homer off setup man Hector Rondon (2-3), who entered with a 3-1 lead in his first appearance since Aug. 2 because of a triceps injury. After pinch-hitter Kolten Wong and Greg Garcia singled, Piscotty lofted a shot to deep left-center field that put the Cardinals ahead 4-3 in front of 41,019 silenced fans.Moss added his 21st homer, then Randal Grichuk doubled in a run off Travis Wood.Any time youre playing a good team like that late in the game, its just more dramatic, Piscotty said. A great way to bounce back.We kind of know what our role is going forward, he added. Were fighting for that wild-card spot. Hopefully, this gives us some momentum.The Cardinals split a four-game series with Chicago, which dropped its second straight following an 11-game winning streak. St. Louis trails Chicago by 12 games in the division but also has a half-game lead on Miami for the second wild-card spot, keeping the Cards in line for a sixth straight playoff appearance.Weve been down quite a few times early, and guys just keep playing the game and thats something Im extremely proud about this club, manager Mike Matheny said.Cubs starter John Lackey allowed only one unearned run and four hits before leaving with two outs in the seventh with muscle stiffness. Chicago doesnt consider the injury serious.Believe me, Ive been through a lot worse, the 37-year-old Lackey said. I dont know, maybe an (its an) old thing.Rondon said he felt really good. He just didnt have his normal command.I know I missed the location and they got me, he said.Anthony Rizzo went 3 for 4 with a solo homer and three RBI, and Ben Zobrist knocked in a run with a sac fly.Lackey was sailing along and struck out five in his fourth straight solid start. But the right-hander grimaced in pain after throwing a pitch to Grichuk, walked off the field and was replaced by Justin Grimm. The reliever then struck out Grichuk.Were in a fortunate situation with the kind of (division) lead we have, Lackey said. We kind of have the leeway to do some things. Were just checking games off the schedule.Matt Bowman (2-4) got three outs in the seventh -- and got out of a bases-load jam -- in relief of Mike Leake for the win. Leake allowed three runs on six hits in six innings and retired 16 in a row over one stretch despite entering with a 9.00 ERA in his previous four starts.Cardinals closer Seung Hwan Oh got the final five outs, including three strikeouts in the ninth, for his 11th save in 12 chances.Leake settled into a pitchers duel with Lackey with a little help from his defense.St. Louis third baseman Jhonny Peralta made a diving stop, rolled and threw to first in one motion on Addison Russells sharp grounder in the fourth.Kris Bryant ended Leakes run with a triple to right-center with one out in the sixth. He scored on Rizzos second RBI single to make it 3-1.After the Cardinals took a 6-3 lead in the eighth, Rizzo hit his 25th homer in the bottom half.LETS PLAY TWOCubs manager Joe Maddon says hed have no problem with MLB shortening the season by adding more doubleheaders, but not drawn-out day-night twinbills. Maddon would be for second games starting 30 minutes after the end of the first, and for teams adding two players to their rosters.I think the fans would dig it, too, said Maddon, while noting he understands the economics of day-night doubleheaders with separate admissions. If you have to put a premium on the price tag, I dont know.TRAINERS ROOMCardinals: OF Matt Holliday (broken right thumb) is expected to be re-examined by the teams hand specialist on Monday. ... St. Louis LHP Kevin Siegrist left after striking out Zobrist in the eight with an apparent injury and was replaced by Oh. Kevins had a lot of work and that was precautionary more than anything else, Matheny said.Cubs: Rondon said before the game he was 100 percent ready, but allowed four runs in 1/3 of an inning.UP NEXTCardinals: Following a day off Monday, LHP Jaime Garcia (9-8, 3.93) opens a two-game set in Houston against LHP Dallas Keuchel (7-11, 4.56). St. Louis also has Thursday off, but Matheny plans no changes to his strained rotation.Cubs: Chicago also has Monday off, then hosts Milwaukee in a day-night doubleheader Tuesday. RHP Trevor Cahill (1-3, 3.07) is expected to come off the DL (right knee tendinitis) and start in the opener against Brewers RHP Matt Garza (4-4, 4.83). Chicagos Jason Hammel (12-5, 2.90) is 5-0 with a 1.16 ERA since the All-Star break and will take the mound in the nightcap against RHP Chase Anderson (7-10, 4.93). Authentic Custom Packers Jersey . Rousey will put her perfect 8-0 record and hardware on the line against another undefeated fighter, 7-0 Sara McMann in the main event of UFC 170, which will be held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas Nevada on February 22nd. Cheap Packers Jerseys . Ivanovic was leading 7-5, 1-0 when Hantuchova withdrew after falling 0-40 behind in the second game. 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The team has struggled with its year-old Ferrari power unit at recent races but its Singapore showing vindicates the belief in the paddock that the Italian team has one of the strongest aerodynamic packages of the current grid.After FP2 on Friday evening Sainz did not think Toro Rosso could maintain its pace into Saturday, something he put down to the usual trend he sees with the teams rivals at other circuits.I was applying the logic of where we have been the last few races and what normally happens on Saturdays with the performance upgrade the Mercedes engine has and we dont have. But somehow we have taken some extra performance out of the car with the changes we did and yeah, all together, it means we are three or four tenths ahead of Force India, which was pretty much unthinkable two races ago.We are much closer to the top teams [too]. Okay they are in a different league -- but it is one and a half seconds, which is more or less the same as it was in Australia, amazing. I think we can be extremely pleased withh the job this weekend.ddddddddddddainz had qualified 15th at the previous three races, following another sixth-place grid slot in Hungary. The Spaniard said a top six start gives him added motivation for the race.You feel a bit more loaded when you go into a race starting sixth. There is a bit more tension inside yourself. You know you have Raikkonen in front of you and you want to get a good start. You are a bit more encouraged, a bit more optimistic, and a bit more ready for the race. Lets put it like that.Tomorrow I am going to wake up so happy that that feeling is back and knowing I am starting in a similar position to Barcelona, where I could overtake the Ferraris at the start. It is very encouraging and tomorrow I will wake up with a smile on my face.Sainz and Kvyat are running slightly different aero packages this weekend, as the team looks to find the spec. Though Sainz feels his is costing him a bit more time on the straights compared to Kvyat he says the team will continue the split for the grand prix.?No major differences. The data says nothing. That is why we are keeping them separate because there is no clear direction to go. ' ' '