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p shore up the teams troubles against the pass.
CHICAGO -- Anthony Rizzo wasted little time in getting to Adam Wainwright. Antonio Smith . Rizzo hit a two-run single in the first that ended Wainwrights scoreless streak at 25 innings, and the Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-5 Friday for their third win in four games. "Im not trying to do too much," Rizzo said. "See the ball and hit it, really try to swing at the pitches I want to hit, not pitchers pitches. Especially with Wainwright, his stuff is so good hes going to eat you alive." Wainwright (5-2) had allowed six runs in 45 innings coming in, but the Cubs matched the runs total in just five innings against the St. Louis ace, who gave up 10 hits. His ERA rose from 1.20 to 2.16. "They did a nice job of spoiling some pitches," Cubs manager Rick Renteria said of his batters. "Youve got to give them all the credit. They grinded out some at-bats today and reaped some benefits." Wainwright had been 6-0 in 12 previous starts and five relief appearances at Wrigley Field. "There were certain pitches today I didnt have good command over," he said. "My curveball was kind of sporadic in the zone and out of the zone, which is pretty rare for me. Its a funny game. Today was not my day. I accept that and take responsibility for today and move on." The scoreless streak was one inning shy of the career high for Wainwright, who had not allowed an extra-base hit since April 12 against the Cubs in St. Louis. "Hes been incredibly consistent through this season so far. ... You can see pitches were just on the edge and not where he wanted them or werent getting called," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. "Its a frustrating day when he knows our guys put some offence up for him and we just cant stop them. He limited the damage and figured out ways to keep us in it. We had some chances." Rizzo added a leadoff home run in the fifth that put Chicago ahead 6-3. Welington Castillo had three doubles for Chicago, which sent the skidding Cardinals to their 10th loss in 16 games. Travis Wood (2-3) gave up three runs -- two earned -- and six hits in seven innings but allowed just one runner in his final three innings. Justin Grimm gave up Jhonny Peraltas two-run homer in the eighth, Hector Rondon pitched a perfect ninth for his second save. Cubs centerfielder Ryan Sweeney made a catch on the run in the eighth on a drive to right-centre by Allen Craig. Sweeney injured his right hamstring and was replaced by Emilio Bonifacio, who moved from second. "It was great determination," Renteria said. "Hammys hurt." St. Louis overcame its early deficit, tying the game in the third when Matt Carpenter singled in a run and scored on Peraltas double. Chicago loaded the bases in the bottom half on a pair of walks around Starlin Castros single. Ryan Sweeney drove in the go-ahead run with a weak grounder to second that allowed Rizzo to score from third, and Castillo followed with a two-out, two-run double. Castros throwing error from shortstop on Randal Grichuks grounder allowed Yadier Molina to score from third and cut the deficit to 5-3 in the fourth. NOTES: Cubs GM Jed Hoyer said RHP Jose Veras (left oblique strain) will begin his rehab assignment at Double-A Tennessee and pitch at some point in the next few days, depending on how he feels. ... Cubs prospect OF Jorge Soler (hamstring) is progressing at the teams facility in Mesa, Arizona. Hoyer said "the reports have been good" and he hopes Soler will join Tennessee soon. ... RHP Jack Arrieta is to make his big league season debut for the Cubs when he starts Saturday. RHP Michael Wacha (2-2) is slated to slart for St. Louis. 19:27ET 02-05-14 Bruce Gregory .com) - The Oklahoma City Thunder will try to get back on track Monday night when they welcome the Minnesota Timberwolves to Chesapeake Energy Arena. Butch Byrd .C. -- Duke sophomore Rodney Hood is entering the NBA draft.This time last year there were doubts as to whether Chip Kellys fast-paced offence would translate well into the NFL. Those no longer exist. The questions this year are mostly just how potent the Philadelphia Eagles offence can become under Kelly, entering his second year as head coach. The Eagles were the second ranked offence last season, and theres reason to believe they could challenge to be the best this year. A lot of the pieces are there, led by dual threat running back Lesean McCoy and talented, come-from-nowhere quarterback Nick Foles. The final part of the equation could bet the receivers. With Desean Jackson now in Washington – and some arguing that move was addition by subtraction – the Eagles are left without a leader among their pass catchers, but a number of talented players who appear ready to increase their role and their impact on games for the Eagles. Jeremy Maclin is on many a fantasy experts breakout watch heading into the season. Despite hovering around the 1,000-yard mark in each of his four seasons, Maclin has yet to crack the mark. That figures to change if the 26-year-old can stay healthy a year after tearing his ACL and missing the whole season. “I just know him from what Ive seen of him (before the injury),” Eagles receivers coach Bob Bicknell told The Times of Trenton regarding Maclin. “And he looks the same. Hes catching the ball, making plays. I dont think hes lost anything from the injury.” With Maclin moving up a slot to take Jacksons No. 1 targets, Riley Cooper will slot into the No. 2 hole, previously held by Maclin when healthy. Cooper had a terrible start to the 2013 season when a video emerged of him making racist comments. The soon-to-bet 27-year-old worked hard to re-earn the trust of his teammates and take advantage of his opportunities to produce a career-year. Like Maclin, Cooper has a sshot at 1,000 yards in the Eagles strong offence. Neil Halleck. You can add McCoy and the teams two tight ends to the cast of players that should contribute to Foles likely gaudy passing numbers. McCoy will continue to be used a ton in the Eagles high octane offence, and could improve on his 539 receiving yards from a year ago. Phillys top two tight ends, Brent Celek and Zach Ertz, combined for 971 yards and 10 touchdowns. If one emerges and garners most of Foles targets, they could join Maclin and Cooper as 1,000 yard threats. Second-round pick Jordan Matthews is another solid addition to the plethora of options for Foles to look to as well. “We have some options,” Bicknell told The Times of Trenton ahead of training camp. “Our room is a little different this year. Theres been some change, but that makes it fun. Its challenging. I like our room.” Until Maclin, or even Cooper proves theyre a bona fide No. 1 in this league, Foles will be without the pure go-to receiver he had last year in Jackson. But the formidable depth of the Eagles pass catchers this year will go a long way in helping Foles from seeing any dip in production from his Pro Bowl 2013. Notes While the offence will be great again this season, the defence needs some work. The Eagles are hoping the continuity gained from a second year under defensive coordinator Bill Davis will be enough to improve on their 29th overall ranking last season and 32nd against the pass. If continuity isnt enough, the Eagles did add a number of defensive backs, including veteran safety Malcolm Jenkins, to help shore up the teams troubles against the pass. The Eagles used two early picks to add to their deep receiving corps in Jordan Matthews (second round) and Joss Huff (third), but their first round pick was spent on defence, grabbing edge rusher Marcus Smith out of Louisville. ' ' '
- Created: Jan 20 '20
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