Die Macht » missing his first five shots before finally hitting

ST. LOUIS -- After watching another loss low-lighted by poor starting pitching and shaky defense, St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny didnt sugarcoat the situation.Were going to have to clean it all up, he said.Thursday nights 12-5 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers leaves St. Louis a full game behind San Francisco for the National Leagues first wild card spot and a half-game in back of the New York Mets for wild card number two.Simply put, the Cardinals (73-66) are running out of time and chances to extend their MLB-best string of consecutive playoff seasons to six. The good news regarding Friday nights matchup with Milwaukee is that they can use their best starting pitcher this year.Carlos Martinez (13-7, 3.07) is coming off a 5-2 win Sunday at Cincinnati in which he struggled with his control, giving up five walks in six-plus innings, but didnt give up a run until the seventh because he induced three double plays.Thats become a staple of Martinezs 26 starts -- the twin-killing. Martinez leads the National League with 30 double play balls, as batters simply cant do much with his mid to upper-90s sinker.Meanwhile, hitters have been able to do plenty with the offerings of Brewers right-hander Jimmy Nelson (7-13, 4.36), who has struggled in his last 17 starts, going 2-10 with a 5.61 earned run average.Martinez owns two wins in three outings this year against Milwaukee -- all at Miller Park. The one game he didnt win, he left with the lead after fanning a career-high 13 batters in six innings on Aug. 29.As for Nelson, hes been drilled by St. Louis throughout his career, losing all six of his decisions against it with a 7.57 earned run average. Nelson is 0-1 this year in two starts, although he has a respectable 3.75 earned run average.However, the Brewers are looking more like playoff contenders at this point than the opponent thats chasing a postseason spot. Milwaukee has won seven of its last eight games, including two of three earlier in the week against the Chicago Cubs, and owns a season-high five-game road winning streak.We try to keep it loose, shortstop Orlando Arcia said through an interpreter when asked about the teams recent success. Youre always happy to be in a good streak. Youre just going out there and having fun.More than one pundit felt the Brewers were a candidate for 100 losses this year, but they clearly arent tanking their way to the finish line. Milwaukee has showcased a nice blend of power and speed, cracking 163 homers and leading the NL with 159 steals.While the Brewers still have work to do defensively and with their pitching, Cubs manager Joe Maddon likes the progress they have made.They continue to get it together on the field, he said after Wednesday nights 2-1 loss in Milwaukee. I know we got them at home recently but they are doing a lot of things well. You have to give them credit, man. And their bullpen, I keep saying it, they have some really nice arms. Matt Harpring Jersey . LOUIS -- Roman Polak was celebrating even before Alexander Steen scored the winning goal in Saturdays 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. Fake Magic Jerseys . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. https://www.cheapmagiconline.com/678i-tony-battie-jersey-magic.html .Y. -- Syracuse has turned up the defence at the right time all season, and when High Point threatened to pull off a monumental upset the second-ranked Orange did what they do best with their quick hands and savvy play. Hedo Turkoglu Jersey . It is a cliché dragged out by fans and pundits regularly when discussions take place around which teams are better than others. Mike Miller Jersey . Perez, 35, posted a 1-2 record with a 3.69 earned-run average in 19 relief appearances last season. His season ended Aug. 9 due to a torn ligament in his left elbow. Perez joins infielder Andy LaRoche and catcher Mike Nickeas with minor-league agreements for 2014 that include invitations to attend spring training. BOULDER, Colo. -- Senior Xavier Johnson turned the page on an injury that sidelined him all of last season and helped Colorado get this season off to a good start in the process.Johnson had six points and seven rebounds in Colorados 90-53 win over Sacramento State on Friday night, a solid showing in his first game since tearing his left Achilles tendon in a preseason practice last year.Xavier has had a long road, a long recovery, Colorado coach Tad Boyle said. It was a tough injury, so it was good to have him back. I thought he rebounded the ball well for us defensively. Offensively, I think hes got to get a few more and thats something we continue to encourage and challenge him to do. And I think Xavier is playing really unselfishly.The crowd at the Coors Events Center welcomed Johnson back with a pregame standing ovation.It was good. It was awesome, Johnson said. I am blessed to be back on the court. I cant take anything for granted, so this feels awesome.Dominique Collier added 12 points, all on 3-pointers, and Josh Fortune scored 11 for Colorado, which has won its last nine openers at home.Nick Hornsby had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Sacramento State, which has dropped its only two meetings with Colorado. The Hornets lost their first meeting against Colorado 80-56 in 1994.Sacramento State shot 20.6 percent from the field in the first half and trailed 42-19 at halftime. Colorado built on its lead early in the second, including a stretch of three consecutive 3-pointers -- two by Collier -- as the Buffaloes opened a 55-28 lead with 14:55 to play.We got off to a bad start, couldnt score, Sacramento State coach Brian Katz said. We played pretty good `DD and made it tough for them.dddddddddddd Its almost like when we got down, we couldnt score and we broke down defensively.Theyre easily the best team well play all year, not even close. They did a great job here.Ten of 12 Colorado players who played scored.BIG PICTURE:Sacramento State: The Hornets returned four starters from last seasons team but they struggled with their shooting accuracy throughout the night. Center Eric Stuteville epitomized the teams struggles, missing his first five shots before finally hitting a layup with under five minutes remaining. Though the Hornets had won four of their previous five season openers, their long-term history is pretty rough. They dropped to 8-18 in openers since becoming a Division I program in 1991-92.Colorado: The Buffaloes possess an experienced corps of nine letter winners from last seasons 22-win team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The opener also provided an encouraging glimpse of newcomers Derrick White and Deleon Brown, who both could play prominent roles. White, who was in the starting lineup in his Colorado debut, sat out last season after transferring from University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, where he was a standout for three seasons. Brown, a 6-foot-4 guard, helped Brewster Academy reach the quarterfinals of the National Prep School Championships last season.UP NEXTSacramento State: Continues its season-opening road trip with a visit to Nebraska on Sunday night.Colorado: Plays Seattle on Monday as part of the Legends Classic at Barclays Center in New York. ' ' '