Herausforderungen » ork. "Ive been making more mistakes t

SEATTLE -- Felix Hernandez and Justin Verlander couldnt settle things Wednesday night, so slugger Nelson Cruz decided the outcome with his bat.Cruz hit his 28th homer in the eighth inning after Hernandez and Verlander dueled through the first seven, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers 3-1 to complete a three-game sweep.Cruz hit a 1-1 pitch from Justin Wilson (2-4) over the batters eye 421 feet away to help the Mariners get their season-high sixth straight victory.Hes always aggressive with the fastball, Cruz said. I looked for something I could hit.Hernandez and Verlander each pitched seven innings of one-run ball in a battle of former Cy Young Award winners. Hernandez struck out eight and allowed three hits and four walks, while Verlander allowed seven hits and two walks and struck out six.It was what it was billed to be, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. Two very good pitchers going at it, Felix and (Verlander), and they both pitched outstanding. The difference was the eighth inning.Leonys Martin added an insurance run on an RBI single later in the eighth. That gave Nick Vincent more of a cushion to finish the game, and he got his second save filling in for closer Edwin Diaz, who needed to rest.Hernandez was lifted after throwing a season-high 117 pitches, and Verlander also had a season high with 121. Both knew they had to work long into the game to protect their bullpens after a 15-inning contest on Tuesday.Hernandez had trouble in his previous four starts with the first inning, allowing a combined nine runs. He retired the side 1-2-3 to begin Wednesday.About time, Hernandez said. I just tried to make better pitches in the first inning. Facing a great lineup, facing a great pitcher, your level, you have to raise it up. You just have to challenge them.Instead, Verlander flinched in the first, allowing Robinson Cano to tag him for his 25th homer on a 1-2 changeup.I knew, based on (Tuesday), my pitch count limit was probably a little higher than it normally would be, Verlander said. And thats to be expected, thats what I want, thats what I needed tonight. Those guys battled. It was a combination of those guys battling and fouling off some tough pitches, and me not being as consistent as I would like early in the game.All of a sudden you look up and find yourself with 75 or so pitches after four, and thats not very conducive of going deep in the game. I was happy to go out and get through seven innings and not have our bullpen come in too early, because they were pretty taxed last night.Arquimedes Caminero (1-0) pitched the eighth and earned the victory.BULLPEN BACKUPAfter Tuesdays game in which 16 combined pitchers were used, both the Tigers and Mariners added to their bullpens. The Mariners promoted RHP Jarrett Grube from Triple-A Tacoma, and OF Guillermo Heredia was optioned out while SS Luis Sardinas was designated for assignment. The Tigers called up RHP Warwick Saupold from Triple-A Toledo, placing OF Cameron Maybin (left thumb sprain) on the 15-day disabled list.CUPPING `DEFINITELY WORKSTigers reliever Alex Wilson is amused by Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps and other athletes who have embraced cupping, a treatment that involves applying glass or plastic cups to the area of discomfort and either applying heat or suction to create a vacuum.Its pretty common (in baseball), Wilson said. Id say at least the last five, six years. It definitely works.He picked it up in Boston three years ago watching Koji Uehara and Junichi Tazawa do it.I think every swimmer and gymnast have cup marks on them now, he said. Its kind of fun to watch.TRAINERS ROOMTigers: The club placed OF Cameron Maybin on the DL (sprained left thumb) before the game, retroactive to Aug. 4. ... RHP Bruce Rondon missed the series to be with his wife about to deliver a baby. He will join the team Friday in Texas. ... RHP Shane Greene (oblique strain) should be ready to pitch again by Friday.Mariners: LHP Charlie Furbush, on the DL all season, will have rotator cuff surgery Tuesday. His recovery time is 12 to 18 months. ... LHP James Paxton, hit on the left elbow by a line drive Aug. 7, is moving along at a good pace, manager Scott Servais said. No determination has been made when he will start again. He needs to play catch and have a bullpen session to see how it holds up.UP NEXTTigers: RHP Anibal Sanchez (6-11, 5.88) pitches in the opener of a series against Texas on Friday. Hell face righty Yu Darvish (2-3, 2.78).Mariners: LHP Ariel Miranda (1-0, 6.00) worked one inning -- and was the winning pitcher -- in Tuesdays 15-inning victory. That shouldnt prevent him from starting against the As on Friday. He has had three appearances since his acquisition from Baltimore July 31.Adidas NMD Clearance Sale . Ryan Garbutt had a goal and two assists as Dallas snapped a six-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. Cheap Fake NMD . The Hall of Fame defenceman told Landsberg that he believes fighting still has a place in todays game, but thinks staged fighting needs be outlawed. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/wholesale-adidas-nmd-r2-china.html . It was hard for Luck to pull off another comeback, or even get into the end zone, while standing on the sideline. Rivers threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to rookie Keenan Allen and Nick Novak kicked four field goals to give the Chargers a 19-9 victory against the Colts on Monday night. Adidas NMD Black Sale . But when it comes to determining if Raymond will find a place on the Leafs roster when training camp concludes in a week, well, that decision will ultimately fall to the head coach. Adidas NMD R1 Triple Black . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before.NEW YORK -- If the New York Mets are going to make a run toward respectability, they will need a few more performances from Carlos Torres and Ike Davis like the ones they gave Tuesday night. Torres pitched six impressive innings as a fill-in starter and had an RBI single, Davis turned an angry crowd in his favour with a go-ahead double in a three-run sixth and the Mets beat the Atlanta Braves 4-1. "Its a big boost," manager Terry Collins said of Torres efforts in his second start of the season. John Buck had a run-scoring single and Juan Lagares a sacrifice fly in a sixth inning that helped the Mets beat Atlantas Kris Medlen (6-10) for the first time in eight starts. Torres (1-1) gave up seven hits, including a home run to Andrelton Simmons on the second pitch of the game, and pitched out of trouble in the first four innings of his first outing in 10 days. The one run actually caused his ERA to increase to 0.94 in 28 2-3 innings this season -- 12 appearances. The 30-year-old right-hander made his first start for the Mets on July 13, when Matt Harvey was skipped ahead of the All-Star game. With Jonathon Niese on the disabled list because of a partial tear in his rotator cuff and Shaun Marcum out after having shoulder surgery -- he was placed on waivers earlier Tuesday -- Torres earned another start after working five innings of one-run ball against Pittsburgh. "We needed somebody to step up, and he stepped up for us," Collins said. Torres got his second win as a starter, the first since he was with the Chicago White Sox in September 2009. "Just as long as the team gets the win Im happy," Torres said. Bobby Parnell bounced back from wasting a 1-0, ninth-inning lead in a 2-1 loss Monday night to pitch a perfect ninth for his 19th save. Fourth place in the NL East, the Mets have won seven of 11 and improved to 44-52, only three-games back of second place Philadelphia. The Braves had ample opportunities to pad their lead in the early innings. But they went 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position over the first four innings and were 1 for 8 overall. In the first, Lagares threw out Jason Heyward at home by a large margin to end the first inning when he tried to score on Evan Gattis single to centre field. The NL East leaders fell to 2-3 on their seven-game trip. Medlen, who lost his third straight start, is used to the lack of support. Coming in, Atlanta had averaged 2.3 runs while he is in the game. While the Braves were squandering chances, the Mets took advantage of their first baserunners -- in the third. Lagares, the NL player of the week, doubled juust inside the right field line and scored on Torres slapped single through a draw-in infield to tie it at 1.dddddddddddd. "To tell you the truth I was actually kind of upset," Torres said. "Not because I got the hit, I was happy about that. I jammed myself." New York went ahead for good in the sixth when Medlen appeared to lose his touch. "It was almost two different pitchers going the first five innings and then going out there in the sixth," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "I dont know if it was just command or leaving balls out over the plate, but the swings got better in the sixth than in the first five innings." Daniel Murphy and David Wright singled leading off. After Charles Johnson lunged toward third base to snare Marlon Byrds grounder and then throw to second off one knee for the force, Davis lined a double off the base of the wall in right field to give New York the lead. "These are all confidence-building things," Collins said of Davis hit off a two-strike curveball. Relentlessly booed after bunting back to the mound and striking out in his first two at-bats, the slumping Davis was given a huge ovation as he stood on second base. "The crowd gets on me no matter what," Davis said. "Its fun for them." Batting just .176 coming in, Davis drove in a run for a second straight game after not notching an RBI since July 5, his first game back from the minor leagues. Buck followed with a single to centre for a 3-1 lead that chased Medlen. Lagares flyout to right field added another run. Medlen gave up four runs and seven hits in 5 1-3 innings. He dropped to 4-1 in 18 outings against New York. "Ive been making more mistakes than I have been in the past," Medlen said. "Like I say, Im just trying to make the adjustments and fix it while I can." NOTES: The Braves are 25-29 on the road. ... Mets RHP Jenrry Mejia will start the opener of a doubleheader in Washington on Friday. The 23-year-old Mejia had Tommy John surgery in June 2011. He made five September appearances last year, but has been on the DL since the end of spring training with elbow inflammation. Collins said: "We wanted him to understand -- what hes hearing today about (Zack) Wheeler, (Matt) Harvey, was all about Jenrry Mejia three years ago in the same vain." ... Gonzalez was still gushing about Jason Heywards game-ending diving catch Monday night, saying it mightve been the best catch hes seen all season. ... It was "Star Wars" night at Citi Field. ... There was a sunshower before the game. ' ' '