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Giants beat Mets 4-2 in final game before break | The Associated Press
Pablo Sandoval didn't disappoint his manager who picked him for the All-Star game or the fans who honored his accomplishment in his turnaround season.
; Sandoval celebrated his first All-Star selection by hitting an RBI double to extend his hitting streak to 21 games and fellow All-Star Matt Cain pitched six scoreless innings to Brewers Casey McGehee Jersey lead the San Francisco Giants to a 4-2 victory over the New York Mets on Jason Terry Jersey Sunday night.
; "It's exciting," he said. "It was one of those things you don't want to forget. All Ryan Braun Jersey the fans showed up for you and made me excited."
&nbs p; Sandoval got the news earlier in the day that he would be making his first All-Star game appearance as in injury replacement for Mets shortstop Jose Reyes, who is on the DL with a hamstring injury. The All-Star selection was the Brewers Corey Hart Jersey latest accolade in a turnaround season for Sandoval, who lost nearly 40 pounds this offseason after he struggled with his weight and hitting in 2010.
; Sandoval just missed out on the All-Star game in 2009 despite having a .333 average with 15 homers and 55 RBIs at the break. Philadelphia Authentic Ryan Braun Jersey manager Charlie Manuel picked his own Brewers Rickie Weeks Jersey player, Shane Victorino, instead of Sandoval that year. With San Authentic Prince Fielder Jersey Francisco manager Bruce Bochy making picks, Sandoval got his chance despite missing 40 Authentic Jason Terry Jersey games with an injured right wrist.
; "It was a special moment," Bochy said. "This means a Rickie Weeks Jersey lot to him. He was very disappointed last time he had a chance and Prince Fielder Jersey didn't make it. He's very excited about this. He got emotional out there before the game."
&nbs p; Sandoval received a warm ovation in a pregame ceremony and then backed his manager's pick when he Corey Hart Jersey doubled in Andres Torres in the third inning to score the game's first run. Zack Greinke Jersey Nate Schierholtz followed with an RBI single off Mike Pelfrey (5-8) to give the Giants a 2-0 lead.
; Schierholtz had four hits after being moved up to the cleanup spot for Authentic Rickie Weeks Jersey the Giants, who have won four of five to take a three-game lead over Arizona in the NL West heading into the All-Star break. This is the first time since 2003 that San Francisco enters the break in first place.
; "It feels good," Cain said. "We've put in a lot of work. We're finishing on a good note. We'll take the break and try to come back and do the same thing in the second half."
&nbs p; Cain (8-5) delivered the latest strong pitching performance for the World Series champions. He escaped trouble all night, pitching around four extra-base hits and stranding six runners in scoring position to win for the fifth time in his last six decisions. Cain allowed five hits and three walks, lowering his ERA to 2.06 over his last eight starts.
; Brian Wilson allowed an RBI double to Justin Authentic Casey McGehee Jersey Turner in the ninth before recording his 26th save in 30 chances.
; Nick Evans also hit a pinch-hit homer for the Casey McGehee Jersey Mets, who lost the final two games here to drop their first road series since losing two of three to the Cubs in May. They still finished the first half at 46-45 despite starting the season 5-13 and dealing with injuries to key players like Reyes, David Wright and Ike Davis.
; "It could be better and it could be worse," outfielder Jason Bay said. "If you were to tell me we would be missing Player A and B and still be where we are, I think most of us would take it. There are definitely reasons for optimism, no question. When we start getting guys back, it will be like making a trade."
&nbs p; The Giants couldn't manage much in six innings off Pelfrey, who allowed eight hits and two walks. But it proved to be enough because the Mets were unable to capitalize on numerous chances against Cain.
; They wasted a leadoff double by Daniel Murphy in the second, left the bases loaded in the third Mavericks Jason Terry Jersey when Murphy popped up to end the inning, were unable Brewers Prince Fielder Jersey to score after Lucas Duda's one-out triple in the fourth Brewers Ryan Braun Jersey and squandered Turner's one-out double in the fifth. Cain's night ended when he struck out Ruben Tejada on his 118th pitch to end the sixth with Ronny Paulino on second base.
; "We had Cain on the ropes several times, but he got out of it, which is what pitchers like that do," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "When we're playing good, we were getting the two-out hits. We didn't do that the last two nights here."
&nbs p; The Giants added two runs in the seventh off Jonathon Niese in his first career relief appearance. Miguel Tejada and Aaron Rowand had RBI singles in the inning.
; Notes: Authentic Corey Hart Jersey The addition of Sandoval to the All-Star team gives the Giants five All-Stars for the first time since 1966, when they had six. ... The Mets have set their rotation for after the break, with R.A. Dickey starting Friday against the Phillies, followed by Niese, Pelfrey, Chris Capuano and Dillon Gee. ... The Giants sold out all 44 home games before the All-Star break.
Shawn Marion Jersey
Brewers rally for 4-3 win over Reds | The Associated Press
Brewers manager Ron Roenicke stayed away from hobbled slugger Ryan Braun on Sunday. He was worried the All-Star outfielder would aggravate an injury, so he decided against using him as a pinch hitter.
; As it turns out, the rest of the Brewers' bench did just fine.
; Pinch-hitter Nyjer Morgan started a ninth-inning rally off Cincinnati closer Francisco Cordero with a single and stolen base. Fellow pinch-hitter Mark Kotsay tied it with an RBI single — and yet another pinch hitter, Craig Counsell, delivered a sacrifice fly to lift the Brewers to a 4-3 victory.
; "Braunie's sitting there, and Braunie is an option," Roenicke said. "We talked about it a little bit, and I think everybody felt good with Counsell being up there. Great Rafael Furcal Jersey win for us, and great contributing factor from him."
&nbs p; Milwaukee again was without Braun, who has missed the team's last eight games with a lingering calf strain. Braun will not play in Tuesday's All-Star game but said he expects to Albert Pujols Jersey be ready to return when the Brewers resume play in Colorado on Thursday.
; Roenicke said before Sunday's game that Braun would be available as a pinch hitter, but likely only in a critical situation. The problem, Roenicke said afterward, was Braun wouldn't be able to leg out a Mavericks Jason Kidd Jersey ground ball because he'd risk reinjuring his calf.
; That apparently didn't stop him from lobbying to get in the game.
; "He wanted to hit," Roenicke said. "If he thought we needed him, he wanted to hit."
&nbs p; Despite a rough season for Counsell so far — he was hitless in his last 28 at-bats going into Sunday — he got the job done.
; In an odd twist, Counsell also hit a game-ending sacrifice fly off Cordero in 2008, also in the Brewers' final game before the All-Star break that year.
; "To end the first Authentic Torii Hunter Jersey half this way, it just kind of sends Cardinals Albert Pujols Jersey us into the break feeling good about ourselves, feeling good about the way we've been playing," Counsell said. "It makes those three days a Anaheim Rafael Furcal Jersey lot more peaceful."
&nbs p; The suddenly struggling Cordero also crumbled against his Cardinals Kendry Morales Jersey former team on Friday.
; "I'm not doing my job right now," Cordero said. "It doesn't feel good. If I still want to have Authentic Jason Kidd Jersey a job I've got to do better than what I'm doing right now."
&nbs p; Cordero (3-3) also hit Rickie Weeks in his ninth-inning meltdown Sunday, but said Authentic Albert Pujols Jersey it wasn't intentional.
; "I don't want to hit him," Cordero said. "I don't want to hit anybody, especially a guy I played with."
&nbs p; The Brewers' rally ruined a return to Torii Hunter Jersey the big leagues by Dontrelle Willis, who gave up a pair of runs over six innings for Cincinnati.
; After sending struggling starter Edinson Volquez to Triple-A Louisville on Thursday, the Reds turned to Willis to start Sunday's game. The former Florida Marlins standout had been pitching in Louisville after failing to make the Reds' opening-day roster coming out of spring training.
; Making his first Authentic Kendry Morales Jersey major Kendry Morales Jersey league appearance since pitching in relief for Arizona last July, Willis gave up a run in each of his Authentic Rafael Furcal Jersey first two innings. But he settled down after that.
; "He was a little shaky, but got better as the game went on," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "Probably a little Anaheim Matt Kemp Jersey Jersey jittery, a little nervous, first time back after a long time. But after he settled down, he found the strike zone."
&nbs p; Willis even contributed at the plate, doubling in the sixth inning. Willis grabbed his left thigh after arriving at second base and received attention from the Reds' training staff, but stayed in the game.
; "A little too excited early, but I had fun competing against a great ballclub," Willis said. "I just wanted to go out there and give it a good outing. I feel like I did that."
&nbs p; Kameron Loe (3-7) got the win.
; Brewers starter Randy Wolf went seven innings, giving up seven hits and three runs, two earned. And he nearly hit a home run, sending a ball over the fence. The drive was ruled foul on the field, and a replay review confirmed it.
; The Brewers were trailing late after a throwing error by Weeks while trying to turn a double play allowed a run in the fourth. But the rally sends them Jason Kidd Jersey into the break on a high note.
; "It's a huge win, knowing that we come in here against a team that does play us really well," Roenicke said. "And (to) win three out of four against them, (entering) the break is a great way to do it."
&nbs p; NOTES: The Brewers optioned INF/OF Mat Gamel to Triple-A Nashville and recalled RHP Cody Scarpetta. ... The Reds optioned RHP Carlos Fisher to Triple-A Louisville to Cardinals Torii Hunter Jersey make room for Willis. ... The second-inning replay review of Wolf's Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki Jersey near-home run was the second replay review in a Brewers game this season and first of the season at Miller Park. ... Sunday's crowd was 43,896, the Brewers' 14th sellout of the season.
On Baseball: All-Star game secondary for many | The Associated Press
Forty years ago, the All-Star game really was played by stars.
; Back then, Clayton Kershaw Jersey 18 future Hall of Famers took the field at Tiger Stadium.
; This year, 16 All-Stars backed out of Tuesday night's desert showdown.
; Some are seriously injured. But others managed to play for their clubs over the weekend.
; No Anaheim Casey Blake Jersey matter the reason, the All-Star game has lost some of its luster.
; "You only get so many chances to play in an All-Star game in your life," the Los Angeles Angels' Torii Hunter, a four-time All-Star not selected this year, "but if you're not healthy, you can't play anyway."
&nbs p; St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa thinks the situation has improved from two or three decades ago. After Reggie Jackson's memorable home run off a light tower led the American League to a 6-4 win in Detroit, the NL rolled to victories in 13 of the next 14 meetings.
; "A lot of guys were taking a pass. It was really kind of embarrassing to the game. It's like an infection that went around, and now Authentic Andre Ethier Jersey gratefully guys are very excited to go," La Russa said, contrasting it with the period in the '80s when he maintained "the American League played it like an exhibition."
&nbs p; Following the infamous 7-7, 11-inning tie at Authentic Casey Blake Jersey Milwaukee in 2002, when both teams ran out of pitchers, baseball started using the All-Star game to decide homefield advantage in the World Series. The AL won the next seven, giving them 12 straight All-Star wins in games played to a decision before Brian McCann's three-run double in the seventh off Matt Thornton boosted the NL to a 3-1 victory last year in Anaheim.
; In the eight World Series since the All-Star result determined who started the championship at home, five of the teams hosting the opener went on to win the title.
; "Homefield advantage obviously matters," the Giants' Bill Hall said. "If you're playing in a hitters' ballpark in the World Series for more games than three, it would take away from us as a pitching staff Anaheim Andre Ethier Jersey than if another team had to come James Loney Jersey here. It definitely matters."
&nbs p; To ensure Anaheim Clayton Kershaw Jersey teams would have enough players, each Matt Kemp Jersey Jersey team's roster was increased from 30 players Authentic Mavericks Jersey in 2002 to 32 the following Authentic Matt Kemp Jersey Jersey summer to 33 in 2009 and 34 last Casey Blake Jersey year. After some All-Star games, clubhouses were Anaheim James Loney Jersey nearly empty after the final out, leaving the impression some players already were on private planes home during the late innings.
; But larger rosters appear to have caused more withdrawals.
; Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester, Braves third baseman Chipper Jones, Mets shortstop Jose Reyes and Phillies outfielder Shane Victorino are on the disabled list, and Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez was slated to have Dirk Nowitzki Jersey knee surgery Monday. Milwaukee outfielder Ryan Braun Authentic Dirk Nowitzki Jersey (calf) missed his team's last eight games heading into Andre Ethier Jersey the break and Philadelphia third baseman Placido Polanco (back) was sidelined for his club's last six.
; Six pitchers were knocked off the rosters because they started for their clubs Sunday: the Yankees' CC Sabathia, the Rays' James Shields, the Tigers' Justin Verlander, the Mariners' Felix Hernandez, the Phillies' Cole Hamels and Authentic James Loney Jersey the Giants' Matt Cain.
; That leaves three especially questionable opt-outs: Tampa Bay's David Price pitched Saturday despite what the Rays called turf toe. Derek Jeter (calf) and Mariano Rivera (triceps) were healthy enough to play for the Yankees during the weekend.
; La Russa, like most managers, focuses on the players who are available.
; "The reason that thing's so special is it's a hell of a lot more reasonable competition than the other sports, and the guys generally go there to win," he said.
; ___
&n bsp; AP Sports Writers Josh Dubow in San Francisco and R.B. Fallstrom in Authentic Clayton Kershaw Jersey St. Louis contributed to this report. Mavericks Jersey
Padres lose 5th straight, 4-1 to Dodgers | The Associated Press
The San Diego Padres have stumbled into the All-Star break with a five-game losing streak that landed them in the NL West cellar.
; What a change from a year ago.
; Sunday's 4-1 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers dropped the Authentic Adam Lind Jersey Padres' record to 40-52. Last season at the break, they were 51-37 with a two-game lead in the division.
; They built that lead to 6? but folded down the stretch and finished two games behind the eventual World Series champion Giants after losing to them on the final day of the season. They also were edged out by Atlanta for the wild card.
; "Every year is different, Ken Griffey Jersey and you never know how it's going to play out," manager Bud Black said. "Last year was a great year Bruins Zdeno Chara Jersey for the 2010 Padres. This is a Mariners Ken Griffey Jersey different group of players, especially on the position-player side. We didn't start out the season the way we'd hoped.
"Ever y team hopes to get out of the gate fast, and that was a big part of our success last year," he added. "This Felix Hernandez Jersey year we got out slow and we just weren't able to gain any momentum or traction. We just didn't swung the bats the way we can, and we have to do a better job as a group after the All-Star break."
&nbs p; The skid began with a 14-inning, 6-4 loss to the Giants, and included back-to-back 1-0 losses to the Dodgers. The Padres have scored just two runs over their last four games — a home run by Ryan Ludwick against Barry Zito on Thursday at San Francisco, and a homer by Rob Johnson on Sunday against Ted Lilly.
; "It's not the first half we expected or hoped to have, but you've just got to grind through it sometimes," Johnson said. "It's unfortunate, because we were playing pretty well there for 10 or 12 games in a row."
&nbs p; Andre Ethier homered twice for the Dodgers before heading off to his second straight All-Star game, Authentic Felix Hernandez Jersey and Lilly (6-9) won for the first time in a month after losing his previous four starts. The 35-year-old left-hander allowed a run and four hits over five innings, improving his career record against the Padres to 8-3 with a 2.96 ERA — including a 3-2 win on April 29 Nationals Adam Lind Jersey at Los Angeles.
; "Not to take anything away from them, because they did throw the ball great. But to scoreone run in three games, there's probably some offensive deficiencies as well," third baseman Chase Headley said.
; Rookie right-hander Javy Guerra, the sixth Dodgers pitcher, worked Authentic perfect ninth for his fourth save. Guerra has emerged as the Dodgers' closer because of season-ending injuries to Jonathan Broxton and Vicente Padilla.
; Guerra, who escaped his own bases-loaded, no-out jam to preserve a 1-0 victory for Chad Billingsley in the series opener on Friday, made it interesting again when he gave up a leadoff single to Orlando Hudson and a walk to Anthony Rizzo before retiring the last three batters.
; "In a way, it's been great to watch because you're watching a young pitcher develop into a closer. And part of that is having to pitch out of those situations," Lilly said.
; Tim Stauffer (5-6) was charged with three runs — two earned — and just three hits in six innings while keeping his ERA at 2.97. The right-hander, who won his previous three starts, is the fourth Padres starter since 2000 to go into the All-Star break with an ERA under 3.00 — joining Chris Young (2.00 in 2007), Jake Peavy (2.43 in 2004) and Mat Latos (2.45 in 2010).
; biggest problem Sunday was his control. He walked his first three batters in the third, and two of them scored.
; "It was really uncharacteristic of Stauff. We haven't seen that," Black said. "Hopefully, Tim will go on to make 33-34 starts and that Adam Lind Jersey will be an aberration. On the positive side, he went six innings and gave up three runs on a day when he was not on the top of his game."
&nbs p; After the third walk, Stauffer went 3-2 on cleanup hitter Matt Kemp, who was robbed of a hit by Headley on a diving stop going toward the third base line.
; Not knowing how far Rafael Furcal was from the bag, Headley ignored the easy Authentic Ichiro Suzuki Jersey force at third and made an errant throw to the plate that allowed Tony Gwynn Jr. and Furcal to score. Kemp was credited with a fielder's choice and RBI.
; "I was just trying to make Mariners Felix Hernandez Jersey a play," Headley said. "I mean, you've got three really good baserunners — and four if you include Kemp. I went toward the line for it and I didn't know if I had time to get back to third. I just wish I could have made a better throw. But I don't question what I tried to do. I thought I had a chance to throw him out there."
&nbs p; Ethier made Ichiro Suzuki Jersey it 3-1 in the fifth inning with a two-out homer to right-center — ending a drought of 61 at-bats since his previous one on June 21.
; The home run snapped a 10-game Blue Jays Adam Lind Jersey drought for the Dodgers since June 28, when Aaron Miles ended a personal dry spell of 568 consecutive plate appearances without one. Ethier capped off his 11th career multihomer game with another solo shot into the pavilion seats in right-center against Josh Spence in the eighth, his Mariners Ichiro Suzuki Jersey ninth of the season and first off a left-hander.
; "I'm Zdeno Chara Jersey just glad to get a hit off a lefty. I don't Authentic Ken Griffey Jersey care if it's going over the fence or not," Ethier said. "But it's nice that it Authentic Zdeno Chara Jersey helped win the game."
&nbs p; Notes: Padres SS Jason Bartlett was scratched from manager Bud Black's original lineup because of a sore right thumb. ... The Dodgers swept a three-game series at home for the first time since June 2010 against St. Louis.
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