sessed by the referee. The Oiler stars

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PITTSBURGH -- A.J. Burnett walked into the Pittsburgh Pirates dugout after falling two runs down to the Cincinnati Reds in the second inning Saturday night when his catcher decided it was time for a little pep talk. "I told him Thats all were giving up today and he said Yes sir," Russell Martin said. "Thats his attitude. If you give up a couple, its not the end of the world. If you give up a couple, youve got to keep going out there, keep grinding." Something the veteran ace and his resilient club do better than just about anyone else in baseball. A night after a stunning ninth-inning collapse, Pittsburgh responded behind Burnett, who scattered four hits in seven strong innings to lift the Pirates to a 4-2 win and a one-game lead over the Reds for the top spot in the NL wild-card race. "Go out, its a big game, its a big series, you want to attack," Burnett said. "We were able to do that and get through seven somehow. I felt like I got stronger as it went on." Burnett struck out a season-high 12 against three walks and became the first right-hander in the 126-year history of the franchise to top 200 strikeouts in a season when he fanned Joey Votto in the sixth. "I was just focused, I was locked in," Burnett said. "It was probably the best command of that hook Ive had in a long time. I had a put-away pitch tonight, and its lot different when you have those." Jason Grilli worked the ninth for his 31st save, his first since going to the disabled list with a strained right forearm in July. Martin slugged a two-run homer, and Jose Tabata added two hits for the Pirates. Zack Cozart hit his 12th home run of the season for Cincinnati, and Ryan Ludwick added an RBI but Homer Bailey (11-11) lost his first decision since July 26. "The story of the game is we didnt score enough runs," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "We just couldnt get much going against (Burnett). We got some runs early, then he settled down." The Reds rallied for a 6-5 win in 10 innings on Friday, turning three unearned runs in the ninth and Vottos solo homer in the 10th into a tie with the Pirates in the race for home field in the wild card round. It was the second gut-punch loss by the Pirates in three days. In danger of falling behind the Reds in the standings for the first time in since June 20, Pittsburgh reduced its magic number to three behind Burnett and a bullpen that regained its composure after a pair of potentially confidence-shaking meltdowns. Reliever Justin Wilson induced a double play to get out of the eighth, and Grilli -- an All-Star this summer after racking up 29 saves in the seasons first half -- looked like his old self while working around Ludwicks leadoff single in the ninth. "Im just a competitor," Grilli said. "I want the ball. I want to participate. Watching these guys do it for so long made me want to come back and do it with him. It was a big win, obviously, and a lot of fun to be out there." Bailey wasnt quite as sharp. Making his first start at PNC Park since throwing a no-hitter at the Pirates last September, Bailey was solid but not spectacular. An off night by Cincinnatis typically reliable defence didnt help. Alvarez reached with two outs in the third when Votto mishandled a slow chopper to first. Martin followed by taking a fastball from Bailey and sending it into the bleachers in left field to tie it at 2. Pittsburgh broke the tie in the sixth. Andrew McCutchen walked with one out and sprinted to third when Baileys attempted pickoff throw slipped past Votto and rolled to the wall. Justin Morneau walked to put runners on the corners, and Marlon Byrd hit a sacrifice to deep centre field to give the Pirates the lead. Bailey gave up four runs, two earned, and three hits with four walks and three strikeouts. "The loss is on me," Bailey said. "I had the throwing error at first base, I didnt execute very well, I made a couple of bad pitches. (The offence) gave me a couple of runs to work with early and I didnt take advantage of it. I gave them all back and then some." Reliever Zach Duke -- who spent six years in Pittsburgh during the clubs two-decade losing streak -- came on after Byrds sacrifice fly and immediately surrendered an RBI single to Alvarez that gave the Pirates a two-run cushion. NOTES: Cincinnati CF Shin-Soo Choo sat out after injuring his right hand while sliding into first base on Friday. Baker said he wasnt sure when Choo will return. ... Cincinnati rookie OF Billy Hamilton will make his second start of the season on Sunday. The base stealing specialist went 3 for 4 with four stolen bases in his previous start against Houston on Wednesday. ... The series concludes on Sunday when Pittsburghs Jeff Locke (10-6, 3.27 ERA) faces Cincinnatis Bronson Arroyo (13-11, 3.56). Michael Kors Bags Black Friday UK . -- Jimmie Johnson held off a teammate, passed a pair of Hall of Famers, and dominated once more at Dover. Authentic Michael Kors Black Friday UK . Down by seven with 90 seconds left in regulation, thats where they looked comfortable. http://www.mksale2016uk.eu/ . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Michael Kors Black Friday UK Free Shipping . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70. Michael Kors Shoes Black Friday UK . SIMONS ISLAND, Ga.Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca. Kerry, Thanks for the blog, always a great read. I was just wondering about the something that happened in the Leafs/Canes game. So in the second period, Paul Ranger and Alex Semin took minors at the same stoppage. The game then went to 4-on-4, until Dion Phaneuf took a hooking penalty. This made it 4-on-3 for the Canes, which they proceeded to score on and Phaneuf came out of the box. My question is why did Phaneuf come out of the box instead of Ranger? And why does the NHL go to 4-on-4 instead of keeping it 5 on 5 and having the players wait for a whistle? Thanks again, look forward to continuing to read your blog. Thanks,Alex Gane Hey Alex: I hope everyone celebrated a wonderful Christmas with family and friends. CMon Ref is thrilled to return after a break for the holiday week. Thanks also to those that visited me @kfraserthecall on twitter with your questions from games during that period! The answer to your specific question Alex is found in Rule 19 (coincidental penalties) which states, "When one minor penalty is assessed to one player of each team at the same stoppage in play, these penalties will be served without substitution provided there are no other penalties in effect and visible on the penalty clocks. Both teams will therefore play four skaters against four skaters for the duration of the minor penalties." In your example, one minor penalty was assessed to one player of each team (Paul Ranger of the Leafs and Alex Semin of the Hurricanes) with no other previous penalties visible on the time clock. Semin and Rangers minor penalty times were therefore placed on the clock and served as per the rule. It is important to note the while the teams play 4 on 4 as a result of the one minor penalty to each player at the same stoppage it does not create a short-handed situation. From Rule 16, short-handed means that the team must be below the numerical strength of its opponent on the ice at the time the goal was scored. The minor or bench minor penalty which terminates is the one with the least amount of time on the clock.dddddddddddd Thus coincident minor penalties to both Teams do not cause either side to be "short-handed." The formula used to determine minor penalty expiration when goals are scored against a short-handed team is as follows: i) Is the team scored against short-handed? ii) Is the team scored against serving a minor penalty on the clock? If both criteria are satisfied, the minor penalty with the least amount of time on the clock shall terminate except when coincidental penalties are being served. The penalty that caused the Leafs to become short-handed was the subsequent minor penalty assessed to Dion Phaneuf. Once the Canes power-play goal was scored the Leafs were entitled to relief by virtue of Phaneufs minor penalty. Why does the NHL not treat the minor penalties to Paul Ranger and Alex Semin as coincidental and play 5 on 5 you ask? The coincidental minor penalty rule has in fact changed back a forth since the mid 1980s. The Edmonton Oiler young guns led by Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and the cast of future Hall of Fame players were primarily responsible for the initial change from minor penalties being served (4 on 4 hockey) to being treated as coincidental (5-on-5). In late stages of a game with the score either tied or close, a huge advantage resulted for the skilled Oiler players when more ice space was created by a 4 on 4 situation. No one recognized this more than Oiler coach Glen Sather. One of his players would intelligently initiate an altercation or scrum with an opponent where punches were exchanged and a minor penalty to each player was assessed by the referee. The Oiler stars were even more difficult to contain with the extra ice afforded them which often resulted in the scoring of a goal. Eventually the rule was changed to its present form. We also see the entertaining benefits derived from 4 on 4 hockey during overtime in the regular season. Referees have also been instructed to penalize the instigator or aggressor in a scrum wherever possible to act as a deterrent. cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys Ray Ban Outlet Michael Kors Outlet Michael Kors Sale Cheap Michael Kors ' ' '