Pirate Galaxy » for a share of the Marathon Classic lead wit

HOUSTON -- In a tight game against a first-place team, Collin McHugh didnt worry about giving the ball to the Houston Astros bullpen.McHugh combined with four relievers on a two-hitter, rookie Alex Bregman homered and the Astros beat the Chicago Cubs 2-1 Saturday as they tried to gain ground in the AL wild-card race.Theyve all been lights out for about the last year-and-a-half, two years, McHugh said of his bullpen. I feel as confident as anyone giving them the ball with the lead.Marwin Gonzalez drove in a run with a third-inning squeeze bunt for the Astros, who began the day 2? games back for the ALs second wild card.Bregman put the Astros ahead with an opposite-field home run to right-center against John Lackey (9-8) in a two-run third.Hes been remarkable, Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. Weve been playing these playoff-type caliber games for a few weeks now, and hes not showing any signs of this being his first time.After starting 1 for 34 following his July 25 callup, Bregman has eight home runs -- all since Aug. 16. He went 2 for 4 and raised his average to .274 with 31 RBI.Im just trying to square the ball up, Bregman said. Baseball is such a game of ups and downs, and youve just got to stay even through the whole time.McHugh (10-10) won his third straight decision, allowing one run and two hits in five innings. Chris Devenski, Will Harris, Luke Gregerson and Ken Giles combined for hitless relief.Their pitchers were really good today. Give them credit, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. They were very good at hitting their spots and had good stuff.McHugh spoke with Hinch about the decision on a quick hook.He said, `Hey, were going to do this like a playoff game, and were going to get a win here, the pitcher recalled. And thats exactly what happened.Ken Giles survived a shaky ninth to earn his 10th save. He walked Anthony Rizzo leading off, and pinch-runner Matt Szczur advanced on a wild pitch. Jorge Soler struck out and Szczur crossed to third on Miguel Monteros groundout. Giles then struck out Willson Contreras.Lackey gave up two runs, four hits and three walks in six innings for the NL Central leaders, who are 90-51. He had been 2-0 in four starts since a July 23 loss at Milwaukee.I definitely havent had much luck with the wins and losses this year, Lackey said.Jose Altuve, in an 0-for-12 slide, followed Bregmans homer by reaching on his second bunt single of the season, beating third baseman Kris Bryants throw.Yulieski Gurriel singled him to third, and Gonzalez bunted to third as Altuve scored.Two bunts, Lackey said, youd like for that not to cause you a game.Contreras fourth-inning sacrifice fly scored Soler, who beat the offline throw from right fielder George Springer.Houston could have extended the lead in the seventh, but Springer was thrown out at the plate by when he tried to score from first on Bregmans bloop single to right center.Right fielder Jason Heyward threw to shortstop Javier Baez, who relayed to Contreras for the tag. The call by plate umpire Mark Carlson was upheld in a video review.Im always confident that he is going to score from first base, Bregman said. I saw the bobble and thought there was a chance. It was worth taking a shot right there.PEACOCK GETS NODHouston plans to starts RHPs Doug Fister, Brad Peacock and Joe Musgrove in next weeks series against Texas.Peacock was recalled from Triple-A Fresno on Tuesday alongside RHP David Paulino, who lost to Cleveland in his major league debut Thursday.I think Peacock gives us the best chance to get into the game with a little more ease, Hinch said. His pitch repertoire is a little more suited and an advantage over the Rangers over Paulino.DELAYThe game was delayed several minutes between the second and third innings because of a medical emergency involving a fan in the stands near the Houston bench. First responders could be seen tending to the fan, and the Astros said the fan was taken to a hospital.TRAINERS ROOMAstros: SS Carlos Correa missed his fourth straight game with inflammation in his left shoulder and remains day to day. Hinch said Correa continued to experience soreness, and that the early start time following a night game didnt allow proper time for prep work. Every time we want to put him in there were going to risk the next three or four days, Hinch said. So we have to be very strategic about we map this out. ... Hinch said the team believes Altuve is battling a 24-hour stomach illness and the infielder told him after the game he would be good to play Sunday. Altuve vomited several times before and during the game, Hinch said. ... Altuve, bothered by a stomach ailment, was replaced in the eighth by Tony Kemp.UP NEXTRHP Mike Fiers (10-6) looks to improve to 4-1 in his career against the Cubs when he starts Sundays series finale. Chicago starts RHP Jake Arrieta (16-6), who is 10-2 in 13 road starts this season. He will face Houston for the first time. Fake Vans Outlet .Y. -- Knicks coach Mike Woodson said Wednesday that J. Fake Vans SK8 . Reassurance came from Paul Tesori, his caddie and close friend whose newborn son is in intensive care in a Florida hospital. "Paul sent me a text this morning, just told me he loved me and wanted to go out and fight as hard as I would any other day," Simpson said Sunday after doing just that. http://www.fakevans.com/ . The 28-year-old from Calgary matched his career best after missing just one shot in his two rounds of shooting in the mens 10-kilometre sprint competition. Smith finished in 23 minutes 15. Wholesale Fake Vans . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. Fake Vans Free Shiping . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. TROON, Scotland -- Phil Mickelson wore a black rain suit that he didnt need until he approached the far end of Royal Troon and already had stretched his lead. Henrik Stenson opened the curtains at his house expecting to see rain coming down sideways and was pleasantly surprised by the calm.Good golf and the good end of the draw is tough to beat in the British Open.Mickelson hit a wedge that spun back toward the cup until it stopped about two postage stamps away on the par-3 eighth hole, the signature shot in his 2-under 69 that allowed him to back up his record-tying start and take the 36-hole lead in a major for the first time in three years.I thought it was a good round to back up the low round yesterday, Mickelson said. I played kind of stress-free golf again. I made one or two bad swings that led to bogeys. But for the most part, kept the ball in play.He just couldnt shake Stenson, who timed his birdies perfectly.The Swede made three straight birdies before the wind showed up and the clouds began to spit rain. He added two more during lulls in the increasingly bad weather. And he wound up with a Friday-best 65 that enabled him to close within one shot of Mickelson. Many players had to endure an afternoon of gusts that topped 30 mph and rain so heavy at times it was hard to see.Mickelson was at 10-under 132, the best 36-hole total ever to lead at Royal Troon. Stenson, a runner-up to Mickelson at Muirfield in 2013, was one shot behind. Soren Kjeldsen and Keegan Bradley each shot 68 and were three shots behind.BARBASOL CHAMPIONSHIPOPELIKA, Ala. -- Jhonattan Vegas shot a course-record 11-under 60, making a hole-in-one, another eagle and two closing birdies Friday to take a six-stroke lead in the Barbasol Championship.The Venezuelan Olympic qualifier pumped his fist after finishing witth a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth on Grand Nationals Lake Course.dddddddddddd Tied for the first-round lead with Angel Cabrera after a 65, Vegas had a 17-under 125 total -- a shot off the PGA Tour record for strokes in the first two rounds.Vegas played a six-hole stretch on his first nine in 7 under.He started with a birdie on the par-3 12th, made a 12-foot eagle putt on the par-5 13th, birdied the par-4 14th and 15th and par-5 16th, and capped the run with the ace on the 190-yard 17th.On his second nine, Vegas birdied the par-4 second, bogeyed the par-4 fourth, and birdied the par-5 fifth. He made a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 eighth and the 12-footer on the ninth.Vegas won the 2011 Bob Hope Classic for his lone tour title.Hudson Swafford was second at 11 under after a 63. He had an eagle, eight birdies and a double bogey.Former Auburn player Michael Johnson shot a 65 to reach 10 under in his pro debut.MARATHON CLASSICSYLVANIA, Ohio -- Lydia Ko shot a 5-under 66 in windy conditions for a share of the Marathon Classic lead with Hyo Joo Kim.The top-ranked Ko, the 2014 tournament winner, had six birdies and one bogey at Highland Meadows to match Kim at 8-under 134. Kim, tied for the first-round lead with Mirim Lee and Haru Nomura, had a 68.Ko won in consecutive weeks in Southern California this year, the second the major ANA Inspiration. The 19-year-old New Zealander tied for third last week in the U.S. Womens Open in California.Kim won the season-opening event in the Bahamas for her third career title.Alison Lee and Ha Na Jang were a stroke back. Alison Lee birdied the last three holes for a 66. Jang shot 67. She has two victories this season. ' ' '