Dein erstes Forum » t probably favors Maia.TakedownsTo a

WASHINGTON -- Tanner Roark pitches in a rotation with All-Stars Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer and still finds ways to stand out.Roark pitched eight-plus innings of five-hit ball and had an RBI single during a three-run fourth as the Washington Nationals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0 on Saturday night.Roark (9-5) allowed five singles with one walk and five strikeouts in his longest start of the season. He started the ninth but left after allowing a single and hitting a batter.Oh, man. He was great, Nationals manager Dusty Baker said of Roark, who returned to Washingtons rotation after working as a reliever in 2015. What can you say? Hes given us everything we wanted.Anthony Rendon homered and drove in two runs. Second baseman Stephen Drew had three doubles and one RBI in place of NL batting leader Daniel Murphy. The Nationals have won five straight games, including two over the Pirates following the All-Star break, and 13 of 17.Baker stated a goal of having Washingtons record 20 games over .500 at some point this season. The latest victory did just that as the NL East leader improved to 56-36.The Pirates have dropped three in a row after a 9-1 stretch.Washington spoiled the return of Gerrit Cole (5-5) from the 15-day disabled list. The 2015 All-Star allowed five runs -- four earned -- and seven hits over four innings.I just didnt execute enough pitches, Cole said. If I made one quality pitch I followed it up with a subpar (pitch). ... I got crushed.Coles first major league appearance since June 10 was delayed 71 minutes by rain. Washington wasted little time scoring with single runs in the first and second innings plus three in the fourth for a 5-0 lead.Roark rarely faced trouble in recording his third win in four starts. The consistent right-hander pitched at least seven innings for the fifth straight outing.I pride myself ... on going as long as I can and as hard as I can, Roark said. Thats what starting pitchers are supposed to do.Andrew McCutchens second hit loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth, but reliever Blake Treinen completed Washingtons seventh shutout this season.Pittsburgh had three total runners reach in the second inning, but Roark deftly avoided damage with two groundouts including a double play on a ball hit by Sean Rodriguez.Rendons RBI single put Washington up 1-0 in the first. Back-to-back doubles by Drew and Danny Espinosa in the second added another run off Cole, a 19-game winner last season. He returned after missing several weeks with a right triceps strain. Cole entered Saturday 2-0 with a 1.74 ERA in three career starts against the Nationals.Pittsburgh second baseman Josh Harrison fielded Roarks bases loaded grounder in the fourth. Spinning around for the throw to first base, Harrisons toss sailed and landed in Washingtons dugout as two runs scored.Murphy has missed consecutive games with left hamstring tightness after suffering an injury in Tuesdays MLB All-Star game.GNAT FOR NATSMcCutchen has a hit in seven straight games against Washington, batting .360 (9 for 25) with one home run and four RBI in that stretch.LIFE HAPPENSThat Murphys injury occurred in the All-Star game, while unfortunate, doesnt have Baker fretting over his players participating in the exhibition game. He could have done it getting out of the bathtub, Baker said. Its hard to live your life wondering if youre going to get hurt or not. Youre just trying to not take any unnecessary risks.TRAINERS ROOMPirates: RF Gregory Polanco either will return to the lineup by Tuesday or be placed on the disabled list with left hamstring tightness, manager Clint Hurdle said. Polanco, out since July 8, is not expected to play Sunday, but Hurdle stated, Were optimistic with his progress.Nationals: Baker said he expects Murphy in Sundays lineup, but playing first base because its less grueling and twisting than at second base.UP NEXTPirates: RHP Chad Kuhl (1-0, 6.08 ERA) allowed four runs in 2 1/3 innings for a no-decision against the Cubs in his previous start on July 10.Nationals: RHP Scherzer (10-6, 3.03) makes his first start since appearing in the All-Star game. He threw a no-hitter against Pittsburgh on June 20, 2015.Gabriel Landeskog Jersey . The scientists believe the small earthquake during a Marshawn Lynch touchdown was likely greater than Lynchs famous "beast quake" touchdown run three years ago, which also came against New Orleans during a playoff game. Cale Makar Jersey . Its an influence in football and a big part of the game. http://www.hockeyavalanche.com/authentic-paul-kariya-avalanche-jersey/ . The Redskins announced Monday that the quarterback who led the team to the Super Bowl championship in the 1987 season will serve as a personnel executive. Adam Foote Jersey . 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. Samuel Girard Jersey .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final.The UFC returns Saturday with a main event featuring a pair of welterweight contenders. Carlos Condit is back in action for the first time since falling to then-champion Robbie Lawler via a close decision in January, and?Demian Maia is riding a five-fight winning streak that dates back to 2014. Their stylistic differences, highlighted in the following statistical categories, should make for an interesting and exciting bout.Striking DefenseMaias ability to avoid strikes is one of his biggest strengths as a fighter. During his last three fights, he has allowed his opponents to land only 12 significant strikes combined for a rate of 0.32 significant strikes absorbed per minute. Maias advanced grappling game forces opponents to play defense and prevents them from landing damaging blows. For his UFC career, Maia allows opponents to land only 1.62 significant strikes per minute, which is the best rate among ranked welterweights. If he is able to implement his smothering grappling game, Condit will struggle to land strikes.Striking DifferentialWhile Maia excels at preventing opponents from landing significant strikes, he also struggles to land meaningful strikes himself. In his last three fights, Maia has landed 340 total strikes, but only 23 percent were significant. For his UFC career, he lands only 0.21 significant strikes per minute more than he absorbs.Condit, on the other hand, is much better from a striking differential perspective. While his defense is not as strong, with opponents landing 2.44 significant strikes per minute against him, he lands at a much higher rate than Maia. The result is a +1.36 significannt strike per minute differential.dddddddddddd If Condit can avoid bad positions, he should have the advantage in terms of striking.SubmissionsMaias eight submission victories in the UFC are good for third-best all time, behind only Nate Diaz and Royce Gracie. He averages 1.23 submission attempts per 15 minutes, which is second among ranked welterweights.Early in his career, Condit was also quite the submission threat. During his WEC run, he finished four of his five fights via submission. However, since coming over to the UFC in 2009, he has attempted nine submissions without success. Condit has not lost via submission since falling to Pat Healy in 2006, but the grappling phase of the fight probably favors Maia.TakedownsTo avoid Maias grappling game, Condit will need to rely on his takedown defense. Unfortunately, this has never been a strong part of his game. During his UFC/WEC career, he has managed to stop only 39 percent of his opponents takedown attempts. During that 17-fight run, he has avoided being taken down in only three fights, and none of his opponents in those three bouts attempted a takedown.Maia has always been a respectable takedown artist. However, his numbers have greatly improved since his move to welterweight in 2012. As a middleweight, Maia landed 2.62 takedowns per 15 minutes. Since dropping down to 170 pounds, that number has improved by nearly 27 percent, to 3.32. Maia will certainly try to take this fight to the ground, and Condit might struggle to stop him. ' ' '