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BALTIMORE -- The dismissal of Ray Rice wasnt a distraction for the Baltimore Ravens. Ultimately, it served as inspiration. Playing a pivotal divisional game three days after the release of the star running back, Baltimore got a pair of touchdown passes from Joe Flacco and rolled past the rival Pittsburgh Steelers 26-6 on Thursday night. Rice was reaching the end of a two-game suspension for domestic violence when a video of him striking his then-fiancee surfaced Monday. By the end of the day, the three-time Pro Bowler had been cut by Baltimore and suspended indefinitely by the NFL. "We had a tough family situation this week," coach John Harbaugh said. "I thought our guys handled it tremendously -- with class, with character. They responded." Coming off a season-opening loss to AFC North foe Cincinnati, the Ravens (1-1) held Pittsburgh to two field goals and forced three turnovers. "We was all about getting the win. We wanted to kind of give that to Ray," rookie linebacker C.J. Mosley said. "We all wish the best for him. Even though he messed up, every man got to go through their mistakes to get better. We wish him the best, but as a team weve just got to keep moving forward." Bernard Pierce took over for Rice to gain 96 yards on 22 carries as part of a ground game that finished with 157 yards. Flacco went 21 for 29 for 166 yards and two TD throws to tight end Owen Daniels, and Justin Tucker kicked four field goals. Asked if he was curious how the team would fare after the tumultuous short work week, Baltimore defensive lineman Chris Canty shouted, "We werent curious at all. We knew how this was going to go. This was going to go one way, our way, tonight. No question about it." Pittsburgh (1-1) finished with only 22 fewer yards than Baltimore, but the turnovers made the difference. One Steelers miscue halted their opening drive, another set up a fourth-quarter field goal by Tucker, and an interception thrown by Ben Roethlisberger with 1:51 remaining ended any hope. "Obviously, a disappointing effort for us," coach Mike Tomlin said. "A lot of the self-inflicted wounds are going to prevent you from being in a football game like that. We turned the ball over too often (and) were highly penalized. Those two things are a lethal combination." It was only the second time in the last 11 regular-season meetings between the teams that the outcome was decided by more than three points. Roethlisberger completed 22 of 37 passes for 217 yards. It was the first time since Nov. 26, 2006, that Baltimore held Pittsburgh without a touchdown. "We moved the ball; we just made a mistake here and there," Roethlisberger said. After Tucker kicked a 23-yard field goal for a 20-6 lead, Steelers tight end Heath Miller fumbled on a hit by Mosley, who took the loose ball to the Pittsburgh 20. That led to a 22-yarder by Tucker with 11:14 left. Although the Rice video and the reaction were the talk of Baltimore for much of the week, a few fans showed their loyalty to the banished running back by wearing his No. 27 jersey. But the crowd of 71,181 was quick to turn its attention to on-field action at the opening kickoff. Aided by a roughing the passer call against Courtney Upshaw on the third play of the game, Pittsburgh held the ball for more than eight minutes before Justin Brown fumbled and Baltimore recovered at its own 15. The Ravens then moved 85 yards in 12 plays with the help of two Pittsburgh penalties, the last a 23-yard pass interference call against Cortez Allen that set up a 2-yard touchdown pass from Flacco to Daniels. Pierce and Justin Forsett combined for 32 yards on Baltimores next series, which ended in a field goal for a 10-0 lead. Pittsburgh finally broke through with 2:50 left in the half, getting a field goal to end an 11-play, 73-yard drive. It was 10-6 before Flacco connected with Daniels on a 1-yard touchdown pass to cap an 80-yard drive highlighted by Flaccos 24-yard completion to tight end Dennis Pitta. Notes: Ravens CB Asa Jackson left with a concussion. ... Pittsburgh WR Antonio Brown left briefly with a head injury but returned. Steelers NT Steve McLendon left with a shoulder injury. ... Ravens P Sam Koch set the franchise record by playing in his 130th consecutive game. Juan Lagares Jersey . The outdoor event will be played on Dec. 31 between alumni of the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park, the home of the Philadelphia Phillies. Zack Wheeler Jersey . -- Detroit Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera has a broken bone below his right eye after being struck by a bad-hop grounder, sidelining the star slugger for at least a week with opening day on deck. http://www.metssale.com/mets-jed-lowrie-jersey/. However, Therrien added that Galchenyuks status for next Wednesdays game against the Detroit Red Wings is questionable. Galchenyuk has been out since Jan. 6 with a broken right hand. Noah Syndergaard Jersey . Louis Cardinals continued their offensive tear with a 9-5 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the opener of a four-game series. Jason Vargas Jersey . The Grizzlies erased most of a 25-point deficit before Durant, the leagues scoring champion, got hot. SEATTLE -- Clay Buchholz felt exhausted after throwing only 76 pitches. His return to the mound for the Red Sox after nearly a month on the disabled list was a test by an aggressive Seattle offence that had battered Boston pitching the first two games of the series. "They made me work hard," Buchholz said. "I knew they were swinging. Thats about the most aggressive team that Ive pitched to in my career. For the number of pitches that I threw that was a grinding, stressful outing knowing I cant make a mistake." Buchholz pitched into the eighth inning in his first start since late May, David Ortiz gave him cushion from the start with his 449th career home run in the first inning, and Boston avoided being swept with a 5-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday night. Outside of three batters in the second inning, Buchholzs return could not have gone much better. He was efficient, he pitched deep into the game to save Bostons bullpen and he relied on more than just two pitches. Buchholz was using just his fastball and cutter early in the season. The time away allowed him to work on his curveball and changeup and as his outing progressed, those pitches got better. Buchholz was so good with his pitch efficiency teammates were questioning whether the count was correct. "At one point I had to ask if the pitch count was right because it was the fifth and he had like 45 pitches," Boston catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. "It was good. It was an encouraging outing and Im glad for Clay that he went out and pitched like he did." Ortiz knocked around Seattle starter Hisashi Iwakuma, plunking a two-run shot off the windows of the cafe in right field at Safeco Field for a 2-0 lead, his 18th of the season. He drove in another run in the third with a line drive off the wall in right that barely cleared the glove of Seattle right fielder Stefen Romero. "I thought we had a very good approach against Iwakuma, who pitches very well in this ballpark," Boston manager John Farrell said. Buchholz (3-4) was knocked around in the second, giving up home runs to Kyle Seager and Mike Zunino, but otherwise avoided problems.dddddddddddd Buchholz retired 11 of 12 during one stretch and pitched out of trouble in the sixth inning when the first two batters reached on singles. Buchholz won for the first time since May 2. He had been on the disabled list since May 27 with a hyperextended left knee and after two rehab starts in the minors was brought back to the Red Soxs rotation. Buchholz went 7 1-3 innings, giving up seven hits and four runs. He struck out two and walked none. He might have gotten through the eighth but Brad Miller led off the inning with a homer. Reliever Andrew Miller struck out pinch-hitters Willie Bloomquist and Cole Gillespie to end the eighth. Koji Uehara pitched the ninth for his 16th save despite allowing two runners. "He looked confident, he looked relaxed," Farrell said of Buchholz. "He was able to make pitches with four different types of pitches. An overall outstanding performance." Iwakuma struggled for the second straight outing, his pitches missing location. Iwakuma (5-4) lasted just four innings, giving up eight hits and five earned runs. Iwakuma was done when he failed to record an out after the first three batters of the fifth inning. This wasnt the first time Boston has made Iwakumas night short. Last season, Iwakuma lasted a career-low three innings, giving up eight hits and six runs against the Red Sox. "I couldnt get the first pitch strike which cost me in a couple of at-bats," Iwakuma said through an interpreter. "They took advantage of that, so not being able to throw strike one got to me." NOTES: Ortiz is tied for 36th on the all-time home run list with Jeff Bagwell and Vladimir Guerrero. ... Boston RHP Brandon Workman will start Fridays opener in New York against the Yankees. ... Seattle recalled RHP Brandon Maurer to work out of the bullpen. He was a starter earlier in the season. ' ' '