ouver holds a 4-1-4 edge in the series. Wondolowski, who now

[blueberryjerry]

MILWAUKEE -- It was a tough night at the ballpark for Ryan Braun. . First, the Brewers slugger accidentally knocked shortstop Jean Segura out of the game after hitting him in the head with his bat while warming up on the top steps of the dugout in the first. Braun departed himself after the eighth with a slight chest muscle strain. The injuries wiped some of the lustre off Marco Estradas strong outing in a 5-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday that gave Milwaukee its seventh win in eight games. Manager Ron Roenicke said Segura didnt have a concussion or fractures, but needed stitches to close a gash on his face. Segura might miss a few days, while Braun labeled himself as day to day. Foremost in Brauns mind was that Segura seemed to be OK after the scary moment. "Obviously, its never something thats done intentionally," Braun said. "You know whenever youre involved in a situation like that, I think it puts life in perspective and you realize how insignificant baseball is. Thank God from everything weve heard hes OK." Estrada (2-1) threw 7 2-3 strong innings with nine strikeouts. Jeff Bianchi went 2 for 4, entering the game as a pinch hitter in the first for Segura. The Brewers had to take a few moments to regroup after seeing Segura on the floor of the dugout in pain. He had to be helped to the clubhouse. Braun was facing the field on the top steps of the dugout, where he normally stations himself for his warmup routine. Segura, who was batting second ahead of third-place hitter Braun, was coming up the steps behind him, and a TV replay showed the All-Star shortstop getting it on the right side of the head. "It bugged me all game but its one of those things you hope you can prevent. I know Braunny felt bad," Roenicke said. "Bianchi came in and did a great job for him." Bianchi drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single in the second off Travis Wood (1-3). Francisco Rodriguez tossed a 1-2-3 ninth for his 11th save. Wood had his toughest outing of the season, yielding five runs and seven hits in 5 2-3 innings. "It was a grind and a battle tonight," he said. "I didnt have my A game. I was missing balls and falling behind hitters." Estrada retired the first 10 hitters he faced -- a few on flyballs deep into the outfield -- before Luis Valbuena turned on a 2-0 fastball for a solo homer to right. The righty then retired 10 in a row again, effectively mixing a changeup and curveball with fastball in the high 80s. He maintained control until Welington Castillo hit a two-run shot in the eighth to get the Cubs within two. Estrada departed having allowed four hits and no walks. "Its the best Ive felt so far since spring training," Estrada said. "The last couple games, I just havent felt like myself. But today I did." Chicago, which lost its fourth straight, is already 10 1/2 games back in the NL Central behind division-leading Milwaukee, which has the majors best record at 18-6. "The teams rolling right now and just kind of riding the waves, going with it, and playing outstanding ball," Wood said. But the win was overshadowed somewhat by the injury to Segura, adding to whats already been a tough start of the season. Segura, who was hitting .239, also missed the last two weeks of spring training with sore right shoulder. Braun has also had somewhat of a tricky start after returning to the lineup this season following a 65-game doping suspension. Braun is hitting .318, but hes also been dealing with a lingering right hand injury that carried over from last year. NOTES: Chicago placed struggling reliever Jose Veras on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left oblique. RHP Brian Schlitter was recalled from Triple-A Iowa, and arrived in time for the game. Veras had a 15.88 ERA and blew both of his save opportunities. ... The Cubs have lost seven of eight to Milwaukee dating to last season. ... Rodriguez picked up his 315th save, three behind Rick Aguilera for 17th place on the career list. ... Chicago will try to avoid a sweep by sending Jason Hammel (3-1) to mound Sunday against Wily Peralta (3-0). . Nikolaos Kounenakis has been hired as an assistant coach, the team announced on Monday. .com) - They didnt meet in the regular season, so Sam Houston State might be saying it won the de facto title game between the two Southland Conference co-champions Saturday. . Costa injured his right thigh muscle against Barcelona last Saturday and had sought treatment in Belgrade from a doctor specializing in using fluid derived from horse placenta to repair damaged cells.VANCOUVER -- Carl Robinson got the start he wanted Saturday, but he was still left almost speechless. The delighted Vancouver Whitecaps coach was "lost for words" after his club scored three goals in the first 20 minutes en route to a 3-2 win over the San Jose Earthquakes. The Whitecaps (3-2-4) earned their first win in five games while the Earthquakes fell to 1-3-3. The game commemorated the first ever contest between Vancouver and San Jose, which was played May 5, 1974 when both teams were part of the original North American Soccer League. "I challenged them at the start of the game because it was a fantastic occasion today for the club and the tradition of the club," said Robinson. "I didnt want them to start slow where we have been in a few recent games." Despite the close score, the Whitecaps prevailed relatively easily after being forced to stage late comebacks in dramatic draws with Real Salt Lake and Los Angeles in their previous two games. Pedro Morales scored two goals a minute apart, with the first coming on a penalty-kick in the 19th minute and the second resulting from a shot from about 20 yards out in the 20th minute. "We got off to a great start, the team played very well, it was very exciting for the fan and we created a lot of (scoring) opportunities," said Morales. Kekuta Manneh also scored a goal and furnished an assist for Vancouver. "It was a big occasion for the club," said Manneh. "We all talked about it before the game and we had to come out and win the game. We were not that worried about the occasion, but weve got to do our job, and we did that, so it was great "We learned from our previous games." Chris Wondolowski, on a penalty-kick in the 45th minute and a lucky bounce in second-half stoppage time, scored both San Jose goals. "We did not come out with a good mindset," said Wondolowski. "Going down 3-0 against a very quality team, its way too big a hole to climb out of. We didnt do things right." Many fans wore 1970s-era clothing, including colourful bell-bottom pants that would make Norwegian curler Thomas Ulsruds crew envious, and donned long-haired wigs, fake handlebar moustaches and sunglasses. The attire was part of the Whitecaps tribute to the days of disco music. Whitecaps captain Jay DeMerit started after being kept home from the previous weekends road game against San Jose for rest purposes. Meanwhile, Vancouver striker Kenny Miller began the game on the bench before coming on in the second half, as Robinson used a 4-2-3-1 alignment with Darren Mattocks deployed as the lone forward. As a result, Manneh, who has been used mostly as a substitute, started in midfield in a move that paid early dividends. Manneh gave the Whitecaps a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute as he fired a first shot off the near post and then put his own rebound in off the far post. Crediting Morales passing prowess, Robinson said he did not have to say too much to his players about starting well after he had chewed them out at half-timme in the previous game. . "Obviously, after the reaction at Salt Lake at half-time, they got back in character," he said. Mannehs goal came after DeMerit checked the ball away from charging San Jose forward Yannick Djalo and sent the ball up the left flank. With Djalo injured in the process and kneeling on the turf, the Whitecaps were able to capitalize on an odd-man situation. "As soon a Yannick went down they scored the first goal. It was just 10 minutes where we couldnt cope with them," said Earthquakes coach Mark Watson. Morales put the Whitecaps ahead 2-0 on a penalty-kick after Mattocks was deemed to have been taken down while deking with the ball in the San Jose box. With the sellout crowd of 21,000 standing in anticipation, Morales rolled a shot into the left corner after San Jose goalkeeper Jon Busch elected to go to his right. A minute later, Morales notched his second goal as he put a shot into the same corner from just outside the top of the San Jose box. After scoring the goal, Morales unwittingly doffed his jersey, waved it over his head, and excitedly ran bare-chested to the bench -- only to get an automatic yellow card for excessive celebration. Vancouver lost a shining Mattocks in the 30th minute after he pulled up with what Robinson described as a hamstring injury. Mattocks was replaced by second-year pro Erik Hurtado, but the change had little effect as Vancouver finished with 17 shots, including 13 in the first half, including nine on target. San Jose put just four of seven total shots on Vancouver goalkeeper David Ousted, who was still sharp when necessary as the Caps continued mastery over a traditional powerhouse. The Earthquakes have yet to win in Vancouver in nine all-time MLS meetings with the Whitecaps. Overall, Vancouver holds a 4-1-4 edge in the series. Wondolowski, who now has nine career goals against Vancouver, was less than satisfied with the comeback attempt. He admitted his second goal, which redirected off DeMerit, was fortuitous after he did not get much behind the shot. "(The late rally) was too little, too late," said Wondolowski. "We cant be doing that. a This loss is unacceptable." Notes: San Joses Djalo was replaced by Alan Gordon in the 14th minute. a The Whitecaps had a goal disallowed in the 81st minute as Gershon Koffie was found guilty of a hand-ball just before he scored. a Whitecaps president Bobby Lenarduzzi became the first inductee into the clubs new ring of honour. During a pre-game ceremony, Los Angeles Lakers star Steve Nash, a Whitecaps minority owner, presented Lenarduzzi with a ring in conjunction with the honour. Nash jokingly dropped to one knee, like a hopeful groom proposing. a Lenarduzzi played on the original Whitecaps team, which was also honoured in the pre-game festivities, with many members taking part. a Gordon was cautioned in the 70th minute after he knocked Matias Laba in the back while the Cap played a header. a Former Whitecap Atiba Harris subbed in for San Jose during the second half. ' ' '

[sanpiseth40]

Please see my website

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]

[veranix]