. Its always a huge opportunity when youre fighting for a title against someone of Santa Cruzs caliber. I wouldnt be taking on this fight if I wasnt extremely confident in Carl, even though hes c

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. 24 Oz Standard Mouth Hydro Flask . The 29-year-old Baines has established himself as one of the top attacking full backs in the country and was the subject of two bids from United during the last off-season. Everton manager Roberto Martinez says that keeping Baines at the club is a "massive boost and exciting for the future" because he brings "maturity and football knowledge in a very specialized position on the pitch" and an "infectious and positive influence to the rest of the squad. Hydro Flask Coffee 20 Oz . "Were just throwing s--- at the wall hoping something sticks," said Tortorella about the possible line combinations for Fridays game against Columbus. The Canucks have lost five straight games and six of their last seven, leaving them in a logjam in the Pacific Division, currently sitting fifth - good for ninth in the Western Conference. http://www.hydroflaskcoffeesale.com/hydro-flask-standard-mouth/21-oz-standard-mouth.html .Y. -- Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse have another World Cup gold medal after winning the two-women bobsled race on Saturday in Lake Placid, N. Hydro Flask Coffee Sale . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. Hydro Flask Coffee Mug . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. Thirty-one years ago, June 8, 1985 to be exact, Irish hero Barry McGuigan ended the seven-year featherweight title reign of fellow Hall of Famer Eusebio Pedroza by winning a 15-round decision, the greatest triumph of his career.That was nearly two years before Carl Frampton was born. Frampton, of course, would grow up to become, along with McGuigan, one of the finest prize fighters to come out of Northern Ireland. And in storybook fashion, it was McGuigan, serving as Framptons manager, who guided him to a junior featherweight world title in 2014 and a unified title in February when Frampton outpointed Englands Scott Quigg in a huge fight.But having beaten his greatest rival at 122 pounds, and having trouble making the weight, Frampton (22-0, 14 KOs) decided it was time to move up to featherweight for his next challenge. It will come against formidable featherweight titleholder Leo Santa Cruz (32-0-1, 18 KOs), a three-division titlist, in the main event of a tripleheader on Saturday (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET with preliminary bouts on Showtime Extreme beginning at 7 p.m. ET/PT) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.Frampton, the underdog, has the opportunity to surpass his mentor McGuigan in terms of winning a title in a second weight class and, if successful, he would claim the same WBA belt McGuigan won all those years ago. Both mean a lot to Frampton.Im completely up for it. Im excited to bring a big crowd over here, and Im going to do everything I can to have my hand raised, said Frampton, who will be boxing in the United States for the second time. Obviously I have enough motivation on my own, but it would be nice to bring back the title that Barry once owned. It feels a bit like destiny for me. Its my turn to win it back for him. Im doing this for my whole team. Im doing this for my family, and Im doing this for my entire country.Frampton, who is trained by Shane McGuigan, Barrys son, would also become the second Irish fighter to win a title in a second weight division.It would be huge, Frampton said. Theres been one other Irishman thats won world titles in two weight divisions and that was Steve Collins (at middleweight and super middleweight in the mid-1990s). But there has never been another Irishman thats done it. Id be making a better history for myself. Its going to be nice to win back the title that Barry owned 30 years ago -- that WBA title as featherweight. I feel like it might be time for me to make history. Im ready for this fight. I have been for a long time.Said Shane McGuigan: This fight is history in the making. Its a fight that can really put Carl on the map. Its always a huge opportunity when youre fighting for a title against someone of Santa Cruzs caliber. I wouldnt be taking on this fight if I wasnt extremely confident in Carl, even though hes coming in as the underdog. I dont think Santa Cruz has ever felt the power that Carl brings before. I think Carl can beat him comfortably.In the 10-round junior welterweight co-feature, former featherweight and junior lightweight titleholder Mikey Garcia (34-0, 28 KOs) of Ventura, California, who has been idle for 2? years because of a legal battle over his promotional contract, will return and face former featherweight titlist Elio Rojas (24-2, 14 KOs) of the Dominican Republic. Rojas is coming off a 23-month layoff.In the opener of the tripleheader, junior middleweight contenders Tony Harrison (23-1, 19 KOs), of Detroit, and the Ricky Hatton-trained Sergey Rabchenko (27-1, 20 KOs), of Belarus, will meet in a world title elimination bout.There are also two other 10-round bouts on the Showtime Extreme portion of the card: former welterweight and junior welterweight world titleholder Paulie Malignaggi (35-7, 7 KOs) against Brooklyn neighborhood rival Gabriel Tito Bracero (24-2, 5 KOs) at welterweight fight and Ukrainian lightweight Ivan Redkach (19-1-1, 15 KOs) against Philadelphias Tevin Farmer (21-4-1, 5 KOs).McGuigan made two successful title defenses, and then he traveled in 1986 to Las Vegas, where he lost it by 15-round decision to Stteve Cruz in an outdoor venue in triple-digit heat which he was not ready to handle.dddddddddddd McGuigan fought only four more times, as a junior lightweight, but never got a chance to challenge for a title in a second weight class.He is happy to see Frampton with a chance to do what he could not, but he isnt exactly emotional about it.Its wonderful that Carl is getting the chance to fight for the 126-pound title. We dont really go into the sentimental stuff very much. Its just a job, McGuigan said. At 126 (pounds), hes so much stronger, and camp has been fantastic. Hes looked great. And, yes, itd be nice if he won my old title, but thats about it. It didnt really matter. For him to win and to be impressed at his performance is whats important.I believe Leo Santa Cruz will bring the very best out of him because hes such a great fighter. But I believe 100 percent that Frampton will beat him. Whats important is winning on Saturday night. We put so much time and commitment to this game. You dont want to do all that work and lose. Getting the win is vital.Other than a few early bouts, Frampton, 29, has been making 122 pounds since he turned pro in 2009. He said it was time to move up and, if he was going to do so, he wanted to fight for a title immediately.Up at 126 I feel that this suits me more than fighting Leo Santa Cruz at 122, Frampton said. I think it would have been a harder fight for me at 122 simply because of making the weight. At 126, Im much better. And I think that everythings falling into place, and Im ready to take the title off him.Ive dealt with fighting bigger guys throughout my whole career. Im used to it. Ive fought bigger guys than Santa Cruz. I think on fight night Im going to be stronger. People forget that he started his career at bantamweight, while I fought as a featherweight in the amateurs. On the night, Ill be the bigger man, and that will be the difference.The last time I was an underdog was the Irish championships (in 2009), when I was an amateur. You could have got me at 11-2 (odds). I was a massive underdog. I dropped (the opponent) pretty early on, so the last time I was an underdog, a lot of people who knew me made a lot of money. Its going to be the same result this time. Moving up to 126 pounds was definitely the right decision for me. Im a big puncher but I lost power coming down to 122 pounds.Santa Cruz, who will be making his second title defense, said he did not think he would have any particular advantage with Frampton coming up to his weight class.I dont think moving up in weight will affect Carl at all. Hes got a big frame, and hes a big guy, said Santa Cruz, who won titles at bantamweight and junior featherweight before he also moved up to featherweight. He is probably a little bit bigger than me. I know he had problems making 122 pounds, but this should be easier for him.People think Frampton is the underdog because hes moving up in weight. But I moved up in weight too.Whoever wins the fight, most expect it to be action-packed. Frampton likes to come forward and has been in several entertaining bouts. Santa Cruz, 27, a Mexico native fighting out of Rosemead, California, is well known for throwing 100-plus punches per round and relentlessly stalking his foe.Im ready to come here and give a great fight, Santa Cruz said. I want to make it a war. Carl Frampton is a great fighter and he makes for an interesting fight. Carl is an undefeated fighter just like myself, so were both going to be hungry. Were going to leave it all in the ring. Neither of us wants to lose, and were going to give it our all.Said Frampton, Were both undefeated, and were looking for a war. Leo is a great fighter. Hes world class, easily the toughest opponent that Ive faced so far. But I think Im Leos best opponent as well. I think this has all the ingredients to be a top- quality fight. Ive had a hard training camp, and Im ready to leave everything in the ring. 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