zation, and for ourselves. Sometimes it gets a little out of sight how well these guys are doing.St. Louis wraps up a three-game series in Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon.Right-hander Carlos Martinez will start Sundays series finale against the Reds at Great American Ball Park. In two starts this s

CINCINNATI -- St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny isnt ready to concede the National League Central title to the Chicago Cubs even though the magic number is dwindling by the day.Not backing off that, Matheny said.Still, the Cardinals are very much in the thick of the playoff chase, holding a two-game lead over the New York Mets for the second NL wild-card spot entering Saturday.Despite the Cardinals rash of key injuries, Matheny is pleased with his teams position despite the outside noise to the contrary.It does feel like were a last-place team with some of the stuff you hear, Matheny said. We have high expectations from our fan base, our organization, and for ourselves. Sometimes it gets a little out of sight how well these guys are doing.St. Louis wraps up a three-game series in Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon.Right-hander Carlos Martinez will start Sundays series finale against the Reds at Great American Ball Park. In two starts this season against Cincinnati, Martinez is 1-0 with a 3.86 ERA in seven innings. In his career, Martinez is 4-1 with a 2.72 ERA in four starts against the Reds.Martinez struck out a career-high 13 batters through six innings in his last start on Aug. 29 at Milwaukee. He has given up one run in each of his last three outings.Cincinnati will counter with right-hander Tim Adleman, who will make his eighth career start on Sunday and first against the Cardinals.Adleman is 1-1 with a 3.94 ERA in three starts since being recalled from Triple-A Louisville on Aug. 16.Adleman is in his second stint with the Reds this season, going 1-1 with a 3.72 ERA in his first four career starts before suffering a strained left oblique that landed him on the disabled list. Hes one of 11 Reds players this season to make their majorleague debut.The Cardinals hope to have Mike Leake back with the ballclub Sunday. Leake has been on the disabled list following a bout with shingles. The infection is gone, but the right-hander is working to regain his strength. Leake, a former Red, is expected to arrive in Cincinnati by Sunday morning and throw a bullpen before the game.Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina was given a day off Saturday, so Reds center fielder Billy Hamilton will have to wait until Sunday to resume wreaking havoc on the veteran backstop. Coming into Sunday, Hamilton is 23 of 25 on stolen base attempts against Molina. His 23 steals are the most by any player against Molina. Hamilton began his career 10-for-10 against him.Cincinnati hopes to have second baseman Brandon Phillips back in the lineup. He missed Saturdays game after fouling a pitch off his left foot. Its yet another in a series of injuries suffered this season by the Reds second baseman.Despite a 9-1 loss on Saturday, the Cardinals have won 19 of the past 25 series between the clubs. In the past 12 series at Great American Ball Park, St. Louis has gone 8-5. Buy Swell Water Bottle Australia .ca! 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MOSCOW -- The Moscow-backed leader of the Russian region of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, faced criticism Wednesday after his sons took part in televised mixed martial arts fights involving children as young as 8.One of Kadyrovs sons, 10-year-old Akhmad, beat another boy by a technical knockout in the cage during a so-called exhibition bout on a nationally televised fight card Tuesday, while his younger brothers Eli and Adam also won their fights as a crowd of adults in the hall cheered them on.The children walked into the ring with background music, were announced in the same way as pro fighters and were rewarded with belts when they won, with their father looking on. The TV broadcast from the Chechen capital Grozny was chiefly focused on adult bouts, but featured professional commentary and graphics introducing the child fighters.Kadyrov was inaugurated Wednesday to a new term as Chechnyas leader on his 40th birthday.Leading Russian MMA pro Fedor Emelianenko called the fights unacceptable and dangerous in a statement on his Instagram page, and said the children risked permanent injury and psychological harm.What happened at the tournament in Grozny is unacceptable and, moreover, cannot be justified, said Emelianenko, who heads the Russian MMA Union. There were little ones, eight years old, punching each other in front of happy adults. Is it really so importaant for you to organize a spectacle at the cost of childrens health?!It was incomprehensible to me that state TV showed childrens fights, he added.dddddddddddd.Emelianenko said children under the age of 12 should not be allowed to take part in any MMA fights and that anyone under the age of 21 must wear a helmet and protective gear for safety reasons. The children in the televised bouts fought bare-headed. In at least one case, a child received a heavy blow to the head.Kadyrov posted videos of the fights to his own Instagram page along with congratulatory comments for his sons. A defeated 10-year-old opponent showed real masculine character, Kadyrov wrote, adding: Im sure there are victorious fights ahead.Kadyrov has been repeatedly accused of human rights violations during his rule of Chechnya, including murders and forced disappearances.He is a noted sports fan, overseeing a Russian Premier League soccer team, and once challenged one of his ministers to a boxing match after criticizing his work.Kadyrov, who is a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, won re-election as Chechnyas leader last month with almost 98 percent of the vote, according to regional election authorities. He faces almost no organized political opposition. ' ' '