. Although it was a good ball, theres always so

HOUSTON -- Seemingly on the brink of collapse following a pair of interleague home losses to the St. Louis Cardinals last week, the Houston Astros rebounded with a successful swing through Baltimore and Pittsburgh and set the table to remain in the thick of the American League wild card chase with a six-game homestand opening Friday.The Astros (66-61) finished 5-2 during their seven-game stretch against the Orioles and Pirates and are 9-5 over their last 14 road games. Once 10 games above .500, the Astros slipped to 61-60 after dropping the opener in Baltimore on Aug. 18. And while they remain are four games behind the Orioles for the second wild card spot, the Astros recent road run breathed new life into their postseason hopes.Its one that we needed, Astros manager A.J. Hinch said following a 5-4 victory over Pittsburgh in Wednesdays series finale. We played two good teams and came away 5-2. Im really proud of our guys. We have a small margin of error these days and weve responded by playing well.If the Astros are to surpass Baltimore, Detroit and Seattle in the wild card picture, they will need to take full advantage of their upcoming schedule. Houston hosts the Rays (54-72) and Athletics during their upcoming homestand, two teams well below .500 and long since realistically eliminated from playoff contention.Right-hander Mike Fiers (9-6, 4.41 ERA) starts the opener for the Astros seeking to win consecutive decisions for the first time since he defeated the Rays and Reds on June 11 and June 19. Fiers allowed two runs on five hits and one walk with three strikeouts over seven innings while beating the Rays in his first career start against them.Fiers is 2-1 over his last three starts but has posted a 4.86 ERA while surrendering six home runs over 16 2/3 innings, a hallmark of his inconsistency. While he is 2-2 with a 4.37 ERA this month, opposing batters are slugging .494 against Fiers during August and he has alternated wins and losses over his last seven decisions.Left-hander Drew Smyly (6-11, 4.88 ERA) looks to continue his exceptional run of pitching for the Rays. He is 4-0 with a 2.79 ERA over his last six starts and the Rays have claimed victory in each of his previous five appearances. Smyly has lowered his season ERA by 0.76 runs over his last six outings, with 30 strikeouts against nine walks over 38 2/3 innings while limiting opponents to a .577 OPS.Smyly is 1-2 with a 6.10 ERA over four appearances (two starts) against the Astros.The Rays completed their most successful homestand of the season Thursday with a 2-1 victory over the Red Sox, winning consecutive games to split the four-game series. Tampa Bay finished 7-3 against the Padres, Rangers and Red Sox.We needed a lot of things to come together for us to get that win, Rays manager Kevin Cash told MLB.com. It seemed like they all did today. Cheap Soccer Jerseys . Olli Jokinen, Mark Scheifele, and Bryan Little each had a goal and an assist as Winnipeg won 5-2, handing Calgary its record-setting seventh consecutive loss on home ice. Jerseys NFL Cheap China . Sulaiman, 44, was chosen unanimously Tuesday in a vote by the leadership, the World Boxing Council said. Sulaiman becomes the sixth president of the organization. http://www.cheapnfljerseyschinayear.com/ . The team says the Spain international has a muscle pull in his right leg. Barcelona hosts third-division side Cartagena in the return leg of their round-of-32 tie after winning their first meeting 4-1. Wholesale China Soccer Jersyes . It was hard for Luck to pull off another comeback, or even get into the end zone, while standing on the sideline. Rivers threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to rookie Keenan Allen and Nick Novak kicked four field goals to give the Chargers a 19-9 victory against the Colts on Monday night. Cheap Jerseys AUthentic . Now, correct me if Im wrong but I saw one official distinctly pointing at the net indicating a good goal but after an inconclusive review they overturned the goal. Shouldnt the ruling on the ice (good goal) stand after an inconclusive review? Why was this overturned? James Veaudry Pembroke, ON -- Hey Kerry, Youll get a lot of these, but why was the Montreal goal against Nashville Saturday night overturned? Eller puts the puck on net and the on ice ruling from the ref behind the net is a Montreal goal. Nic Maddinson is in fine company. Prior to Maddinson, only a dozen Australian top-six batsmen had fallen for a duck in their first Test innings on debut. Victor Trumper was one of them, also Joe Darling, Syd Gregory and Harry Trott, among Australias best early cricketers. In the more modern era there was Matthew Elliott, Phillip Hughes and Andrew Symonds - all of whom went on to score Test centuries.But there are some not-so-elites in the group, too. Roy Park is best remembered for the story, apocryphal or not, of how his wife bent down to pick up her knitting and missed his entire Test career: he was bowled first ball in his only Test innings. Others such as Ken Meuleman and Roland Pope, like Park, never played another Test.Whatever happens at the Gabba this week, at least Maddinson wont fall into the latter camp. He will get another chance in the baggy green, a second opportunity to get off the mark in Test cricket after his 12-ball duck against South Africa at Adelaide Oval. It will be a chance to show that he has the game to bat in the longest form; by his own admission he, at times, has played too aggressively in first-class cricket.Its all about me finding a consistent mental state where I can start my innings, Maddinson said in Brisbane on Sunday. Have a game plan where it can work, not just when Im batting on a good day on a flat wicket, but something I can implement on days where the ball is moving and Im not feeling like its all going together.I think thats an important part of how I can improve as a player. And thats... where the inconsistencies lie at the moment. At times Ive been a bit too aggressive when the situation didnt suit, but I feel like Im more comfortable with my batting at the moment which comes with making enough mistakes and being around long enough to work it out.In Adelaide, Maddinson came in under lights, facing the swinging pink ball, and was a little tentative before being bowled by a fine delivery from Kagiso Rabada. It meant he was thhe only one of Australias three debutants to leave Adelaide empty-handed - Peter Handscomb scored a first-innings fifty and then struck the winning runs, and Matt Renshaw occupied the crease for 183 balls.ddddddddddddBut having wiped out nearly half the side in moving from Hobart to Adelaide, the selectors opted for a steady hand in the wake of Australias consolation victory and named the same 12 for the first Test against Pakistan. Maddinson hopes that after a nervy debut, he will be better placed for Test cricket come his second opportunity.It helps when the team wins... its easier to keep it together and let guys develop a little bit if they have missed out, Maddinson said. Although it was a good ball, theres always something you can do differently. Whether its a mindset or just sharpen up a little bit. Ive had time to watch it and theres definitely some things Ill be taking in when I start my innings this week.One positive for Maddinson is that, unlike on Test debut, he now has a decent pink-ball score under his belt. Prior to the Adelaide day-night Test, Maddinsons pink-ball day-night first-class career consisted of scores of 1, 18, 17, 1 and 46. But against South Australia in Adelaide last week, Maddinson scored 80 in the first innings of a day-night Sheffield Shield game to give him some confidence.Regardless of what ball it was, it was an important innings for me, Maddinson said. The game before that in Shield cricket I probably didnt get the runs I would have liked when I sort of felt in at times as well.So to be able to get 80 last week - I was still extremely disappointed to get out when and how I did in that innings, and to miss out in the second innings. But thats cricket, Ive moved on and I think the experiences that Ive gained from failing in pink-ball games has probably helped me I think in what I can prepare for this week. ' ' '