Wii Talk » losses -- against Stanford and Mississippi State -- c

PITTSBURGH -- The strained right calf that sidelined Felix Hernandez for a third of the season is healed. That doesnt mean the ace is all better, and he knows it.It will take time for the 2010 AL Cy Young Award winner to regain his form, yet theres a grit that he showed in Seattles 7-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night that offered proof to Mariners manager Scott Servais that Hernandez is on his way back.Hernandez picked up his first victory since May 21 despite getting touched for four runs over the first two innings, including a 416-foot homer by pitcher Francisco Liriano. Though Hernandez (5-4) never retired the Pirates in order, he found a way to get through six innings while giving his teammates enough time to get going at the plate.Were certainly looking for crisper, sharper stuff than what he showed early in the game, Servais said. To his credit, he hung in there. He gave us a chance, kept it right there, and then our offense was the story.Kyle Seagers three hits for Seattle included his 20th home run, and Franklin Gutierrez added his 10th off Liriano (6-10) as the Mariners began a rare trip to Pittsburgh by overcoming a three-run deficit and holding on late.The Pirates brought the tying run to the plate in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings but failed to get even one man across the plate. Seattles only perfect inning came in the ninth, when Steve Cishek picked up his 24th save.Gregory Polanco collected four hits, including his 13th homer, but Pittsburgh left nine men on base and went 1 for 13 with runners in scoring position.I liked the game plan throughout the game, Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. We pushed him every inning. We were able to score but he kept us off the board late.Hernandez spent nearly two months on the disabled list and hardly looked like his dominant self while slogging through 6 2/3 innings in a no-decision against the Chicago White Sox last Wednesday.It looked like more of the same early. Polancos shot to center field just cleared the wall in the first. Starling Marte drilled an RBI triple off the wall in right and Jung Ho Kang added a run-scoring groundout to stake Liriano to a quick 3-0 lead.When Liriano sent a Hernandez offering into the bushes beyond center in the second, the Pirates appeared to be in command with a 4-1 advantage.I didnt have good mechanics, Hernandez said. I was missing a lot of pitches in the middle of the plate. . Thats what you get when youve been out for a long time. Ive got to have better mechanics.But Hernandez eventually settled down and his teammates went after Liriano, who was dogged by control issues again. He threw nearly as many balls (34) as strikes (38) while walking four. The pitches he did get around the plate were often hammered. Gutierrez homered leading off the third and Seager tied it at 4 four batters later.An RBI double by Shawn OMalley and a run-scoring single by Robinson Cano helped chase Liriano in the fourth. An RBI groundout by Nelson Cruz against Jared Hughes gave the Mariners a three-run lead they would not surrender.BULLPEN HELPThe Mariners got some help for their bullpen after the game, acquiring right-hander Drew Storen and cash considerations from Toronto for pitcher Joaquin Benoit. Storen was designated for assignment by Toronto on Sunday after going 1/3 with three saves and a 6.21 ERA in 38 relief appearances.TRAINERS ROOMMariners: RHP Taijuan Walker (right foot tendinitis) will pitch a simulated game Wednesday in Pittsburgh. It will be the first time he has faced hitters since going on the disabled list July 6. ... SS Ketel Marte (mononucleosis) played catch in Seattle in his first baseball activity since he was placed on the DL last Wednesday. Servais said Marte is still regaining his strength after losing eight pounds.Pirates: RHP Ryan Vogelsong (facial fractures) will pitch for Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday in Gwinnett. Vogelsong, out since May 28 after taking a pitch to the face while batting against Colorado on May 23, left his last start with Indianapolis due to neck stiffness. ... The Pirates have yet to make a decision on who will start on Friday night in Milwaukee in place of injured RHP Tyler Glasnow (shoulder fatigue).UP NEXTMariners: James Paxton (3-4, 4.18 ERA) will try to back up perhaps his strongest start of the season on Wednesday. Paxton held Toronto to one run in seven innings last Saturday.Pirates: Gerrit Cole (5-6, 2.99 ERA) will try for his first win since May 26. Cole is 0-3 with a 3.96 ERA in his last five starts, which are sandwiched around a stint on the disabled list with a strained right triceps. Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping . Clarkson had been dealing with an elbow injury in early January and will be out of action for at least one week. He has three goals and five assists through 36 games with the Leafs this season. Cheap NFL Jerseys . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. http://www.nflcheapjerseysfreeshipping.com/ . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year. Authentic NFL Jerseys China . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Cheap Football Jerseys . With the short-handed Warriors needing help from someone -- anyone -- to stop a three-game skid, ONeal returned from right knee and groin injuries that had sidelined him for four games and put up season highs with 18 points and eight rebounds. It was just enough to help lift Golden State to a 102-101 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State stars Victoria Vivians and Morgan William were at their best during the 10th-ranked Bulldogs 79-68 victory over No. 8 Texas on Sunday.That wasnt a surprise. Its what the Bulldogs did without those two on the floor that turned some heads.William scored 23 points and Vivians added 19, but it was a second-quarter run largely led by the teams reserves that helped put the Longhorns away.Our kids, that second quarter, really answered the bell and got after it, Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said. We got some real critical stops and then we really were attacking the rim.Mississippi State (4-0) pulled away in the second quarter thanks to some valuable minutes from the bench -- especially backup guards Roshunda Johnson and Jazzmun Holmes -- and a suffocating defense that held the Longhorns without a field goal for the final 9:40 of the half.The Bulldogs had a 26-9 advantage in the second quarter to turn a tie game into a 42-25 halftime lead. Johnson had seven points and Holmes added three during the run while Vivians and William were their biggest cheerleaders on the sideline.Everybodys stepped their game up, Vivians said. Everybody can go to the basket. Everyone can score.Texas (1-2) had 15 turnovers in the first half and 24 in the game.We got a little frantic in some situations, Texas coach Karen Aston said.Brooke McCarty led Texas with 19 points, and Ariel Atkins added 18. Texas lost despite shooting a respectable 27 of 56 from the field (48.2 percent) and outrebounded the Bulldogs 36-26.The Longhorns pulled within 48-40 in the third quarter, but couldnt get any closer.There were a whole lot of positives, Aston said. Even the turnovers, most of them were in the first half. We pulled within in eight points, but then we forced some things. Young kids trying to make something happen every possession.William shhot 5 of 11 from the field and 13 of 14 from the free-throw line while also adding six rebounds and three steals.ddddddddddddDominique Dillingham added 10 points for the Bulldogs.INSTANT OFFENSEMississippi State played 10 players on Sunday, including nine who were on the roster last season. The only new player was Johnson, a 5-foot-7 junior guard who transferred from Oklahoma State and sat out last season.Shes been excellent so far this season, averaging nearly 12 points per game as a consistent scoring option with the second team off the bench.BIG PICTURETexas: Its been a tough start to the season for Texas, which has now lost two of its first three games. Both of those losses -- against Stanford and Mississippi State -- came against good teams, but they provide ample evidence that the Longhorns have some work to do to be among the nations elite.Mississippi State: The Bulldogs lost to Texas in Austin last season, but won against the Longhorns with relative ease on their home court. Vivians -- who is inarguably the teams best scorer -- had a solid game, but it was the consistent production from others like William, Dillingham, Chinwe Okorie and the bench that was most important for Mississippi State.LIMPING SCHAEFERSchaefer was noticeably limping during the second half of the game, and the coach said he believed it was his due to a case of gout in his feet. Vivians and William had to nearly carry Schaefer into the postgame press conference.UP NEXTTexas: The Longhorns return home to face Northwestern State on Wednesday.Mississippi State: The Bulldogs face Oregon on Friday in the opening round of the Waikiki Beach Marriott Tournament in Honolulu on Friday.----Follow David Brandt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidbrandtAP ' ' '