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ST. LOUIS -- Not long after Jose Fernandez was lost for the season with an elbow injury, the Miami Marlins found a new ace. Theyve won a franchise-record 10 in a row when Henderson Alvarez takes the ball. "Hes been really good for us, especially since Jose went down," cleanup hitter Casey McGehee said Sunday after Alvarez (6-3) worked seven stingy innings and started the key rally with the first of his career-best three hits in an 8-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. "He pretty much did today what hes done all year for us. We love having him out on the mound." McGehee extended his hitting streak to a career-high 13 games with an RBI single in the first. Marcell Ozuna had a two-run single in a three-run sixth that made it 4-0, and Jarrod Saltalamacchias three-run homer off Jason Motte put Miami up 8-1 in the eighth. The Marlins had lost four of six before taking two of three from their spring training partners. The first two games of the series were decided by one run. "This group is special," manager Mike Redmond said. "Weve bounced back all year." The Marlins easily took the series finale despite stranding 14 runners, largely because of Alvarez. Hes 4-0 with a 1.04 ERA since May 16, allowing two or fewer runs in each of his last nine games. "Ive always wanted to be a leader," the 24-year-old right-hander said through a translator. "Im just focused on being a pitcher." Kolten Wong, just off the 15-day disabled list, had two hits and homered in the seventh for the lone run against Alvarez. Matt Adams had a career-best four hits, including an RBI double. "All we can do is stick with our approach and go up there and get the barrel on the balls, and thats what were doing," Adams said. "Were just hitting it right at people right now." Cardinals rookie Marco Gonzalez (0-2) allowed a run in 4 2-3 innings despite giving up seven hits and walking five in his third career start since being recalled from Double-A Springfield. He yielded five runs in each of his first two starts. "You look at the bottom line, obviously it wasnt as efficient as he wanted to be and we had to get him out early," manager Mike Matheny said. "He kept us in there and made good pitches when he had to." Alvarez struck out to end the second and then had a hit in three consecutive at-bats, the biggest a leadoff bloop single in the sixth. He topped his previous best of two hits, done twice, and raised his average this season to .250. Obviously, thats a bonus. "Im glad hes on our side, especially since hes been lights out," Redmond said. "I think we all feel so confident when he takes the ball." The three-day weekend series drew 133,736 fans, with the first two games sold out and the finale just shy at 42,160. It was 84 degrees at game time and temperatures were unseasonably mild throughout. Redmond, a former catcher, remembers St. Louis and Kansas City as the hottest cities in the majors, with triple-digit temperatures this time of year and "just roasting out there." "Its gorgeous," Matheny said before the finale. "Yesterday, I didnt realize it during the game but it was a beautiful day." NOTES: The Marlins previous franchise mark for consecutive wins in a pitchers starts was nine straight for Chris Hammond in 1993. Hammond was 8-0 during that stretch. ... Jim Edmonds threw out the first pitch, firing a high fastball to Matheny, on his bobblehead giveaway day. ... McGehee has hit in 20 straight games on the road, the second-longest streak in Marlins history behind a 27-game run by Luis Castillo in 2002. ... The Marlins open a three-game series at Arizona on Monday with Tom Koehler (6-6, 3.48 ERA), back from paternity leave, opposing Chase Anderson (5-4, 3.91). ... Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright (11-4, 1.89 ERA) was tied for the league lead in wins heading into a matchup against the Pirates and Charlie Morton (5-9, 3.30). Wainwright is 1-1 with a 1.20 ERA in two starts against Pittsburgh this year. ... Matheny said closer Trevor Rosenthal was unavailable after tough outings in the first two games of the series. ... Motte missed last year due to reconstructive elbow surgery and allowed four runs for the first time since Sept. 22, 2011, at the Mets. Irving Fryar Youth Jersey .FIFA says it is relaxing the rule which forced match officials to leave its international list at the end of the year they turned 45. Rob Gronkowski Womens Jersey . Although head coach Randy Carlyle jokingly wondered how much actual training Bolland got done while in London. "I dont know how much training goes on when you go back to the junior team that you played for so I wouldnt read too much into that," laughed Carlyle after the Maple Leafs were put through an up-tempo practice that concluded with a 10-minute bag skate on Thursday. http://www.shoptheofficialpatriots.com/E...atriots-Jersey/. The two teams will play through the completion of the game starting at 5pm ct on Wednesday. The regularly scheduled Wednesday night matchup will follow that and will now be seven innings. Tedy Bruschi Patriots Jersey .J. -- Rampage Jackson scowled, howled, then bellowed to the crowd: "Im back! Im back!" With rebuilt knees and a new promotion, Jackson might have one more act left in MMA. Kevin Faulk Jersey . Still, its a start. Josh Baileys goal with 1:40 left capped a furious third-period rally, and the Islanders edged the Penguins 4-3 on Friday night.(SportsNetwork.com) - As we look ahead to the New Year, I have a feeling well have only two divisions that will be hotly contested. The Toronto Raptors and Portland Trail Blazers have very comfortable cushions with Toronto leading the Brooklyn Nets in the Atlantic by 8 1/2 games, while the Blazers are 10 1/2 games up on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Northwest. The Chicago Bulls lead the struggling Cleveland Cavaliers by 3 1/2 games in the Central, but with the loss of Anderson Varejao for the season and Kevin Love continuing to struggle, it doesnt look like the Cavs will be able to keep up with such a deep Chicago team. In the Pacific, the Golden State Warriors are five games up on the Los Angeles Clippers, who look like theyve taken a step back from last season. With Stephen Curry clearly better than Chris Paul, and the Warriors talent level clearly being better than the Clippers, I dont see Doc Rivers team being capable of staying with Golden State. So that leaves us with the Southeast and Southwest Divisions, which may not be decided until April. Lets take a close look at each race: SOUTHEAST DIVISION The Washington Wizards were the preseason favorites to win the division, but have been unable to shake the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks are one game up on the Wizards, but Atlanta has been the more impressive team. They have clearly been better against the upper level teams of the league. Atlanta is 7-3 versus teams that would currently qualify for the playoffs, while the Wizards are just 3-7. The Hawks lost their first three games of the season against such teams, but since are 7-1. Former Hawks great Dominique Wilkins, who is currently the teams television color analyst, is really excited about what hes seeing on both ends of the floor. Theres two things that excite me about the team: team defense and playing defense on the ball is the most impressive thing, said Wilkins. You see a lot of teams rely too much on help; the Hawks defend out front. Secondly, ball movement from side to side. They share the ball. They give up a good shot for a great shot. As for the Wizards, I have to wonder after hearing some comments from Paul Pierce following a win over the struggling Miami Heat on Dec. 19, if theyre as committed to being a top team as the Hawk are. We got to build ourselves on great habits, Pierce said, according to the Washington Post. Tonight I wasnt happy with the defense, especially against a team struggling to score 100 points. We allowed them to shoot too high of a percentage. So them arent the habits we want to have throughout the course [of the season]. I think the division will be up for grabs into the final month, but my gut tells me the Hawks will be the one to prevail. SOUTHWEST DIVISION The Grizzlies sit atop the division with a one-game lead over the Mavericks, 1 1/2 games over the Rockets, while the Spurs are five back. Heres a breakdown of each team: MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES The Grizzlies big three of Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and Mike Conley have all played at a high level, and are mainly responsible for their 23-8 mark. Gasol is easily having his best season. In just his eighth year in the league, hes averaging a career-high 20.1 points, which is more than five points above his previous high. One problem with the Grizzlies is the secondary players who arent on the same level as those on the Spurs and Rockets. Up until Randolph missing the last five games with a sore knee, the Grizzlies have not had to deal with any injury issues, unlike two of their division rivals. Memphis lost the first three game without its startingg power forward, but then beat the struggling Heat, who were without Chris Bosh and followed it up with a win over the Spurs, who were missing Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard.dddddddddddd The bottom line is the Grizzlies can ill afford to lose any of their top three players for any period of time if they hope to win the division. HOUSTON ROCKETS Aside from James Hardens MVP-worthy performance so far, the big story has been the Rockets ability to overcome a ton of injuries. Dwight Howard and Patrick Beverley have each sat out 12 games, while Terrence Jones has missed the last 26. During Howards absence, which included seven games without Beverley and Jones, the Rockets managed to go 8-4. The injury to Jones gave Donatas Motiejunas the opportunity for some big minutes and hes really blossomed, averaging 10.1 points and 6.1 rebounds in just over 27 minutes per game. The third-year power forward is now coming off the bench again after the Rockets signed Josh Smith following his release by the Detroit Pistons. Smith scored 21 points in his Rockets debut in a win in Memphis, but he combined to score just eight points on 3-of-13 from the field and committed eight turnovers over the next two games, which Houston lost. Does Smiths presence hurt the Rockets chemistry? Its certainly a question worth asking, as the Pistons have run off three straight wins after dumping the 10-year veteran. But the Rockets have another recent addition that has already paid immediate dividends and should only bolster a very solid bench. Corey Brewer, who was acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves on Dec. 19, is averaging 16.3 points in just over 24 minutes in four games with the Rockets, and is shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 59.1 percent from 3-point range. If Smith can fit in, I like Houstons chances to come out on top, especially with Harden playing at such a high level and the Rockets having so much depth SAN ANTONIO SPURS The Spurs have given the Rockets plenty of competition in the injury department. Tony Parker is dealing with a lingering hamstring injury which has caused him to miss 12 games, while Kawhi Leonard has missed 11 games with a bruised hand and is out indefinitely at this point. In addition to the injuries to two of their top players, the Spurs have had to deal with Tiago Splitter missing 22 games, while backup point guard Patty Mills has played just two games after finally coming back from offseason shoulder surgery. With Parker and Leonard having ongoing issues, and the need to also keep Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili fresh for the playoffs, dont expect Greg Popovich to push his team to win the division title. DALLAS MAVERICKS Rick Carlisles team will have to prove they can compete with the better teams and have to overcome the loss of valuable backup big man Brandan Wright, who was dealt to the Boston Celtics in the Rajon Rondo trade. The Mavericks are just 5-8 against teams that would currently qualify for the postseason, and one of those wins came against a depleted Spurs team playing without Duncan, Parker, Leonard, Ginobili and Splitter. The Mavs particularly have had problems in beating the other seven teams in the Western Conference that would qualify for the playoffs at this point. That mark is just 1-7. The addition of Rondo should help Dallas defensively in the backcourt, but it doesnt solve the problems in the frontcourt where Dirk Nowitzki and Chandler Parsons have