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PITTSBURGH -- Clint Hurdle grabbed the brim of his cap and ducked his head. Skal Labissiere Jersey . When pressed about what pleased him the most about Pittsburghs 9-2 win over St. Louis on Monday, a romp that propelled the resilient Pirates within a half-game of the NL Central lead, the manager thought for a moment and sighed. "Getting a little picky arent we?" he asked with a smile. Hurdle isnt. Neither is his team as it tries to shrug off two decades of misery and mediocrity. Francisco Liriano allowed one run over seven dominant innings, Pedro Alvarez hit his NL-leading 27th home run and the Pirates kicked off a pivotal series by sending the Cardinals to their season-high fourth straight loss. Liriano (11-4) continued his midcareer renaissance by striking out eight and walking just two to win his fifth consecutive start. "Its been a good run for him being able to watch, and thats pretty much what Ive been doing," Pittsburgh centre fielder Andrew McCutchen said. "I dont get a lot of action when hes on the mound. It makes it a lot easier for the defence." Having some help from an underachieving offence helps. The Pirates came in hitting just .221 with runners in scoring position, the worst mark in baseball. Clint Barmes smacked two doubles and drove in two runs and McCutchen added two hits as Pittsburgh went 5 for 13 with runners on second or third to continue its mastery over St. Louis starter Jake Westbrook. The veteran right-hander fell to 1-8 against Pittsburgh in his otherwise solid resume. The Pirates touched Westbrook (7-5) for four runs in the first inning, capped by Alvarezs three-run homer into the first row of seats in right field. "It was a battle from pitch 1 -- and it showed early on," Westbrook said. "Its not really how you draw it up with a walk and a hit batsmen and a single and a homer. Put us in a bad spot against a good team and against a guy whos throwing the ball really well." Hurdle stressed the need to not place too much focus on a late-July series, pointing out two more months remain after the five-game set wraps up on Thursday. Maybe, but with the Pirates chasing their first playoff berth in 21 years and a chance to make inroads on the team with the best record in baseball, the game had an electricity typically reserved for early fall in cities far away from the one that hasnt fielded a winner since 1992. Lower-lever tickets were fetching $100 or more hours before the first pitch, and Liriano did not disappoint the largest Monday-night crowd (32,084) since the park opened. The left-hander, whose path to stardom veered off track after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2007, had little trouble with the most explosive offence in the majors. He retired the first 10 batters he faced and kept the best-hitting team in the National League on its heels while dropping his ERA to 2.16. "Frankie can answer," Hurdle said. "Hes been in big matchups before." So has Westbrook, who still hasnt figured out a way to handle the Pirates. He was touched for four runs in the first inning of his previous start at PNC Park in April. The game was eventually washed out. The weather couldnt save him this time. Neither could Westbrooks usually solid control. He issued three walks and hit three batters and never appeared comfortable. "Hes going to go out there and give us whatever hes got every time and for whatever reason this teams just given him a tough time and hes had a hard time in this stadium," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. Westbrook survived a bases-loaded jam in the second to stay close, but by then Liriano had all the support he would need. His only real mistake came in the sixth, when pinch-hitter Tony Cruz led off with a triple and scored on Carpenters single up the middle. A strikeout and a double play followed, and the Pirates broke it open in the seventh against relievers Marc Rzepczynski and Fernando Salas. Garrett Jones started it with Pittsburghs first sacrifice fly to the outfield since May 27 and Barmes clubbed a two-run double as the Pirates batted around. Even with its best offensive showing since the All-Star break, Hurdle isnt so sure the Pirates made a statement. "Were a confident team," he said. "I think were a team whose confidence isnt built on its last game. Its not shattered by a losing streak. You continue to push through and thats what weve done from Opening Day until now." NOTES: Pirates LF Starling Marte did not start after getting a planned day off in favour of Alex Presley, recalled from Triple-A on Monday after C Mike McKenry went onto the disabled list with a sprained knee. Marte entered in the seventh as a pinch hitter and singled. He is hitting just .131 (5 for 38) since July 20 ... The series continues with a doubleheader Tuesday. A.J. Burnett (4-7, 2.96 ERA) faces Lance Lynn (12-5, 3.98 ERA) in the opener with the Cardinals Tyler Lyons (2-3, 5.51) starting the second game. The Pirates will not name a starter for the second game until Tuesday morning. ... Lynn was originally supposed to start the second game, but Matheny moved him into the matchup against Burnett because he wanted a more experienced pitcher to take on Pittsburghs ace. Buddy Hield Kings Jersey . After slipping from the summit during the week, the Gunners overcame struggling Crystal Palace 2-0 on Sunday thanks to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlains second-half brace. Ty Lawson Jersey . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. http://www.kingsbasketballpro.com/Willie-Cauley-Stein-Kings-Jersey/ . Ashley Youngs cross was inadvertently headed by Chester into his own net in the 66th minute, allowing United to claim a third straight league win. "We had to dig deep with our fighting spirit and weve done that," United striker Wayne Rooney said.Rory McIlroy has admitted he does not expect to retain his Race to Dubai crown this week, despite having an outside chance of denying Henrik Stenson. McIlroy heads into the season-ending DP World Tour Championship fourth in the standings behind Stenson, Danny Willett and the in-form Alex Noren, but a win could be enough to be crowned European No 1 for the third straight year if the top three struggle at the Jumeirah Golf Estates. Rory McIlroy says hes more concerned about ending the year as the world number one, rather than winning the Race to Dubai title. However, the world No 2 would require Stenson to finish outside the top 45 in the elite 60-player field, with Willett not making the top five and Noren finishing lower than second. McIlroy pipped Willett to the overall title with a dramatic victory over Andy Sullivan in the event last year, but he has effectively ruled out his chances of overhauling Open champion Stenson, who is also a two-time champion in the event. Victory in the FedExCup capped an excellent PGA Tour season for McIlroy Mathematically I can win, but its not going to happen, said McIlroy, when asked about his Race to Dubai hopes. I wouldnt hold my breath. I think the three guys that are ahead of me are playing very good golf, especially the two Swedes, Henrik and Alex.Alex with what hes done over the past few weeks, Henrik has had a fantastic year, and so has Danny, obviously... I dont expect those guys to play badly this week. Im just concentrating on trying to win the golf tournament and if I can do that, Ill be very happy. Rory McIlroy needs an unlikely set of results to retain his Race to Dubai crown McIlroy did not help his cause by opting to pull out of the Turkish Airlines Open earlier this month due to safety fears, but he reiterated that he was comfortable with that course of action.Im very happy with my decision, he added. Ive been here for the last couple of weeks and Ive done a bit of practice, enjoyed myself. So, no, no regrets at all. McIlroy believes Henrik Stenson will be crowned European No 1 McIlroy also insisted he was satisfied with his 2016 campaign overall, despite not managing to add to his four major titles, although he did claim the FedExCup for the first time after winning the Deutsche Bank Championship and the Tour Championship. Oscar Robertson Kings Jersey. Six months half price Upgrade to Sky Sports to watch Man Utd v Arsenal on Saturday and get the first six months half price Asked to rate his season, he said: Its been good, Ive won a couple of things that I hadnt won before. I won the Irish Open, which a huge thing personally for me. It mightnt be the biggest tournament in the world, but personally to me in my mind, it is one of the biggest I play all year.That was nice to be able to knock that off - and to win the FedExCup, as well, was big. That was something that I hadnt won before, and to win that, and in the fashion that I did, and winning two of the last three Play-off events over there, that was very satisfying. McIlroy with the Race To Dubai and DP World Tour Championship trophies last year My play in majors was disappointing, missing the cut at the US Open and the PGA. I had a top five at The Open but that was soon forgotten because of what Henrik and Phil did.But majors aside, I feel like its been a pretty good, consistent year. But going into next year, Id like to think that my performances in the majors are going to be better. Live European Tour Golf November 17, 2016, 8:00am Live on Get Sky Sports Get a Sky Sports pass McIlroys top priority this week is to regain the world No 1 ranking from Jason Day, which he will do if he emerges victorious over the Earth Course for the third time.Its a big incentive for me, said the 27-year-old. Its been a while since Ive been in that spot. I know if I win this tournament, Ill finish the year at world No 1. So its a big incentive for me to try and get that back, and it would be nice to have that little bit of momentum going into next year.Watch the DP World Tour Championship live on Sky Sports 4 HD from 8am on Thursday.Upgrade to Sky Sports now to watch Man Utd v Arsenal this Saturday and get the first six months half price! 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