Sorry, Chicago Cubs, youre not the only team in this years baseball playoffs that gets to play the misery card.The Curse of the Billy Goat is a good one.Extra credit, for sure, for going more than a century without winning the World Series.But the Cleveland Indians know a thing or two about postseason disappointment. So do the Texas Rangers. And dont even get us started on Washington and its long-suffering fans.First in war, first in peace, last World Series title?That would be 1924, when the winning hit ricocheted off a pebble in what remains the first and only postseason break to go their way in the nations capital.So, if the Cubbies want to sulk over their two Series titles -- the last of which came in 1908, shortly before William Taft was elected to the White House -- they wont get a lot of sympathy from the city that endured two different versions of the Washington Senators (both of them terrible, for the most part) before landing the Nationals.In Cleveland, they once had a team known as the Spiders that went 20-134. The Indians last World Series championship came in 1948, with World War II still fresh in everyones minds. Theyve been back to big dance only three times since then, losing every one of `em. The last of those was especially galling. In 1997, Cleveland was three outs from the title in Game 7 but lost to the Florida Marlins in extra innings.Texas certainly deserves a mention, even though its only been a part of the big leagues since 1972. In an interesting twist, the second version of the Senators moved to the Lone Star State, but only after forfeiting its final game in Washington when outraged fans stormed the field in the ninth inning.They shouldnt have gone to all that trouble.The Rangers lost 100 games in their inaugural season, 105 in Year 2. When they finally made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history in 1996, they squandered a 4-0 lead at home in the deciding game, losing 6-4 to the New York Yankees.But that little exercise in heartache was merely a warmup for 2011, when the Rangers made it to their second straight World Series (having lost, of course, in their first).With a three games to two lead on the St. Louis Cardinals and up 7-5 in the bottom of the ninth in Game 6, Texas was one strike from its first title when David Freese -- ugh, the mere mention of that name still turns the stomach of Rangers fans -- tripled in the tying runs.On to the 10th, where the Rangers restored their two-run cushion on Josh Hamiltons homer. The Cardinals were once again down to their final strike before Lance Berkman drove in the tying run, again denying a Texas-sized celebration that, alas, would never come.At that point, the outcome was a merely formality. The baseball gods have given the Rangers their chance -- two of them, actually -- and they had blown it both times. The Cardinals scored the winning run in the bottom of the 11th, and then won Game 7.That had to sting, but Indians fans will counter with what theyve endured over the last 68 years. After setting a then-American League record with 111 victories in 1954, Cleveland was swept by the New York Giants in a World Series best known for Willie Mays amazing over-the-shoulder catch in the deepest part of the Polo Grounds, a highlight that still taunts the Indians to this day.It would be 41 years before Cleveland made another postseason appearance, which culminated with another World Series loss, this one to Atlanta, which failed to win the Series any other season in their unprecedented run of 14 straight division titles. Thankfully for the Braves, they got one shot against the Indians.Three years later, Cleveland took a 2-1 lead to the bottom of the ninth against the Marlins, but closer Jose Mesa surrendered Craig Counsells tying sacrifice fly. In the 11th, second baseman Tony Fernandez let an easy grounder slip under his glove for an error, and Florida scored the season-ending run with two outs on Edgar Renterias soft little liner up the middle, the ball skimming off the tip of pitcher Charles Nagys glove and landing just out of the reach of Fernandez.Washington hasnt even been to the World Series since 1933 -- a longer drought than any other big league city, Chicago included. The Senators lone title came in the midst of the Roaring Twenties against the New York Giants, the winning run scoring in the bottom of the 12th of Game 7 on a routine grounder that took a bad hop.That would be the extent of Washingtons good fortune.The following year, the Senators were up three games to one in the World Series but couldnt close the deal against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Washington hasnt been that close to a title since, though their latest team added a worthy chapter to the citys hall of postseason shame in 2012.In the decisive Game 5 of the NL Division Series, at home no less, the Nationals built a 6-0 lead through three innings and were up 7-5 on St. Louis heading to the ninth.With the Cardinals down to their final out, closer Drew Storen walked back-to-back hitters and then surrendered a pair of two-run singles to send St. Louis on to the next round.For Washington, it was a familiar ending.One they know well in Cleveland and Texas, too.Take that, Curse of the Billy Goat.---Paul Newberry is a sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at pnewberry(at)ap.org or at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/paul-newberry .Fake Rangers Jerseys . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Rangers Jerseys China . Hamelin, who triumphed in the 500 on Saturday, edged out Victor An of Russia by 0.021 seconds to maintain his lead in the World Cup standings. Russias Vladimir Grigorev was third. In the relay, Canada took control six laps from the finish line to beat Russia and the Netherlands. https://www.cheaprangersbaseball.com/ . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club. Rangers Jerseys 2019 . Bjorn, who had a 36-hole total of 8-under 134, made a testing six-foot putt to save par on the 16th and a birdie on the 17th before bogeying the final hole after a misjudged approach shot. American Kevin Streelman was in second place after shooting a 69. Texas Rangers Pro Shop . As the crowd erupted, Davis knocked the ball off the glass and back into his hands. With 1:14 to go in overtime, Davis sixth block also became his 17th rebound. That, along with his 32 points -- which tied a career high -- proved too much for Denver to overcome, and the Pelicans held on for their third straight victory, 111-107 on Sunday night.Match factsAugust 18, 2016 Start time 1045 local (0945GMT)Big PictureThere is not much time for Pakistan to bask in their Oval victory. They have since hopped on a plane to Dublin as they switch into one-day mode with a two-match series against Ireland.The contrast between their rise in Test cricket and struggles in the one-day game has been stark: they sit ninth in the ODI rankings, outside of the automatic qualification places for the 2019 World Cup.Since the 2015 World Cup they have been captained by Azhar Ali who suffered a 3-0 whitewash at the hands of Bangladesh before two series wins over Zimbabwe - although they lost a match to them in Harare - and one against Sri Lanka. They took the lead against England last year before being comfortably beaten 3-1 and were overturned 2-0 in New Zealand in January.There are three players in this current squad who will have memories of the first meeting between these sides on that famous day in Jamaica: Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik and Umar Gul were part of the three-wicket defeat. Six years later, Hafeez and Malik were also involved in a tie in Dublin.But, like Pakistan, Ireland are struggling in the one-day rankings, currently adrift of Afghanistan and Zimbabwe at the bottom. Their crown of leading Associate has been challenged; they shared their recent series against Afghanistan 2-2. There is a concerning reliance on Ed Joyce at the top of the order - against Afghanistan he was almost 200 runs ahead of Irelands next highest scorer - and they need much more from the likes of Paul Stirling and captain William Porterfield.Form guide(last five completed matches, most recent first)Ireland WLWLL Pakistan LLLLLIn the spotlightAzhar Ali regained his form in the final two Tests against England, making a fine century at Edgbaston, a solid 49 after being promoted to open the batting and then finishing the series with a six. Now he has to switch his focus back to trying to find a winning formula in one-day cricket. And he needs to score runs as well. After being appointed captain he enjoyed an early bounce with two centuries in first five games, but has now gone 11 innings without a fifty. His strike-rate, too, has come under scrutiny with the pressure it can put on the rest of the top order.Barry McCarthy, who plays county cricket for Durham, has enjoyed an impressive start to his Ireland career with 14 wickets in six ODIs. He helped cover for the abbsence of Boyd Rankin against Afghanistan and will be asked to do the same again after Rankin was ruled out of the rest of the season with injury.dddddddddddd He can be expected to share the new ball with Tim Murtagh.Teams newsRankin has been ruled out with a stress fracture of the tibia which removes one of Irelands senior pace bowlers. But they have not called in a replacement with Craig Young now available after an elbow injury. The batting will be boosted by the return of Niall OBrien.Ireland (probable) 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Ed Joyce, 3 Niall OBrien, 4 Gary Wilson, 5 Kevin OBrien, 6 Paul Stirling, 7 Stuart Poynter (wk), 8 Andy McBrine, 9 Tim Murtagh, 10 Barry McCarthy, 11 Peter Chase/Craig YoungPakistan may need to strike a balance between giving some of new arrivals, and those who have been sidelined during the Tests, some cricket and ensuring they do not take a half-hearted approach to these matches. Sharjeel Khan has been called up after a successful A-tour of England, while Umar Gul has the opportunity to show he can still deliver his pinpoint yorkers.Pakistan (from) Azhar Ali (capt), Sharjeel Khan, Sami Aslam, Mohammad Hafeez, Baber Azam, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Umar Gul, Imad Wasim, Yasir Shah, Mohammad NawazPitch and conditionsThe forecast for Thursday is promisingly dry between two days of significant rain. Of the surface, Ed Joyce said: Were expecting two good pitches here as they normally are at Malahide.Stats and triviaWilliam Porterfield and Kevin OBrien are currently jostling to be Irelands leading ODI run-scorer: Porterfield sits on 2591 and OBrien has 2561Sharjeel Khan made 253 runs in four innings during the recent tri-series involving England Lions and Sri Lanka AThe overall head-to-head for these sides is 4-1 to Pakistan with one tie.QuotesIn the last few years we havent played very good cricket in one-dayers. Our performances are not as consistent as in Test cricket, and we need to really improve our skills.Azhar Ali takes a realistic approachThese guys are definitely favourites but weve got a good one-day team and are hopeful of giving them a few good games. Theres a lot of guys in good form in England which bodes well for us.Ed Joyce has a more optimistic approach ' ' '
