Looking at the National League race, you see three teams in a struggle for the two wild-card spots, the St. Louis Cardinals, the New York Mets, and the San Francisco Giants. Looking at the updated ZiPS projections for players based on their performance-to-date, the Cardinals, based on the roster they have, should have already put away one of the wild-card spots.One way a team can control its own destiny is to win the games it is supposed to win. Sure, your average emergency starter from Triple-A called up when your ace pays a visit to Dr. James Andrews will occasionally beat Clayton Kershaw, but thats not the way to bet. You cant count on winning those games as a long-term strategy. The Cardinals this season are underperforming in those easy games more than the Mets or the Giants. In fact, the Cards have more extra losses due to this phenomenon than any contending team in baseball.Using the updated ZiPS projections for expected player performance -- updated projections are a better estimate of a players true level of ability than preseason projections since we know a lot more about 2016 now -- I went back and projected the probability of each team winning every game this season, based on the starting pitchers, the lineup, and the bench/bullpen players available in those games. Cheap Jerseys From China . Ancelotti says Ronaldo has recovered from a hamstring injury but "but he doesnt feel comfortable yet so we wont risk him." Madrid is third in the Spanish league, six points behind leader Barcelona, going into Saturdays game against Valladolid. Football Jerseys China . Datsyuk will miss Tuesdays game against New Jersey and could be sidelined longer, while Cleary will likely miss at least the next three games. Its been an injury-plagued season for Datsyuk, who has suited up for just 39 games. http://www.cheapfootballjerseys.us.org/ . -- When the Florida Panthers fell behind by two goals in the first period to the top team in the NHL, it appeared they were on their way to yet another loss. Cheap Football Jerseys Authentic . Thats about all he can do right now, so hes trying not to think about when he might be able to play again for the Los Angeles Lakers. Wholesale Authentic Jerseys . Hazard cut in from the left and scored with a swerving right-footed shot for ninth goal of the season, which proved to be enough for the victory despite Chelseas forwards again lacking a cutting edge up front.DENVER -- Yasiel Puig is the National League player of the month for June, and its hard to argue with that one. When it comes to the rookie outfielder making the All-Star team, thats causing some debate. The Los Angeles Dodgers phenom keeps setting records to start his career, winning NL player of the month on Wednesday to become the first player to capture the award in his inaugural month in the majors since it was started in 1958. The 22-year-old slugger also captured the NL rookie of the month award by hitting .436 with seven homers and 16 RBIs in June. His 44 hits were a Dodgers rookie record for a month. Hes been so sizzling at the plate that some are talking about putting him on the NL team for the All-Star game. The idea has sparked some conversation throughout baseball. Philadelphia Phillies reliever Jonathan Papelbon recently aired his opinion in an interview with MLB Network Radio. "To me, its an absolute joke," Papelbon told the network. "The guys got a month. "Just comparing him to this and that, and saying hes going to make the All-Star team, thats a joke to me." Puig takes it all in stride. He said recently through his translator that he really doesnt care if he plays in the game. "If the fans vote for me, thats OK," said Puig, who signed a $42 million, seven-year contract last summer. Nothing Puig accomplishes on the field anymore really comes as a shoock to Dodgers manager Don Mattingly, who has seen just about everything from the Cuban defector and simply expects it now.dddddddddddd. No really, he does. "Youre getting to be where you kind of expect him to do something all the time," said Mattingly, who compares his slugger to a young Ken Griffey Jr. "If he doesnt get a hit or get on base, youre like, Whats going on? Its amazing." Puig is only the fifth player to win both awards in the same month since the rookie honour was introduced in 2001. The last player to accomplish the feat was Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout in July 2012. "Whatever league that Im in Im going to do the best I can," Puig said Tuesday after going 3 for 5 with a homer to begin July just as torrid as he left off in June. Puig certainly left quite an impression on Rockies reliever Adam Ottavino, who served up his solo homer on Tuesday. Ottavino tried to throw a slider low and away to Puig, only to have him hit it over the fence in the deepest part of Coors Field. "Its not a pitch you get hit for a home run that often. It was impressive," Ottavino said. "Hes so strong. Thats evident. I really dont think he got all of it and it went really far. "When he hit it, I saw his bat flip, so I knew he thought he got it. I didnt think he got it. When I turned around, I was like, Oh, yeah, I guess he did get it." ' ' '
