touchdown. Isaac Rochell blocked Trent Domingues 40-ya

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PITTSBURGH -- It looked like Alfredo Simons bubble was about to burst. After being one of the biggest surprises of the young season for the Cincinnati Reds by ably filling in for injured starting pitcher Mat Latos, Simon hit a rough patch in the first inning Wednesday night. He walked three batters in a row to force in a run. Then, just like that, the right-hander went back to being dominant, pitching into the seventh inning despite the erratic early control, and Jay Bruce drove in a run for a fifth consecutive game as the Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-2. "It was cold and I was having a hard time feeling the ball," said Simon, pitching on a blustery night when the game-time temperature was 50 degrees. "After that first inning, I felt a lot better and pitched like Ive been pitching. Simon (3-1) worked 6 2-3 innings and allowed two runs on four hits and five walks while striking out four. Simon has pitched at least six innings in each of his four starts this season as a replacement for the injured Mat Latos and has a 1.30 ERA. Simon pitched exclusively in relief the previous two years. "Hes been terrific," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "Hes been an extremely versatile pitcher for us the last two-plus seasons. Hes always been a talented guy, but hes really found himself and made himself into a very good-looking starting pitcher." Bruce had two hits and knocked in the final run of the decisive three-run fifth inning against Charlie Morton (0-3) that gave the Reds a 4-2 lead. Billy Hamilton also had two hits for Cincinnati, which stole four bases while winning seven of 10 games since a 3-7 start. "We took advantage of what we could because this is team that might not give you a lot most nights," Bruce said. "We tried to put some pressure on the defence." Jonathan Broxton pitched a scoreless ninth inning, despite allowing two hits, for his third save. Andrew McCutchen had two hits and homered for the third consecutive night for the Pirates, who lost for the 10th time in 13 games. Morton also had control issues, walking five in six innings while giving up four runs -- three earned -- and four hits with four strikeouts. "I was yanking my fastball all night," he said. "There were times were I was trying to go inside on left-handed hitters and missing in the right-handed batters box. I was literally missing by 3 feet." The Reds used their speed to go ahead in a fifth inning that included two stolen bases and the second throwing error of the game by catcher Chris Stewart. NOTES: Pittsburgh C Russell Martin was a late scratch because of a miscommunication. Martin, who is 0-for-7 against Simon, thought he was getting Wednesday off while manager Clint Hurdle thought he and Martin had decided Thursday would be an off day. ... Reds LHP Aroldis Chapman threw early batting practice, the first time he had faced hitters since suffering fractures of his eye and nose along with a mild concussion March 19 when he was hit by a line drive off the bat of Kansas Citys Salvador Perez. Chapman pitched from behind a protective screen and the next step is for him to throw batting practice without the screen sometime this weekend when the Reds visit Atlanta. ... Cincinnati INF/OF Skip Schumaker will report to the Reds extended spring training camp on Friday at Goodyear, Ariz., as he continues to rehab the left shoulder he dislocated while diving for a ball in the outfield during a spring training game March 21. ... Pittsburgh 1B Travis Ishikawa cleared waivers and elected free agency after declining an outright assignment to Triple-A Indianapolis. He was designated for assignment last Friday. ... The Pirates will recall RHP Brandon Cumpton from Indianapolis to start Thursday against LHP Tony Cingrani (1-2, 3.22) in the finale of the four-game series. Bradley Beal Wizards Jersey . - San Diego Padres centre fielder Cameron Maybin is going to be out two to three months after rupturing his left biceps tendon during a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday. NBA Authentic Jerseys . Pinch-hitter Tommy Medica singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning and the Padres beat the Seattle Mariners 2-1 in their first home game since Gwynn died of cancer Monday. http://www.probasketballshop.com/Orland ... on-Jersey/. Pistorius denied the allegation that he said to the close friend of the girlfriend he killed: "How can you sleep at night?" The accusation by Kim Myers provided a bizarre twist during the trial of the world-famous double-amputee Olympian, who is facing 25 years to life in prison if convicted of premeditated murder for shooting dead Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, at his home last year. John Stockton Team USA Jersey .com) - Marian Gaborik scored his sixth goal in the last four games to help the Los Angeles Kings top the Arizona Coyotes, 4-2, Saturday at Staples Center. Custom Raptors Jersey . Off-Season Game Plan examines a team facing some challenging times as GM Bryan Murray tries to put together a roster for next season. Perhaps the first challenge facing Murray is that its expected he will be moving out Jason Spezza, a premier point producer who is about to enter the final year of his contract.Nashville, TN (SportsNetwork.com) - Malik Zaire and Everett Golson each saw time under center for Notre Dame, and both helped lead the Irish to a win in the Music City Bowl on Tuesday at LP Field. Zaire and Golson each had a hand in Notre Dames final drive, a 14-play, 71- yard march, that Kyle Brindza capped with a 32-yard field goal as time expired for a 31-28 win over No. 22 LSU. Golson picked up a pair of first downs through the air, while Zaire used his legs, picking up a few first downs on the ground to set up the winning kick. Zaire, a redshirt freshman making his first career start, was named the starting quarterback for the game on Monday after a lackluster season from Golson. The duo combined for 186 yards passing with Zaire tossing a touchdown to William Fuller. Zaire also rushed for a team-high 96 yards on 22 carries with a score for Notre Dame (8-5), which snapped its four-game losing streak. We had that mindset that we had to do this for the team, Zaire said of splitting time with Golson. Leonard Fournette did all he could to help the Tigers (8-5) in this one, supplying 264 total yards with three touchdowns. Fournette set Music City Bowl records with a 100-yard kickoff return as well as an 89-yard rushing touchdown. He finished with 143 yards rushing on 11 carries. Zaire, who played a majority of the second half after splitting most the time with Golson in the first, had to sit out a play when his helmet popped off after a first-down run with just over four minutes to play. Golson came on and Irish coach Brian Kelly chose to leave the redshirt junior in for a few plays. Golson hooked up with Fuller for a 14-yard gain on 2nd-and-15. Zaire relieved him and proceeded to pick up the first down with a 3-yard run. Golson then hit Ben Koyack and Tarean Folston later in the sequence for 12 and 16 yards, respectively, prior to Zaires 8-yard scamper that moved the chains again for Brindza. This is a matchup that we had wanted at Notre Dame and we know LSU feels the same way, said Kelly. Really the mantra for us was get this to the fourth quarter and find a way to win. After accounting for just 18 passing yards in the first half, Anthony Jennings opened the second by tossing a play-action pass to a wide open John Diarse for a 75-yard TD, also a Music City Bowl record, to tie the game at 21-21. LSU had another explosive play later in the third when Fournette continued his monster day with an 89-yard touchdown run to give the Tigers their first lead of the day with 6:14 left. The Irish gott it back on their next touch as C.dddddddddddd.J. Prosise rushed around the right end, broke a tackle and bolted into the end zone for a 50-yard touchdown. Isaac Rochell blocked Trent Domingues 40-yard field goal to keep the game tied with under 12 minutes left in the fourth. On Notre Dames opening drive, Zaire scrambled for a first down on 4th-and-9 at the Tigers 28. Two plays later, Fuller took a short pass along the left hash, picked up a couple of blocks and leaped into the end zone. LSU stopped the Irish on fourth down in its territory on the next drive, and responded with an 8-play drive that Fournette capped on an 8-yard touchdown run. Golson started the Irishs ensuing possession and hooked up with Chris Brown early in the second quarter for a 29-yard gain to the LSU 23. Zaire was then inserted back in two plays later, and after a couple of runs, his 7-yard scamper into the end zone gave Notre Dame a 14-7 edge. That margin did not hold, though, as Fournette took the kickoff 100 yards untouched for a score. The quarterback carousel continued for the Irish as both contributed to another score. Golson was crushed in the backfield, but managed to get a fluttering pass off to Fuller for an 11-yard gain and a first down. Zaire then zipped a pass to Fuller for 17 yards on 3rd-and-11 two plays before Folston barreled into the end zone for a 6-yard TD. LSU chewed up six minutes of clock to close the half. After Jennings was stopped on three consecutive plays from inside the 10, the field-goal unit was sent out with seconds remaining. Holder Brad Kragthorpe bolted for the end zone from the 2 and was inches from the goal line before getting brought down. Replay showed the ball just crossing the plane, however, video evidence was inconclusive. Game Notes Zaire had 96 yards passing on 12-of-15 efficiency, while Golson went 6-of-11 for 90 yards ... The last kick return for a score against Notre Dame occurred against Michigan State in 2009 ... Early in the third quarter, a bad exchange with Jennings and Fournette led to the games only turnover. Jennings went 7- for-14 passing for 151 yards and a touchdown ... Notre Dame, which ended the season with a 4-0 mark on neutral fields, now leads the all-time series with LSU, 6-5. The Tigers took the last meeting, a 41-14 decision in the 2007 Sugar Bowl ... Fuller, who had 57 yards on five catches, finished the season with 15 touchdown receptions ... The Irish outgained LSU, 449-436 and held the ball 14 minutes longer than their counterpart. China Jerseys ' ' '