PITTSBURGH -- Pirates manager Clint Hurdle substituted freely and often as Pittsburghs game against the Chicago Cubs wore on Monday night.That had everything to do with the score -- Chicago built a 12-run lead en route to a 12-2 blowout win -- but the Pirates could soon find themselves wanting to rotate in a lot of players for a different reason.Pittsburghs tragic number for being eliminated from the National League wild-card race was reduced to two, meaning the Pirates could be out of a shot for the playoffs as early as Tuesday night when the teams play the second of a four-game series at PNC Park.At that point, like a lot of other teams, Pittsburgh could be reduced to looking at several players who might help them in the future -- a future that will come next year, not in October. Once eliminated, the Pirates only real carrot could be finishing with a winning record.This year is what it is, Hurdle said.While the Pirates (77-79) have lost four of five, the Cubs (100-56) have not hit a lull despite clinching the top record in the major leagues. Chicago won for the sixth time in seven games.Theres a lot of self-motivators out there, a lot of accountable people, Chicago manager Joe Maddon said. Theres a lot of stuff going on right now. Beyond the team goals, we all like to see our guys get a chance to win some personal awards. So its easy.In addition, the Cubs are staying fresh by using a lot of players.Were rotating the stock, Maddon said. Guys are coming in that are fresh. Guys that dont get a chance to play that often, they want to play and show what theyve got.Chicago is so loose in these final days of the regular season that Maddon had no qualms about approaching starter Kyle Hendricks during the fourth inning Monday -- while he was still the active pitcher -- simply to ask Hendricks about the nickname for Dartmouth, where Hendricks attended.Hendricks told him it was the Big Green, settling a question that had been floating around the dugout during the game.I had no idea why he was asking me, Hendricks said with a laugh after he pitched six scoreless innings in the series-opening win.For the second game of this series, Chicago is expected to go with right-hander John Lackey (10-8, 3.39 ERA), who will be making his 29th start. Lackey is 3-1 with a 2.39 ERA in his past eight outings.He is 1-2 with a 3.69 ERA in six career starts against Pittsburgh.The Pirates will counter with right-hander Ryan Vogelsong (3-6, 4.85 ERA). After coming back from facial surgery that was necessitated when he was hit by a pitch, he went 2-2 with a 2.48 ERA in his first five starts. However, since then, Vogelsong is 0-3 with a 9.14 ERA in four starts.Against the Cubs, he is 5-8 with a 5.82 ERA in 21 career appearances, including 13 starts.Rich Gedman Jersey . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. Nomar Garciaparra Red Sox Jersey . -- Three close looks at the bucket, three misses. https://www.cheapredsox.com/2491z-tzu-wei-lin-jersey-red-sox.html .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. J. D. Martinez Jersey . It was the kind of score that might make everyone else wonder which course he was playing. Except that Graeme McDowell saw the whole thing. Crouched behind the 10th green at Sheshan International, McDowell looked over at the powerful American and said, "Ive probably seen 18 of the best drives Ive seen all year in the last two days. Roger Clemens Red Sox Jersey .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have placed centre Cody Hodgson on injured reserve and recalled two players from their AHL affiliate in Rochester.WACO, Texas -- The distractions may be getting to Baylor.On the eve of Baylors latest football game, assistant football coaches disputed claims by school regents that former coach Art Briles knew of a gang rape involving a player. Then, as the 13th-ranked Bears got ready to play against TCU on Saturday, black T-shirts supporting the popular former coach were being sold outside the stadium.Baylor then went out and suffered their worst home loss since 2005 when they fell 62-22 to the Horned Frogs. It was their second loss in a row after a 6-0 start.A lot of distractions dont help, acting head coach Jim Grobe said. This is a game you really got to spend all your focus on for 12 games during the season to play well and if you dont, this is what happens.On Friday night, 33 assistant coaches and staff members issued a statement on Twitter expressing their support for Briles, who was fired in May. It was the first time the coaches had issued any public statements about the series of sexual assault allegations at Baylor, some involving former football players.Grobe said he didnt know about the tweet in advance, but said he wouldnt step in the way when the coaches wanted their perspective known.David Harper and three other regents met with the editorial board of the Dallas Morning News on Thursday, and Harper said Briles knew of the allegations of at least one gang rape.The assistant coaches, however, said the alleged victim had reported an incident to her sports head coach, who then reported it to ex-athletic director Ian McCaw. The coaches and staff members claim Briles wasnt told for another nine months and that Briles told the victims coach to report the matter to police and to prosecute the players if there was any wrongdoing.Briles attorney, Ernest Cannon, told the newspaper that Briles did everything that he was required to while at the worlds largest Baptist university and that the statement indicates that they didnt think that their leader was sinful.All of this was swirling before the game, when about 400 shirts with the hashtag (hash)CAB, which stands for Coach Art Briles, were sold outside the stadium.dddddddddddd A banner with those letters was flown from a luxury suite inside the stadium during the game.Its tough. You dont ever see anybody going through what were kind of going through, but we cant use that as an excuse, quarterback Seth Russell said. We cant let those outside things influence us in one way or another.There were also reports that Shock Linwood shoved an assistant coach on the sidelines during Baylors worst home loss since 62-0 to Texas 11 years ago. And this came a week after a one-point loss at Texas, which followed a Wall Street Journal article when regents first provided some of the details about the allegations.I hate to make excuses, but I really dont know how to put my finger on that, Grobe said, when asked about all the things happening off the field.An outside investigation found 17 women who had reported sexual or domestic assaults involving 19 Baylor athletes since 2011, including four reports of gang rapes. The investigation by Philadelphia law firm Pepper Hamilton found some players at the private school were alleged to have participated in a series of assaults over several years.Baylor has previously said the review found that the football program operated as if it were above the rules.McCaw resigned about the same time two-time Big 12 champion Briles was suddenly fired, and President Ken Starr was removed from his post by regents and later resigned as chancellor.Briles was the only coach dismissed following the law firms report, because he delegated down discipline and he operated a system where he was the last to know when he needed to be the first to know, explained Baylor regent Cary Gray.The law firms report said some football coaches and staff took improper steps in response to disclosures of sexual assault or dating violence that precluded the University from fulfilling its legal obligations.---Information from: The Dallas Morning News, http://www.dallasnews.com ' ' '