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Go inside the numbers and matchups that will decide Sunday nights showdown between the Cubs and Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLCS. What we learned in Game 1Oh, not much. Javier Baez stole home. Dexter Fowler played center field like Willie Mays. Joe Maddon was criticized for taking Jon Lester?out too soon. Aroldis Chapman blew a save in the eighth inning. Dave Roberts issued an intentional walk with runners on first and second. Miguel Montero hit the third pinch-hit grand slam in postseason history to break a 3-3 tie and almost break Wrigley Field in the process. Thats all. -- David SchoenfieldInside the pitching matchupWhen Clayton Kershaw is on the mound: The games best pitcher returns to the mound just three days after throwing seven pitches to get the save in Game 5 of the division series. Two days before that, he started Game 4 and threw 110 pitches on short rest. Factor in Kershaws history in postseason games of hitting a wall in the seventh inning, and the Dodgers may only look for six innings here unless hes particularly efficient.Anyway, despite missing two-plus months with a herniated disk, Kershaw was so dominant this year, some believe he deserves Cy Young consideration. In 21 starts in the regular season, he allowed 31 runs. He walked just 11 batters, and one of those was intentional. He struck out 172 batters in 149 innings and the opposition hit just .184 against him.Kershaw continues to evolve as a pitcher. He now throws his slider more than ever (33 percent of the time), as his fastball rate has dropped from 62 percent in 2012 to 50.6 percent. What makes his slider so tough is that unlike a lot of sliders, his actually ends up in the zone over 50 percent of the time, making it a pitch he can throw in any count, not just as a two-strike sit-em-down offering. Batters hit .138 against it. In his two playoff starts against the Nationals, however, he did go more to his fastball, in part because he was having problems commanding the slider on the inside part of the plate.Kershaw wasnt quite as dominant away from Dodger Stadium, as his ERA rose all the way to 2.31 ERA on the road, where he did allow seven of his eight home runs. He completely shut down left-handed batters (.138, no home runs in 138 at-bats), so look for the Cubs to sit Jason Heyward and load up with all right-handed or switch-hitters (with the exception of lefty?Anthony Rizzo, who will probably remain in the lineup). The Nationals took a patient approach, hoping to run up Kershaws pitch count; I would expect the Cubs to do the same thing. -- SchoenfieldWhen Kyle Hendricks is on the mound: Speaking of command, no starter had a higher rate of first-pitch strikes this season than Hendricks, who tied with Johnny Cueto at 68.4 percent. That goes a long way toward explaining how he led the NL with a 2.13 ERA.Hendricks ranks near the bottom of the league in fastball velocity, but his ERA wasnt just a product of the Cubs defense: He led major league starters in limiting hard contact. He does that by expertly changing speeds with his four-seamer, sinker, curveball, cutter and changeup -- and hitting his spots. Everything is to the corners -- away to lefties, away to righties. No starter had a higher percentage of pitches on the outer third of the strike zone than Hendricks (62 percent).Hendricks throws his fastball about half the time, as he increased the usage of his changeup and cutter this season. Both were deadly weapons as batters hit .135 against the changeup and .164 against the cutter, with good K rates of 29.5 and 25.3 percent. Indeed, dont be fooled by the lack of velocity: His strikeout rate is more than adequate, ranking 24th out of 74 qualified starters in the majors this season. As good as Hendricks was, Maddon may not ask him to go all that deep considering the Dodgers weaknesses against southpaws and the four lefties the Cubs are carrying in the bullpen. -- SchoenfieldPlayer in the spotlightAnthony Rizzo. He went 0-for-5 in Game 1 and is now 1-for-20 in the postseason. He had two stretches like this in the regular season (1-for-22 from April 8-14 and 1-for-25 from May 15-22) so he has gone through a slump like this before. -- SchoenfieldDid you know ...There are 137 players with at least 15 at-bats against Kershaw, and Dexter Fowlers .409 batting average (hes 18-for-44) ranks second among that group, trailing only Pirates catcher Chris Stewart (.529). -- ESPN Stats & InfoWhat will decide Sunday nights gameKershaws slider. During the regular season, Kershaw recorded 44 percent of his strikeouts with his slider. But in a small sample size, he has thrown that pitch a lot less in the postseason, and he hasnt had good results. While opponents OPS against his slider was .343 during the regular season, theyve generated a .955 OPS against it during the postseason, and he has gone from using it 33 percent of the time during the regular season to 26 percent during the NL Division Series. -- ESPN Stats & InfoChoosing sides: Who will win?The Cubs Kyle Hendricks cant buy a break in the postseason. He struggled last year, got pinged by a ground ball in his first outing this year, and now in Game 2 he faces the one pitcher in the majors who had a better ERA than he did. Maybe its time for his luck to turn? Clayton Kershaw is working at the end of an unusual string of usage, and Hendricks doesnt lose at home. I do worry about the wind -- with all of the Dodgers lefty power bats, it would be better for Hendricks if the breeze was off the lake. It should be another low-scoring one, and since its at Wrigley, Im going with the Cubs.?-- Brad Doolittle?Its a question of sharpness. Kyle Hendricks has hardly pitched after leaving his lone postseason start with a forearm injury, while Clayton Kershaw has been pressed into extra duty so far. The results for both will be more runs given up than normal. The Cubs will prevail as theyve proved to be late-inning warriors.?-- Jesse Rogers?Kershaw is finally getting his October narrative under control, and that will continue in Game 2 of the NLCS. The left-hander had an unusual week with 110 pitches on short rest and a seven-pitch save two days later, but he appears poised and ready for his first NLCS start in three years. The Dodgers will steal one on the Cubs turf.?-- Doug PadillaWhere the series standsWell, it seems like the Dodgers need to win this game, no? Losing a Kershaw game and going back to Dodger Stadium down two games to none and having to face Jake Arrieta doesnt sound like much fun. Then throw in the fact that Rich Hill or Julio Urias arent likely to go deep into a start and the Cubs have all those lefty relievers to match up against you and ... good luck, big guy.?-- Schoenfield Wholesale NFL Jerseys Free Shipping . Oyama had six birdies and two bogeys at Kintetsu Kashikojima in the event also sanctioned by the Japan LPGA Tour. "I have been having this neck ache thats been affecting my golf recently," Oyama said. Cheap NFL Authentic Jerseys . -- Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Farmar will be out for roughly four weeks after tearing his left hamstring. http://www.cheapjerseyswithwholesale.com/ . After the whistle, Thornton skated the length of the ice, pulled Orpik to the ice from behind and punched him in the face several times. Stitched Nike NFL Jerseys . Michell Burger, a woman who lives on an estate next to Pistorius gated community, said she and her husband were awoken by the screams in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14 last year, when Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp by shooting four times through a door in his bathroom. Jerseys NFL Wholesale Online .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. RIO DE JANEIRO -- Allyson Felix has had a tough summer clouded by an ankle injury and doubts. But she tried to put that behind her now.As she and the rest of the field came slingshotting out of the last turn in the 400-meter final Monday and down the final straightaway, she turned on her sprinters speed and set out after the leader, Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas. As they approached the line the crowd was roaring as they went stride for stride -- until Miller dove. And Felix didnt.It was a stunning, surprising end to a stirring stretch-run battle. The image of the photo finish showed Miller edging Felix, the most decorated woman in American track history, by half a body length -- or a mere seven-hundredths of a second on the clock -- with a winning time of 49.44 seconds to Felixs 49.51. Shericka Jackson of Jamaica was third in 49.85.Had the race been even 1 meter longer, Felix wouldve won. But that was no solace to her now.I was just focusing on myself, Felix said when asked once, then twice, about Millers tactic of going headfirst for the line. But Felix refused to take issue with it or even answer if she ever considered diving to win a race. But Natasha Hastings and Phyllis Francis, her American teammates who finished just out of the medal running, said it wasnt the first time theyd seen anyone go to the lengths Miller did to win.I did it myself twice this year, Hastings said. I dove [at the U.S. Olympic trials] for my spot here. And I did it in indoor nationals as well.You do what youve got to do to get over the line.Felix herself? She was expressionless right after the race. She just walked over to congratulate Miller, who had rolled over and was still lying on her back on the track when the scoreboard said it was official that shed won. Felix and Jackson both tried to help Miller to her feet, but Miller was too overcome with emotion. She just kept lying there, staring at the night sky. She pulled off one shoe, then the other. She covered her face with both hands again as if she couldnt believe she had won.Felix finally sat down on the track too, riding out the pain and disappointment.I gave it everything I had, she said when she finally came to the media area beneath the Olympic Stadium grandstand more than 40 minutes after the race. Its deeply disappointing. Im a competitor.She was still teary eyed as she struggled to talk about what happened..dddddddddddd.Felix had been in a race to get healthy enough to even make the U.S. team for Rio since mid-April, when she tore ligaments in her ankle during a medicine ball workout. She has been a sprint star since the age of 15 and ran the 100 and 200 at the London Games, winning gold in the latter. But a few years ago, she started to seriously embrace the idea of chasing the 200-400 double here instead -- something shed never done.She said she believed she had untapped potential at the longer distance. Retired American track great Michael Johnson, the last man to pull off the 200-400 double at the Games, had urged her to try it too. Then in January, Felixs coach, Bobby Kersee, petitioned the IAAF, the international governing body for track and field, to tweak the Rio schedule to be more accommodating to Felixs attempt.That the request was granted hinted at Felixs stature in the sport. Her silver Monday gave her 20 career Olympic or world outdoor medals. Four of her seven Olympic medals are gold.But Felix had the same hard luck at the U.S. Olympic trials last month that she had here in Rio, her fourth Games.She missed qualifying for the U.S. team in her beloved 200 by one-hundredth of a second, an even more torturously close margin than she lost by to Miller.Standing here now and thinking back on it all, Felix refused to even mention her injury. She refused to gripe about her bad luck or say her conditioning wasnt what it wouldve otherwise been, either. This was her only individual race of these Games, and she had poured her heart into making it count.I just wanted to win it. I was hoping it would all come together tonight. It just wasnt enough, she said.Then she second-guessed her race strategy.I think I should have been a bit more aggressive, she suggested, alluding to how Miller ran a far stronger final curve than she did, leaving her so much ground to make up. I might have let it get a little away from me.Then she choked up again and walked away.She has been a sprint sensation since she was a teenager. Shes 30 now. She knows as well as anybody that infinitesimally small margins define this sport.Seventh-hundredths of a second is nothing at all, really.Just the sort of margin that can keep you up at night for years. ' ' '