likely to start Monday, hasnt played a lot, but he has been

WASHINGTON -- When the Nationals and Giants met last weekend in San Francisco, neither Stephen Strasburg or Madison Bumgarner pitched in the four-game series.It almost happened this time as the two All-Stars were originally slated to face each other Sunday. But the Nationals made a pitching change and will go with Tanner Roark on Sunday after Strasburg went Saturday against the Giants and suffered the 7-1 loss.It was a big game, said manager Bruce Bochy, whose club had lost 14 of its previous 19 outings.The Giants got a lift Saturday from third baseman Eduardo Nunez, who came to the team in a trade in late July. He had four hits Saturday, including two triples.You saw what he could do tonight. You saw what he could do tonight. He brings a lot of energy to the lineup, Bochy said of Nunez. He can do a lot of things for you. I knew I was going to play him today. It is important to get him going. This year he came into his own and made the All-Star team. This kid is talented. He adds a dimension with speed and energy he brings to the club.The Giants try to gain some momentum with Bumgarner (10-6, 2.25 ERA), who has made 23 starts this year and averages nearly seven innings per outing. He has gone 155 2/3 innings and allowed 122 hits and 38 walks with 174 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting just .211 against him.While Bumgarner is a former World Series MVP, Roark may be one of the most underrated starters in the game.Roark, a 25th-round pick by the Texas Rangers, became a starter for the Nationals in 2014 and won 15 games.He was used mostly out of the bullpen last year but has been in the rotation again this year.The University of Illinois product is 11-6 with a 3.02 ERA in 23 games (22 starts). He has gone 143 innings and allowed 125 hits and 43 walks with 119 strikeouts. Opponents have an average of .239 against Roark.He had a career-high 15 strikeouts against the Twins on April 23.I was just locked in. Every single pitch was on point, Roark said in the teams Inside Pitch magazine.Giants hitters have very little track record against Roark. Buster Posey is 4-for-9 against Roark while Brandon Crawford is 2-for-7.Bumgarner is 0-1 in his last three starts while Roark is 2-1 with a 4.42 ERA in that span.Roark is 4-0 with a 3.32 ERA in five games (two starts) against the Giants. He faced them on July 28 and gave up just one run in seven innings. Roark leads the league in outings in which he has allowed no runs while going seven innings, which he has done six times.While the Nationals only face the Giants in two series per year, Washington batters have fared well against North Carolina native Bumgarner in a small sample size.Anthony Rendon is hitting .444 in nine at-bats and Ben Revere is 7-for-14.Clint Robinson, a backup first baseman, has hit .667 in three at-bats against Bumgarner.The availability of right fielder Bryce Harper may be in question Sunday for Washington.He grimaced while fouling off a pitch in his second at-bat Saturday night. He stayed in the game but struck out for the third time in three trips to the plate before he was replaced in right field by Brian Goodwin.Hes OK. Hes had a stiff neck for a couple of days, Washington manager Dusty Baker said. Anybody who has ever had a stiff neck, I mean, you know youre not yourself. So I took him out for precaution. Well see if its any better tomorrow.You can wake up in the morning and its an issue. Hes been dealing with this for a couple of days. I think this was the second day. I decided to take him out of the game. Cheap Air Max 97 . The Browns coaching search remains incomplete. Cheap Air Max 97 Green China . Coach Mike Munchak says Fokou stretched ligaments in his left knee Oct. 13 against Seattle, which could keep out up to five weeks even though the linebacker didnt need surgery. http://www.cheapairmax97fromchina.com/cheap-air-max-97-all-blue-china/ . However, he did make them miss him a little less. Cundiff, who had the unenviable job of replacing Dawson last season, agreed Thursday to a one-year, $1. Cheap Air Max 97 Black China . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. Cheap Air Max 97 Rose China . Louis Blues absence from top spot in the TSN. PITTSBURGH -- There were some difficult questions surrounding Sidney Crosby when he missed the start of the season because of a concussion, especially given his history with that type of injury.The answers have come swiftly and definitively. The Pittsburgh Penguins center is OK. More than OK.Going into Mondays game against the New York Rangers at PPG Paints Arena, Crosby has 12 goals in 12 games, putting him into a tie with Winnipeg rookie Patrik Laine for the NHL lead in that category. Laine has played eight more games.The anomaly in Crosbys game is his goals-to-assists ratio. He has three times as many goals as his four assists. He has never finished with more goals than assists in an NHL season.For whatever reason, thats just the way its worked out, he recently told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. I dont feel like Im looking to shoot any more. Thats one thing I have to constantly remind myself of, to have that shooting mentality. I would probably look to pass most times.Crosby is not shooting appreciably more -- 3.6 shots a game this season, 3.3 for his career.Since their team captain got into the lineup, the Penguins are 8-2-2.Overall, Pittsburgh is 11-4-3. That makes Mondays game a showdown for first place in the Metropolitan Division between the Penguins, with 25 points, and the Rangers (13-5-1, 27 points), who are coming off of a 3-2 shootout loss Sunday against Florida in their first game beyond regulation this season.This is the first meeting between the clubs since the Penguins knocked New York out of the playoffs in the opening round last spring.Sundays game -- one made worse by a broken left leg suffered by Mika Zibanejad in overtime -- was the Rangers second loss in a row, and their four combined goals in those games are uncharacteristic. They have thrived on offensse.dddddddddddd They have a league-best 76 goals and a plus-31 goal differential. They have 14 players with at least 10 points, and Michael Grabner sits just behind Crosby and Laine with 11 goals.But New York also has gotten strong goaltending. Henrik Lundqvist missed a shot at his 10th win Sunday. Antti Raanta, who seems likely to start Monday, hasnt played a lot, but he has been effective, going 4-0 with a 2.05 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage.Im not worried at all about Antti, Rangers coach Alain Vigneault told the New York Post recently about Raanta. We know hes always going to give us a chance to win.Raanta said its about finding a good New York backup state of mind.I just think about good things and what youre doing and what it takes, and just enjoy the moment, he told the Post. Its the best league in the world, and youre fortunate enough to be here. Just go there and do your best and, hopefully, you get the win.Pittsburgh, coming off of a 1-1-1 road trip, lags behind the Rangers in terms of offensive prowess despite returning nearly the same lineup from its Stanley Cup team last season and Crosbys goal production. The Penguins have five players with at least 10 points. It scored just five goals on the three-game road trip. It has outscored its opponents by just two goals, 52-50.Were going to keep moving forward. All we can do is control the process and whats in front of us. Were grabbing points here along the way and winning some games, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said.The teams wont have to wait long for their second meeting. This is the first half of a home-and-home. They have a rematch Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. ' ' '