Bewerbung » I had two pathetic rounds this week,"

NEW YORK -- It certainly appears that trip to Las Vegas turned Travis dArnaud into a much more confident hitter. The rookie catcher snapped an eighth-inning tie with a two-run double, and the New York Mets overcame an early injury to starter Jonathon Niese, beating the skidding Texas Rangers 6-5 Friday night to stop a four-game slide. "Felt really good," dArnaud said. "Its a big win for us to start the homestand." Lucas Duda hit a two-run homer off Yu Darvish, and the Mets opened a 10-game homestand with their second victory in nine games. An angry Niese left in the first with a bruised lower back after he was hit by Alex Rios line drive. X-rays were negative, the team said. Star third baseman David Wright missed his seventh straight game with a sore left shoulder, but fill-in Eric Campbell had three hits and an RBI for New York. Carlos Torres, pressed into long relief when Niese was injured, gave up two runs in 4 2-3 valuable innings. "Nobody expects stuff like that to happen. It does. This is baseball," Torres said. "Whoever they call down for, they step up and go out there and go do their job." Shin-Soo Choo hit a leadoff homer, and Adrian Beltre also went deep for the Rangers, who have dropped six in a row and 14 of 16. Their 10-game losing streak on the road is the clubs longest since a 12-game skid in 2003. "One day the pitching is really good, and one day the offence isnt helping," Choo said. "Right now, everything bad is coming together at the same time." Bobby Abreu drew a leadoff walk from Aaron Poreda (2-1) in the eighth and Campbell singled off Jason Frasor with one out before dArnaud sent a drive up the alley in right-centre. Batting .180 when he was sent to Triple-A Las Vegas in early June, dArnaud quickly went on a power-hitting tear in the Pacific Coast League. Brought back to the big leagues, he is hitting .303 with six RBIs in nine games since he was recalled. "I just try to keep my mind at ease and keep everything simple and not overstress myself, and thats been paying off," dArnaud said. Jenrry Mejia (5-3) retired Rios with two runners in scoring position to end the eighth. Mejia allowed an RBI single by Adam Rosales in the ninth before retiring pinch-hitter Robinson Chirinos on a tricky popup to finish a plodding game on Fireworks Night that took 4 hours, 8 minutes. Darvish, pushed back a day because of rain Thursday in Baltimore, entered with dominant stats against NL teams. But he was off in this one, allowing four runs and five hits in five innings. "He was a little erratic with his command, but I thought he did a good job of righting the ship there in the last three innings," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. Choo hit his 13th career leadoff homer, second this season, on Nieses third pitch. Moments later, Rios drive nailed Niese on the left side of his lower back. He recovered in time to get Rios at first base -- the only out he got -- before manager Terry Collins, pitching coach Dan Warthen and trainer Ray Ramirez came out to check on the left-hander. Niese repeatedly told Collins he was fine, but was removed without trying a warmup pitch. Torres was given all the time he needed to get loose. "It was precaution more than anything," Collins said. Niese fired his glove against the dugout wall and knocked over a bucket of bubble gum before disappearing down the tunnel. The teams most reliable starter this season, Niese was done after 12 pitches. He has gone 21 straight starts without allowing more than three earned runs -- the longest active streak in the majors. "Theres not much to say other than Im fine. I didnt want to be taken out. I just felt like I was cheated there a little bit," Niese said. Elvis Andrus had his second consecutive three-hit game for the Rangers. Darvish doubled to the left-centre fence for his second hit in 11 major league at-bats -- the first for extra bases. NOTES: Rather than risk a weather-related flight delay, the Rangers bused from Baltimore to New York after Thursday nights loss. Washington said it took about 3 hours, 15 minutes, and the team arrived around 3:30 a.m. ... Mets RHP Dillon Gee (strained right lat) went six innings in a rehab start for Class-A Brooklyn, striking out 10. He threw 75 pitches and gave up one run and three hits. ... Before the game, there was a video tribute and a moment of silence for former Mets GM Frank Cashen, the architect of their 1986 championship team. Cashen died Monday, and the Mets are honouring him by wearing a memorial patch with his initials on their sleeves. ... Wright hopes to play Saturday. Frederik Gauthier Jersey . You can catch all of the action LIVE on TSN2 at 6pm et/3pm pt. The Heat reached that mark Saturday night when they ruined the Philadelphia 76ers home opener. Frederik Andersen Jersey . Some teams got significantly better, some teams divested themselves of talent and some teams had quiet afternoons, keeping the status quo. http://www.mapleleafsteamstoreonline.com/authentic-borje-salming-maple-leafs-jersey/ . Louis, MO (SportsNetwork. Darcy Tucker Maple Leafs Jersey . Jeff Carter had two goals and an assist as the Kings stretched their streak to seven wins in a row with a 4-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday. Kasperi Kapanen Maple Leafs Jersey . Irving played 10 minutes Sunday night before going to the locker room. He had two points and four assists, missing all five of his shots. The All-Star game MVP is the top scorer among Eastern Conference point guards with 21.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- J.B. Holmes was a 3-foot putt away from winning the Wells Fargo Championship when he backed away to size up the situation. This wasnt about pressure. He was just happy to be there. Nearly three years removed from brain surgery, Holmes was in a far better place Sunday at Quail Hollow. His 3-foot bogey putt gave him a 1-under 71 and a one-shot victory over Jim Furyk, capping a remarkable comeback from a health issue that wouldnt be classified as the garden variety in golf. Not many other guys keep a piece of their skull in a container in their closet. "Just enjoying the moment," Holmes said. "You dont get that very often, so getting up and thanking God for letting me have the opportunity to do it. Whether I made it or not, just enjoy being there." He made it more stressful than he needed, with two bogeys on the last three holes and an 8-foot par putt on the other. Jason Bohn had the best chance to catch Holmes, one shot behind until pulling a 4-iron into the water on the par-3 17th and making double bogey. Phil Mickelson never had a chance, missing four putts from the 4-foot range and closing with a 76 to finish out of the top 10. It was the third PGA Tour win for Holmes, and by far the sweetest. Three years ago, he began to feel dizzy, and it wasnt much longer when he was diagnosed with structural defects in the cerebellum known as Chiara malformations. He had brain surgery -- twice. The first time was to remove a piece of his skull. The second time was from an allergic reaction to the adhesive that was holding the titanium plate to the base of the skull, causing severe headaches. If that wasnt enough, he injured his left elbow from hitting too many golf balls in a rush to return. Holmes spent a year getting more cortisone shots that he cared to remember, and when he broke his ankle while roller blading for exercise last year, he used that time to have elbow surgery. "Its been a long journey for me," Holmes said. "Ive had some ups and downs. Its a great feeling to be out there and to get one done." Holmes made enough key putts to allow for some mistakes at the end. He ran off three birdies in a four-hole stretch around the turn, including a 30-footer on No. 11 that opened up a two-shot lead. He gouged a fairway metal out of the rough on the par-5 15th to set up a 6-foot birdie putt that stretched his lead to three shots. Perhaps the biggest putt of all was an 8-foot par save on the 17th hole. That kept his lead at two shots, and he needed it. Instead of playing an irron off the tee, he drove into the right rough, came up well short of the green and chipped weakly to 45 feet.dddddddddddd Furyk was watching on TV in the locker room when Holmes knocked in the bogey putt to finish at 14-under 274. Martin Flores, in his first time playing in the last group, fell too far back with a three-putt bogey on the 13th. He made bogey on the 18th for a 72 and was third, the best finish of his PGA Tour career. Bohn also bogeyed the 18th for a 70 to finish fourth. Bohn received a bad time on the 16th hole -- one more would have been a one-shot penalty -- and said he let it get to him. "I didnt feel comfortable with the wind starting to gust up a little bit, and I went ahead and hit it anyhow in a situation that I probably would have backed off in," Bohn said. "So Im more disappointing in myself and the way that I handled that than the golf shots that I hit." Still, the biggest disappointment might have been Mickelson. He was in great shape going into the final round, two shots out of the lead, and the two players ahead of him stalled at the start. Instead, Mickelson matched his highest final round on the PGA Tour since The Barclays in 2012. And it was an old nemesis -- short putting -- that did him in. Mickelson three-putted from 15 feet on No. 8. He missed a 3-foot par putt on the 11th, a 4-foot birdie putt on the 14th and four-putted from 30 feet on the 16th. "I had two great rounds and I had two pathetic rounds this week," Mickelson said. "The greens putted perfectly, even though I didnt." The challenge came three others, with a series of eagles that injected some drama into Quail Hollow, if only briefly. Furyk chipped in for eagle from off the 15th green and then closed with three straight pars for a 65 to sit in the clubhouse at 13-under 275. Bohn holed out a sand wedge from 95 yards on the par-5 10th hole that disappeared into the cup on the third bounce. He also chipped in for birdie on No. 12. Flores chipped in for eagle from short of the 10th green that allowed him to tie for the lead, but only until Holmes made a short birdie putt of his own on No. 10. Holmes ran in the long birdie putt on the next hole for a two-shot lead, and he stayed in control the rest of the way. Holmes still has that container with a piece of his skull somewhere in his closet. He doesnt use it as inspiration. Hes not even sure where it is. So when asked if he would put the trophy from Wells Fargo next to it, Holmes chuckled. "Ill put the skull in the trophy," he said. ' ' '