NEW YORK -- If only the Washington Nationals could play all their road games at Citi Field. Adam LaRoche and Anthony Rendon had two-run homers off Bartolo Colon, who was ejected after hitting the following batter both times, and the Nationals beat New York 6-2 Thursday night for their 12th straight win at the Mets. "We dont really notice it all, actually," said Tanner Roark (13-10), who improved to 4-0 in four career starts against the Mets. "Its just another game weve got to go out there and win." Washington improved to 26-4 at Citi Field since September 2011, outscoring the Mets 156-68 and outhomering them 49-18 in that span. LaRoche had three RBIs, hitting a two-run, first-inning homer against Colon (13-12) that clanked high off the right-field foul pole. He has 28 home runs against the Mets. "I dont know what it is," LaRoche said. "This year, I know Ive been pretty comfortable against them for whatever reason. There are certain pitchers as a hitter you match up well, just timing-wise, youre just kind of in rhythm with them." Washington opened its NL East lead to 8 1/2 games over second-place Atlanta, and the Nationals lowered their magic number to nine for clinching their second division title in three seasons. They have the most consecutive victories at an opponent since Cincinnati won 12 straight at Wrigley Field from Aug. 10, 2012 to June 12, 2013, according to STATS. After LaRoches homer, Colon hit Ian Desmond with a pitch near the waist two pitches later. Rendon, playing after missing a game because of a cold, hit another two-run homer in the fourth that made it 6-0, a drive that struck the orange line atop the left-field wall, ricocheted off the dark green railing behind, hit back off the orange line and bounded onto the field. The play was upheld on a video review, and Colon hit Jayson Werth above the left elbow with the next pitch. Werth looked out toward the mound, and plate umpire John Tumpane ejected the pitcher. New York manager Terry Collins came out of the dugout to speak with Tumpane, and he also was ejected. Colon hit two batters in one game for just the fifth time in his big career and first time since 2009. "All I know is that hes got exceptional control," Nationals manager Matt Williams said. It was the fourth career ejection for Colon, his first since 2003. "I think I didnt do anything wrong," he said through a translator. "I was surprised they threw me out of the game." Colon allowed six runs -- five earned -- seven hits and two walks in three-plus innings. Colon has a 7.07 ERA in the first inning with 22 earned runs and 38 hits in 28 innings. Roark gave up two runs and seven hits in 6 1-3 innings to win four the first time in four starts since Aug. 20. After Dilson Herreras RBI single in the seventh, Craig Stammen relieved with the bases loaded and got Wilmer Flores to hit into an inning-ending double play. Matt Thornton hit Daniel Murphy on the left wrist in the eighth, loading the bases with one out. Lucas Duda lined out, and Tyler Clippard struck out Anthony Recker. "Weve got to play better. Thats the only reason theyre beating us at home. Were just not playing," Collins said. "Tonight we had several opportunities to get back in the game and we didnt do anything." REMEMBERING Only 2,000 to 3,000 fans were in the stands during the pregame ceremony marking the 13th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. Washington wore its alternate dark road jerseys with a stars and stripes curly "W," and during batting practice the Mets wore hats of the New York police and fire department and other services. While the announced attendance was 21,111, it appeared less than half that amount was in the stands. TRAINERS ROOM Nationals: Ryan Zimmerman, sidelined since straining his right hamstring on July 22, is taking pregame workouts, and Williams said the team will decide this weekend whether to send him to instructional league for games. ... Desmond returned to the starting lineup after missing a game because of a sore lower back. Mets: OF Matt den Dekker missed his second straight start after being hit by a pitch on his left hand Tuesday but pinch ran for Murphy in the eighth. UP NEXT LHP Gio Gonzalez is slated to start for Washington on Friday and RHP Dillon Gee for New York. Michael Taylor Jersey .com) - The Ottawa Senators will try to keep their slim playoff hopes alive when they face the Chicago Blackhawks who are trying to secure their place in the post-season. Daniel Murphy Jersey . The commissioners office said Friday that Sears tested positive for metabolites of Methandienone. Sears will be 23 in March. He signed with the Braves in June 2013 out of Arizona Christian, an NAIA school, and is on the roster of the rookie-level Gulf Coast League Braves. http://www.cheapnationalsjerseyschina.com/ . The 25-year-old native of Milford, Conn., has 18 points in 41 games this season. The five-foot-eight 166-pound centre also has 28 points (10-18) in 15 games with AHL Oklahoma City. Max Scherzer Jersey .com) - Patrik Elias registered the winner in the shootout as New Jersey nipped Toronto 2-1 at Prudential Center on Wednesday. Shawn Kelley Jersey .com) - Devan Dubnyk stopped all 30 shots fired his way and made several big saves down the stretch for his third shutout of the season as the Minnesota Wild beat the Calgary Flames 1-0 on Tuesday.If you had two sets of data, one being a team’s shooting percentage, and the other being a team’s ability to generate shot-attempts, which set would be better in terms of predicting future 5-on-5 goal-scoring ability? At first blush, one may guess the former. After all, it gives us the percentage of shots on net that result in a goal. The latter set of data only tells us how frequently shots are generated, and tells us little – if anything – about a team’s goal-scoring ability. But, that’s not the case. Plenty of work has been done on this topic, particularly at even-strength. The answer is clear: shot-attempt metrics and puck possession proxies like Corsi are much more predictive than shooting percentage, primarily because shooting percentage is swamped by random variance. It’s important to note that this also holds true for special teams. While many hockey analysts appear to obsess over raw conversion rates, the same above principle – that shot generation is far more predictive of future success (or failure) than shooting percentage – is vital in forecasting future success. Why? Because shooting percentage, even in a power-play situation where scoring chances are aplenty, is not a very repeatable skill. It’s easy to illustrate this by simply grabbing a team’s shooting percentage over the first half of the season, and finding how well it correlates to the team’s shooting percentage over the second half of the season. Taken from the years 2007 through 2011: I included the coefficient of determination (0.01) – or percent of variance explained – to illustrate the randomness in shooting percentage. As you can see, a team’s 5-on-4 shooting percentage through the first 41 games of the season does nothing in terms of telling us how well it will convert on shots over the next 41 games. Shot-attempt generation, we know, is a repeatable 5-on-5 skill. Does the same hold true for 5-on-4? Let’s grab the CorsiFor/60 for the same teams in the above sample, and see if their first-half numbers and second-half numbers show similarity. The graph and coefficient of determination here are much more convincing. A team’s ability to generate (or not generate) shots through the first 41 games will likely carry over to the next 41 games, which means this particular measurement has predictive value – far more than, say, shooting percentage. More than anything else, I think this topic is timely. If you poll members and fans of the National Hockey League as to who the league’s deadliest power-play is right now, I think you’ll get a stunningly similar response in the Pittsburgh Penguins. Now, that’s a decent choice – they have a ton of talented forwards, they have exhibited ability to generate shot-attempts with frequency in every game-state, and they have puck-movers on the back-end who can whip the puck through the neutral zone with tempo. All of that iss fantastic However, the primary reason I think most would select the Pittsburgh Penguins right now is conveniently tied into the fact that they’ve converted on 31.dddddddddddd.6% of their power-plays through a 17.54% shooting percentage, second-highest in the league. But, if we are trying to forecast future outcomes, we know to move away from shooting percentages and gravitate towards shot generation. How do the Pittsburgh Penguins look in that aspect of the game? Power Play CorsiFor/60 Rank Team CorsiFor/60 1. Washington Capitals 127.7 2. San Jose Sharks 114.3 3. Arizona Coyotes 113.9 4. Philadelphia Flyers 106.2 5. Chicago Blackhawks 104.2 6. Toronto Maple Leafs 102.5 7. Winnipeg Jets 102.3 8. Detroit Red Wings 101.5 9. Boston Bruins 100.9 10. Ottawa Senators 96.8 11. New York Rangers 95.2 12. Pittsburgh Penguins 95.1 In reality, what we have in Pittsburgh is a good power-play with elite scoring talent. I’m highly skeptical, however, that it’s going to be the best unit by the end of the season, because it still pales in comparison to the units established in Washington (currently 28.8% conversion rate; 2nd) and San Jose (currently a 23.8% conversion rate; 4th), both historically and through the first leg of 2014-2015. Washington’s power-play has been performance art for years, and if nothing else, these early season numbers show the kind of incredible ability they have at blitzing opposing penalty kill units. Their scheme starts with a series of well-designed neutral zone rushes, and almost always features the likes of Nicklas Backstrom and Marcus Johansson on the right-side of the ice, with Alex Ovechkin waiting in his one-time wheelhouse for cross-ice passes. Backstrom and Johansson generally engage in sequences of back-and-forth passing to draw the defense deeper towards their own crease, which sets up two other options away from the Ovechkin primary at the blueline. If the defense pays too much respect to Ovechkin, Mike Green, John Carlson, and Matt Niskanen hammer away from the point. And if the defense pays equitable respect to the point shot and Ovechkin, Backstrom and Johansson needle their way deeper into the box of the penalty kill. If teams are looking at ways to improve their power play through modelling the attacking styles around the league, they could do worse than Mike Johnston’s Pittsburgh Penguins. But, right now, the kings of 5-on-4 still reside in the D.C. area. And, the king of predictive utility for power-play performance is still embedded in shot attempts. 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"He has taken advantage of his opportunities since signing with our team as an undrafted free agent in 2010 and has certainly earned this extension. Extending the contracts of our young and talented players has always been, and will continue to be, one of our primary goals." He had 16 tackles and a forced fumble last season and shared the team lead with 15 tackles on special teams. His primary role was a special-teams standout until he has recently received more responsibility in the secondary. The 25-year-old Brock made two interceptions in 11 games in 2011. He signed a one-year tender in April for this season. Baalke and coach Jim Harbaugh have worked to retain their talented young players for the long haul, something they feel is essential to sustaining the franchises recent success. The 49ers talented linebacking corps of NaVorro Bowman, Patrick Willis, Ahmad Brooks and Aldon Smith are signed long-term. Last November, Bowman received a five-year contract extension through the 2018 season, Willis is signed through 2016, Brooks through 2017 and Smith through 2015. Cornerback Carlos Rogers received a $31.3 million, four-year contract in March 2012. With Brock now signed for the immediate future, the 49ers can allow Chris Culliver -- the teams No. 3 cornerback last season -- plenty of time to recover from a season-ending knee injury suffered in August during training camp. Brown sustained a rib injury during last Sundays 23-20 loss at New Orleans. "Hes just got to be ready to play every play not knowing hes got built in breaks when were in base like he had for the first however many games he was playing," defensive co-ordinator Vic Fangio said Friday of Brock. "There is a change, but its just got to be a mental adjustment for him." Qadree Ollison Jersey . They have homered once every 27.3 at bats, which just happens to be the third best mark in the American League, albeit just 10 games into the season. Deion Sanders Jersey . Louis Cardinals have agreed to a one-year contract. http://www.cheapfalconsjerseysauthentic.com/ . Cabrera is hitting .218 with three homers and 16 RBI in 80 games this season. The Padres recalled second baseman Brooks Conrad from Triple-A El Paso to replace Cabrera on the roster. Falcons Jerseys China . A better question yet may be this: How many times has the same player been involved in both? Morneau hit a two-run homer in the 10th inning and helped the Colorado Rockies turn the third triple play in team history as they beat the San Diego Padres 8-6 on Sunday. Steve Bartkowski Jersey . In fact, with a few improvements, this could very well be a decent team over the next few seasons. I will go into more detail when digging into the Canucks Off-Season Game Plan, which will be coming earlier this year since they are part of the non-playoff contingent, there are some reasons to think this is a favourable situation for President of Hockey Operations Trevor Linden and whomever he selects to be the new general manager.MELBOURNE, Australia - Tournament favourite Iran downed a spirited Bahrain 2-0 and the United Arab Emirates trounced Qatar 4-1 in the opening Group C matches of the Asian Cup on Sunday.Ehsan Hajsafi and Masoud Shojaei scored late in each half to give Iran the win over Bahrain in a contest that started at a frenetic pace with plenty of chances for each side.Man Of The Match Hajsafi finally made the breakthrough for Iran in the second minute of first-half stoppage time when he gathered an attempted clearance from an Andranik Teymourian corner to fire the ball from just outside the area over the Bahrain defence and the outstretched arms of goalkeeper Sayed Mohamed Abbas.It was an unbelievable goal in any football stadium in the world, said Iran coach Carlos Queiroz.Iran doubled its lead in the 71st minute when Masoud collected a Teymourian cross and guided the ball past the near post.Iran and the UAE now share the Group C lead with one win each.Earlier, Ahmed Khalil and Ali Mabkhout scored two goals apiece as the UAE took advantage of a series of goalkeeping errors to beat Qatar 4-1 in the Group C opener in Canberra.The Melbourne match was virtually a home game for the Iranians with most of the 17,700-strong crowd at the Rectangular Stadium made up of chanting Iran fans dressed in the teams white, red and green.Thankfully tonight we performed very well and started our opening night with a victory, Hajsafi said. I am personally very glad because all the fans who were in the stadium are happy and that was a good start for us.The Bahrainis were determined not to be awed by their higher-ranked opponents and took advantage of every opportunity to threaten the Iran goal.Bahrain started the game better than us for the first 10 minutes until we were able to settle down our game, Queiroz said. It was necessary to play with full concentration and true fighting spirit to stop the movements of Bahrain.After the first ten minutes I think we controlled the game and we created the best opporrtunities in the game.dddddddddddd We scored and I think we deserved to win, the Portuguese-born coach added.Iran had three goals called back for offside, while Reza Ghoochannejhad came close to scoring early in the second half when he forced a scrambling save from Abbas with a slow shot from inside the box toward the left corner of the goal.Bahrains best chance of the second half came when Teymourian was called for tripping Faouzi Aaish, but Husain Baba Mohameds free kick cleared the wall only to be easily saved by Iran keeper Alireza Haghighi.The Iran team is very strong, Bahrain coach Marjan Eid said. I would like to thank my players. We lost three points, but my players did a good job and we have some chance in the second and third matches.In Canberra, Qatar goalkeeper Qasem Burhan was at least partially responsible for three goals in a blundering opener for the 2014 Gulf Cup champions.He made two mistakes but this is football, said Qatar coach Djamel Belmadi. In the previous competition, he was the best goalkeeper of the tournament. Today was not his day ... but the defenders also did not help him.It was Qatar that took the lead midway through the first half. Majed Naser blocked an initial shot from Mohammed Muntari but Khalfan Ibrahim, positioned on the edge of the area, chested the ball down and lobbed it back beautifully over the head of the retreating UAE goalkeeper.The UAE equalized nine minutes before the break when Qasem spilled a cross and, after a scramble in a crowded area, a defensive goal-line clearance from a Khalil header bounced off the strikers chest and into the net.Khalils free kick early in the second half deceived Qasem and bounced into the far corner of the Qatari goal.Khamis Esmaeels well-struck free kick was parried by the Qatari goalkeeper into the path of Mabkhout, who scored into an empty net from close range. The striker added another goal in the 89th, ensuring the UAE scored four goals in an Asian Cup game for the first time. 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