NEU » o Cubs second baseman Ben Zobrist

ANAHEIM -- A former Cy Young Award winner likely will pitch with his career on the line when the Los Angeles Angels and the Texas Rangers meet Tuesday night at Angel Stadium.Right-hander Tim Lincecum, once the mainstay of the San Francisco Giants rotation, will face the Rangers Kyle Lohse with his spot in the rotation -- and perhaps on the roster -- in jeopardy.Lincecum, who won two Cy Young Awards while helping the Giants win three World Series, underwent hip surgery in September and had not pitched in 11 months when the Angels signed him May 20 to bolster their beleaguered rotation. His season debut followed a script that screenwriters for the Hallmark Channel could have produced.At the O.co Coliseum in Oakland on June 18, Lincecum earned a 7-1 victory over the Athletics in his first appearance since June 27, 2015. The right-hander threw six innings and allowed one run, two walks and four hits while adding two strikeouts.Since then, however, the fairy tale has turned ugly.Not only has Lincecum failed to win any of his four ensuing starts but the former ace has pitched just 17 2/3 innings and failed to last longer than 5 2/3 innings during any single appearance. During that stretch, the right-hander permitted four home runs among the 34 hits he allowed and compiled a 9.17 earned-run average.With left-hander Tyler Skaggs close to returning after missing nearly two years because of Tommy John surgery, Lincecum has little margin for error.I think for any player on a major league field, its performance based, Angels manager Mike Scioscia told MLB.com. He needs to perform well, and nobody is immune to that. But we have a lot of confidence that he is going to do what he needs to do to be one of those five guys who are going to give us a chance to win games as a starting pitcher.Lohse finds himself in a similar situation. After going 5-13 with a 5.85 ERA for the Milwaukee Brewers last year, Lohse languished on the free-agent market until May 13, when he signed a minor league contract with the Rangers. The right-hander made 10 starts at Triple-A Round Rock before being promoted to make his season debut July 9.But in that game against the Minnesota Twins, Lohse surrendered six runs on nine hits while throwing 99 pitches in just five innings. Worse, Lohse sustained a mild strain in his right oblique muscle that forced him to begin an immediate program of accelerated recovery.I didnt have that fun of an All-Star break, doing two-a-day treatments to see how good we can get this thing going quickly, Lohse told MLB.com. It didnt feel like it was going to be something short. But we have been making progress every day.That progress culminated Saturday, when Lohse threw a bullpen session before the Rangers game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field and felt no ill effects.I came out of the bullpen session feeling good with minimal soreness, Lohse told MLB.com. We did a lot of work on it and feel good where its at.Had Lohse been unable to pitch Tuesday night, right-hander Nick Martinez would have been recalled from Round Rock to make the start. Martinez had been optioned July 8 but made one start for the Express, making him eligible to return quickly. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . -- Quarterback Will Finch threw for 252 yards and three touchdowns, and Yannick Harou rushed in two scores as the No. China Jerseys Authentic . And follow TSN.ca right through Deadline Day for all the updates. 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WASHINGTON -- The Washington Nationals returned to form and generated some momentum for their showdown with the New York Mets.Bryce Harper hit the first of Washingtons three home runs, and the Nationals overpowered the Milwaukee Brewers 7-4 Wednesday to avert a three-game sweep.Jose Lobaton and Ryan Zimmerman also connected for the NL East-leading Nationals, who open a four-game series Thursday night at second-place New York before heading into the All-Star break.Its critical because theyre chasing us and were trying to put some distance on them, Washington manager Dusty Baker said. Its very important.After watching the Nationals score a combined two runs in two games against the Brewers, Baker said before the finale, Were operating at a low energy level right now.Harper remedied that with a three-run shot in the first inning, the Nationals first long ball in three games. Lobaton made it 4-0 in the second and Zimmerman chased Brewers starter Matt Garza (1-2) with a two-run drive in the fifth for a 7-4 lead.Tanner Roark (8-5) allowed four runs and seven hits in seven innings for the Nationals. The right-hander also beat the Brewers on June 26 to help Washington dodge a three-game sweep.He pounded the strike zone, Harper said. When he goes out there, its usually a quick game and a lot of fun.Jonathan Papelbon worked the ninth for his 17th save in 19 chances.Afterward, the Nationals turned their attention toward their trip to New York, knowing a sweep either way would have a huge impact on the standings.How many games are we up on them? Four? Harper said. We could either be tied or up eight. Its plain and simple.Scooter Gennett had two RBI and stole home for the Brewers. Despite the loss, Milwaukee finished 4-2 against the Nationals to win the season series for the first since 2010.Builds our confidence knowing you can play with the best, Gennett said.Garza gave up seven runs, eight hits and two walks in 4 1/3 innings. He is 1-5 with a 7.69 ERA in 10 starts against Washington.Behind in a lot of counts today and I had to pitch from behind and thats what happens, Garza said.dddddddddddd You just put it in the back of your mind and get through it and get to the next one.The right-hander ran into difficulty almost immediately, giving up singles to Ben Revere and Jayson Werth before Harper hit his 18th home run, an opposite-field poke to left.After retiring the first six batters, Roark gave up five singles in the third. Milwaukee drew even when Gennett scored on the front end of a double steal.Stephen Drew hit a two-out RBI double in the bottom half for a 5-4 lead.MAKE SOME NOISEBaker is asking the home fans to crank up the volume in the second half of the season. Some of the guys on the team wish our fans were more boisterous and crazy, like we see at different stadiums on the road, he said. Taking into account the transient nature of Washington, Baker added, We realize a lot of fans are new. Were trying to win everybody over to us. We need their energy, big time.CLOSE CALLAccording to Major League Baseball, the 88-vote margin by which Chicago Cubs second baseman Ben Zobrist defeated Washingtons Daniel Murphy to start in the All-Star Game (3,013,407 to 3,013,319) was the closest margin since 1982, when Manny Trillo defeated Steve Sax for NL 2B by 1,625 votes.WIN AND OUTBrewers: RHP Zach Davies, who started and won Tuesdays game, was optioned to Triple-A Colorado Springs. 1B Andy Wilkins was recalled from the same minor league club.TRAINERS ROOMNationals: RHP Joe Ross (right shoulder inflammation) has been inactive since being placed on the DL on Sunday. Hes shut down right now. Were trying to get the inflammation out of there, Baker said.UP NEXTBrewers: After taking Thursday off, the Brewers welcome St. Louis for a three-game series leading up to the All-Star break.Nationals: The Nationals send rookie Lucas Giolito to the mound Thursday night. He pitched four scoreless innings in his debut. ' ' '